Chapter 76 Chapter 76
Damien’s POV
The flashing red and blue lights from the police vehicles painted my destroyed home in garish, alternating colors. News vans had already arrived, their cameras pointed at the carnage, reporters speaking urgently into microphones about “a massive shootout at a prominent businessman’s estate.”
I stood in the middle of it all, surrounded by bodies being tagged and photographed, evidence markers scattered everywhere, and police officers swarming through my property like ants.
“Mr. Alejandro,” a detective said, stepping in front of me with a notebook. “I need to ask you some questions about what happened here today.”
I stared past him, not really seeing him, my mind replaying the moment I’d arrived to find my home under siege. The moment I’d seen Marco’s body. The terror on Hailey’s face when she’d emerged from the safe room.
“Mr. Alejandro?” the detective repeated. “Sir, I need you to focus. Can you tell me what time you left the property this morning?”
I didn’t answer. Couldn’t answer. The rage was too consuming, burning through every rational thought.
The Morellis had done this. Had violated my home. Had nearly killed everyone I loved.
And Antonio Junior had escaped.
“Mr. Alejandro, I understand this is difficult, but we need your cooperation if we’re going to…”
“Captain Hayes,” another voice interrupted, and I turned to see the police captain himself approaching. He was on my payroll, had been for years, but even he looked uncomfortable with the scale of what had happened.
“A word,” Hayes said to the detective, pulling him aside.
They spoke in low voices, the detective gesturing animatedly at the scene, clearly arguing. But Hayes shook his head firmly, and eventually the detective walked away looking frustrated.
Hayes approached me, his expression carefully neutral. “Mr. Alejandro, I can give you maybe an hour before we need to clear everyone out. This scene is too big, There are going to be federal investigators crawling all over this place by tomorrow morning.”
“I need more time,” I said, my voice flat.
“I can’t give you more time,” Hayes said quietly. “This made the news within minutes. There are politicians already calling for investigations. I’m sorry, but you and your family need to vacate the premises. Now.”
Before I could respond, I heard a commotion near the entrance. My mother’s voice, sharp and demanding, cut through the chaos.
“Where is she? Where is my granddaughter?”
Isabella stormed through the police line, her perfectly coiffed hair disheveled, her clothes torn in places. She must have been hiding somewhere in the house during the attack.
“Sophia!” she called out, her eyes scanning the crowd of people. “SOPHIA!”
“She’s safe,” I said, intercepting her before she could cause more of a scene. “She’s with the others.”
“I need to see her,” Isabella insisted, trying to push past me. “I need to make sure she’s alright.”
“She’s not going to speak to anyone right now,” I said firmly, blocking her path.
Isabella’s eyes narrowed. “That’s my granddaughter, Damien. I have a right…”
“You have a right to nothing until I say otherwise,” I interrupted coldly. “She’s my daughter. My responsibility. And right now, she needs to be left alone.”
I turned away from my mother’s shocked expression and scanned the crowd until I found Hailey.
She was sitting on what remained of the front steps, wrapped in a blanket someone had given her, and Detective Sarah Morrison was crouched beside her, notebook in hand, asking questions.
Hailey looked uncomfortable, her arms wrapped protectively around her pregnant belly, her eyes red from crying. Every time the detective asked a question, Hailey flinched like the words were physical blows.
Rage surged through me again, hot and immediate.
I strode over to them, my footsteps heavy on the debris-strewn ground.
“That’s enough,” I said, my voice hard as steel. “All of you. Police, detectives, news crews, everyone. Leave my family alone. Now.”
Detective Morrison stood up, her expression stubborn. “Mr. Alejandro, we’re conducting an investigation. We have a right to question witnesses…”
“You have a right to nothing on my property,” I interrupted, stepping between her and Hailey. “My family has been through enough today. You want statements? You can get them through our lawyers. But right now, you’re going to back off and give them space.”
Morrison opened her mouth to argue, but Captain Hayes appeared, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Stand down, Detective,” he said quietly. “Mr. Alejandro’s right. We can continue this later.”
Morrison glared at me but stepped back, snapping her notebook shut with obvious frustration.
I looked around at all the authority figures swarming my property and felt nothing but contempt.
“Get out,” I said, loud enough for everyone to hear. “All of you. Get the fuck out of my home.”
Hours later, we were ensconced in one of my hotels, the Presidential Suite taking up the entire top floor.
Hailey was in the master bedroom with Benita, trying to comfort her. I could hear Benita’s broken sobs through the door, punctuated by periods of eerie silence when she’d black out from the grief.
My mother was in her own room, refusing to speak to anyone. And Sophia was in yet another room, under guard, also refusing to come out.
I stood in the main living area, staring out at the city lights, my hands clenched so tight my knuckles were white.
A knock at the door made me turn. Lorenzo entered, a folder in his hands, his expression grim.
“The final count, boss,” he said quietly, handing me the folder.
I opened it and felt my stomach drop.
Seventeen guards dead. Twenty-three wounded, some critically. The compound would need millions in repairs. And the security breaches they’d exploited…
“How did they get in?” I asked, though I already suspected the answer.
Lorenzo hesitated. “The initial breach was through the side entrance. Someone disabled the alarm system from the inside, gave them the entry codes, the locations of the safe rooms, the guard rotations. Everything.”
“Who?” I demanded, though my heart was already sinking.
“It was Sophia, boss,” Lorenzo said quietly. “She didn’t do it directly, but she was manipulated. The tutor, Tyler, he was working for the Morellis. He played her, used her hatred of Hailey to get access to the compound. Every time he came for a tutoring session, he was mapping the house.”
I closed my eyes, feeling something inside me crack.
My own daughter. My Sophia. Had been the tool the Morellis used to nearly destroy my entire family.
“There’s something else,” Lorenzo said hesitantly. “It’s about Marco.”
I looked up sharply. “What about him?”
“He’s alive, boss,” Lorenzo said. “Barely. He took four bullets, lost a massive amount of blood. He’s in critical condition at the hospital, on life support. The doctors say the next 48 hours will determine if he makes it.”
Hope and grief warred in my chest. Marco was alive. But he might not stay that way.
“Keep it quiet,” I ordered. “Don’t tell anyone, especially not Benita. Not until we know if he’s going to pull through. I don’t want to give her false hope.”
“Understood, boss,” Lorenzo said, then hesitated. “What about Sophia?”
Before I could answer, I heard footsteps, and Sophia appeared in the doorway. She looked terrible, her eyes swollen from crying, her clothes still dirty and torn from the attack, her whole body shaking.
When she saw me, she immediately collapsed to her knees, crawling toward me.
“Daddy,” she sobbed, the word she hadn’t called me in years falling from her lips. “Daddy, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know. I didn’t mean for this to happen. Please, I’m so sorry.”
She reached my feet and wrapped her arms around my legs, her tears soaking through my pants as she wept.
I looked down at her, this broken, manipulated girl who was my daughter, and felt nothing but a cold emptiness where my love should have been.
“Kai,” I said, my voice flat and emotionless.
Kai appeared from the hallway, his expression carefully neutral.
“Take her to the study,” I ordered. “Tie her to a chair. I need to question her.”
“Daddy, no!” Sophia wailed, clinging to my legs. “Please, I’ll tell you everything! I’ll tell you anything you want to know! Just please don’t…”
“Now, Kai,” I interrupted, my voice hard as granite.
Kai moved forward and gently but firmly pried Sophia’s arms from around my legs. She fought him, screaming and crying, but he was stronger.
“I’m sorry!” she screamed as Kai dragged her away. “I’m so sorry! Daddy, please! DADDY!”