CHAPTER 6 — The Girl Who Recognized Her Grandfather
The hospital echoed with explosions.
Smoke filled every hallway.
Armed mercenaries rushed from operating rooms and emergency exits.
It wasn't a hospital anymore.
It was a fortress.
Marco led one rescue team toward the underground laboratory.
Vincenzo and Sofia sprinted toward the intensive care unit.
The timer continued flashing.
02:43
02:42
02:41
Every hallway was blocked.
Every elevator disabled.
Every stairwell trapped.
Suddenly—
A nurse stepped into the corridor.
She looked terrified.
"Mr. Moretti..."
"I know where your granddaughter is."
Marco immediately pointed his gun.
"Boss, it could be a trap."
The nurse shook her head, crying.
"I've worked here for six years."
"They forced me to stay."
"They threatened my family."
She handed Vincenzo a small keycard.
"This opens the hidden ICU."
Without another word, she turned and ran toward the children's ward to help evacuate patients.
Vincenzo stared at the keycard.
"There are still good people," he whispered.
The hidden ICU door opened.
Inside...
Five-year-old Isabella lay asleep beneath dozens of medical tubes.
Her tiny chest rose and fell weakly.
She looked so small.
So fragile.
So innocent.
Sofia burst into tears.
"My baby..."
As Vincenzo slowly approached the bed...
The little girl's eyes fluttered open.
She looked at the strange man standing over her.
For several seconds...
Neither of them spoke.
Then Isabella smiled.
A tiny, gentle smile.
"You came."
Vincenzo froze.
"You... know who I am?"
She reached beneath her pillow and pulled out an old photograph.
It showed a young Vincenzo holding little Sofia in his arms twenty years earlier.
"My mommy showed me this every birthday."
"She said..."
"...one day Grandpa would find us."
The old mafia boss completely broke down.
He fell to his knees beside the hospital bed.
"I'm sorry I was late."
Isabella gently touched the scar on his face.
"It's okay."
"I waited."
Before anyone could say another word—
The room suddenly shook violently.
BOOM!
The entire hospital trembled.
Emergency lights turned red.
A cold mechanical voice echoed through every speaker.
"Bomb sequence activated."
"Sixty seconds until total detonation."
Marco's desperate voice crackled over the radio.
"Boss!"
"The underground children are trapped!"
"We can't save everyone!"
Vincenzo looked at Isabella...
Then looked toward the burning hallway where twenty-three terrified children were still waiting for help.
He had only one minute...
May you like
...to choose between saving his own granddaughter...
or risking everything to save them all.
