Chapter 4 - The Ultimatum
The storm hit the gorge at six in the evening, bringing with it a driving rain that obscured the river and turned the surrounding woods into a wall of black shadows. Inside the estate, the lights were dimmed to night-mode, the house operating on silent generator power.
Marco stood in the central security hub, surrounded by six glowing monitors displaying the infrared feed of the perimeter fences. Lena stood beside him, a compact silver pistol—one she had kept hidden in her own travel bag for four years—resting in her hand.
"They've cut the main power lines at the highway junction," Leo reported, his fingers flying across the keyboard. "Three vehicles just breached the outer gate. Infrared shows twelve men. Heavy arms."
"Dominic?" Marco asked.
"He's in the second vehicle," Leo confirmed. "He's leading the breach himself. He thinks you're trapped here with minimal security."
Marco turned to Lena. "Take Milo to the subterranean vault. It has an independent oxygen supply and its own exit tunnel that leads down to the boat dock on the river. If the upper house falls, Leo will take you down the river to Vancouver."
Lena looked at the monitors, then at Marco. She saw the lines of fatigue around his eyes, the absolute solitude of a man who had spent his entire life fighting wars he never asked for.
"I’m not leaving you," she said.
Marco shook his head, a rare flash of frustration crossing his features. "Andrea, this isn't a discussion. My cousin is a psychopath. If he gets his hands on you—"
"I am Lena Vasic now," she said, her voice ringing clear against the hum of the computers. "And for four years, I protected our son alone. I didn't survive the streets of Portland by hiding in vaults when the trouble arrived. I know how Dominic thinks. He's arrogant. He thinks you're alone because you're hiding a secret. He expects you to fight like a cornered animal. He doesn't expect a crossfire."
Marco stared at her, a slow, dark glint of admiration breaking through the grimness of his expression. "You've changed," he murmured.
"I became what I needed to be to keep our child alive," she said, checking the magazine of her pistol with a professional click. "Now show me where the blind spots are on the southern terrace."
The house shook as the first breach charge detonated at the front entrance.
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Marco drew his weapon, his eyes locked onto hers for one final, intense second. "Keep your head down," he said. "If anything happens to me, you run. Don't look back."
"Nothing is going to happen to you," Lena said, her voice dropping into a fierce, protective rhythm. "Because you have a son to raise."
