Chapter 13 - The Siege of the Estate
The power grid died three seconds later. Total darkness swallowed the mansion, broken only by the harsh, strobing red beams of the backup emergency lights.
“Code Black,” Dominic barked, his voice slicing through the gloom with absolute authority. “Dante, take the east wing. Secure Ethan and Lily in the panic bunker beneath the wine cellar. Move!”
“Clara, stay behind me,” Dominic ordered, pulling his heavy SIG Sauer from its holster and racking a round with a sharp, metallic snap.
We moved swiftly through the darkened corridors, the floorboards cold beneath our feet. The sounds of heavy combat erupted from the courtyard below—bursts of suppressed automatic gunfire and breaking glass signaling that the perimeter had been stormed. These weren't low-level thugs like Milo or clumsy assassins; these were professional black-ops mercenaries hired by the remnants of the cartel to erase every trace of the Zurich files.
We reached the heavy oak door of the master suite just as a shadow detached itself from the opposite end of the hallway.
A man clad in matte-black tactical gear stepped out of the shadows, a silenced rifle raised toward my chest.
I didn't hesitate. I lunged forward, sweeping my foot hard against a heavy bronze floor-lamp and kicking it directly into the intruder’s shins. As he stumbled, Dominic fired twice—bang, bang—the muzzle flashes illuminating the hallway in blinding white bursts.
The merc crumpled to the floor, lifeless.
“We keep moving,” Dominic said, grabbing my arm and pulling me toward the private elevator shaft.
As we descended into the subterranean wine cellar where Dante was securing the children, a terrible thought struck me.
“Dominic,” I gasped, clutching his arm. “They aren't here for the servers. They don't care about the money anymore.”
He stopped, turning to face me in the dim emergency light. “Then what are they here for?”
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“They know the Zurich files have a physical backup. A microchip. My father gave it to me before he died, sewn into the lining of the childhood blanket Lily has been carrying since she was a baby.”
Dominic’s face went completely blank, his gray eyes turning to ice. “Lily is down in the cellar with Dante.”
