Chapter 1 - The Blood on the Cobblestones
The freezing stone courtyard of the luxurious Boston mansion was swept by a bitter, biting winter wind, but the chill in the air was nothing compared to the violence unfolding on the cobblestones.
Bosow, a massive, heavily scarred syndicate guard, stood with his boots planted firmly on the frost-covered ground. His face was twisted into a mask of ugly, unfiltered aggression. In his thick right hand, he gripped a heavy steel chain, raising it high above his head, fully intending to bring it crashing down with bone-breaking force.
Cowering beneath him was a giant black dog. The magnificent beast, easily weighing over a hundred and fifty pounds, was bleeding heavily from a fresh, jagged gash on its broad shoulder. Its dark fur was matted with blood and freezing rain, yet it refused to whimper, baring its teeth in a desperate, failing defense.
Before Bosow could snap the heavy steel chain down onto the animal's skull, a tiny flash of vibrant red darted directly into the line of fire.
It was a five-year-old girl named Ivy.
She wore a delicate red lace dress that starkly contrasted with the bleak, gray courtyard, her wild brown curls held back by a simple black bow. She didn't scream. She didn't flinch. She fearlessly stepped directly in front of the bleeding, giant beast, using her tiny body as a human shield against the towering, armed guard.
"Stop," Ivy demanded, her childish voice remarkably calm, echoing with an unnatural authority. "You're hurting him."
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Bosow scoffed, his eyes darkening with cruel intent. He tightened his grip on the chain, fully prepared to shove the little girl onto the frozen stones to finish his brutal job.
👉 Bosow thought he controlled the courtyard, but the sound of an expensive leather shoe stepping onto the frost was about to freeze his blood.
