Chapter 4: The Hunt Through the City and the Underground Safehouse
Seated beside me in the lead vehicle was Marcus, tapping furiously away on a ruggedized tactical tablet. "Alexander, we’ve intercepted an encrypted radio transmission between the estate guards and Vincent’s lead vehicle," Marcus reported, his face grim under the dashboard lights. "They’re taking her to the underground medical wing beneath the main manor. Your father has deployed a team of underground obstetricians to induce labor early. He’s not waiting for natural term; he wants that child born under his direct roof tonight so he can legally claim guardianship before you can secure a family court injunction." Hearing those words felt like pouring molten lead into my veins. Inducing a premature birth just to satisfy his archaic obsession with lineage—he was willing to risk the lives of both Isabel and my unborn baby without a second thought. "Push the engines harder," I ordered the driver through gritted teeth, my knuckles white as I gripped the heavy steel barrel of my customized Sig Sauer rifle. "If they scratch a single hair on her head, burn the entire estate to the ground. Leave nobody standing."
When our convoy finally smashed through the towering iron security gates of the Westchester estate, ramming the front entrance posts with catastrophic force, the compound erupted into a chaotic warzone. Automatic gunfire flashed from the second-story turret windows, shattering stone facades and riddling our armored vehicles with lead. My men spilled out into the pouring rain with military precision, returning fire with overwhelming force as we advanced toward the main manor doors. I ignored the flying bullets, sprinting past the front portico and using an explosive breaching charge to blow the heavy oak double doors completely off their hinges. Stepping into the grand foyer amidst rolling smoke and splintered wood, I knew I was walking straight into my father’s final trap—and I was ready to tear the world apart to get my family back.
