BANG!

The gunshot silenced the entire venue.

For a brief moment, time itself seemed to stop as everyone stared at the massive LED screen behind Ashley, now cracked from the impact.

Ashley?

She was on the floor, one hand and one knee braced against the stage.

Her heart pounded violently in her chest as the ringing in her ears drowned out everything else.

A second later, screams erupted throughout the ballroom.

Panic spread like wildfire as the guests finally processed what had just happened.

Dominion moved immediately.

Khan and Red sprinted onto the stage.

Reaching Ashley, they quickly shielded her with their bodies, hands gripping her shoulders as they hurried her away.

"Madam, are you hurt?" Red asked, pulling her toward the nearest exit, his usually steady eyes noticeably shaken.

At the same time, Dominion’s men closest to the shooter tackled him to the ground the instant the shot was fired.

Following protocol, they first disarmed him before pinning him down.

Meanwhile, the rest of Dominion immediately moved to secure the most important people in the room.

"Master!" Gustav reached Lucian in an instant, placing a hand against his back. "We have to go!"

Lucas, meanwhile, scooped Primo into his arms without hesitation, shielding the boy with his own body.

Nelek and Rum rushed toward Liza and Tommy.

Gin and another Dominion member escorted Shyaan and Ramirez.

As chaos unfolded from that single gunshot, more Dominion personnel spread throughout the ballroom, guiding frightened guests toward emergency exits that had been prepared precisely for a worst-case scenario.

Because even though Ashley and Dominion hadn’t expected an attack, they had always prepared for the possibility.

And tonight, it happened.

"Ugh!"

The shooter struggled beneath the combined weight of the three men restraining him.

Grinding his teeth, he lifted his head, murderous intent burning in his eyes.

"Ashley De Luca!" His roar cut through the chaos, causing Ashley and several others to pause.

Near the exit, Ashley instinctively looked back.

Even from that distance, she could clearly see the hatred in the man’s eyes.

In that instant, she knew.

She had been the target all along.

"You’re..." he laughed through clenched teeth. "...dead."

Ashley held her breath.

She stared at him for only a second before Red urged urgently.

"Madam, we have to go!"

There had only been one shooter, and he’d been subdued before firing a second shot.

Even so, that didn’t lessen the terror.

Most of the guests had no connection to the underground world.

For them, this wasn’t business.

It was a nightmare.

Dominion quickly escorted everyone into designated safe rooms, where they remained until the situation could be assessed.

"What’s happening?" one woman cried, trembling as she sat on a divan, her face drained of color beneath carefully applied makeup. "Was that a terrorist attack? He just opened fire!"

"We need to leave!" another guest panicked. "What if there’s a bomb?"

The mere mention of a bomb caused the panic to spread even faster.

Fortunately, before it could spiral out of control, Betty had arrived to calm everyone down and do damage control to salvage what they still could.

The same scene repeated itself in the other safe rooms.

*****

In one of them, Shyaan clapped loudly, drawing everyone’s attention.

The rising panic instantly subsided as every pair of eyes turned toward her.

"Everyone, calm down." She stood calmly at the front of the room. "I don’t know exactly what’s happening, but I can tell you one thing with certainty."

"This isn’t a terrorist attack."

She paused, studying the frightened faces before her.

Most of those visibly terrified were younger guests.

Those closer to her age remained surprisingly composed—not because they’d expected something like this tonight, but because they’d lived long enough to know that business wasn’t always glamorous.

Behind wealth, there were always dangerous people.

People willing to eliminate competitors before they became threats.

"I know this is frightening," Shyaan continued, her voice calm and reassuring. "But no one has been hurt."

She offered them a gentle smile.

"This was most likely an isolated incident. I can’t promise you anything beyond that, but I can promise you this..."

"No one here wanted this to happen." She nodded. "So please... stay calm."

"We’re safe."

*****

In another room, Tommy’s expression darkened.

He sat beside Liza among several guests.

Unlike the other safe rooms, however, this one was eerily quiet.

No one spoke.

Everyone appeared lost in thought.

"Who..." Tommy muttered, his fist trembling. "...was that?"

"Tommy."

Liza gently covered his clenched hand with hers.

She knew her husband.

The anger he’d shown toward Lucian the other day had been nothing.

This...

This was real.

It had been years—many years—since she’d seen this expression on his face.

And every time she had, something terrible had followed.

"They’re already handling it," Liza whispered, squeezing his hand. "Tom..."

Tommy drew a slow breath before turning toward her. His expression hadn’t softened in the slightest.

"I’m sorry, Liz," his voice was low. "But I can’t just sit here."

"Someone tried to hurt the kids... under my watch," he continued. "I have to do something."

With that, Tommy rose from his chair.

"Stay here. My men will be here soon."

He looked at his wife one last time before sweeping his gaze across everyone else in the room.

Then he quietly walked out.

The door clicked shut behind him.

Liza let out a long breath.

"Liz..." Ramirez finally spoke.

She turned toward him.

"You know him." He gave her a small nod. "Tom will always be Tom. Even after staying away from this life for so many years..."

He trailed off. "He’ll never sit still while the people he cares about are under attack."

"I know," Liza sighed. "It’s just..."

Her gaze dropped to her lap. Her lips pressed into a thin line.

"I have a bad feeling." She slowly shook her head. "And I can’t explain it."

Maybe it was old trauma resurfacing.

Tommy had survived countless assassination attempts over the years.

The uneasiness twisting inside her now felt exactly like it used to whenever his life was in danger.

"It’s not him," Ramirez said quietly, waiting until she looked up. "He’s not the target this time, Liz. Tomas will be fine."

"And even if he were..." He offered her a reassuring smile. "Tommy has survived worse."

Liza managed a faint smile in return.

"I just..." she swallowed. "I don’t want to see him lying in a hospital bed again. I don’t want to watch him fight for his life again."

Had Liza known that tonight wasn’t over yet...

She never would’ve let her husband walk out that door alone.