Dante appears at the top of the stairs and I nearly run into him.
Blood is streaming down the side of his face from a cut above his eye, making him look like something from a horror movie. His shirt is torn and there’s more blood. I can’t tell if it’s his or someone else’s but his grip on his gun is steady.
“East perimeter,” he says, breathing hard. “Brennan’s men are pushing hard. They’ve got some kind of battering ram—they’re trying to breach the reinforced door. We’re holding them but?—”
“How many?” I interrupt.
“Twenty. Maybe twenty-five.” Dante wipes blood from his eye with his sleeve, smearing it across his face. “We’re holding them but not for long. That door wasn’t built for this. Five minutes, maybe ten before they’re through.”
Five minutes. The east perimeter leads to the west wing. To Emma.
“Double the men on that door,” I say, already moving past him. “Use the mounted guns if you have to. Connor doesn’t get inside this house.”
“Where the fuck are you going?” Dante grabs my arm, spinning me around.
“I need to secure Emma.”
“You need to coordinate the defense!” Dante shouts angrily, his cheeks starting to turn flush. “We’re about to be overrun and you’re worried about?—”
“About Emma,” I finish, my voice hard. “Yes.”
“We’re all going to die if you don’t focus!” Dante’s grip tightens on my arm. “Forget about the girl for five minutes and help me save your fucking house!”
“I can’t,” I say, and I hear the desperation. “I can’t think if she’s not safe. I can’t focus if I don’t know where she is, if Connor’s gotten to her?—”
“Then you’re going to get us all killed!” Dante releases my arm and shoves me backward. “You’re so busy thinking with your dick that you can’t see the bigger picture!”
“Watch it,” I warn, my voice dangerous.
“No, you watch it!” Dante steps forward, getting in my face. I’ve never seen him so angry before. Gone is my cool, level-headed second. “Youbrought her here.Youstarted this war with the Brennans because you wanted revenge. And now that he’s here—now that he’s actually at our gates with fifty fucking men and we’re fighting for our lives—you can’t even focus long enough to save us because you’re too busy worrying about your fucking captive!”
I see red. Is that how Dante sees her? A captive? Like she’s not everything.
“She’s not,” I start, but Dante cuts me off.
“Sheis!” he shouts. “She’s Connor Brennan’s daughter and you kidnapped her and now he’s here to take her back and you’re acting like?—”
I don’t remember deciding to push him. I don’t remember my hands going to his chest. But suddenly Dante’s stumbling backward into the wall and I’m right there with him, my forearm across his throat.
“Do not ever talk about her like that,” I growl, enjoying how Dante struggles against my grip.
Dante’s eyes flash then his fist is coming at my face. I barely get my head turned in time, but his goddamn knuckles graze my jaw instead of breaking my nose. The impact sends stars across my vision.
I stumble back and Dante comes off the wall swinging. His next punch catches me in the ribs and I grunt, pain exploding through my side but I use the momentum to grab his arm, twist, slam him back into the wall.
“Stop!” I shout, wincing at the pain. Fuck, thathurt.
“You stop!” Dante shouts back, and he uses his free hand to grab my shirt, pulling me close. “You stop thinking about her for five fucking minutes and help me save what’s left of your family! What’s left of your men! They’re dying down there, Leo! They’re dying while you’re up here playing Romeo!”
The words cut through my rage. My men.Dying.
Because I’m not down there leading them. Instead, I’m up here fighting with my consigliere instead of fighting Connor.
Emma has made me weak.
I release Dante and step back, breathing hard. My ribs are screaming where he hit me and I can already feel my jaw swelling.
Dante’s breathing hard too, wiping more blood from his eye. We stare at each other for a long moment, the sounds of gunfire echoing through the house around us.