Chapter 3 - Fire in the North WingThe hallway outside the ICU erupted into chaos within seconds.
Alarm systems began to chime—not the fire alarm, but the hospital’s internal security lockdown signal. Red emergency lights began to flash along the baseboards, casting long, eerie shadows across the sterile white walls.
Gabriel didn't hesitate.
With practiced, terrifying efficiency, he reached beneath his dark wool overcoat and unholstered a polished, dark-grey SIG Sauer P226. The slide racked back with a heavy, metallic click that made Sadie leap back in terror.
"Julian," Gabriel ordered, his voice cold as liquid nitrogen. "Take Marco and secure the elevator shaft. Do not let anyone off on the fourth floor."
"What about the stairwells?" Julian asked, drawing his own weapon.
"I’ll cover the stairwells," Gabriel said. He turned his dark gaze to Sadie, who was pressed against the glass wall of Chloe’s room, her eyes wide with sheer panic. "Sadie. Step inside the room. Lock the door from the inside. If anyone other than me or Julian touches that handle, hit the emergency panic button beside the bed."
"Gabriel..." Sadie whispered, her voice trembling as she looked at the heavy steel handgun in his grip. "They have guns?"
"They have guns," Gabriel confirmed calmly. "Which means they are going to die."
He pushed her gently through the doorway into Chloe’s room, slamming the heavy oak door shut behind her. The electronic lock engaged with a solid, high-pitched beep.
Inside the quiet room, Chloe was sitting up in bed, her face pale, her hands clutching the thin hospital blanket. The noise from the hallway had startled her awake.
"Sadie?" Chloe asked, her voice raspy and broken from the breathing tube that had been removed hours earlier. "What’s... what’s happening?"
Sadie rushed to the side of the bed, her fear instantly giving way to a fiercely protective maternal instinct. She took Chloe’s small, cold hand in hers, squeezing it tightly.
"It’s okay, sweetie," Sadie lied smoothly, forcing her voice into a calm, steady rhythm despite her heart hammering like a trapped bird against her ribs. "Your dad is handling it. We just need to stay right here."
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The heavy thud of automatic gunfire echoed down the corridor outside, followed by the terrifying sound of shattering glass and shouting men.
Chloe flinched, pulling the blanket up to her chin. "It’s Moretti’s men. They want to kill me to make my dad give up the docks." Tears spilled over her lashes, leaving wet tracks on her pale cheeks. "It’s my fault. If I hadn't taken those pills..."
"Hey," Sadie snapped softly, leaning over the bed so her face was inches from Chloe’s. "Look at me. Look at my eyes, Chloe."
Chloe looked up, her breathing ragged.
"It is not your fault," Sadie said fiercely. "Your dad loves you. Do you know what he looked like when he walked into that diner bathroom last night? He looked like a man whose world had just ended. He doesn't care about docks or money right now. He cares about you."
Chloe swallowed hard, wiping her eyes with the back of her wrist. "You were there?"
"I was the one who did CPR on you until my arms felt like lead," Sadie smiled faintly, a gentle, sad expression. "You’ve got hard ribs, kid."
A sudden, violent impact struck the wooden door of the ICU room!
THUM-THUM-THUM!
The lock groaned. Through the small reinforced glass window in the door, Sadie saw a man in a tactical mask holding a heavy shotgun, trying to kick the frame loose!
"Clear the room!" a muffled voice barked from the hallway. "Moretti wants the girl dead!"
Sadie didn't hesitate. She looked around the room frantically. There were no weapons, no heavy furniture—only the metal IV stand and a heavy glass vase filled with flowers on the bedside table.
Sadie grabbed the heavy glass vase, dumping the water and lilies onto the floor, gripping the thick glass stem like a club.
"Get behind the bed, Chloe!" Sadie hissed.
The door hinges failed with a violent crack! The wooden door burst open, swinging inward!
A heavy-set hitman in a black jacket stepped into the room, raising his shotgun toward the bed—
Sadie lunged from the shadow of the doorway!
With all the strength built from ten years of physical labor, she swung the heavy glass vase with a wild, desperate scream!
CRASH!
The thick glass shattered violently against the side of the gunman’s head! The man let out a grunt of pain, staggering sideways, his shotgun discharging into the ceiling plaster with a deafening BOOM!
Before the gunman could recover, a dark shape materialized behind him in the hallway.
Gabriel’s large hand reached out, grabbing the gunman’s tactical vest, dragging him backward out of the room with terrifying force! A single, precise gunshot rang out in the corridor.
The gunman collapsed like a sack of stones.
Gabriel stepped over the body into the room. His sweater was torn at the shoulder, his face smudged with gunpowder smoke, his P226 held at the ready. His dark eyes swept the room instantly, checking Chloe, then locking onto Sadie, who was standing in the center of the room holding the jagged, broken neck of the glass vase, her knuckles bleeding from tiny cuts.
Gabriel stared at her, a profound, unreadable expression washing over his features.
"You hit a Moretti hitman with a flower vase," Gabriel said, his voice quiet, breathless.
"He... he pointed a gun at your daughter," Sadie gasped, dropping the broken neck of the vase onto the carpet, her entire body shaking uncontrollably now that the adrenaline was beginning to ebb.
Gabriel stepped forward, ignoring the blood on her hands, and reached out. He didn't take her hand—instead, he gently cupped her elbows, steadying her trembling frame with his massive strength.
"The floor is clear," Gabriel said softly, his dark eyes burning with an intensity that made Sadie’s breath catch in her throat. "Julian is securing the parking garage. The police will be here in three minutes."
He looked at Chloe, who was watching them from behind the bed, then looked back down into Sadie’s eyes.
"You saved her twice in twelve hours, Sadie," Gabriel whispered. "Now, you are coming home with us. Whether you want to or not."
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Sadie looked at the blood on the floor, at the dark, powerful man holding her steady, and at the fragile girl in the bed.
For the first time in her life, Sadie Keogh didn't fight back. She simply nodded.
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