Page 145 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

Their enemies weren’t done, and neither were they giving up. They were just biding their time. Planning. They would strike again and harder this time. He watched Monique. Her grip on her gun never wavered as they moved forward, readying for a battle with his father.

A quiet sigh left his lips.His father.His fucking father was the cause of this! That betrayal cut deep. But his father was probably thinking the same thing. To him, Raz was the traitor. Those who’d sided with his father must’ve felt the same way.

Raz didn’t give a fuck about their feelings. He’d been forced to step into the role of don due to his father’s incompetence. The old man was pulling every trick in the book to try to take back what wasn’t his anymore.

He was even using Monique to get to Raz. Raz was done playing his father’s games. This wasn’t a power struggle anymore. It was a damn war. His father needed to be stopped, and it would be Raz who put an end to his bullshit once and for all.

He was done being the obedient son, the mindful son, the son who always put the family first. Yeah, blood was thicker than water. But Monique wasn’t water. Leo and the guards who’d stayed true to him weren’t water.

They were glue. The glue that held it all together when he couldn’t. Today, his father had endangered his woman and his team. Despite that danger, both his woman and his team had stayed true to him.

They’d risked their lives for him, protected him. If that wasn’t family, he didn’t know what was. Tonight, Raz would stay true to them and make sure his father was never a threat to them or anyone else ever again.

“They should be just up ahead,” Monique whispered.

She was right. As they rounded the corner, Raz caught sight of Leo, Rocco, and Stoney behind a makeshift barricade, their guns drawn. There were a few bodies propped up against the wall.

A blood trail was smeared across the floor, letting Raz know the bodies had been killed in one spot and then dragged to the wall. Leo waved them over. Monique led the way, and Raz followed.

“Boss,” Leo greeted him, his voice low, tense. “Glad you’re back with us.”

Raz gave a sharp nod, his eyes narrowing as he assessed the situation. “Give me a rundown of what has happened.”

Leo wasted no time. “The old don’s men pulled back about three minutes ago. They were hammering the door with anything they could get their hands on, trying to break through.Once they realized those who got through weren’t coming back, they retreated. We’re guessing they’re regrouping, looking for another entry point, trying to outmaneuver us.”

Raz had figured the same thing. His father’s men weren’t stupid. They wouldn’t come at them directly now that they knew they were ready for a fight. No, they’d try to sneak around, catch them off guard. He expected nothing less.

“There’s more,” Leo continued, his voice dropping lower. “Listen. Do you hear the muffled crying coming from the gala room? It was louder. I don’t know what they’re doing in there, but it can’t be good. Those people are trapped in there. Every now and then, we hear a shot fired. I think they’re being killed off one by one as the don waits on you to appear, boss. If we don’t do something soon...” Leo’s voice trailed off, but the unspoken words hung between them.

Raz clenched his fists tighter around the guns in his hands. Those people didn’t deserve this. They weren’t part of the Cattaneo family’s problems. Yet, they’d been caught in the crossfire because of his father’s refusal to step aside.

“Fuck,” Raz muttered under his breath.

Those people had come to support him. Now they were terrified, crying, because of this nightmare his father had created. Raz’s blood boiled hotter with each second that passed.

“We’re not waiting for them to bring the fight to us,” Raz announced, mind made up. “We’re taking the fight to them. It’s time to end this. We need to move quickly.”

“What’s the plan, boss?” Leo asked.

“Give me a second,” Raz muttered, trying to figure out the best way to take down the guards without any of the guests or his team getting killed. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Monique step forward.

“I’ve got an idea,” she told him.

“Let’s hear it,” he replied, ignoring the fear twisting through his veins.

"We need to split up," she started.

He wasn’t leaving her side. But he kept that to himself as he listened to her plan.

"One group will draw the guards’ attention away from the main room by creating a distraction,” she explained. “The other will focus on securing the people in the main room and getting them out of the building. If we move fast, we can get the people out while the don’s men are occupied. If we had enough people, we could make a third group that would head straight for the old don. If coordinated properly, we should be able to end this with minimal loss on our side."

Her words had him feeling both impressed and uneasy. His protective instinct flared inside him, but he swallowed it down. He was still getting used to this new version of Monique, the one who was stepping into the role of Lady Boss so effortlessly.

"Frederico’s men are on the way," she reminded them. “Our plan will work better if we wait for them to join us. Plus, Tomas has ordered his men to take out the guards who are patrolling near the exits. Soon, our guys will be able to get in.”

Raz’s jaw clenched at the mention of Frederico Miconi. He hated the idea of needing Frederico’s help. Hell, he hated Frederico altogether. But this wasn’t the time to let that get to him. He and his Rosa had just made up. The last thing he needed was to let his emotions ruin that.

"Alright," Raz said, keeping the anger out of his voice. "We’ll go with your plan. Leo...” Raz paused and stared behind him when he heard muffled voices. “Someone’s coming.”

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