Chapter 315
Chapter 315 Leander Attacks
Four Hummers rolled into the alley, two blocking the front and two sealing the back, shutting it off so completely that the black Mercedes S could not move an inch.
“D*mn it p>
Nathan’s eyes sharpened with alarm. He snatched up his phone, reaching for the only lifeline he had, but the screen turned blank. The bars vanished, the data went dead, and he felt the trap close around him.
“Don’t waste your strength. I don’t leave holes in my plans. If I came for you, I came ready. I brought a signal jammer with me p>
The taunt came from ahead, sharp and filled with arrogance, like a laugh drawn out only to provoke.
“You want to call for help? Keep dreaming p>
Theron stepped into the dim glow of the streetlamps. A cigar smoldered between his teeth, the smoke rising in lazy swirls around his head. He moved slow-like he owned the street, and a wall of black-suited bodyguards followed in his shadow.
“Why you.” Nathan shoved his door open and jumped down. Luke and Evander rushed out after him, standing shoulder to shoulder.
At the alley’s mouth, the guards spread wide, more than twenty men standing shoulder to shoulder, a barricade of muscle and menace.
Nathan turned his head sharply. Behind them, thirty more figures advanced in perfect rhythm, sealing off their escape as neatly as a locked door.
“That’s right. It’s me.” Theron’s eyes glinted as the cigar burned low, his mouth curved in cruel
amusement.
“Rubyanne saved your skin earlier. You got away through pure luck. But now you’re off Saffron House ground. Out here, no one can shield you p>
His steps grew heavier as he came closer, each one pounding into the silence of the alley until he stood face to face with Nathan and his friends.
“You like to play hero, don’t you? Tonight I’ll show you what happens to heroes who don’t know their place p>
Nathan, Evander, and Luke felt the cold weight settle in their chests. Their muscles tensed, but their hearts sank. In the car, Bianca’s face had gone white as chalk, her hands shaking in her lap as if her body no longer belonged to her.
Theron’s force smothered every hope of escape. The whole thing was laid out before it even began. The ending had already been written.
Both ends of the alley were locked. The phones were worthless. Even if they screamed, their voices would vanish into the night without reaching anyone. Only Theron and his hundred men held the power here.
They could never fight off these guys alone.
Nathan ground his teeth and forced his voice to steady. “What do you want p>
People rarely had the nerve to try anything with him in Seagate. He was not untouchable, but fear of him kept most at bay.
Yet now, penned in with nowhere to run, his chest grew tight as a cord, and he knew fear for the first time in years.
Theron had come armed to the teeth, and every man around him was ready to strike. If each one swung just once, he and his friends would crumble under the storm.
“What do I want?” Theron jabbed a thick finger hard against Nathan’s chest. “Back at Saffron House, you thought you were brave. You stood in front of that girl, acting like you could stop me. Where’s that courage now? Where’s the tough guy act? “Shout at me again. Show me your pride. You had the nerve to take what was mine. Tell me, Nathan, who filled your head with that kind of courage p>
His voice cracked like a whip, and his palm flew out in a sudden strike. The slap echoed down the alley like the crack of wood on stone.
Nathan’s lip split open, a dark line of blood seeping at the corner of his mouth. The impact shoved him back two steps. His fists tightened at his sides, his muscles screaming to hit back, but he forced himself still.
He knew the truth. The moment he raised a hand, the alley would collapse on him in a storm of fists and boots.
“Mr. Marlowe p>
The rage inside Nathan surged like fire, but he shoved it down, choking on his own fury as he spoke.
“Whatever happens tonight, it’s on me. It has nothing to do with my roommates. If you need to take someone, then take me. Let them go first p>
He tilted his chin toward Leander and Evander to make his meaning clear. “Let them go p>
Theron burst out laughing, the sound bouncing against the brick walls like rolling thunder.
“Those friends of yours were standing proud just now, ready to throw down with us. And you want me to release them? You must be out of your mind, Nathan p>
Theron stepped back and raised his hand. Three towering men pushed through the crowd, their massive frames throwing long, jagged shadows across the alley walls.
