Page 2 of Wrathful King
My wife’s face was smeared with tears, dust, and blood as her hands roamed my chest. The bullets were still flying, and unless Hiroshi had called my men, I didn’t know how we’d get out of this alive.
I lifted my head, searching for my right-hand man. He and my mother had been right behind us, but I could no longer see any sign of them.
“Heads down, fuckers!” Dante’s voice echoed through the air and bone-deep relief shot through me. The sound of my brother’s voice was like music to my ears.
The earth tilted on its axis for a moment and, ignoring my wounds and aches, I pushed my wife down and covered her body with mine. My hands cradled her face, her blue eyes locked on mine in sheer terror.
A grenade hit the ground.Bang.
Pain exploded in my back and I was shoved forward, my skull smashing into hers.
The world turned silent. There was no more shouting or gunfire. It was just me and her, in the middle of nowhere, suspended in time. I promised that I’d protect her, but I was failing miserably.
I thought I heard her whisper, “Hold on. For me.”
My back was on fire—at least that was how it felt. Reina’s face blurred in front of me as pain flared, rendering me speechless. I attempted to shift but fell onto her instead, my limbs not cooperating.
Then I felt my body being pushed to the side. I willed myself to stand, but I could barely breathe, let alone move. I blinked the dirt out of my eyes and saw Reina stand up. Fuck, I had to get up. Help her.
A fresh round of gunshots scattered through the air, followed by a raw, agonizing scream. Where thefuckwas Dante? I had no idea how he managed to get here, and I still hadn’t caught sight of my mother and Hiroshi, but none of that mattered right now. I was so fucking grateful for my brother.
“No!” Reina’s cry echoed out, piercing through my skull. I shifted and pushed my weight onto my knees, trying to get up. My vision turned crimson, and I realized it was blood. I hoped it was mine, not hers. Never hers. I couldn’t bear the thought of her in pain. “Get the fuck away from him!” Her snarl was vicious as bullets started flying again.
Through the red fog, I saw my wife with a gun in hand, shooting at a black shadow that approached like a vengeful angel. I fought to move, determined to protect her. My light.
But just as my body finally began to cooperate, another bullet zipped through the air and hit me in the chest.
Reina’s horrified scream was the last thing I heard as my vision turned black.
2
REINA
The silence was ominous, whispering of more bloodshed to come, as the chaos settled around us.
The car that Amon and I crawled out of was covered in bullet holes, one door blown off and lying on the gravelly ground two feet away. There wasn’t another car in sight, not that I could see much in the dusty fog that surrounded us.
For a flicker of a moment, I thought I’d heard Dante’s voice, but now, he was nowhere to be found. No rescue. No help. No sign of anyone but the men aiming their guns at me while I gripped my own.
The cold metal felt oddly familiar in my hand. I pointed it at the men who surrounded us, their intent to harm us clear from their refusal to lower their own weapons.
Instead of surrendering, I held firm and started shooting. Then all hell broke loose again.
I jumped in front of Amon’s lifeless body, shooting at the men over and over again, and prayed for a miracle.
It felt like a nightmare. Yes, that had to be it, because the scene around me was too devastating to comprehend.
Amon—my world—lay dying at my feet, bleeding out. The man closest to me raised his rifle, but before he could pull the trigger, I crouched down, shielding Amon completely.
“Move out of the way or you’ll be dead too,” the man ordered, his accent heavy. It wasn’t Italian, more like… Spanish? No, not quite.
My upper lip lifted into a snarl. “Not if I kill you first.”
I aimed at his forehead and pulled the trigger, hitting him right between his eyes. As I watched his body slump to the ground, I turned to the others and, without a second thought, fired my gun nonstop until the bullets ran out.
My limbs trembled while my mind whispered the words I didn’t want to hear:He’s dead.
A man with bottomless black eyes and a crooked smile appeared through the smoke. He raised a hand, motioning for everyone to stop shooting. I could hear shouting in the distance. Whimpers. Cursing.
