Chapter 286

Another shot rang out.

It missed them.

He looked up.

Dante stood near the edge of the roof, one hand gripping the railing and the other holding a gun.

His injured leg was bleeding heavily. His face was contorted with rage. He had found another way down. Or he had never intended to remain on the roof.

It didn’t matter.

He was here, and he was still armed.

Adrian pushed himself upright.

Pain shot through his back.

He nearly collapsed.

Emilia caught his arm. "Adrian!"

"I’m fine."

Her eyes were wide with fear.

He softened his voice. "I’m sorry. I need you to stand."

She shook her head. "I can’t."

"Yes, you can."

"My legs—"

"I know."

He moved slowly, helping her sit up before shifting his weight beneath her.

"Put your arm around me."

She obeyed, trembling.

Adrian pushed himself to his feet.

The movement nearly brought him to his knees. He gritted his teeth and kept standing.

His back throbbed with every breath, and his injured shoulder was becoming increasingly difficult to move.

But he could still walk, and that was enough.

He wrapped one arm around Emilia’s waist and guided her toward the waiting cars.

Behind them, Dante shouted something.

Adrian didn’t turn. Not while Emilia was leaning against him, barely able to keep her legs steady.

He heard footsteps behind them.

His men were moving.

Someone shouted an order, and a door slammed.

Adrian kept walking. "Stay with me," he murmured.

Emilia nodded against his shoulder.

He tightened his arm around her.

Her face was wet with tears, and there was a faint red mark around her neck where Dante’s fingers had been.

Adrian’s vision blurred. He looked away before she could see what that did to him.

They reached the car.

One of his men was already opening the rear door.

Selena sat inside, wrapped in a dark coat. Four armed men stood nearby, two on either side of the vehicle, their weapons drawn as they watched the building.

The moment Selena saw Emilia, she lurched forward.

"Emilia!"

"Mum!"

Selena reached for her daughter.

Emilia moved toward her, but Adrian caught her arm before she could stumble.

"Careful."

He helped her into the car.

Selena immediately pulled her into an embrace, holding her face between her hands and checking her for injuries.

"My baby. Oh, my baby."

Emilia clung to her mother.

For a moment, she seemed to forget everything else. She buried her face against Selena’s shoulder and cried.

Selena kissed her hair, murmuring words Adrian couldn’t hear.

He stood beside the open door, one hand pressed against his back.

He needed to get Emilia away from the building. He needed to make sure Selena was safe.

He needed to deal with Dante.

He needed to do a hundred things, and every one of them seemed impossible while his body screamed with pain.

He looked toward the building.

A figure moved in the darkness near the entrance.

One of his men raised his weapon.

Another shouted for everyone to hold position.

Adrian turned back to the car. If he didn’t stop Dante now, he would keep coming. Adrian had spent too long trying to protect her from the consequences of Dante’s actions.

Tonight, that ended.

He looked at Emilia.

She was still holding her mother, her face buried against Selena’s shoulder.

He reached out and brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead.

She lifted her eyes. He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Emilia closed her eyes.

When he pulled away, she caught his wrist.

"Don’t go."

The words were so quiet that he almost pretended he hadn’t heard them.

He looked at her. "I need to make sure he’s not coming after you."

"Then send someone else."

"I can’t."

"Adrian—"

He gently removed her hand from his wrist. "I’ll be back."

She stared at him.

He wanted to say more.

He wanted to explain that this was not a choice he was making because he thought he could control everything. It was a choice he was making because Dante had already demonstrated what he would do if left unchecked.

He wanted Emilia to understand that he was not abandoning her.

But he could see the fear in her eyes.

And he knew that no explanation would make it easier for her to watch him walk away.

He swallowed. "I promise you." Then he nodded toward Selena. "Keep her with you."

Selena looked at him. "Adrian, don’t—"

He held her gaze. "Please."

She tightened her arms around Emilia.

Adrian turned to one of his men. "Leave."

The man hesitated. "Sir?"

"Take the car and get them out of here. Keep four armed men with them. No stops, and no detours. I want them somewhere secure."

"Understood."

The man moved toward the driver’s door.

Adrian turned back to Emilia.

She was staring at him like he was speaking a language she could not understand. Her eyes widened as she realised what he was doing.

"No."

He reached for the door.

"Adrian, no."

He closed it. The sound was soft, and fial.

Emilia lunged toward the handle. It didn’t move. She pulled again.

The door remained locked.

"Adrian?"

He stepped back from the vehicle.

Her face changed. "Open the door."

He looked at her through the glass.

She tried the handle again.b"Adrian, open the door."

He gave her a soft, pained look. Then he turned away.

For one second, she didn’t understand.bShe watched him walk toward the building, his shoulders stiff and his steps uneven.

He was limping.

He was hurt.

He had barely been able to stand a moment earlier, and now he was walking away from her.

Back toward Dante. Back toward the man who had held her over the roof. Back toward the danger Adrian had just dragged her out of.

Emilia slammed her palm against the window.

"Adrian!"

He didn’t turn.

She hit the glass again. "ADRIAN!"

Selena grabbed her arm. "Baby, stop."

Emilia twisted away. "No! Open the door!"

She pulled the handle so hard that it hurt her fingers. It wouldn’t move. She struck the window with both hands.

"Adrian, please!"

He kept walking.

She could see him through the glass, his dark clothes disappearing into the shadows as he moved farther away.

He turned his head once, and their eyes met once again.

Even through the window, even across the distance, she could see the pain in his expression.

He looked at her as though leaving her was the last thing he wanted to do. Then he turned away again.

Emilia’s breath caught.

"No." She pressed both palms against the glass. "Don’t do this to me."

The car’s engine started.

She heard it, but she barely registered the sound. "Adrian, please. Please, don’t leave me." Her voice broke.

She hit the door again.

"OPEN THE DOOR!"

Selena wrapped both arms around her from behind. "Emilia, sweetheart—"

"Let go of me, Mum!"

"You’re hurt."

"I DON’T CARE!"

The words tore out of her.

She struggled against her mother’s hold, trying to reach the door, trying to find a way out of the car.

Selena tightened her arms. "Baby, please. Please, listen to me."

Emilia shook her head violently. "No, no, no—"

She couldn’t stop looking through the window.

Adrian was getting farther away.

Then she began to cry again. "Dad wants to kill him."

Selena went still.

Emilia stared through the glass, her hands pressed against the door. "Dad wants to kill him." Her voice trembled. "He wants to kill Adrian."

Selena pulled her closer. "Emilia—"

"He’ll kill him, Mum."

She shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

"He’ll kill him, and I can’t—" Her voice broke. She struck the window again. "Adrian, please!"

Outside, he continued toward the building.

He did not look back.

And Emilia, trapped behind the locked door, watched the man she loved disappear into the darkness.