Chapter 131: Chapter 131
Celeste stared ahead. Her gaze caught in the pale glow of the streetlight, the city stretching endlessly. Dominic’s hand rested over hers, steady, and warm, while the other gripped the wheel.
Dominic lifted her hand, brushing his lips across her knuckles. The kiss was tender yet possessive.
"You’ve been quiet," he said, not glancing at her, his eyes were locked forward. He wasn’t one to miss shifts in the air. And tonight, something about her silence pressed against his ribs.
"I don’t think we should go." Her voice was soft, a whisper almost. "But it’s Amara. I can’t say no. Just this once."
Dominic’s jaw flexed, his knuckles tightening slightly around the wheel. He flicked a glance at her, then fixed his gaze back on the road.
"Then there’ll be no next time," he murmured, low, and final.
Her throat bobbed, but she didn’t argue. She didn’t have the strength to.
The air was too still. The road too empty, and the night too quiet. Infact, the whole address route Amara sent to her was too still. It all felt strange.
Celeste shifted uneasily in her seat, her fingers tightening around his. "Something feels—"
She never finished.
The first shot cracked through the silence like thunder. The windshield spiderwebbed with impact. Dominic’s instincts kicked in instantly. He slammed his foot on the brake as the car jolted violently.
"Down!" he barked, his hand shoving her head beneath the dashboard before she could even gasp.
Gunfire erupted from the shadows of the trees. A flood of bullets ricocheting around them.
Tires screeched behind them, as his men’s cars swerved behind them. Their engines stopped, and their doors flung open and returned the gun shot back into the night.
Celeste’s scream was swallowed by the chaos.
Celeste’s nails dug into her thighs, blood pounding in her ears. She turned her head just in time to see one of the SUVs pulling up beside them, window rolling down, and the glint of a barrel emerging.
Her scream tore out just as Dominic wrenched the wheel, slamming the car sideways. The SUV clipped them, metal against metal. The jolt was brutal enough to knock Celeste forward even against the seatbelt. Her breath whooshed out, stolen.
Dominic’s heart pounded in his throat when he heard the raw scream form her. His chest constricted with something more than adrenaline. Fear. He felt fear. Not for himself, but for her. Always her.
"Fuck," he hissed, low, almost to himself.
Bullets clinked against reinforced glass. His car was armored, but no armor was unbreakable. They were under siege.
Dominic’s eyes burned with focus, his pulse cold, and sharp. His hand still pressed Celeste down protectively, as his body curved instinctively toward hers as if his own frame could shield her from the impossible.
"Stay low," he growled.
Celeste could barely breathe. The acrid scent of smoke from the blasts behind them was too much.
The car spun as he jerked the wheel, trying to avoid the barrage. A bullet sliced through the rearview, grazing so close to his face he felt the burn of glass cut across his cheek. He didn’t flinch. His amour had finally been broken.
His men’s voices shouted commands, muffled through the ringing in his ears.
"Get them out.... cover!" One for his men yelled.
The world narrowed to survival. Dominic yanked the gearshift, flooring it, swerving into the tree-lined path that offered slim cover. He didn’t care about the rules of the road anymore. The only rule was keeping her alive.
"Dominic!" Celeste’s voice broke, raw with terror.
"Stay down, Celeste! Stay with me!"
He reached across, pressing her head lower, shielding her with his arm even as the wheel fought him.
The convoy struggled to keep up. One of his men’s cars burst into flames behind them, the sound of the explosion rattling his bones.
Dominic didn’t look back. He couldn’t. His world was forward. His world was her. His only instinct was making sure she survived.
The ambush wasn’t random. He knew it in his gut. This was a trap. This was calculated, and deliberate. Someone had known their route. Someone had wanted him vulnerable.
And yet, all he could think was: not her. God, not her. For once, he believed there would be a God up there.
Another round tore into the car. One bullet grazed Celeste’s window, exploding it into shards. She flinched, gasping as the glass rained across her. Dominic’s blood ran cold.
"Almost there," he lied, his voice a harsh rasp. "I’ve got you."
He swerved hard, the tires screeching against wet asphalt as the car veered off the road. He rode too fast.
"Dominic!" she screamed again, her hands gripping the seat as the headlights caught the wall of trees suddenly.
The impact was bone-shattering.
Metal crumpled, and glass immediately exploded. The world spun, then snapped into a violent, merciless stop as the car rammed headfirst into a tree.
Devastation tore through Dominic.
Silence followed. The silence was eerie, and suffocating. Smoke curled from the hood, and the engine hissed its last breath.
Dominic’s head slammed forward, his face colliding with the dashboard. His vision blurred, with blood dripping down his brow, but he was conscious. Barely.
The copper taste filled his mouth as he dragged in a breath. His chest screamed with every inhale, and his ribs were sharp with pain, but it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered at the moment if it wasn’t her.
"Celeste," he rasped, his voice breaking as his head lifted slowly, and painfully, from the shattered dashboard.
He turned, and his eyes found her.
Her head was bent forward unnaturally, and slumped against the airbag. Blood rushed down her face, painting her pale skin, and soaking her dark dinner gown. There was too much blood.
Too much.
His heart stopped.
"Celeste!"
The sound tore out of him, raw and strangled. His trembling hands reached for her, and his blood-slicked fingers brushed her cheek in fear. She was still. She was still and silent.
His world collapsed in that moment.