Chapter 7 - Dawn Over BlackwoodThe gray light of dawn was just beginning to streak across the eastern mountains when the smoke cleared from the front courtyard of the Rossi estate.
It wasn't an all-out war; it was a desperate, calculated strike. Vincent Falcone had made his final, reckless gamble, sending a small, heavily armed vanguard to breach the main gates in a bid to rescue Elena and decapitate the Rossi leadership in one swift blow.
It ended in less than twenty minutes.
Dominic’s men, battle-hardened and waiting for the move, dismantled the assault with cold, brutal efficiency. When I stepped out onto the grand stone portico with a medical kit in hand to treat the wounded, the courtyard looked like a battlefield—shattered glass, scorched asphalt, and several armed men pinned to the ground in plastic cuffs by Leo and his enforcers.
Elena stood near the steps wrapped in her white coat, staring in absolute horror at the wreckage of her family’s attempt to rescue her. Her face was pale, her defiance completely broken.
“It’s over, Elena,” Dominic said, walking down the stone steps beside me. His tailored suit was immaculate, his injured shoulder supported by a black tactical sling, but his stride was steady and absolute. He looked like a king who had just secured his throne for another generation.
Elena didn't look at him. She looked at the ground, her shoulders shaking with quiet defeat.
“Book a flight to Zurich for her,” Dominic instructed Leo without breaking his stride. “She stays there under permanent watch. If any member of the Falcone family tries to contact her, the arrangement is permanently voided.”
Leo nodded sharply, escorting her toward a waiting black SUV.
Dominic turned around, walking back up the steps until he stood directly in front of me. The morning wind rustled through the tall pines surrounding the estate, carrying the crisp, clean scent of the mountains after a storm.
“Well,” I said, adjusting the strap of my medical bag over my shoulder. “It looks like your shoulder is healing nicely. You probably don't need a nurse anymore.”
Dominic raised an eyebrow, a slow, undeniable smile breaking across his stern face.
“Who said anything about letting you leave?” he asked, stepping closer. “The ten-thousand-dollar check was just a retainer, Nora. I happen to have a chronic condition that requires twenty-four-hour monitoring for the next fifty years.”
“Is that so?” I crossed my arms, fighting a smile. “And what condition is that?”
“A very stubborn heart,” Dominic murmured, reaching out to take my hand, lacing his fingers securely through mine in front of the entire estate. “And you’re the only one qualified to treat it.”
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I looked out past the wrought-iron gates, watching the morning sun break through the mountain mist and flood the valley with golden light. The rent was paid, my past was behind me, and for the first time in my life, I wasn't running from anything anymore.
I was exactly where I belonged.
