Chapter 6 - The Sniper’s Bullet
"GET DOWN!"
Adrian’s roar was instantaneous, overriding the shock of the room with terrifying tactical precision.
Before the echo of the gunshot had even faded, Adrian lunged across the conservatory, tackling Madeline and Sophia to the floor behind the heavy stone base of a marble planter. At the same time, Leo and Mateo—trained by elite security details since they could walk—dropped flat, crawling frantically behind a row of thick, bulletproof iron-framed planters.
"Code Red! Perimeter breach! Sector Four!" Adrian shouted into his wrist communicator, his voice cold, hard, and devoid of any human emotion save for absolute, lethal focus.
CRACK.
Another high-powered sniper round punched through the double-paned conservatory glass, shattering a potted palm tree into a cloud of green leaves and dirt.
"Daddy, I'm scared!" Sophia whimpered, burying her face into Adrian’s chest as he shielded her small body with his broad frame.
"I've got you, baby. Look at me, Sophia. Look at my eyes," Adrian commanded gently, keeping her focused on him while his right hand smoothly drew a Beretta 9mm from his shoulder holster.
He looked across the floor at Madeline. She was pale, her breath coming in shallow gasps, but she wasn't screaming. Her hand was tightly holding Mateo’s ankle, keeping the eleven-year-old pinned safely behind the planter.
"Are you hit?" Adrian asked, his voice low and urgent, his gray eyes scanning her for any sign of blood.
"I'm fine," Madeline whispered, shaking her head, her hazel eyes locking onto his with fierce determination. "Get the children out of here."
"I'm not leaving you," Adrian said fiercely.
The heavy oak doors of the conservatory burst open. Luca and four heavily armed security operatives poured into the room, assault rifles raised, forming a protective wall around the family.
"Boss! Sniper's nest is on the roof of the adjacent townhouse across the alley!" Luca barked, firing a smoke grenade toward the courtyard to obscure their position. "We have a chopper waiting on the pad. We have to move now!"
Adrian didn't hesitate. He scooped Sophia up into his arms, grabbing Madeline’s hand with his free grip. "Move! Stay low! Leo, Mateo, stick to Luca's flank!"
They sprinted through the labyrinthine corridors of the mansion, the sound of boots echoing against the marble floors until they reached the underground reinforced panic bunker beneath the master suite.
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As the heavy steel blast door sealed shut with a hydraulic hiss, locking them away from the outside world, the reality of what had just happened settled over the room like a lead weight.
They weren't safe. The war had reached the nursery.
