Chapter 5 - Siege of the Iron Fortress"All units, Code Red! We are breached!"
Julian’s voice boomed through the encrypted comm-link strapped to his collar as he dragged Vance out of the guest room and shoved him hard onto the floor at Marcus's feet.
"Tie him up," Julian ordered Marcus, tossing a bundle of heavy zip-ties from the bureau. "If he moves, put a bullet in him. Do you understand?"
Marcus, shaking but resolute, nodded quickly and dropped to his knees to secure the traitor.
Julian spun around and knelt in front of Eva. He gripped her small shoulders gently, looking deep into her eyes. The terror in her gaze tore at his soul, but underneath it, he saw a fierce, burning resilience.
"Eva, listen to me," Julian said, his voice steady and urgent. "You are safe here. I am going to lock this room down. Stay with Marcus, stay away from the windows, and do not make a sound. Can you do that for me?"
Eva looked at him, her lower lip trembling. Then, slowly, she nodded. She reached out, her small fingers wrapping around his thumb.
“Be careful, Papa.”
Three more words. Simple, devastating, and filled with a warmth Julian hadn't felt in seven years.
A fresh wave of adrenaline surged through his veins. He stood up, drew his weapon, and checked the magazine. Full.
"Papa loves you," he said softly before turning and striding out into the hallway, slamming the heavy reinforced security door shut behind him. The electronic locks engaged with a heavy, final clack.
Outside, the estate was turning into a war zone.
The manicured gardens where Eva had played were now chewed up by heavy tire tracks and scarred by gunfire. Flashes of muzzle fire lit up the night as Julian’s elite guards fought desperately to hold the main foyer.
Julian sprinted down the grand staircase just as the front doors—massive slabs of reinforced oak and steel—splintered under the impact of a heavy breaching charge.
The blast wave knocked him back a step, but he recovered instantly, raising his Sig Sauer and firing three rapid shots into the smoke.
Two rival mercenaries dropped instantly, hit dead center.
"Boss!"
It was Miller, the head of Julian's outer defense detail, bleeding heavily from a shrapnel wound in his shoulder. He crawled behind the marble reception desk, desperately reloading his rifle.
"Status!" Julian roared over the deafening roar of automatic gunfire.
"They're coming from the north and east gates simultaneously!" Miller shouted back. "At least forty men. They knew our blind spots, Julian! They knew every shift change! Someone sold the entire security layout!"
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Julian smiled grimly, the cold fury inside him freezing into absolute ice. Vance wasn't working alone. There were sleeper agents planted deeper within the syndicate.
"Hold this line!" Julian commanded, tossing Miller a spare magazine. "Flush out any rats inside the house. I'm going to take care of the welcoming committee."
