Chapter 4 - THE SUBTERRANEAN WARZONEBack in the subterranean depths beneath the Bellhaven Grand, Dominic Moretti executed his counter-attack with clinical precision.
"Thomas, take the left flank," Dominic ordered, his voice dropping into a professional military cadence. "Cut off their retreat toward the main street exit. Leave one alive so we can ask him who funded this little circus."
"Understood, Boss," Thomas muttered, signaling two guards to follow him into the shadows of the concrete pillars.
Amelia stayed close to Dominic, her hands clutching a discarded heavy steel wrench she had picked up from a maintenance cart. She wasn't a soldier, but she refused to be left behind in the dark.
"Stay behind me," Dominic warned without turning around.
"I'm not a liability," Amelia whispered fiercely. "I know every blind spot in this garage. The security cameras here don't rotate past the concrete support pillars. If we move along sector four, we can flank the hit squad without them ever seeing us."
Dominic paused, glancing back at her with genuine respect in his eyes. "You keep surprising me, Amelia. Remind me to triple your salary—if we survive this."
Up ahead, near the rigged black SUV, three armed men in black tactical gear were pacing anxiously. They were whispering among themselves, clearly confused as to why Mateo and his partner hadn't returned.
"Something's wrong," one of them said in Italian, raising his rifle. "Check the service tunnel."
Before the hitman could take a step, Thomas and his men struck from the darkness. A suppressed volley of gunfire cracked through the cavernous garage. Two of the hitmen dropped instantly, their bodies sliding across the slick concrete.
The third hitman spun around, raising his weapon toward Thomas, but Dominic was faster. A single shot from Dominic's Beretta caught the man squarely in the shoulder, spinning him around before he crashed hard against the side of a concrete pillar.
Thomas rushed forward, pinning the surviving hitman to the ground with a booted foot planted firmly on his chest.
"Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" the hitman screamed in English, dropping his weapon.
Dominic walked up slowly, the rain dripping from the brim of his coat, and stood over the wounded man. He crouched down, his face inches from the terrified mercenary.
"Who hired you?" Dominic asked softly.
"Vincenzo!" the man gasped, clutching his bleeding shoulder. "Don Vincenzo Moretti! He paid us a hundred thousand upfront and another hundred when your body was recovered!"
Dominic nodded slowly, as if confirming a suspicion he had held for years. "And the explosive in the SUV?"
"Remote trigger! Marco has the detonator in the lead car parked two levels up!"
Dominic stood up, gesturing to Thomas. "Tie him up with the others. We're going upstairs."
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Amelia watched them work, her heart racing. "Upstairs? The hotel lobby is crawling with guests, and Vincenzo's main enforcers will be waiting!"
Dominic turned to her, a terrifyingly confident smile playing on his lips. "Amelia, when someone tries to blow up my car, I don't hide in the basement. I invite myself to their penthouse."
