Chapter 5 - Fire and JudgmentDown in the main study, the interrogation was violently interrupted.
The overhead lights flickered and died, plunging the room into shadow save for the amber glow of a single desk lamp. The heavy oak door burst inward as three armed men in black tactical gear poured into the room, their suppressed submachine guns raised.
Isabella screamed, diving behind the sofa.
Aleandro did not flinch. In the exact fraction of a second the lights went out, his hand had dropped to the pistol on his lap. Before the first intruder could acquire a target, a deafening crack shattered the silence of the study.
The lead gunman dropped instantly, a bullet piercing his tactical vest.
Aleandro rolled out of his chair, using the heavy mahogany desk as cover as a hail of bullets chewed through the wood, scattering papers and shattering crystal inkwells.
"Valenti sends his regards, Moretti!" a voice shouted from the doorway.
"Tell Dominic he should have come himself," Aleandro muttered coldly.
He fired twice around the corner of the desk. Two more muffled impacts echoed through the room as another assailant collapsed. The third man hesitated, his magazine empty, desperately fumbling to reload.
That hesitation cost him his life. Aleandro stepped out from cover, his weapon steady, and fired a clean shot that dropped the final intruder to the Persian rug.
The smoke from the gunfire hung thick and acrid in the air.
Aleandro stood over the fallen men, his heart rate steady, his eyes fixed on the doorway. He knew there were more. A coordinated breach meant a full strike team.
He turned his gaze toward Isabella, who was cowering behind the sofa, shaking violently.
"They... they weren't supposed to come here," she sobbed, her manicured fingers clawing at her silk dress. "They said they were just going to take the files!"
"They came to kill us both, Isabella," Aleandro said, his voice devoid of pity. "Because once Valenti realized you failed, you became a loose end."
Before he could move toward the hallway, his secure tactical radio buzzed on his belt.
"Boss," Marco’s voice cracked through the static, breathless and strained. "We’ve got a secondary breach on the east wing! A team of four entered through the courtyard terrace. They’re heading toward the family quarters!"
Aleandro’s blood turned to ice.
May you like
The east wing.
Where Sophia and Emma were sleeping.
