Chapter 6 - The Broken Glass
Three days after the gala, the fragile peace between the Boston and Rhode Island factions shattered.
It was a rainy Thursday evening. I was sitting at my desk finishing a quarterly report when the heavy glass window of my office suddenly exploded inward.
CRASH!
A deafening crack echoed through the room as rain and razor-sharp glass fragments rained down over my desk. Instinctively, I threw myself onto the carpet under my desk, covering my head as another shot shattered the neighboring window frame.
"EMILY!"
Before I could process the terror, the private door was kicked open. Jack threw himself onto the floor beside me, pulling me violently against his chest, shielding my body with his own as several more shots whistled through the high-altitude air from a long-range rifle positioned on a neighboring building across the street.
"Are you hit?!" Jack roared over the sound of screaming staff and shattering glass.
"No! I'm fine!" I gasped, my chest heaving, my hands clutching his dark suit jacket tightly.
Jack reached into his jacket, pulled a sleek black handgun from a shoulder holster, and held me tightly against his body as Marcus and Gabriel rushed into the room with heavy tactical rifles, returning suppressive fire through the broken windows.
"Clear the floor!" Marcus screamed. "Get the chief to the secure elevator!"
Jack scooped me up into his arms without hesitation, carrying me out of the office and down the private corridor while his security detail formed a moving wall around us.
We burst into the private underground parking garage, where an armored SUV sat idling with its doors open. Jack set me down into the back seat, sliding in right beside me and slamming the heavy steel door shut.
The car roared to life, tires screeching against the concrete as we sped out into the rainy Boston night.
I was shaking violently, cold rain dripping from my hair, my hands covered in fine white glass dust.
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Jack grabbed a warm wool blanket from the side compartment, wrapping it tightly around my shoulders. He took my shaking hands in his large, warm palms, bringing them up to his lips and pressing a firm, desperate kiss against my knuckles.
"Look at me, Emily," Jack commanded softly, his dark eyes burning with a terrifying mix of fury and raw emotion. "Look at me. You're safe. I swear to you on my life, no one touches you."
