Chapter 4 - Descent into the LabyrinthThe steel stairwell echoed with the frantic sound of their boots pounding downward through the concrete core of North Shore Memorial.
“Down to the sub-level parking garage,” Dorian instructed, never letting go of Alina’s hand, his eyes scanning every landing for potential ambushes. “Our armored transport is waiting in sector C.”
“Dorian, this is insane!” Alina panted, clutching her lower abdomen protectively as they descended flight after flight of stairs. “You live like this? Every single day is a battlefield?”
“My world is dangerous, Alina, but you were never supposed to be part of its crosshairs,” Dorian said, his jaw clenched as he kicked open the heavy metal door leading into the underground parking garage. “That’s why I pushed you away. I thought if you hated me enough to divorce me, you would pack your bags and move to London, far away from my enemies.”
Alina stopped dead in her tracks near a concrete pillar, pulling her hand from his grasp. The revelation hit her like a physical blow.
“You... you wanted me to divorce you? You engineered the distance?”
“I engineered my absence,” Dorian corrected fiercely, stepping close to her amidst the dim, flickering fluorescent lights of the garage. “I never wanted to let you go. But when Victor started hunting my inner circle, keeping you close was a death sentence. I chose to be the villain in your story if it meant keeping you breathing.”
Before Alina could process the heartbreaking depth of his confession, the screech of tires echoed across the concrete floor. Two black sedans blocked the exit ramp of the parking garage, and four armed men spilled out, weapons raised.
“Ambush!” Noah yelled, diving behind a parked SUV and returning fire.
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Dorian shoved Alina behind the thick concrete base of a support column, raising his own weapon with icy, lethal precision. Two shots rang out in rapid succession, and two of Victor’s men dropped instantly.
“Dorian, look out!” Alina screamed as a shadow emerged from behind a ventilation unit to their left, aiming a rifle directly at Dorian’s back.
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