CHAPTER 5 — The Hospital Under Siege
The convoy tore through the rain-soaked streets like a black storm.
More than fifty armored SUVs ignored every traffic light.
Police cars moved aside.
No one dared stop them.
Inside the lead vehicle, Vincenzo sat beside Sofia, gripping the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles turned white.
The countdown on the phone kept running.
07:12
07:11
07:10
Every second felt like another knife in his chest.
Marco received a call through his encrypted headset.
"Boss."
"Our hackers accessed the hospital's security system."
"And?"
Marco swallowed hard.
"It isn't just Isabella."
"What do you mean?"
"There are twenty-three children trapped inside."
Silence.
Sofia slowly closed her eyes.
"I told you..."
"They've been taking children for years."
"They used sick kids to hide their operation."
Vincenzo looked at her, horrified.
"They turned a children's hospital into a prison."
Sofia nodded.
"They knew no one would ever suspect."
Just then—
Another message appeared on the phone.
Choose carefully.
Save your granddaughter...
...or save the other children.
Beneath the message appeared a digital map.
One route led directly to Isabella's ICU room.
The other led to an underground laboratory holding the remaining children.
Both paths were rigged with explosives.
Both could not be reached in time.
Marco cursed under his breath.
"It's impossible."
Vincenzo remained silent for several seconds.
Then he looked at every man inside the convoy.
"For twenty-five years..."
"...I taught you how to kill."
"Tonight..."
"...I'm asking you to learn how to save lives."
He divided his army into two rescue teams.
Half would fight toward Isabella.
The other half would rescue the trapped children.
"If any child dies..."
"...I failed."
No one argued.
Not one.
Because for the first time...
Their boss wasn't acting like a mafia king.
He was acting like a father.
Minutes later...
The convoy smashed through the hospital gates.
Masked gunmen opened fire from every floor.
Bullets shattered ambulance windows.
Doctors and nurses screamed.
Patients crawled for cover.
Marco shouted,
"Snipers!"
Three hidden shooters fired from the rooftop.
One bullet struck Vincenzo's windshield.
Another pierced his shoulder.
Blood soaked his black suit.
But he never slowed down.
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The SUV crashed through the hospital entrance.
The rescue had begun.
