Chapter 5 - The River Escape
The weight of a 140-pound Cane Corso was immense, especially under the grueling pressure of a subterranean escape.
Every step Alessandro took through the muddy, uneven tunnel sent sharp pains shooting through his lower back and legs. Sweat poured down his face, washing away the gunpowder residue on his skin. Beside him, Marco held his submachine gun at the ready, lighting the path with a tactical lantern, while Sophia carried Emma, her steps quick and frantic.
Behind them, the distant THUD-THUD-THUD of breaching charges vibrated through the stone walls. Victor’s men were blowing through the heavy iron cellar doors.
"They're through!" Marco reported, checking his rear watch display. "We have maybe ten minutes before their scouts reach the tunnel network!"
"Keep moving," Alessandro grunted, his arms trembling under Bruno’s weight.
The dog lay completely still in Alessandro’s arms. Bruno seemed to understand the gravity of the situation; he didn't struggle, didn't whimper. He simply kept his head rested against Alessandro's neck, his warm breath rhythmic against the mob boss’s collarbone.
"Unky Alessandro?" Emma’s soft voice broke through the dark silence of the tunnel.
Alessandro glanced sideways, gasping for air. "Yes, Emma?"
"Is Bruno going to the doctor?"
"Yes," Alessandro promised, his voice raw. "As soon as we get out of here, the doctor is going to fix him. I swear it to you."
Emma nodded solemnly, clutching a small, worn teddy bear against her chest. "Okay. Because he's my best friend."
Alessandro felt a sharp, unfamiliar tightening in his throat. For sixteen years, he had believed himself to be a man incapable of soft emotions. He had cultivated a reputation as an unyielding, ruthless tyrant to keep his enemies at bay. Yet here he was, bleeding in a dark sewer tunnel, carrying an ancient dog to save the life of a child he had only truly noticed three days ago.
After twenty agonizing minutes of marching through the dark, the air began to change.
The heavy, damp smell of earth yielded to the cool, crisp scent of freshwater and diesel fumes. Up ahead, a faint circle of moonlight reflected off the surface of the river.
"The boat house," Marco breathed, quickening his pace. "The getaway launch should be docked at pier three!"
They burst out of the tunnel mouth into a small, concealed concrete slip beneath a ruined industrial warehouse along the Chicago River. The dark water lapped softly against the wooden pylons. Moored at the end of the pier was a sleek, fifty-foot black speedboat—a high-powered vessel equipped with bulletproof glass and triple supercharged engines.
"Get them aboard!" Alessandro commanded, lowering Bruno gently onto the wooden planks of the pier.
Sophia hurried onto the boat, placing Emma into the enclosed cabin before returning to help Marco untie the heavy mooring lines.
Suddenly, a bright, blinding spotlight snapped on from the top of the concrete slip above them.
SHELTER IN PLACE! THIS IS THE MORETTI SYNDICATE! LOWER YOUR WEAPONS!
A loudspeaker boomed over the water, followed immediately by the harsh clatter of automatic gunfire hitting the wooden pier.
"Ambush!" Marco yelled, diving behind a pile of industrial barrels and returning fire. "Victor had a team waiting at the river exit!"
Alessandro drew his spare sidearm, firing up toward the spotlight. CRASH! The bright light shattered, plunging the pier back into semi-darkness, but the muzzle flashes from three separate shooters above continued to rain lead down upon them.
A bullet struck the wooden pier inches from Bruno.
The dog, despite his shattered strength, let out a fierce bark, trying to drag his body toward Sophia and Emma.
"Stay down, Bruno!" Alessandro roared.
He lunged across the pier, grabbing a heavy metal transport crate and shoving it in front of the dog to act as a shield. He ducked behind it, firing rapidly up at the catwalks above. He hit one shooter, sending the man tumbling over the railing into the icy river below, but the remaining two mercenaries had high-ground superiority.
"Boss!" Marco shouted, his submachine gun locking back empty. "I'm out of primary mags! We can't clear the catwalks from down here!"
"Get the boat started!" Alessandro ordered, his own gun clicking empty. "Sophia! Get to the helm! Hit the red ignition toggle!"
"I don't know how to drive a boat!" Sophia screamed from the cabin doorway, her voice laced with panic.
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"JUST HIT THE RED TOGGLE!"
Before Alessandro could reach for a fallen mercenary’s weapon, a sudden, deafening roar tore through the night sky from the river behind them.
