Chapter 14 - The Sicilian Trap
Sophia didn't blink. She stood firm, her posture regal, her eyes locking onto Victor’s with absolute disdain.
"You think you are the first man to point a gun at me, Victor?" Sophia said, her voice steady and smooth. "Your brother made the same mistake."
"My brother is coming for everything you love," Victor spat, his finger tightening on the trigger.
Before Victor could fire, the heavy velvet curtain behind him tore open. Julian plunged into the room like a shadow, his movement lightning fast. He seized Victor's wrist, redirecting the gunshot harmlessly into the ceiling as a muffled thump echoed in the small space.
In seconds, violent chaos erupted in the suite. Julian disarmed Victor with a devastating strike to his elbow, twisting his arm back and driving him to the floor. The second attacker lunged forward, but Sophia snapped the heavy crystal perfume bottle from the vanity and struck the man across the temple, sending him staggering backward. Julian finished him with a swift spin-kick to the chest.
The third assailant raised his weapon toward Julian’s back, but a loud bang echoed through the corridor as the door crashed open. Don Vincenzo's chief of security rushed in, neutralizing the final guard before he could squeeze the trigger.
Julian pinned Victor to the floor, his knee heavy on the man’s spine, pulling his head back by his collar. "Where is Marcus?"
Victor coughed blood onto the pristine white rug, laughing spitefully. "You think this was about Milan? This gala was just a distraction..."
Sophia’s blood ran cold. "Julian... Bella."
"No," Victor grinned maliciously. "Not the girl. Don Vincenzo. Marcus knows the old lion is the heart of the family. Right now, your safehouse in Sicily is burning."
Julian pulled out his communicator instantly. "Vincenzo! Status!"
Static hissed through the speaker, followed by the sound of intense gunfire and explosive blasts in the background. Vincenzo’s voice came through, calm, iron-willed, but breathless.
"Julian... they caught us en route to the Palermo estate. My motorcade was ambushed near the coastal pass."
"Hold your position, father!" Sophia shouted into the radio, panic threatening to tear through her composure. "We are airborne in ten minutes!"
"Listen to me, Sophia," Vincenzo’s voice crackled through the comms over the deafening roar of automatic weapons. "I brought this war upon our house decades ago. Do not come for me if it puts Bella at risk. Stand your ground!"
The connection cut out with a harsh burst of static.
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Sophia looked at Julian, her chest heaving. The elegant world of high fashion and golden sunsets had been torn away in a single evening. The battle had dragged them back into the dark.
"Get the helicopter ready," Sophia commanded, wiping a trace of dust from her green silk dress. "We are going to Sicily."
