Chapter 8 - THE SHIELD AND THE CROWN
Silence fell over the driveway once more, heavy and absolute.
Frank lay pinned against the warm metal of the SUV hood, his breath trapped in his throat by Owen’s iron grip. Yet, despite the lethal threat, Frank didn't fight back. He looked up into his leader's blazing dark eyes with absolute, unyielding respect.
Slowly, deliberately, Frank tapped his left hand twice against Owen’s wrist—a tactical sign of submission.
"Stand down!" Frank choked out to his men, glaring over his shoulder at the six armed operators. "Lower your weapons! ALL OF YOU! NOW!"
The men hesitated for half a second, then lowered their weapons in unison, stepping back two paces.
Owen released his grip on Frank's throat. Frank sat up, coughing slightly, rubbing his neck, but his eyes never left Owen’s face.
"They saved my life, Frank," Owen said softly, his voice dropping into a deep, ragged murmur. "I was dying in the mud by that fence. They gave me a coat. They gave me warm water. They gave me a name when I had nothing left."
Owen turned his head slightly, looking back toward the farmhouse window.
Hannah was standing right there, her hand resting against the glass, her hazel eyes looking out at him not with fear... but with deep, heartbreaking sadness. She saw the monster the world knew him as, but she also remembered the man who had closed his hand around Emily’s piece of biscuit with tears in his eyes.
Frank stood up, adjusting his dark leather coat. He looked at the modest farmhouse, then at his powerful leader, realizing the profound transformation that had taken place in this quiet valley.
"Boss..." Frank said quietly, his voice devoid of hostility now. "Marcus knows you survived the river ambush. He sent three strike teams across the county line an hour ago. They're burning every safehouse between here and the city. If they find this farm..."
Owen’s eyes narrowed into twin points of cold, lethal steel.
May you like
"They won't find this farm," Owen declared smoothly, his voice carrying the absolute certainty of a death sentence.
"Then come back with us," Frank pleaded, holding out his hands. "Take back the family. Take back the throne. We end Marcus tonight, and you can secure this area forever."
