Page 101 of Lord of Retribution

Blood was everywhere, people trampled and crying for help. I raced behind a tree, realizing that Brock was trying to get Margot back to me. The moment he caught my eye, I also noticed a dark sedan pulling up, tires screeching. As several of the assassins bolted from the car, I had no doubt who they were attempting to kidnap.

My wife.

I didn’t hesitate to fire off indiscriminately as I continued to race forward. Brock was doing everything in his power to keep her safe but everything drifted into slow motion, my soldier hit in the back, still trying to keep her safe. As he fell on top of her, I let off a primal scream, aiming and shooting at the fuckers running toward the fallen man.

What the fuck? We were dropping like fucking flies.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Leonardo was chasing a group down who were trying to assassinate at least one of the other Dons, firing off several rounds then turning toward me. He was as exasperated as I was.

There was no doubt they were wearing bulletproof vests. I shifted my aim, catching one of the motherfuckers in the head, the force driving him back into a speeding car. The crunching sound would have brought a smile to my face if it hadn’t been for hearing her high-pitched scream as Brock was kicked several times brutally, his body tossed across the lawn by several feet.

When the assailant grabbed Margot around the waist, the huge guy easily able to lift her from the pavement, he used her as a shield, the fucking coward.

Riccardo Amato returned the earlier favor, shooting and catching the assassin holding her in the forehead. I’ll be damned if his adrenaline didn’t keep a firm hold, pulling her backward with him as he fell to the ground.

When I was within five yards, another one of the bastards grabbed her by the arm, prepared to toss her in the backseat of the dark SUV.

I had to give my wife, a woman who’d spent her entire life being a good girl, more than just a few ounces of credit. She pummeled the bastard in the face, managing to jerk from his hold. That gave me the opportunity I needed, firing off several shots in a row.

After that, everything became a blur. I grabbed my beautiful wife, yanking her toward me, dropping and rolling us both, still throwing my arm out ready to fire off another round.

Fortunately, I didn’t need to. Two of Don Giuseppe’s men terminated the rest of the bastards.

As the chaos began to die down, the stench of blood and gore remained as fresh and pungent as the hundreds of white roses covering the two caskets.

I kept the full weight of my body against hers, her soft moans and the way she clung to me heartbreaking.

And it sent a roar of rage into my system that had clamped around every concept of common sense and decency that I had left.

No one fucked with the woman I loved or my family of men, soldiers who’d risked their lives over the years to protect me.

“Are you okay?” I asked her, lifting my head so I could look into her eyes.

“Yes. I’m fine. Fine… I’m… Brock! Oh, God, no. Brock. Please, please go to him.” She pushed at me.

I scanned the area as some of my other men came racing forward. “Just stay with my soldiers. Please don’t defy me.”

“I promise. I won’t.”

Leonardo bolted forward. “Jesus fucking Christ. Are you alright, Don Thorn?”

“Just Daniel. Today, I don’t feel like a goddamn Don. I should have seen this coming.”

“They came out of nowhere, but I think they’re all dead.”

“Check the goddamn area. Every fucking inch of this cemetery. Coordinate with the others, including soldiers from the other families. This was an intended hit on all of us.”

“Will do.”

Sirens were all around, tires screeching from every direction as guests and some of the soldiers fought to get the hell away. This had been nothing but a goddamn bloodbath.

I had the feeling the attack had everything to do with Ronin but that he had extensive help.

As we both sat up, I shook my head as I glanced toward Brock. He was unmoving.

I lunged toward the man, gingerly rolling him over. As I pressed my fingers against his neck, I was relieved to detect a pulse, but he’d already lost a lot of blood.