Chapter 6 - The Don’s Vengeance
Noel whimpered beneath Sadi, her tiny fingers digging into Sadi's jacket. Sadi glared up at the mafia boss, her fear entirely replaced by a feral, protective rage.
"Don't you touch her," Sadi hissed, her voice shaking but fierce.
Omar laughed, a cold, dry sound. He reached down, grabbing Sadi by the hair and pulling her up, forcing her to her knees. He raised his gun, pointing it directly at Noel’s forehead. "Tell Corbin I said hello. He should have died in Bridgeport eight months ago."
"Omar!"
The voice didn't come from the hallway. It came from the shadows behind them.
Omar turned, but he wasn't fast enough. Corbin Valleti stepped out of the smoke like a demon risen from hell. His suit jacket was gone, his white shirt was stained with soot and blood, and his eyes were completely devoid of humanity.
Before Omar’s men could fire, Corbin let loose a barrage of gunfire. The two bodyguards beside Omar fell instantly, their weapons clattering to the floor. Omar fired wildly, a bullet grazing Corbin’s shoulder, but Corbin didn't even flinch. He lunged forward, his massive frame slamming into Omar, sending both men crashing through the drywall and into the adjacent study.
The sounds of a brutal, hand-to-hand struggle filled the air—shattered glass, heavy thuds, and the raw, animalistic grunts of two men fighting to the death.
Sadi scrambled over to Finch, who was groaning, clutching his bleeding side. "Finch! Can you move?"
"Get... get the girl inside," Finch gasped, pointing weakly toward the safe room door, which was now open.
Sadi grabbed Noel, dragging her into the reinforced steel room. She looked back toward the shattered study. Through the broken wall, she saw Corbin. He had Omar pinned against the heavy mahogany desk, his large hands locked around the rival boss’s throat. Omar’s face was turning purple, his hands clawing uselessly at Corbin’s iron grip.
"You killed my wife," Corbin growled, his voice a low, terrifying rumble that vibrated through the floorboards. "You tried to take my daughter. You brought your filth into my home."
"Kill me..." Omar choked out, a bloody smile on his lips. "Your daughter... will always remember... the blood..."
Corbin’s eyes shifted for a fraction of a second toward the hallway. He saw Sadi standing at the safe room door, holding Noel. Noel was watching him. Her wide eyes weren't filled with the empty trauma of the Bridgeport shooting. She was looking at her father, her face pale, but her hands were open.
No, her eyes seemed to say. Don't go back into the dark.
Corbin looked back down at Omar. The rage inside him was a roaring fire, demanding he snap the man’s neck. But as he looked at his daughter, he realized that killing Omar like this, in front of her, would only cement the prison he had built for her. It would mean Omar won.
With a roar of frustration and disgust, Corbin slammed Omar’s head against the desk, knocking him out cold.
He dropped the limp body to the floor and turned away, stepping over the rubble. He walked down the hallway, his steps heavy, his breathing ragged. He stopped just outside the safe room, looking at Sadi and Noel.
The sirens of the police and Valleti reinforcements were wailing in the distance, growing louder by the second. The battle was over.
Corbin collapsed to his knees, his strength finally failing him. He looked down at the floor, his broad shoulders shaking slightly. "I'm sorry," he whispered to the silence. "I'm so sorry."
Then, a small, warm hand pressed against his blood-stained cheek.
Corbin opened his eyes. Noel was kneeling in front of him. She didn't look afraid of him anymore. She pulled a crumpled, slightly torn yellow flower from her pocket—a marigold she had kept all day—and tucked it gently into the buttonhole of his torn shirt.
And then, the miracle happened.
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"Daddy," Noel whispered. Her voice was small, rusty from months of disuse, and trembling, but it was the most beautiful sound Corbin had ever heard in his life. "Daddy, don't cry."
Corbin choked back a sob, throwing his arms around his daughter, pulling her into his chest and holding her so tight the world couldn't reach them. Sadi knelt beside them, tears streaming freely down her face, placing her hand gently over Corbin’s trembling shoulder.
