Chapter 8 - The Shadow at the Gates
Before Mara could answer, a piercing red emergency light began flashing on the wall of the observatory, accompanied by a sharp, rhythmic alarm sound.
Julian immediately stood up, his protective instincts instantly overriding the romantic moment. He grabbed his phone from the table as Marcus’s voice came panicked through the speaker.
"Mr. Hartwell! Someone breached the east gate!" Marcus shouted over the sound of wind and sirens. "It's Richard Rourke! He's intoxicated, and he drove his SUV right through the security barrier!"
Mara gasped, horror washing over her. "Ivy!"
"Stay here!" Julian ordered, pulling a small key from his pocket and unlocking a heavy steel door that led to a safe room off the observatory. "Mara, get inside and lock the door from the interior!"
"No! I'm going to my daughter!" Mara cried, pushing past him and running toward the stairs.
Julian didn't argue. He ran right beside her, his long legs taking the grand spiral stairs three at a time as the estate security alarms wailed through the corridors.
They reached the second-floor nursery wing just as the grand stained-glass window at the end of the hall shattered inward with a deafening CRASH!
Richard Rourke—his suit torn, blood dripping from a cut on his forehead, his eyes wild and unhinged—stepped through the broken window frame onto the balcony corridor. In his right hand, he held a heavy iron crowbar he had taken from his vehicle.
"HARTWELL!" Richard screamed, his voice slurred with alcohol and madness. "You ruined me! You sent those files to the prosecutor! My company is seized! My life is over!"
"Richard, drop the iron," Julian commanded, stepping squarely between Richard and the nursery door where Ivy was sleeping. "The police are sixty seconds away."
"I don't care about the police!" Richard roared, raising the crowbar. "If I'm going to prison, I'm taking your precious little life with me!"
He charged forward with terrifying speed, swinging the iron bar wildly toward Julian’s head.
Julian ducked beneath the swing, grabbing Richard’s wrist, but the older man was fueled by blind, hysterical rage. They crashed hard against the marble floor, struggling for control of the heavy iron weapon.
Mara saw her moment. She didn't hesitate.
She grabbed a heavy bronze floor vase from a nearby pedestal and ran forward with all her strength, swinging it with precision directly into Richard Rourke’s shoulder.
CLANG!
Richard groaned in pain, dropping the crowbar. Julian instantly seized the advantage, pinning Richard’s arms behind his back and slamming him face-down onto the floor just as five armed Hartwell security guards rushed into the corridor with drawn weapons.
"Get him out of my sight," Julian growled, his breathing heavy, his suit disheveled.
The guards dragged the sobbing, broken tycoon away as blue and red police lights began flashing through the shattered corridor windows.
Julian turned to Mara. She was standing there, holding the heavy bronze vase, her grey eyes wide, her chest heaving as she caught her breath.
Julian looked at her for three seconds before bursting into a breathless, relieved laugh. He walked over, gently took the heavy vase from her hands, set it down, and pulled her tightly into his arms.
"You really are my guardian angel," Julian whispered into her hair, kissing her head over and over. "You keep saving my life."
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Mara rested her head against his chest, listening to the strong, steady beat of his heart. She smiled through her tears, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Then you'd better keep me around," she whispered softly.
