Chapter 6 - BLOOD ON THE WATERBefore Nina could pull the trigger, Matteo hit a red button on his control console.
A high-frequency acoustic flash charge, pre-installed along the dock walls, detonated. A blinding flash of light and an ear-splitting sound wave burst through the cavern.
Nina and her mercenaries screamed, clutching their bleeding ears as their vision was completely blown out.
Matteo slammed the boat's throttles fully forward.
The tactical craft shot forward like a missile, tearing through the water and smashing through the wooden floodgates of the subterranean hideout. We burst out into the open river, cutting through the dark waters at breathtaking speed, leaving the burning safehouse behind us.
Rain slammed against the reinforced windshield as Matteo navigated the dark river toward Lake Superior.
"Are you okay?" Matteo called out, checking on me and Sophia.
"We’re alive!" I yelled back over the roaring wind and engine noise. "What about your sister?"
"Nina made her choice," Matteo replied coldly, his face set like concrete. "She is no longer my sister. She is an enemy target."
I looked down at baby Sophia. She had woken up from the vibration, but instead of crying, her wide blue eyes looked up at me with strange calm. She trusted me completely. And looking at Matteo, driving us straight into the heart of darkness, I realized something terrifying: despite the violence, despite the mafia blood on his hands, I trusted him too.
Two hours later, under the cover of a thick Lake Superior fog, the silhouette of Isle Royale loomed in the distance.
The island fortress was a massive, concrete structure built into the rocky cliffs, lit up by powerful searchlights sweeping across the water. Defensive gun turrets guarded the perimeter.
"The heavy security is on the front docks," Matteo explained, handing me a tactical vest and a small lightweight handgun. "We are going in through the sea caves at the base of the cliffs."
"I don't know how to use a gun, Matteo," I said, my hands shaking as I looked at the dark weapon.
May you like
Matteo reached out, placing his warm, heavy hand over mine. He guided my fingers around the grip, aligning my sight.
"Point it at anyone who tries to take your children," he said softly, his dark eyes locking onto mine with fierce intensity. "Pull the trigger until the slide locks back. You are a mother fighting for her children, Elena. You are deadlier than any soldier in this fortress."
