Chapter 11
The transition from the brightly lit dining hall to the tactical darkness of the estate was executed with flawless, military precision. As the heavy steel doors of the underground bunker hissed shut, securing Mara and the non-combatants, Orson Bellori walked back up the marble staircase to the main floor. The cinematic, crisp lighting that had illuminated the afternoon was suddenly extinguished. The sprawling mansion was plunged into pitch black, lit only by the pale moonlight filtering through the high windows.
Orson shed his tailored suit jacket, tossing it over a mahogany chair. He moved into the armory adjacent to the grand foyer, where Marcus and thirty heavily armed capos were strapping on Kevlar vests and checking the magazines of their suppressed assault rifles.
"The main gates are open, Boss," Marcus reported, his voice a low whisper in the dark. "Perimeter sensors are active. We have a visual on the approach road."
"How many?" Orson asked, effortlessly shrugging into a tactical vest over his crisp white dress shirt. The artistic tattoos on his neck flexed as he picked up a sleek, customized submachine gun.
"Three heavy transport vans," Marcus answered, checking a glowing tablet. "At least forty men. They are moving without headlights. They think they’re ghosts."
"Let them believe it," Orson murmured, his deep, raspy voice vibrating with absolute, calculated lethality.
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He moved to the front of the foyer, positioning himself behind a massive stone pillar that offered a clear line of sight to the open courtyard. His men fanned out, melting into the shadows of the second-floor balconies and the flanking corridors. The estate was a perfectly constructed kill box, and the Moretti strike team was walking blindly into the center of the trap.
The silence stretched, heavy and metallic. The air smelled of expensive cologne, gun oil, and impending violence. Orson waited, his breathing perfectly even, his heart rate steady. He was not a man facing a siege; he was a spider feeling the first vibration on the web.
