Chapter 13
The firefight in the grand foyer was a brutal, contained bloodbath. The Chicago mercenaries were highly trained, but they were fighting an entrenched enemy defending their home. The marble floors, once pristine and gleaming, were now slick with blood and covered in shattered plaster and brass casings.
"Boss, we have a problem," Thomas's voice crackled over the comms, tense and urgent. "The flanking team breached the conservatory. They are pushing through the service corridors, bypassing our main kill zone."
Valentina’s jaw locked tight. The service corridors led directly to the sub-basement access stairs, and more importantly, they provided a route to the secure panic suite where Owen was hiding.
"Hold the foyer, Thomas. Do not let them advance up the main stairs," Valentina ordered, ejecting her spent magazine and slamming a fresh one home. "I'll handle the service corridor."
"You can't go alone, Valentina!" Thomas protested.
"I am not asking," Valentina stated, her tone absolute and terrifying.
She broke away from the main firefight, sprinting low and fast through the shadows of the mansion's secondary hallways. She moved with the lethal, silent grace of an apex predator, her stocking feet making no sound on the hardwood floors.
She reached the intersection of the service corridor just as a squad of four heavily armed Chicago mercenaries rounded the corner. They were moving cautiously, sweeping their weapons, unaware that the matriarch of the Morello family was hunting them.
Valentina didn't take cover. She stepped directly into the center of the hallway, raising her submachine gun.
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The mercenaries froze for a fraction of a second, shocked by her sudden appearance. It was all the time she needed. Valentina fired flawlessly, dropping the first two men instantly. The remaining two scrambled for cover, returning erratic, panicked fire.
Valentina moved aggressively forward, closing the distance while maintaining a steady, suppressing barrage. She didn't flinch as bullets tore into the drywall inches from her head. She was a mother defending her bloodline, and her wrath was absolute.
