Chapter 8 - The Battle for the Estate
Gunfire echoed through the lower floor halls like thunderclaps.
Dante moved like a phantom through the shadows of his own home. Keeping Alina and Leo right behind him, he guided them down a hidden reinforced service stairwell toward the estate’s private panic vault.
At the end of the second-floor corridor, three Moretti mercenaries in night-vision gear burst through the glass balcony doors, their rifles raised.
"THERE HE IS!" one shouted.
Before the guard could raise his barrel, Dante stepped out from behind a marble pillar. He fired three rapid, terrifyingly precise shots. The three intruders collapsed onto the hardwood floor before their weapons could even clear the frame.
Alina covered her mouth to suppress a gasp, her eyes wide as she watched her uncle fight. There was no hesitation, no fear in Dante Rosselli—only absolute, lethal perfection.
"Move," Dante commanded softly, grabbing Alina’s elbow and ushering her into the reinforced vault room behind his study bookcase.
The panic vault was a hardened steel room equipped with independent satellite communications, medical supplies, and live tactical camera feeds.
Dante turned to her, placing his heavy hands on her shoulders. "Stay inside. Lock the biometric handle behind me. Do not open this door for anyone except me or Marco."
"Dante, no!" Alina cried out, grabbing his tactical vest. "Don't go back out there!"
Leo reached out from Alina’s arms, grabbing onto Dante’s thumb with his tiny hand, cooing softly as if asking his father to stay.
Dante looked down at his son, then at his niece. A rare, breathtakingly warm smile touched his sharp jawline. He gently unclasped his thumb from Leo's grip, pressing a firm kiss onto the baby's head, then looked up into Alina’s eyes.
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"I spent twenty years believing I lost my sister," Dante said softly. "I am not losing her daughter tonight. Lock the door, Lena."
He stepped out into the corridor, and the heavy vault door sealed shut with a pneumatic hiss.
