Chapter 31 #3
For a split second, there is absolute silence.
Then, chaos erupts.
Screams. The sound of shattering glass. People shoving, running, bodies in a panicked stampede. My first instinct is Camilla. I spin around, reaching for her.
Another loud bang echoes through the night, followed by a chorus of panicked shrieks.
The crowd surges, a human wave, and I am knocked off balance.
Ernesto grabs my arm, his grip like steel, steadying me.
Men in black suits—Hector's men—materialize from the shadows, forming a protective circle around us, guns drawn but Camilla isn't here.
Camilla’s scream cuts through the chaos.
“Mami!”
Ernesto freezes. Not because she’s calling for help… but because she isn’t calling for him. She’s calling for me.
Time slows. The world narrows to that single, horrific image. The man is moving fast, pushing through the panicked crowd, heading for a side exit in the garden wall.
"Camilla!" My own scream is a raw, primal roar.
I try to lunge forward, but Hector’s grip on my arm is unbreakable. "No, ma’am. You won’t be any help if you get caught, either! Let the boss and Felipe go after them. I need to get you out of here," he yells over the chaos, his voice laced with panic.
"Let go of me!" I scream, struggling against him, my eyes fixed on the retreating figure of the kidnapper. "He has her! Hector, he has my daughter!"
Felipe, Ernesto, and two other guards are already giving chase, but the frantic, stampeding crowd is hampering them, and the man is getting away.
He's getting away with my daughter.
Something inside me snaps. The fear, the shock, it all burns away, replaced by a single, white-hot thought: get her back.
I stop struggling and listen to Hector. He loosens his grip on my arm, just for a moment, thinking I've calmed down. It's the opening I need as I wrench my arm free with a burst of adrenaline-fueled strength and run.
I shove people out of my way, my velvet heels sinking into the soft grass. I don't feel the pain. I don't hear the shouts of my name behind me. All I see is the man in the ski mask, his hand clamped over Camilla's mouth to stifle her screams. He reaches the gate, fumbling with the latch.
"LET HER GO!" I shriek, my voice torn to shreds.
I’m closing the distance. Ten feet. Five.
He gets the gate open and shoves Camilla through it, into the darkness of the alley beyond.
He turns to follow her, but I am there. I launch myself at him, my body a missile of pure rage.
I slam into his back, my nails digging into the fabric of his jacket, scratching for purchase.
He stumbles, caught off guard. He grunts, trying to shake me off, but I cling to him like a feral cat. I am screaming, incoherent sounds of fury and terror, clawing at his neck, his face, anything I can reach.
He swings an elbow back, catching me hard in the ribs.
The impact knocks the wind from my lungs, but I don't let go.
My mind is a roaring white inferno of a single command: protect her.
He can't get away. He can't take her. I bite down, my teeth sinking into the thick fabric of his jacket over his shoulder.
He howls, a sound of pain and fury, and shoves me backward with brutal force.
I stumble, my heel catching on an exposed tree root, and I go down hard.
My head smacks against the damp earth. For a disorienting second, the world is a swirl of blurred lights and echoing screams. The man is scrambling through the gate. He's going to get away.
"No!" The word is a choked gasp.
Just as he disappears into the alley, two figures blur past me. Hector and Felipe. They move with a lethal, silent grace, shadows detaching from the greater darkness. I hear a grunt, the sickening thud of a body hitting a wall, then silence.
A small figure emerges from the dark maw of the alley, her face streaked with tears, her burgundy dress smudged with dirt.
"Mami?" Camilla's voice is a tiny, broken whisper.
I push myself up onto my elbows, my body screaming in protest, my vision swimming. "I'm here, mija. Ven, aquí estoy."
She runs to me, her small body crashing into my arms. She's sobbing, deep, shuddering cries that shake her entire frame.
I wrap my arms around her, pulling her onto my lap, holding her as tightly as I can without hurting her.
I rock her back and forth, murmuring reassurances, my own tears mixing with hers in her dark, tangled hair. "It's okay. You're safe. I've got you."
Heavy footsteps thunder toward us. Ernesto.
He drops to his knees in front of us, his face a mask of raw, terrifying fury I have never seen before.
His eyes rake over Camilla, checking for injuries, then his gaze lands on me.
The fury softens, just for a fraction of a second, replaced by a wave of pure, unadulterated relief.
Without a word, he scoops both of us into his arms. I am cradled against his chest, Camilla sandwiched between us, a fragile, trembling bundle.
He stands, holding our combined weight as if we are nothing, and carries us back through the garden, away from the alley, away from the chaos.
The guests have been herded back inside, and the terrace is a wasteland of overturned tables and abandoned champagne flutes.
He doesn't stop until we reach the gleaming black SUV. He gently places me inside, then Camilla beside me, buckling her in himself, his hands surprisingly steady.
Hector appears at the driver's side door, his knuckles bloody. "They are secure," he says, his voice grim.
Ernesto nods, his jaw tight. "Take them home," he commands, his voice a low, dangerous rumble. "Lock it down. No one gets in or out. Keep them safe."
"No," I protest, my voice hoarse. I reach for his arm, my fingers closing around the expensive fabric of his tuxedo jacket. "Ernesto, come with us. Please. I need you with us."
He turns, his face softening as he looks at me. He leans in, one hand coming up to cup my cheek, his thumb gently stroking my skin. "I have business to attend to, palomita." He presses his lips to mine in a kiss that is hard, desperate, and full of unspoken promises. "I will see you at home."
He closes the door, and Hector gets behind the wheel. The car pulls away from the curb, leaving Ernesto standing in the flashing red and blue lights of the arriving police cars.