Chapter 4 - The Rat’s Trap
In the darkness of the third-floor suite, the only sound was the heavy, rapid breathing of Sophia and the soft whimper of Emma as her mother pulled her under the heavy oak table.
Alessandro moved like a shadow.
He didn't need light; he knew every inch of his study by heart. He glided toward the heavy double doors that led to the main corridor. The electronic lock's indicator light was dead—not red, not green. It had been completely cut from the power grid.
They cut the main line and the backup generator for this wing, Alessandro thought, his mind working with tactical precision. This isn't a glitch. It's a coup.
A faint scratch against the wood of the outer door made him freeze.
It was the sound of a lockpick. Whoever was outside didn't have the master key, which meant they were trying to bypass the mechanical override. That meant they didn't have Matteo with them. Matteo would have had the key.
Matteo is either compromised, dead, or fighting for his life in another part of the house, Alessandro realized, a cold dread settling in his stomach.
He raised his gun, aligning his sights with the center of the door at chest level.
"Alessandro..." Sophia whispered from beneath the table.
"Shh," he hissed gently. "Stay down."
The lock clicked.
The door began to creak open, a sliver of gray afternoon light from the hallway spilling into the dark room. A silhouette appeared in the doorway—a man dressed entirely in black tactical gear, holding a suppressed submachine gun.
He didn't get a chance to raise it.
Alessandro fired twice. The silenced gunshots were nothing more than sharp puffs of air, but the impact was devastating. The two rounds caught the intruder directly in the chest. He let out a wet gasp and collapsed backward into the hallway.
Before his body could hit the floor, Alessandro was already moving.
He stepped over the fallen assassin, his gun sweeping the corridor. To his left, another masked man was raising his weapon. Alessandro fired three times, his bullets finding their mark with lethal accuracy. The second man crumpled against the wall, leaving a dark smear as he slid down.
"Clear," Alessandro muttered, though he knew it wasn't over.
He heard the distant rattle of gunfire from the lower floors. The coup was widespread. Enzo and Marcus had moved faster than he anticipated. They had bought off a portion of his guards.
Alessandro turned back into the room. He reached under the table, his hand finding Sophia's cold, trembling arm. "We have to move. Now. They know where we are, and they will send more."
"Where do we go?" Sophia asked, her voice cracking with terror as she clutched Emma, who was now crying silently, her face pressed into her mother's neck.
"The escape tunnel in the library," Alessandro said. "It leads to the old carriage house outside the main gates. My car is parked there."
He helped Sophia up. He didn't ask her to be brave; he saw the fierce determination in her eyes as she held her daughter. She was terrified, but she was a mother. She would do whatever it took to keep Emma safe.
"Hold my belt," Alessandro instructed her. "Do not let go, no matter what you hear."
They moved through the darkened corridors of the third floor, avoiding the main stairwell where the sounds of gunfire and shouting were growing louder. The estate had become a war zone.
As they reached the entrance to the library, a figure stepped out from a side corridor.
Alessandro raised his gun, his finger tightening on the trigger, but stopped just in time.
"Boss!"
It was Matteo. His suit was torn, and his shoulder was bleeding, but his eyes were sharp. He held an assault rifle in his hands.
"Matteo," Alessandro breathed, relief washing over him. "What’s the situation?"
"Enzo has turned half the security detail," Matteo said, panting slightly. "He told them you were dead and that he was taking control of the family. I have ten loyal men holding the lobby, but we are outnumbered. We need to get you out of here."
"I'm not leaving my house to that parasite," Alessandro growled.
"You have to, Alessandro," Sophia said suddenly, her voice remarkably steady despite her fear. She looked at him, her hazel eyes shining in the dim light. "If you stay and fight now, you might die. And if you die, who protects Emma? Who gets justice for Ricardo?"
Alessandro stared at her.
For sixteen years, his only rule had been to fight to the death, to never show weakness, to never retreat. But looking at Sophia, and at the little girl clinging to her, he realized that sometimes, survival was the ultimate victory.
"Alright," Alessandro said, turning back to Matteo. "We go to the carriage house. We take the SUV. But we aren't running away, Matteo."
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"No, boss?"
"We are going to the Commission," Alessandro said, his voice cold as ice. "We are going to lay this entire betrayal out in front of the other families. And then, we are going to burn my uncle's empire to the ground."
