Dante’s jaw tightened.

“Take the basement line,” Dante ordered the young guard.

“Bring the girl to the secure room below the main house.”

“What about the horse?” I asked.

“He stays here,” Dante said. “The stalls are reinforced with steel plate.”

“He will be safer here than in the crossfire.”

I reached out and patted Vesper’s muzzle one last time.

The big horse blew a warm breath against my palm.

“I’ll be back,” I whispered to him.

The guard grabbed my arm, more gently this time, and pulled me toward the back of the stable.

We walked quickly down a narrow hallway lined with leather saddles and bridles.

The smell of oiled leather and oats was strong here.

At the end of the hall, the guard pushed open a heavy wooden door.

It led to a flight of concrete stairs going down into the dark.

The light from the red emergency beacons didn’t reach down here.

I could hear the dull thud of gunshots through the earth above us.

“Keep close,” the guard said.

He had a small flashlight clipped to his vest that threw a bouncing beam of white light ahead of us.