Chapter 5 - The Bleeding Hand
Medium shot: Cole’s large, tattooed hand remained clamped like an immovable iron vice around the heavy leather of the antique riding crop, entirely arresting Sloane's violent swing in mid-air.
Sloane gasped, her arrogant, defiant expression completely shattering as she yanked aggressively on the weapon, desperately trying to free it from her fiancé's grip. But Cole’s arm was like solid granite. He didn't budge a single millimeter.
He looked at the toxic woman wearing the silver evening gown with a dark, terrifying glare that made the temperature in the entire grand ballroom instantly plummet.
"Put that down," Cole commanded. His voice was cold, incredibly quiet, and laced with an absolute, lethal authority that sent a visible shiver of pure terror down the spines of the heavily armed mobsters watching from the perimeter of the room.
Sloane let go of the riding crop, her hands trembling as she took a nervous step backward, suddenly realizing she had pushed the apex predator of the city too far. Cole casually tossed the heavy leather weapon aside, letting it clatter loudly against the polished marble floor.
Medium close-up: Cole didn't look at his fiancée again. His intense, piercing dark eyes shifted downward, focusing entirely on the young maid cowering near the sweeping staircase.
He saw Lily flinch under his gaze. He saw the violent, dark purple bruise covering her cheekbone. And then, his eyes locked onto her trembling hand, which was pressed desperately against her chest, deeply lacerated by the stiletto heel and actively bleeding onto her stained uniform.
The muscles in Cole's strong jaw tightened into a rigid, unyielding line of completely suppressed, terrifying fury. The sight of her blood triggered a deeply protective instinct he didn't know he possessed.
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"You're bleeding," Cole stated, his deep voice suddenly dropping its coldness, replaced by a strange, intense, and profoundly heavy concern that shocked everyone in the room.
👉 Read Part 6 to witness the heartbreaking vulnerability of the battered maid.
