Chapter 5 - The Siege of the East WingThe heavy oak door didn't just rattle; it splintered inward with a deafening crash as a heavy iron battering ram smashed through the deadbolt. Clara screamed, pulling Emma beneath the wooden frame of the bed as a dozen men in unmarked black tactical gear poured into the room. They wore no insignia, no masks, and carried suppressed submachine guns with military precision.
"Clear!" shouted the lead operator, scanning the empty corners with a tactical flashlight.
From the shadows of the hallway, Victor Romano moved like an apex predator. He didn't shout warnings. His silenced automatic pistol spat twice in rapid succession. The lead tactical operative dropped instantly, a clean round through his ceramic plate carrier.
"Ambush in the service wing!" Victor roared into his lapel radio, his voice echoing through the intercom system of the entire Moretti estate. "All guards to the East Pavilion! They bypassed the perimeter sensors!"
Upstairs in the study, Alessandro heard the gunfire before Victor’s voice even reached the radio. The dry, heavy thud-thud of suppressed small arms fire vibrated through the floorboards.
Alessandro drew his custom nickel-plated Beretta from his shoulder holster with one fluid motion. He didn't look at Sophia. He walked to the heavy mahogany doors, locked the deadbolt from the inside, and shoved the massive velvet armchair against the panels.
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"They're not here for me," Sophia whispered, standing up slowly, her face drained of every drop of color. "They're here for the ledger in the safe. And for the child."
"No one touches anyone in this house," Alessandro said coldly, pulling a secondary magazine from his belt and sliding it home with a sharp clack. "Not while I draw breath."
