Chapter 8 - The Nurse’s Vow
The master bedroom went dead silent.
Mark Vance lay groaning on the floor, staring at Khloe with terrified, wide eyes, his body shaking uncontrollably. "Khloe... please... we worked together... please don't let him do this..."
Khloe looked from Vance up to Dominic.
Dominic stood tall, cold, and unyielding, holding out the silver revolver. His amber eyes were fixed on her, testing her, searching her soul to see if the blood and terror of his world had finally infected her.
"Do it, Khloe," Dominic commanded softly. "He deserves no mercy."
Khloe walked slowly out of the bathroom. Her bare feet made no sound on the hardwood floor. She stepped toward Dominic, looking down at the weapon in his hand, then reaching out.
She didn't take the gun.
Instead, she placed her small hand over Dominic’s fingers, gently pushing the weapon back down toward his side.
"No," she said softly, her voice steady and absolute.
Dominic’s dark eyebrows pulled together. "He tried to destroy you."
"And if I shoot an defenseless man lying on the floor, he succeeds," Khloe said, holding Dominic’s gaze with unflinching bravery. "I am a nurse, Dominic. I swore an oath to preserve human life—not to take it. I pulled a bullet out of your body because I couldn't watch a man die. I won't cross that line now. Not for him. Not for you. Not for anyone."
Dominic stared at her for a long, tense moment. The cold, lethal flame in his amber eyes flickered, replaced by a deep, profound respect that softened his hard features.
He slowly lowered the revolver, holstering it back at his side.
"You have a surprisingly strong spine for a girl who works in an emergency room," he murmured quietly.
He turned his head toward the door. "Leo!"
Two large bodyguards instantly stepped into the bedroom, stepping over the shattered door frame.
"Take Dr. Vance," Dominic ordered coldly. "Deliver him to the Federal Building on Dearborn Street. Leave him tied up on the front steps with the encrypted flash drives containing all of his brother’s political bribe records. Let the FBI handle his future."
"Yes, Boss," Leo replied, grabbing Vance by his coat and dragging the weeping doctor out of the room.
When they were alone again in the ruined bedroom, Dominic turned back to Khloe. He walked close to her, looking down at her pale face, her resolute blue eyes, and the quiet dignity she carried despite everything she had endured.
"You truly are remarkable," he whispered softly.
"I'm tired, Dominic," Khloe confessed, her strength finally wavering as the adrenaline began to fade. "I just want this nightmare to end."
"It is over," Dominic declared smoothly. "Marcus Vance’s network is destroyed. The corrupt officers on his payroll have been exposed. The threat to you no longer exists."
He stepped closer, reaching out to gently tuck a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. His touch was warm, precise, and immensely tender.
"Tomorrow morning, my driver will take you anywhere you wish to go," he said quietly. "Your apartment has been fully repaired, your bank accounts cleared of any suspicion, and your position at Mercy General restored if you choose to return."
May you like
Khloe looked up at him, her heart doing a strange, fluttering flip in her chest. Freedom was finally being offered to her—everything she had prayed for over the past three weeks.
Yet, as she looked into the amber eyes of the dangerous man standing before her, she realized with a sinking feeling that leaving was no longer going to be easy.
