Chapter 6 - The Broken Door
Julian didn't wait for Vane to fumble with the keys. With a single, explosive kick, the reinforced iron lock of cell number four shattered, the heavy door swinging inward and banging against the damp brick wall.
Naomi lifted her head slowly, her face bruised, her clothes damp and torn from the ordeal, but her fierce, indomitable eyes remained unmistakable. For a second, she blinked against the harsh light, as if refusing to believe the tall, imposing silhouette standing in her doorway was real.
"Julian?" her voice rasped, dry and barely audible. "How... how did you find me?"
Julian crossed the small cell in two long strides, dropping to one knee beside her. For the first time in seven years, the cold, untouchable king of Detroit allowed his hands to shake as he carefully slipped his arms around her shoulders, lifting her gently off the cold concrete floor.
"Your daughter found me," Julian said, his voice thick with an emotion he hadn't felt since the day he lost his own family. "She sat on the steps of my tower in the middle of a blizzard, looked straight into the camera, and gave me your message."
Naomi’s breath caught in her throat, tears finally spilling over her lashes. "Pearl... you left Pearl and Jonah outside?"
"They're safe," Julian assured her, pulling his heavy cashmere coat off his own shoulders and wrapping it securely around her. "They're in my car, warm and protected. Viktor is watching them. Nobody touches them. Nobody touches you."
Behind them, Marcus Vane tried to slowly back away toward the elevator shaft, looking for an opening to slip past.
Julian didn't even have to turn around. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed Vane's confiscated pistol to Viktor, who had just stepped into the cell block.
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"Tie him up and throw him in cell four," Julian instructed coldly, his eyes never leaving Naomi as he lifted her carefully into his arms. "Let him think about what happens when you break the rules in my city."
As Julian carried Naomi down the narrow corridor, past the rows of terrified syndicate guards who didn't dare raise a weapon, the heavy weight of the past seemed to lift from his shoulders. The fortress he had built around his heart for seven long years had finally cracked wide open—not by force, but by the fierce, unwavering love of a seven-year-old girl who refused to let her family perish in the snow.
