Page 56 of Betraying Family Vows
I step out of cover, gun raised.
The first man drops before he even knows I'm there. Two more turn. One takes a shot at me, misses. My second round hits him square in the chest. He falls hard to the ground.
Shouts ring out. Sharp commands in Greek. The others dive for cover, firing wildly in my direction, not exactly sure where I am.
I pivot, take cover behind a half-fallen column.
I see another man dive behind a low wall.
I duck, shift left, circling.
Movement to my right. Another one trying to flank. I aim, shoot twice. Miss the first shot, hit the second. His body jerks and falls.
But there are more.
I move again, fast and low.
More shots ring out, too many. More men than I thought. Maybe six, maybe more.
I don't care.
They tried to kill me. Tried to kill her.
I break cover, fire three shots. Another man collapses, a dark smear against the white stone.
But then.
Athena's voice, high and scared, cuts through the chaos.
"Let go?—!"
I whip around and see a man trying to flank me from behind a tree. Two quick shots and he falls over, his shot ricocheting off the stone to my right, inches from my head.
I run toward our shelter. When I get close, I see what's happening.
A large man has Athena by the hair, yanking her out, dragging her toward another man.
She fights, clawing at his arm, her face full of rage.
"Let me fucking go!" she screams.
Something inside me shifts.
A red haze descends over my vision.
The weapon part of me, the part my father made, takes over.
They touched her.
They fucking touched her.
The last thread of restraint snaps.
I move without thinking, closing the distance fast. I shoot one. His head snaps back in a spray of blood. The other, still holding Athena, raises his gun. I fire, but I'm empty.
Shit.
He shoots, but I duck and tackle him to the ground. I rip the gun from his grip and it slides away. My fist connects with his jaw, then his throat. I hear the crack of cartilage, the wet gasp that follows.
