blockquote

    Shattered 126

    bChapter 126 /b

    Lana’s POV

    Blood rushed out of Danton’s mouth like a violent river, staining the floor beneath him. It was everywhere–soaked into the ground, dripping from his tips in a grotesque cascade.

    Dora’s scream sliced through the tension, her body jerking back as though the blood could reach out and grab her. Her face was a mask of shock. I saw her eyes dart to the floor, confusion flickering as her mind tried to piece together the horror.

    Then it hit her.

    Danton’s tongue. Half of ity lifeless beside him, a gruesome token of what had just happened.

    I didn’t have time to watch her reaction. My focus was on Danton, the man who thought he could break us all, whose reign of terror was crumbling in front of him. His knees gave way, and he fell hard to the floor, his hands clutching his mutted mouth as he let out a strangled cry–a pathetic sound. that barely resembled a human voice anymore.

    I grabbed his hair and yanked his head up, forcing him to meet my gaze. His eyes–bloodshot, wild–burned with hatred.

    “It fucking hurts, doesn’t it?” I said, my voice cold, like a de. “But have you ever stopped to think about the pain you caused others?”

    He red at me, his anger more primal than anything I’d ever seen.

    I couldn’t help butugh. “Oh, right. I forgot. You can’t speak anymore, can you?”

    A hoarse groan Scraped out of him. Though it sounded like nothing human, I heard it. His mangled mouth was calling for Andre.

    “Andre, I think he’s calling you,” I called over to him, my voice light, mocking.

    Andre didn’t answer immediately. He was too busy standing there, frozenb, /bhis pale face pale as he stared at the bloodied mess that had once been his father. I saw his breath hitch in his chest, his body stiffening like a statue, but he didn’t move.

    Danton’s hand reached for him, fingers trembling, barely able to function. His voice was muffled, but I could still catch the words “…H…bhelp/b…”

    I had to hand it to Danton. Even now, as broken as he was, he still had the audacity to beg.

    Andre took his hand. A strange flicker of something passed across his face, but it was igone /itoo quickly for me to interpret. He looked down at his father, his grip tightening.

    “You want me to help you, father?” Andre’s voice was low, colder than anything I’d ever heard.

    Danton nodded, his eyes pleading.

    For a split second, I thought I saw a softening in Andre, a hesitation, but then-

    Crack.

    The sound of Danton’s arm breaking echoed through the room. I felt the sickening jolt of it down to my bones. Danton bscreamed/b, his body crumpling beneath the force of Andre’s wrath.

    “You really think I’m going to help you after everything you’ve done to me?” Andre’s voice hissed through gritted teethb, /bbraw /bbwith /bhatred. “bHow /bbmany /btimes have I begged you to let me go, huh? You never once listened! Well, guess what, old man? This is MY revenge.”

    Danton’s breath came in short, harsh gasps. His eyes locked onto Andre, wide and full of disbelief. For the first btime/bb, /bI saw the brealization /bbhit /bbhim /bblike /bba /bfreight train: Andre was no longer the obedient, docile son he thought he had under his thumb.

    But it was toote.

    “Watch out, Andre!” I shouted, the wordsing out on pure instinct.

    Danton’s remaining hand shot up, grabbing Andre by the throat with a savage grip. Before Andre could react, Danton tackled bhim/bb, /bpinning bhim /bbto /bthe ground with the weight of his fury. The man was a beast, cornered and bleeding, and he wasn’t going down without a fight.

    The air in the room seemed to freeze. I watched, unable to look away as Danton’s fangs the wolf in him–emerged, his face twisting bwith /bbthe /bneed to kil He was going for Andre’s throat. My heart pounded in my chest.

    I reacted without thinking.

    I lunged at Danton’s back, wrapping my arms around his neck, locking myself onto him with everything I had. My arms were aching, and the man beneath me was a rock of muscle, thrashing and trying to throw me off. The pain in my arms grew unbearable, but I held on, refusing to let go.

    I could feel him fight–his body straining, his rage pushing against me like a tidal wave. But I wasn’t going to let him get the upper hand.

    Then-

    BANG!

    The sound of ss shattering cut through the struggle. Danton’s eyes rolled back, and his body hit the ground with a sickening thud. He was out cold.

    I sank to the floor, my breath ragged, my body trembling. My eyes drifted to the woman who had just saved us. Dora stood there, holding a broken wine bottle, a sheepish grin on her face.

    “Good job,” I said, giving her a nod of approval.

    She grinned back, looking uncertain but relieved.

    Andre was already at Danton’s side, pushing the lifeless body off him. He scrambled to the corner of the room, pulling a bbox /bfrom under the table. bMy /bgaze followed, and I saw the syringe, the drugs–everything he needed to finish this.

    He looked at me for confirmation. “Fifteen grams. It’ll do the job.”

    I nodded, eyes steady. “Are you sure it’s enough to kill him?”

    “Positive.”

    Andre rolled up Danton’s sleeve, but then something made him pause. He nced at Dora, his expression suddenly serious.

    “What’s wrong?” I asked, sensing the shift.

    “She shouldn’t be here,” Andre muttered, his voice low. “She’s not part of this n.”

    The words hung in the air, thick with tension. Dora’s face softened, but she didn’t argue. She simply nodded, understanding.

    There was a ilong/i, ufortable silence.

    Andre turned back to Danton and injected the drugs into his veins, the needle sinking in with practiced precision. We waited, stretching on forever.

    3

    bing/bb, /bbthe /bseconds.

    Danton’s body twitched. His breath hitched as his eyes snapped open. He looked at us–panic in his gaze, his body starting bto /bbspasm/b. Foam bubbled bfrom /bhis mouth, and his eyes bulged in terrorb. /b

    I watched his every movement, the clock ticking in the back of my mind. “How long?”

    “One, maybe two minutes,” Andre answered, his voice calm, but even he couldn’t mask the tension. “Then he’ll be gone.”

    But just then-

    bwed/b, 30 Jul CO

    Step, step, step.

    Footsteps. They wereing. We froze, all of us, eyes widening in panic.

    Who the hell wasing now?

    I grabbed the nearest pillow and smothered Danton’s face with it, silencing any noise he might make.

    And then I heard it. That voice I knew all too well.

    “Danton, are you asleep yet?”

    Lance.

    Fuck.

    Andre’s face drained of color. He looked at me, panic etched on his face. What do we do?

    I shook my head, urging him to stay quiet, stay still.

    “Danton?” Lance called again, his voice dripping with suspicion. “Can Ie in?”

    I nced at Andre, giving him a slight nod. His voice came out strained, hastily covering up. “My King, father’s exhausted. He turned in early. Sorry.”

    “Really?” Lance didn’t buy it. “At this hour?”

    I felt the tightness in my chest. This wasn’t good.

    “Yeah… he was worn out from the girls,” Andre stammered.

    “Bullshit. Don’t try to fool me, Andre. I’ming in.”

    The words hit like a thunderp.

    Panic. Absolute fucking panic.

    What the hell were we going to do nowi? /i/blockquote