Page 96 of King

He doesn’t push me away like he’s pushed me away a hundred times in the past week. Instead he wraps his hand around the back of my neck and kisses me harder.

There is no doubt in my mind now that this man still loves me.

A bullet snaps into the stone tiles at my feet and I scream. Giovanni pulls me to the side. “Get inside, Zina.” He demands.

“No, I’m not leaving you.”

“Get inside.” He screams louder, his voice thick with authority.

I shake my head. “I’m not leaving you. If I die, I’m dying right next to you. I’m not running.”

He gives up and drags me to his side. “Stay close.” He says, as we move from the patio, into the garden, staying close to the walls and shooting our way through the swarm of intruders attacking our home.

It feels like hours, but it could have been minutes.

The gun fire slowly fades until the estate is quiet. Deadly quiet. A silence you can feel in your veins. The air smells of gunpowder and smoke. Burning things. Broken things. Bodies scattered everywhere.

It’s like walking through hell.

Giovanni takes my hand, and the small gesture is reassuring in a way he can’t imagine.

“Fabio.” Giovanni shouts, running forward, pulling me along with him.

Fabio has his hand around a man’s throat. The black mask has been pulled off his face and thrown to the side.

“Who sent you here?” he screams into the man’s face.

His prisoner laughs and when he does he coughs up blood, spluttering from his mouth, he gags and spits.

“You’re asking the wrong question.” The man smirks, gasping between words, his lung pierced by a bullet.

Fabio’s anger surges and he punches the guy in the face.

His head snaps back, and he gags again.

“Tell me what you know.” He demands ferociously.

“You shouldn’t ask who sent me - but - who - invited me in.” He’s fighting for his last breath, and even in his dying moments, he’s still gloating. Fabio is about to hit him again, but his body goes limp, his head lolls backwards - his life is over.

Fabio growls angrily and drops him to the ground.

“Who invited them in?” he snarls.

“Is he saying that it came from inside the estate?”

“That’s exactly what the fuck he’s saying.” Fabio screams, the veins on his temple popping out.

“Calm down.” Giovanni warns him. But it’s no use. Everyone is pumped full of adrenalin. Everyone is traumatized by what happened.

Fabio looks across the garden at the bodies of his team, his security force. Giovanni’s eyes trace the same path and both men look broken.

“They were good men.” Giovanni says tightly.

Fabio nods, pressing his fingers against his eyes.

“We’ll secure the property, run a sweep, and clean up - “ he mutters, his mind returning to his job. A defensive instinct, to protect himself from having to deal with the loss of life suffered today.

“I need to check on my family.” Giovanni says tightly.

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