“I like to think of myself as a fair man,” he said with a cold, deliberate smile. “The three of you wanted to throw hands with my men earlier, so I’ll give you the chance you were begging for.
“Three against three. If you can knock down all three of them, then I’ll call it a win. I’ll drop the whole thing, and you can walk out with that girl.
“Or you can hand her over to me right now. Tell me you’re sorry, and then slap yourselves across the face ten times. Do that, and I’ll let you leave this alley in one piece. The decision is yours p>
Nathan, Luke, and Evander glanced at one another. Their expressions shifted from shock to fury as the weight of the threat sank in.
Giving Bianca up, bowing their heads, and striking themselves was nothing short of throwing away their pride.
The three of them made their choice in a heartbeat. They nodded together, then Nathan stepped forward with his jaw tight and his voice heavy.
“Fine, Mr. Marlowe. We’ll fight them. But if we win, you let us walk away. You give us your word, and you keep it p>
Theron’s grin spread wide, sharp as a blade. He dipped his head slowly.
“When I give my word, it stands. Beat them, and I’ll let you pass p>
His tone dropped, filled with menace. “But if you lose, I’ll break you limb by limb and
dump you in a junkyard where no one will ever find you p>
The threat pressed against their chests like a weight.
Luke and Evander’s faces went pale, their breathing shallow. Even Nathan felt fear creep like ice into his veins.
Losing meant ruin. Losing meant pain beyond repair. But the bow was already drawn, and there was no choice but to release the arrow.
“Let’s do it p>
Luke stepped forward. The warmth in his eyes vanished, replaced by a blaze of fury.
He threw his fist with the force of a hammer, slamming it toward the guard in front of
him.
He had grown up in the Northeast, cutting wood in blistering winters and grueling summers. He had wrestled wolves with nothing but his bare hands and survived. His body was carved from years of labor, and every strike carried raw power, every kick rattled bone.
Even the trained guard stumbled back under the force, forced to yield ground.
Nathan charged next, his fists up and his body set. He lacked Luke’s raw strength, but he had trained in mixed martial arts and knew how to move His blows cut sharp, his feet steady, his rhythm tight. His guard
strained against him, the fight locked in balance.
But Evander faltered. He had never been a fighter, and it showed. Within seconds,
his chest absorbed strike after strike, his breath ragged, his arms heavy.
Bianca stared from the passenger seat, her heart sinking into regret so deep it felt like drowning. If she hadn’t foolishly agreed to go to.
Saffron House with her class net
tonight, none of this would be happening. Nathan and the others wouldn’t be standing in the line of
fire for her mistake.
Leander’s voice cut through the chaos. “Do you see it now? This is the price of the
choices you made tonight p>
Bianca’s head whipped toward him. His eyes were cold and steady, his tone
merciless.
“You ran into the first room you found and begged strangers to save you. That might
have felt right in the moment, but your actions dragged someone else into danger they never asked for.
“From now on, if you light the fire, you put it out yourself. Don’t make anyone else burn with
you.
“My friends are bleeding out there because of you. Remember that for the rest of your life.
Bianca’s lips trembled, her chest tightened, but no words came out. Before she could speak, Leander pushed the door open and stepped into the alley.
A heavy crack split the air.
Evander fell hard onto his back. The guard facing him shoved him down and raised
his boot, driving it toward his chest.
Evander’s eyes widened. The heel was coming down, and his body refused to move. Escape was gone.
Then, a shadow slipped into place beside him. A single kick lashed out, swift and precise.
The bone snapped with a sharp crack.
The guard shrieked as his body lifted and flew sideways. He slammed into the brick
wall so hard the sound reverberated through the alley. His leg bent the wrong way, twisted and broken.
Evander hadn’t even caught his breath when a firm hand gripped his arm and
yanked him upright.
“Leander p>
When he saw the man standing beside him, his eyes locked in stunned disbelief.