The sound of shattering crystal echoed like a gunshot in the sterile quiet of Leo’s room. Blood smeared across the black handkerchief in Victor Romano’s hand, dripping onto the pristine Persian rug. But Victor did not look at his bleeding palm. His dark, impenetrable eyes were fixed entirely on Nora Hayes, who stood like a fragile yet immovable shield in front of her paralyzed patient.

“Down!”

Victor didn't hesitate. In a single, fluid motion, he grabbed Nora by the waist and hauled her down behind a heavy stone pillar as a hail of high-caliber bullets shattered the twenty-foot stained-glass window at the end of the hallway, sending colored shards raining down like deadly confetti.

“They’re inside,” Victor muttered, his voice dropping into a lethal, cold register. The mafia king was gone; in his place stood an apex predator ready to tear apart anything that threatened his den.

“Leo!” Nora gasped, horror gripping her chest. “The nursery is right down the hall!”

“Stay here!” Victor ordered, pulling a heavy Glock 19 from his chest holster and checking the magazine with practiced precision.

“I’m coming with you!” Nora shouted over the deafening roar of gunfire echoing from the floor below. She grabbed a heavy brass candleholder from a shattered side table, her knuckles whitening. “I’m not hiding while a child is in danger!”

Victor looked at her, seeing the fierce, unyielding spirit that had made him fall for her in the first place. There was no time to argue.

“Stay behind me,” Victor commanded. “Step where I step.”

They moved in tandem down the crimson-lit corridor, hugging the shadows. As they reached the nursery door, it burst open. Two masked operatives clad in black tactical gear and carrying suppressed submachine guns stepped out into the hall, scanning the area.

Victor didn't hesitate. Two muffled cracks echoed down the hallway. Both operatives collapsed instantly, lifeless before they hit the floor.

Victor kicked the nursery door open wide.

Leo was huddled under his heavy oak bed, trembling but quiet, trained by the chaos of his terrifying home.

“Dad! Nora!” Leo cried out, crawling out from beneath the frame.

Nora rushed across the room, dropping to her knees and sweeping Leo into her arms, pressing his face against her shoulder. “I’ve got you, sweetheart. You’re safe. I’m right here.”

Victor stood guard at the doorway, scanning the corridor. But the sound of boots stomping up the grand staircase signaled that the vanguard strike team was converging on their location.

“We can’t go down the stairs,” Victor said quickly, holstering his sidearm and pulling a heavy tactical knife from his belt. He walked over to the antique fireplace in the nursery, reached behind a heavy iron grate, and twisted a carved stone gargoyle.

With a low, mechanical grinding sound, the back of the fireplace slid open, revealing a hidden, reinforced elevator shaft descending into darkness.

“The emergency escape,” Victor said, ushering Nora and Leo toward the opening. “It leads directly to the subterranean garage. Maddox and the armored transport are waiting.”

“Victor, come with us,” Nora pleaded, her eyes shining with unshed tears as she pushed Leo into the small lift.

Victor looked at her, a bitter, grim smile touching his lips. He pressed a heavy steel key into her palm.

“I have to draw them away,” Victor said softly. “If I don't clear the upper floors, they’ll track the lift within seconds. Lock the inner door from the inside. Do not open it for anyone except me.”

“Victor—!”

Before she could finish, Victor slammed the elevator door shut. The heavy steel latched automatically, and the lift descended smoothly into the earth, cutting off the sound of gunfire just as a fresh wave of masked mercenaries swarmed into the nursery doorway.