Chapter 6 - Ambush on Michigan Avenue
Outside the sleek glass doors of the Northwestern Pediatric Clinic on Michigan Avenue, the autumn air was crisp and bright.
Clare was holding Ellie’s hand as they walked out onto the bustling sidewalk. Ellie was wearing a bright yellow coat, proudly wearing her new platinum gear pendant around her neck, holding a small pink helium balloon she had received from the nurse.
“Can we go get hot chocolate now, Mommy?” Ellie asked, skipping happily along the pavement.
“Of course, sweetie,” Clare smiled, adjusting her coat. “Mr. Vale said his driver would meet us near the corner fountain—”
Before Clare could finish her sentence, a black heavy-duty SUV mounted the curb fifty feet ahead, screeching to a halt and blocking the sidewalk.
Two men wearing dark tactical jackets and ski masks burst out of the vehicle, brandishing silenced pistols.
Panic erupted across Michigan Avenue. Pedestrians screamed, scattering in every direction as shopkeepers rushed to lock their doors.
“Grab the girl and the woman!” one of the gunmen yelled, rushing directly toward Clare and Ellie.
Clare’s maternal instincts kicked in with violent speed. She shoved Ellie behind her body, grabbing a heavy metal street-side trash bin and slamming it with all her strength into the first gunman’s knees.
The man grunted, stumbling into the curb, but the second gunman grabbed Clare by her jacket collar, pulling her backward onto the concrete.
“Mommy!” Ellie shrieked, clutching her little gear pendant in terror.
“Run, Ellie! RUN!” Clare screamed, kicking wildly at the gunman pinning her down.
The second attacker reached out his gloved hand to grab Ellie’s yellow coat—
Suddenly, a heavy black sedan tore around the corner at breakneck speed, smashing directly into the side of the attackers’ black SUV with a thunderous crunch of twisted metal and shattering glass.
The driver’s side door flew open before the sedan had even fully stopped.
Dominic Vale burst out of the car like an enraged tiger.
He didn't use a weapon. He didn't need one.
Ignoring the residual ache in his healing knee, Dominic covered the distance in three massive strides. He grabbed the gunman who was reaching for Ellie by the throat, lifting the grown man off his feet and slamming him face-first into the brick wall of the clinic with bone-crushing force. The man collapsed onto the pavement, unconscious.
The first gunman scrambled up from the curb, aiming his silenced pistol directly at Dominic’s chest.
“Dominic, look out!” Clare screamed.
Dominic turned with lethal grace, catching the gunman’s wrist before he could pull the trigger. With a brutal twist of his arm, Dominic snapped the man’s wrist, sending the handgun clattering into the gutter. He followed up with a devastating left hook that knocked the attacker completely out cold.
Within seconds, three more security vehicles from the Vale convoy pulled up, sirens blaring, as Vincent Hale and ten heavily armed guards swarmed the street, securing the perimeter and disarming the remaining driver inside the wrecked SUV.
Dominic dropped to his knees on the pavement, ignoring the gasps of the gathering crowd.
His hands were shaking as he pulled Clare into his arms, checking her face and arms for injuries. “Clare! Are you hurt? Talk to me!”
“I’m... I’m okay,” Clare gasped, tears streaming down her face as she wrapped her arms tightly around Dominic’s neck. “I’m okay... Ellie!”
Dominic turned instantly toward the little girl in the yellow coat.
Ellie was standing near the fountain, her balloon floating away into the sky, her big brown eyes wide with shock.
Dominic reached out his arms. “Ellie... come here, sweetheart.”
Ellie didn't hesitate. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her, throwing her arms around Dominic’s neck and burying her face in his shoulder.
May you like
Dominic wrapped his massive arms around both mother and daughter, holding them against his chest right there on the sidewalk of Michigan Avenue. Tears cut clean tracks through the dust on his face as he kissed the top of Ellie’s head and held Clare tight against his heart.
“They will never touch you again,” Dominic swore, his deep voice thick with absolute conviction. “I promise you... on my life.”
