Chapter 6 - THE TRAITOR'S SHADOW
“Get down!” I lunged across the space between us, tackling Elena to the thick Persian rug just as the front doors exploded off their hinges.
The deafening roar of breaching charges shook the foundations of the compound. I dragged Elena behind the heavy oak sofa, drawing both of my sidearms. Flashlights cut through the dust and darkness like predatory eyes. There were at least a dozen of them—my own men, wearing the Morelli crest, coming to execute me.
“Clear the first floor! Find them!” a voice barked. It was Marco.
Rage, pure and blinding, ignited in my veins. I pressed my back against the sofa, pulling Elena tight against my chest. Her heart was hammering violently against mine.
“I need you to be braver than you’ve ever been,” I whispered into her ear. “There’s an emergency tunnel beneath the wine cellar. It leads to a vehicle hidden in the woods. When I start shooting, you run for the kitchen pantry. Do not look back.”
“I’m not leaving you to die,” she hissed, her hands gripping my shirt collar fiercely. “You said I belong to you until this is over. We go together.”
There was no time to argue with her magnificent, infuriating stubbornness. “On my mark. Three. Two. One.”
I rolled out from cover, unleashing a barrage of suppressing fire. The deafening cracks of the Beretta echoed in the confined space. Two of Marco's men dropped instantly, their flashlights rolling wildly across the floor.
“Go!” I roared.
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Elena sprinted toward the kitchen, staying low. I followed close behind, covering our retreat. Bullets tore through the drywall around us, shattering glass and splintering wood. We dove into the pantry, and I slammed the reinforced steel door shut, engaging the heavy deadbolt. It would only buy us three minutes against C4.
I ripped up the floorboards, revealing the hidden trapdoor. We descended into the damp, narrow tunnel just as the blast door above us buckled. Hand in hand, we ran blindly through the dark, the cold earth pressing in around us, racing toward the slim hope of survival.
