Chapter 5 - The Bratva's Move
The newfound peace within the estate was shattered forty-eight hours later.
While the divorce papers were finalized in court, Viktor Radrenko—furious over the loss of Thomas Bennett and the intelligence he had promised—decided to strike at Gabriel’s weakest point.
It was 3:00 PM on a crisp, clear afternoon. Norah was sitting with Mrs. Rossi in the glass conservatory on the east wing of the house, sipping tea while Leo napped in his portable bassinet nearby.
Suddenly, the sharp report of a high-caliber sniper rifle shattered the glass dome above them.
CRASH!
Glass rained down onto the tile floor. Mrs. Rossi screamed, diving for the ground.
Norah didn't hesitate. She threw her body over Leo’s bassinet, shielding her son with her own frame as shards of glittering glass showered over her back.
Heavy automatic gunfire erupted from the surrounding perimeter woods. The estate’s security alarm shrieked, red emergency lights flashing along the corridors.
"Norah! Get down!" Dante screamed, bursting into the conservatory with his gun drawn, returning fire through the shattered glass toward the tree line.
Gabriel ran into the room seconds later, his face pale with panic until his eyes locked onto Norah and Leo. He didn't care about the gunfire snapping through the air—he sprinted across the ruined conservatory, pulled Norah up into his arms, and scooped Leo's bassinet up with his other hand.
"Are you hit?!" Gabriel roared over the deafening noise of the fire fight.
"No! I'm okay! Leo is okay!" Norah yelled back, clutching his arm tightly.
Gabriel handed the bassinet to Dante. "Get Mrs. Rossi and the boy into the subterranean safe room now!"
"Gabriel, what about you?!" Norah cried out as Dante pulled her toward the reinforced hallway.
"I’m going to end this," Gabriel said, his dark eyes turning into twin pools of murderous rage. He pulled an automatic rifle from a wall panel nearby, racking the slide with a brutal metallic click. "Radrenko came onto my land. He dies today."
"Please be careful!" Norah shouted over the chaos.
Gabriel paused for a fraction of a second, grabbing the back of her neck and pulling her into a hard, desperate kiss. "Stay in the vault until I come get you."
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The heavy steel doors of the subterranean safe room slammed shut behind Norah, Mrs. Rossi, and Leo, locking them into a silent, reinforced bunker beneath the mansion.
For two agonizing hours, Norah sat on a bench in the vault, holding Leo tightly to her chest, listening to the muffled thuds of explosions and gunfire echoing through the concrete foundations above. She prayed—not for her own safety, but for the dark-eyed man who had given her a reason to believe in protection again.
