Chapter 6 - THE HELIPAD SHOWDOWN
The cold night wind whipped across the open concrete pad behind the Romano stables, carrying the deafening, thunderous roar of a twin-engine AgustaWestland helicopter idling at full power.
The downdraft from the spinning rotor blades flattened the tall ornamental grass and whipped our clothes as Gabriel and I burst out from the treeline.
About fifty yards ahead, standing near the open cabin door of the aircraft, was Uncle Raymond.
He had discarded his formal suit jacket. His white dress shirt billowed in the wind, and in his right hand, he held a sleek, heavy revolver aimed squarely at the ground. Standing beside him was Viktor, who must have come down the exterior fire escape from the second-floor study.
As soon as Viktor spotted us emerging from the shadows, he raised his arm and pointed right at us.
"Boss! They have the suitcase!" Viktor shouted over the roar of the rotors.
Raymond turned around.
The suave, aristocratic veneer had completely vanished from his face, replaced by the desperate, ugly snarl of a cornered animal.
"Stop right there, Gabriel!" Raymond bellowed, raising his revolver until the barrel was pointed directly at Gabriel’s chest.
Gabriel didn't stop. He pulled me slightly behind his shoulder, stepping forward into the harsh glare of the helicopter's landing lights, his own hand resting firmly on the grip of the silver pistol tucked into his waistband.
"It's over, Raymond," Gabriel’s voice carried effortlessly over the deafening engine noise, cold and absolute as winter ice. "The blue suitcase is in my hand. The federal grand jury has the backup files from my father's safe. You have nowhere left to run."
Raymond let out a harsh, barking laugh, though his hand trembled slightly around the revolver.
"You think a few old papers and a dead man's diary can touch me, boy?" Raymond sneered, taking a step toward the cabin door. "I built this syndicate while your father was busy playing family man! I made the Romano name feared from New York to Los Angeles! And I'm not going to let a sentimental fool and a clever housemaid tear it down!"
"You didn't build an empire, Raymond," Gabriel said, taking another slow, measured step forward. "You built a cage out of lies. You murdered my mother because she caught you stealing from the council, and you blamed a good man named Thomas Reed for twenty-three years."
Raymond’s eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
"Your mother was a traitor to the family," Raymond hissed. "Just like Thomas. And if you take one more step, Gabriel, you'll join them in the pine woods."
Viktor stepped forward, sliding his hand toward his holster.
My heart leaped into my throat. I squeezed my eyes shut for a split second, bracing for the gunfire.
Instead, a sharp, metallic click echoed across the tarmac.
It wasn't Gabriel's gun.
From the shadows beside the stable doors, a dozen red laser sights suddenly materialized, painting glowing dots across Raymond’s chest, Viktor’s forehead, and the fuselage of the helicopter.
"Drop the weapon, Raymond. Federal Department of Justice," a booming voice echoed from the PA system of an unmarked armored van that had just blocked the private access road behind the stables.
Raymond froze.
He looked around frantically, realizing too late that the federal agents hadn't been called by the corrupt local police—they had been waiting for him the entire evening.
"You set a trap," Raymond whispered, staring at Gabriel in absolute horror.
"My father set the trap twenty-three years ago," Gabriel replied coldly. "I just helped him spring it."
Before Raymond could raise his revolver to fire, Gabriel moved with terrifying speed.
He drew his silver pistol, fired a single, deafening shot that shattered the helicopter's exterior control panel in a shower of blue sparks, rendering the aircraft completely unflyable.
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At the same time, federal agents swarmed out from the darkness like a wave of dark water, tackling Viktor to the concrete and pinning Raymond to the tarmac before he could pull the trigger.
The heavy roar of the helicopter engines slowly whined down, dying into a sputtering cough, and finally fell silent.
