The alarm went through the penthouse.
Marcus utter a loud orders into his radio while Adrian held Eva against the floor.
Another bullet broken the glass behind them. "Move!" Marcus echoed.
Adrian hold Eva's hand and drag her toward the private hallway at the back of the penthouse.
"Where are we going?" Eva Inhaled sharply.
"There's a secure exit downstairs."
They rushed through the dark corridor as security guards ran past them.
She could hear shouting footsteps.
Then another gunshot. Everything felt unreal.
At the end of the hallway, Adrian pressed his hand against a hidden panel in the wall.
A door opened. "What is this?" "My father built it years ago," he said. "In case someone ever came after us."
"Did he know this would happen?" Adrian gave a humorless laugh. "In our world, something always happens."
The following elevator leading underground carried them down into an underground garage.
Marcus and two guards are followed closely behind.
A black SUV waited outside with the engine running. "Get in," Marcus said.
Eva scales into the back seat beside Adrian. The car sped into the night. For almost a few minutes, no one spoke.
Then Eva looked back. A second black vehicle was following them. "Adrian…"
He pivoted. His face changed immediately.
"Marcus." "I see it." The driver speed up. The car behind them did the same.
Then a third vehicle showed up unexpectedly. And a fourth.
"They found us," Eva whispered.
Marcus pulled a gun from beneath his jacket.
"Hold on."
For a few moments there was chaos. One of the black cars jammed into them from the side.
Eva screamed.
The SUV veered violently. Glass shattered.
Marcus fired through the window. Another car pulled in front of them.
The driver forces the brakes.
Too late. The SUV crashed.
Everything whirled Metal.
Pain. Darkness.
When Eva opened her eyes again, everywhere was serene. Her head hurt.
There was blood on her forehead. "Adrian?" No answer.
The front of the SUV was crushed. Marcus was unaware.
The driver was not moving. "Adrian!" A hand caught her wrist.
She looked up.
He was alive. There was blood on his face, but he was alive. "Are you hurt?" he asked.
She almost laughed.
"You're asking me that?" Before he could answer, the back door of the SUV was ripped open.
Men in black suits surrounded the car. Laurent men.
Eva recognized the silver crest on their jackets instantly.
One of them pointed a gun at Adrian. "Step away from her." "No." The man struck Adrian across the face with the gun.
Eva cried out. "Stop!" Two guards grabbed her arms and dragged her out of the vehicle.
She fought them. "K let me go!" "Eva!" Adrian shouted. She looked back. Two men were holding him down.
Blood ran from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes never left her.
"Don't go with them!" "I don't have a choice!" A familiar voice cut through the night.
"She does."
Everyone went still. Damien Sinclair stepped out of the shadows.
He looked perfectly calm. Perfectly composed.
As though this was nothing more than a business meeting.
"You," Adrian said coldly. Damien ignored him.
Instead, he looked at Eva. "I warned you what would happen." "You did this?" she whispered.
"No." His eyes shifted briefly toward the Laurent guards.
"But I knew they would." Eva felt sick. "You could have stopped them." "No one can stop your family."
One of the guards stepped forward.
"The car is ready." Damien held out his hand toward her.
"Come with me willingly, Eva." She looked at Adrian.
He was struggling against the men holding him. "Don't," he said. But she could see the blood.
The guns.
The way the Laurent men were waiting.
If she fought, they would kill him. Just like they killed her father.
Slowly, she pivoted back to Damien. "If I go with you…you leave him alone."
Damien's jaw tightened.
"That is not my decision." "Then make it your decision."
For a minute, he said nothing.
Then finally: "He lives." Eva closed her eyes.
Then she placed her hand in his. Adrian shouted her name. She did not look back.
Because if she did, she would never leave.
The black car door opened.
Eva was pushed inside.
Damien got in beside her. As the car drove away, she looked through the rear window.
Adrian was still standing in the middle of the road. Bruised.
Bleeding.
Watching her disappear. Hours later, the car finally stopped.
Eva looked out the window. And her blood pivoted to ice.
The Laurent villa stood before her. Huge. Quiet. Waiting.
The same place she had run away from as a child.
The gates opened gently. And for the first time in fifteen years…
Eva Laurent went home.