Page 140 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

"Two have gotten past us," Leo yelled. "Get ready."

Shit!In the background, she heard cursing and more gunfire.

"Leo! Frederico's men are on the way. They have men heading to the exits to take out the guards. Can our guys be ready to enter?"

"I'm on it. Monique," Leo said, yelling over the background noise. "Shoot whoever breaks into that room."

Monique didn't hesitate when she responded, "I will."

Ending the call, she tossed the phone onto the couch, kicked her heels out of the way, and pointed her gun at the door. Gripping it tightly, she waited, ready to do whatever needed to be done.

Chapter Forty-Two

MONIQUE

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Monique stood with her gun aimed at the breakroom door, every muscle in her body stiff with tension. Raz lay unconscious behind the cabinet, his presence a reminder of what was at stake.

There was no one here to help her. She was the only thing standing between the man she loved and the danger creeping ever closer. She trembled when the doorknob turned with an eerie slowness.

In her nervousness, she almost squeezed the trigger.Not yet,she told herself, heart pounding rapidly. She needed to be sure she struck the person and didn't miss. She needed to see the whites of their eyes before she fired.

The knob jiggled a few times. A loud BAM echoed through the small room as someone rammed against the door hard enough to make her jump. Her hands trembled, the weight of the gun feeling suddenly heavy.

Another slam, even harder, made the entire doorframe rattle. That door wasn’t going to hold much longer. She knew that. Still, she couldn't shoot until she was certain she'd hit her target, but the waiting was agonizing.

Another hit to the door, followed by another, then another had her ready to scream. The door finally gave way, burstingopen, knocked partially off its hinges. Before she could process the movement, a man charged into the room.

Monique fired, the shot going wide.Damn it.She still missed. He was on her in an instant, the force of his tackle driving her back onto the couch. She heard her dress rip as she fell. Even though her life was in danger, an intrusive thought drifted through her mind:Not the expensive dress!

“You almost shot me, bitch!” he snarled, the palm of his hand striking her across the face with a sharp crack.

The slap stung, bringing tears to her eyes. But she refused to let go of her weapon. Holding her down on the couch, he stood over her, choking her. His grip tightened around her throat, his fingers digging into her flesh.

Unable to breathe, she fumbled around, trying to get the gun into position, trying to get the barrel pressed against him.Fuck!She needed air before she passed out. Her body jerked as panic threatened to overwhelm her.

She couldn't die like this. Not like this. Her vision blurred, spots dancing in front of her eyes, but she managed to push the barrel against his thigh. She squeezed the trigger. The shot echoed in the room, her arm jolting with the recoil.

The man cried out, his grip loosening as he stumbled back. Monique sucked in air, her chest and throat feeling like they were on fire. Her attacker's cries sounded muffled, almost completely drowned out by the loud ringing in her ears.

Monique wasted no time scrambling to her feet and firing again. This time, the bullet hit his shoulder, and he fell backward, landing on Raz. The man started to get up. Monique was about to fire again.

However, she paused, her breath catching in her throat when she saw Raz’s hand move.He was awake!Moving slowly, he grabbed the man's wounded shoulder, digging his finger into the hole and pulling the man back down.

The guy tried to turn in Raz's direction. Before he could, Raz placed his hand over the man’s face, covering his mouth and nose, and held the man's head down on his lap. Staring up at the ceiling, the attacker struggled, his body convulsing as he tried to break free.

Now he, too, felt the panic from not being able to breathe! Raz held firm. But Monique could tell Orazio was still groggy and that it was taking a lot of his energy to hold the man down. Monique was about to rush to Raz’s aid when movement in the doorway caught her attention.

Damn it.Seeing Raz awake had made her forget about the second guy. Another man appeared around the corner, looking into the room, gun raised. He spotted Monique. But she was quicker.

She fired without hesitation, the bullet finding its mark. Red blossomed across his chest, staining his white shirt as his gun slipped from his fingers. He fell backward, the life draining from his eyes before he even hit the ground.

Monique swallowed hard, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she processed what she’d just done.I killed a man. I really just killed a man.She'd watched his eyes widen, had watched the light fade from them as if a switch had been clicked off.

She forced herself to push down the guilt, to bury it deep. These men were here to kill her and Raz. She’d had no choice but to defend them both.Kill or be killed.And she wasn’t ready to die. She strode forward, moving cautiously.

When she reached the man she'd shot, she kicked his gun backward before kicking the man. He didn't move. She peeked out the door, staring both ways to make sure the coast was clear. It was.

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