Chapter 5 - THE BETRAYAL AT THE GATES

It was a cold Friday afternoon.
Silana was in a high-level meeting in downtown Chicago with the city's corrupt police chief, securing legal protections for his legitimate shipping enterprises. Dominic was with him, leaving the estate’s security under the command of Arthur, a senior lieutenant.
Bella was in the estate’s private conservatory on the ground floor, teaching Leo how to press his tiny hand against the glass to see the falling golden leaves outside.
Suddenly, a loud explosion rocked the perimeter gate at the rear of the estate.
BOOM!
The glass windows of the conservatory rattled violently.
Alarm sirens began to blare across the grounds, red emergency lights flashing down the long marble hallways.
"Bella! Stay here!" Beatatrice screamed, running into the room, her face pale with terror. "It's an attack! The back gate was breached!"
Gunfire erupted outside. The sharp, terrifying sound of heavy automatic weapons shattered the peaceful afternoon.
Bella scooped Leo into her arms, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. "Where are the guards?!"
"The front perimeter was lured away by a fake bomb threat!" Beatatrice cried out, grabbing Bella’s arm. "We need to get to the panic room on the third floor!"
They rushed out of the conservatory into the grand foyer. Heavy smoke was pouring through the broken domestic service doors. Several Moretti guards were firing their weapons down the hallway, covering the retreat.
Through the black smoke, four heavily armed men in black tactical gear burst into the foyer, led by a man holding a silenced pistol.
Beside them walked David Miller.
Bella froze near the grand staircase, her eyes going wide with disbelief and disgust.
"David?!" Bella gasped out.
David Miller stepped forward, a smug, desperate grin on his face. "Hey, Bella. Long time no see."
"You..." Bella backed up a step, pulling Leo closer to her chest. "You brought these monsters here?!"
"I brought them to get what's mine!" David yelled, pointing a trembling finger at the child. "That's my son! You brought him into a mafia boss's house! You're crazy, Bella!"
"You abandoned us!" Bella screamed back, tears of pure fury spilling down her face. "You left us to die with loan sharks! You don't care about Leo! You only care about yourself!"
"Shut up!" David shouted, stepping toward the stairs. "Give me the kid, Bella! Don Victor is paying half a million for him! We can start over!"
"Touch her, and I'll skin you alive," a cold, lethal voice echoed from the top of the grand staircase.
Everyone looked up.
Silana Moretti stood at the top of the landing.
He was not wearing his suit jacket. He held a black tactical assault rifle in his hands, his eyes burning with a terrifying, demonic rage. Beside him stood Dominic and six heavily armed Duca enforcers who had just arrived via the underground tunnel entrance.
"Silana!" Victor Castellano's lead mercenary yelled, aiming his weapon up the stairs.
Before the mercenary could pull the trigger, Silana fired three rapid shots.
THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!
May you like
The lead mercenary fell backward onto the marble floor, dead before he hit the ground.
The grand foyer erupted into chaos.