Chapter 3 - The Siege of the EstateThe sound of shattering glass echoed from the eastern wing of the Moretti mansion like rolling thunder.
Outside, the heavy rain of a Chicago autumn beat violently against the reinforced bulletproof windows, but it was drowned out by the distinct, rhythmic rattle of automatic gunfire. Vanguard’s men had breached the outer courtyard gates, cutting through the electronic security grid and overwhelming our primary guard posts within minutes.
“Stay low!” Lorenzo ordered, grabbing my arm and pulling me and Mia behind a massive mahogany reading table in the center of the library.
My whole body was shaking. I clutched Mia tightly against my chest, burying her face in my shoulder so she couldn't see the sudden transformation of the room into a war zone. The little girl whimpered, frightened by the loud noises, but she was brave—she didn't cry.
Lorenzo moved with lethal precision. He tapped a hidden control panel beneath his desk, and a heavy steel security shutter slid down over the library’s large stained-glass windows, blocking out the flashes of gunfire outside.
“Marcus!” Lorenzo barked into his encrypted tactical radio. “Report!”
“They came through the perimeter tunnel system, Boss—we’ve got at least twenty heavily armed operators inside the north corridor!” Marcus’s voice crackled through the static, punctuated by the deafening sound of a shotgun blast in the background. “They’re heading straight for the central library! They know you’re in there!”
“Let them come,” Lorenzo replied coldly. He turned to me, his dark eyes burning with an intense, fierce protective fire. “Listen to me carefully, Elena. If the door breaches, you take the hidden panic room behind the fireplace. The keypad code is your birthday. Do you understand?”
“What about you?” I gasped, grabbing the lapel of his jacket. “There are twenty of them, Lorenzo! You can’t take them all by yourself!”
“Watch me,” he said simply. A grim, humorless smile touched the corner of his lips. He leaned down, pressing a quick, fierce kiss to my forehead—and then to Mia’s curly hair—before standing up and positioning himself near the heavy oak double doors.
The heavy wood of the library doors splintered violently as an explosive charge blew the deadbolts right out of their frames.
The blast threw a cloud of smoke and splintered timber across the polished marble floor. Through the swirling haze, three black-clad mercenaries surged into the room, their assault rifles raised and ready to fire.
They didn't even get their weapons leveled.
Lorenzo moved like a striking panther. Two rapid, deafening gunshots cracked through the small space. The lead mercenary dropped instantly, tumbling onto the rug. Before the second man could react, Lorenzo closed the distance, disarming him with a brutal, fluid sweep of his arm and driving the butt of his pistol into the man’s temple.
The third mercenary managed to fire off a wild burst, the bullets chewing into the wooden bookshelves right beside my head. I screamed, covering Mia with my own body.
Crack.
Lorenzo’s third shot caught the last attacker square in the chest, sending him crashing backward into the shattered doorway.
Silence descended once more, thick with the acrid smell of gunpowder and burning cordite.
Lorenzo stood amidst the wreckage, his chest heaving slightly, his suit jacket torn at the shoulder, but standing tall and unbroken. He looked back at us, his gaze sweeping over me and Mia to ensure we were unharmed.
“Is that all they’ve got?” Lorenzo muttered, stepping over a fallen body.
Suddenly, the encrypted radio on his tactical belt buzzed to life. But it wasn't Marcus’s voice coming through the speaker.
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It was a smooth, mocking voice that sent a fresh wave of ice straight through my veins.
“Well, well, well. Impressive shooting, Lorenzo,” the voice chuckled through the static. Julian Vanguard. “Did you really think you could hide your little runaway bride and your precious bastard child in that mansion forever? Open the front gates and hand them over, Moretti. Or I burn this entire estate to the ground with all three of you inside.”
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