There was one place on billionaire Holden Cross’s estate that even armed men refused to approach after sunset.

The sound was not a bark. It was an explosion of raw, kinetic fury.

Phantom didn't wait for a command. The moment Victor’s hand crossed the threshold of the coat, the Cane Corso launched himself off the bottom step. In mid-air, a hundred and thirty pounds of muscle became a blur of black fur and snapping iron.

Victor’s gun clattered across the marble floor as Phantom slammed into him with the force of a speeding truck. The enforcer went down hard, the breath forced from his lungs in a sickening wheeze.

The two bodyguards flanking Victor drew their weapons instantly, shouting in panic as they tried to track the moving target.

"Hold your fire!" Holden roared.

He didn't need to give the order twice. From the upper balcony and the side corridors, six red laser sights snapped onto the chests of the two Corsini enforcers. Holden’s private security detail had them dead to rights before their safeties were even fully disengaged.

"Drop them," Holden commanded, his voice slicing through the chaos.

The two enforcers looked down at their weapons, then up at the red dots dancing across their sternums, and slowly let their handguns slide to the floor.

On the ground, Victor struggled beneath the crushing weight of the massive dog. Phantom’s jaws hovered an inch from Victor’s throat, hot breath washing over the man's terrified face, the deep, vibrating growl shaking the floorboards beneath them.

"Get this... get this animal off me!" Victor choked out, his arrogance entirely shattered.

Holden walked slowly across the foyer, his boots clicking rhythmically against the stone. He stopped a few feet away, looking down at the man who had tormented his family for over a decade.

"You came to my house looking for a stray," Holden said softly, crouching down so he was at eye level with the writhing syndicate boss. "You forgot one fundamental rule of the underground, Victor."

"Holden—listen—"

"Everything that enters my courtyard belongs to me," Holden interrupted, his voice dropping into a lethal whisper. "And anyone who threatens what belongs to me... ceases to exist."

Lily stood a few paces back, her small hand resting calmly on the banister. She watched the scene without flinching. There was no fear in her amber eyes—only a cold, inherited certainty.

"Marcus," Holden called out without looking back.

"Boss?"

"Take Mr. Corsini and his men down to the lower level. Give them a shovel and twenty minutes to think about their life choices. If they aren't finished digging by the time the timer runs out, fill the hole."

"Understood."