Chapter 7 - Ambush in the Fog
Before Julian could pull the trigger, the high-intensity floodlights mounted along the ceiling of Warehouse 12 flashed on simultaneously, blinding Julian and his enforcers in a dazzling wall of pure white light.
The sound of shattering glass echoed through the structure as ten elite tactical operators—led by Captain Lin from the State Police Special Response Team and supported by twenty of my loyal Moretti loyalists—dropped down from the high rafters on rappelling lines, weapons drawn.
"STATE POLICE! DROP YOUR WEAPONS! DROP THEM NOW!" Captain Lin’s voice boomed through a megaphone.
Panicked, one of Julian’s enforcers raised his weapon toward the rafters. A single silenced shot echoed through the warehouse, hitting the enforcer square in the chest and dropping him instantly to the concrete floor.
"It’s a setup!" Julian screamed, ducking behind a steel support pillar. "Kill them all!"
A chaotic firefight erupted inside the warehouse. Muzzle flashes strobed through the fog as heavy automatic gunfire tore through metal crates and concrete pillars.
Marco immediately tackled me to the ground behind an industrial forklift, drawing his sidearm and laying down suppressive fire against Julian’s retreating men.
"Don Luca! Go for the vault!" Marco shouted over the deafening roar of automatic weapons. "I’ll cover the flank!"
I didn't hesitate. I sprinted through the crossfire, low to the ground, keeping my eyes locked on Julian’s retreating figure. He was racing toward the vault console, his fingers frantically reaching for his smartwatch to trigger the thermite auto-destruct sequence and destroy the cure before I could reach it!
"JULIAN!" I roared.
Julian turned, his face contorted in frantic desperation, and aimed his silver revolver at my chest. He squeezed the trigger twice.
BANG! BANG!
Two heavy lead slugs slammed into my body. The impact hit me like a sledgehammer, knocking me backward onto the concrete. The breath exploded from my lungs, and white-hot pain seared through my chest.
Julian laughed hysterically, turning back to the vault keypad, typing in the rapid sequence to ignite the thermite. "Too late, Luca! Your son dies tonight!"
I gritted my teeth, fighting through the blinding pain. I looked down at my chest—the heavy kevlar tactical vest beneath my dress shirt had stopped both rounds, though two fractured ribs screamed in agony with every breath.
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I reached down to my boot, pulled out Sofia’s surgical steel throwing blade, locked my target, and threw the knife with every ounce of strength remaining in my body.
The blade whistled through the air and drove straight through the back of Julian’s right hand, pinning his wrist directly to the steel vault door!
