Chapter 50 Chapter 50
Damien’s POV
The night had been long and bloody.
I stepped through the penthouse door with my squad behind me, my clothes stained dark with blood that wasn’t all mine. There was a deep cut on my arm where a blade had caught me during the raid, throbbing with each heartbeat, but I barely felt it through the adrenaline still pumping through my system.
We’d hit three Morelli safe houses tonight, eliminated everyone involved in the attack on Hailey and Benita. It had been brutal, efficient, and absolutely necessary.
But I was exhausted, running on fumes and fury.
“Boss,” Kai approached immediately, his expression tight. “We have a situation.”
“What now?” I asked, already feeling the weight of whatever new crisis was about to land on my shoulders.
“It’s Sophia,” he said. “She left the building hours ago. We just brought her back.”
My jaw clenched. “Where was she?”
“A hotel downtown.” Kai said, and something in his tone made my stomach drop. “Boss, when we found her, she was in bad shape. Someone tried to hurt her.”
The exhaustion vanished instantly, replaced by cold rage. “Show me.”
I followed Kai to one of the sitting rooms where Sophia was huddled on the couch, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her neck was bruised, dark finger marks clearly visible against her pale skin.
Someone had tried to strangle her.
“What happened?” I demanded, crossing to her in three strides. “Who did this to you?”
Sophia flinched at my tone, tears streaming down her face. “Dad, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean….”
“Who. Did. This?” I repeated, each word sharp and controlled.
“My…my friend,” she whispered. “This guy I’ve been seeing. We were at the hotel and he just… he wouldn’t stop. He kept choking me and I couldn’t breathe and…..”
She broke down completely, sobbing into her hands.
I felt rage unlike anything I’d experienced all night surge through me. Someone had put their hands on my daughter, had tried to kill her?
“What’s his full name?” I asked, my voice deadly calm.
“Damien, wait,” my mother’s voice cut in as she entered the room. “Before you do something rash….”
“Rash?” I turned on her. “Someone tried to murder my daughter. There’s nothing rash about what I’m going to do to him.”
“She’s safe now,” Isabella said, moving to stand beside Sophia protectively. “That’s what matters. Don’t make this worse by starting another war.”
“This isn’t about war,” I said coldly. “This is about making sure the person who hurt my daughter never hurts anyone again.”
I turned back to Sophia. “His name. Now.”
Before she could answer, Kai stepped forward. “Boss, there’s something else you need to know. The Morellis are proceeding with their strike. Our sources confirm they’re planning to move within the next forty-eight hours.”
The information hit like ice water. We were running out of time.
“Double security on everyone,” I ordered. “No one goes anywhere alone. I don’t care where you’re going or why, you take guards. That includes you,” I added, looking pointedly at Sophia. “No more sneaking out. No more hotel visits. You stay here where it’s safe.”
“But Dad….”
“That’s not a discussion,” I said firmly. “You almost died tonight, Sophia.”
“Everyone be careful wherever you go,” I continued, addressing the room at large. “The Morellis are coming for us, and they won’t discriminate between combatants and family. Everyone is a target.”
I turned and headed for my room, desperate for a shower and a moment to collect myself.
But footsteps followed me, soft and hesitant.
I turned back to see Hailey.
She slipped into my room behind me, closing the door quietly.
I immediately pulled out my phone, dialing a number, It was answered on the first ring.
“Gather the elders,” I said without preamble. “All of them. I need an emergency meeting tomorrow morning. Eight AM sharp.”
“Understood, boss,” the voice on the other end confirmed.
I hung up and tossed the phone aside, finally allowing myself to feel the exhaustion and pain I’d been pushing away.
Hailey moved closer, her eyes scanning the blood on my clothes, the cut on my arm. “You’re hurt.”
“It’s nothing,” I said automatically.
“It’s not nothing,” she countered, gently pushing me toward the bed. “Sit down. Let me look at it.”
I was too tired to argue. I sat, and she disappeared into the bathroom, returning with a first aid kit.
Her hands were gentle as she cleaned the wound, her touch careful and methodical. She worked in silence, and I found myself watching her face, the concentration in her eyes, the way she bit her lip when she threaded the needle to stitch me up.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “For the mess of today. For everything you’ve been through. I promise it won’t happen again.”
She paused, looking up at me. “You can’t promise that.”
“I can try,” I said, and then, because I couldn’t help myself, I leaned forward and kissed her.
She stiffened for a moment, then melted into it, her good hand coming up to cup my face.
When we pulled apart, she was looking at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read.
“Who is Cooper?” she asked suddenly.
The name rang a bell somewhere in the back of my mind, I frowned, trying to place it.
“Cooper,” I repeated slowly. “I know that name. I’ve heard it before. But I can’t remember where.”
“It was mentioned in an article about Elena’s death,” Hailey said. “Someone named Cooper was….”
But I never heard the rest of her sentence because she suddenly reached out and started unbuttoning my bloodstained shirt, her fingers working quickly, her eyes never leaving mine.