Chapter 7 - Siege of the Moretti Manor
“Put her down, Hannah,” Michael sneered, his breath ragged, his eyes wild with the manic desperation of a cornered rat. “Put the brat down, and maybe I’ll let you crawl out of here before Antonio’s men level this place.”
Lily buried her face in my shoulder, shivering uncontrollably.
Mrs. Carter stepped forward defensively, her hands raised. “Michael, have you lost your mind? She’s your niece! Your own flesh and blood!”
“She’s a curse!” Michael screamed, his voice cracking into high-pitched fury. “Ever since Caroline had her, Luca went soft! He stopped expanding! He started talking about legitimizing the business! And now he locked me in a cellar like a stray dog because of her!”
He stepped forward, leveling the gun squarely between my eyes. “Hand her over, Hannah. Vanessa and her father are waiting at the tree line. With Lily in our hands, Luca will surrender everything. He’ll sign over the entire syndicate by morning, and we all walk away rich.”
My mind raced. My leg was screaming in agony, the stitches threatening to rip apart under the strain of carrying Lily. Behind Michael, the heavy service door stood ajar. Through the crack, I could hear heavy combat boots running down the corridor—the heavy, rhythmic tread of someone moving with terrifying speed and purpose.
*Two seconds,* I thought. *I just need two seconds.*
“You’re pathetic, Michael,” I said, keeping my voice level, staring straight into his desperate eyes.
Michael’s brow furrowed in shock. “What did you say to me?”
“You think Luca went soft?” I spat, taking a half-step back, shifting Lily’s weight to shield her behind my shoulder. “Luca runs an empire. You couldn't even run a back-alley deal without getting caught. You were always living in his shadow, and even if you take Lily, you’ll never be half the man your brother is.”
Michael’s face twisted into pure, murderous rage. “You miserable bitch—”
He raised the weapon, his finger tightening on the trigger.
A hand—huge, scarred, and moving with the speed of striking lightning—reached out from the darkness behind the doorframe, gripping Michael’s wrist.
**CRUNCH.**
Michael shrieked as his radius and ulna were snapped simultaneously, the bone fracturing like dry twigs. The Glock clattered uselessly to the floor.
Luca Moretti emerged from the darkness like a demon rising from the underworld.
His face was streaked with soot and blood, a shallow graze carving across his cheekbone, his shirt shredded and soaked in sweat. His eyes were entirely consumed by a black, merciless rage that made the air in the narrow pantry feel suddenly thin and toxic.
Without uttering a single word, Luca slammed his brother against the concrete wall. The impact knocked the wind out of Michael, his head bouncing off the stone with a dull crack.
“L-Luca…” Michael gasped, his broken arm hanging useless at his side, terror completely drowning his arrogance. “Luca, please… I’m your brother… our mother—”
“My brother died three days ago,” Luca whispered.
With a brutal, fluid motion, Luca drew a combat blade from his tactical belt and drove the hilt into Michael’s jaw, knocking him instantly into cold, sprawling unconsciousness.
Luca let his brother slide into a heap on the floor, not sparing him another glance.
He turned toward us. The demonic fury in his eyes vanished the second his gaze fell on Lily. He dropped his weapon to the floor and dropped to his knees, his massive arms wrapping around both of us, pulling Lily and me into a crushing, trembling embrace.
“I have you,” Luca breathed, his voice breaking as he buried his face in his daughter’s neck. “I’ve got you. It’s over. The house is clear.”
Lily sobbed, her small hands clinging to his shoulders. “Daddy! Daddy, you came!”
Luca held her tight, but his eyes lifted to meet mine. In the flickering beam of Mrs. Carter’s flashlight, I saw the raw, unspeakable emotion burning in his chest. His hand reached out, cupping the back of my neck, drawing my forehead gently against his shoulder, holding me just as tightly as he held his daughter.
“Thank you,” he whispered into my hair, his chest heaving against mine. “Thank you for protecting her again.”
Outside, the gunfire had ceased, replaced by the crackle of burning debris and the low, authoritative shouts of Daniel and the surviving Moretti loyalists securing the perimeter.
Luca slowly pulled back, his jaw setting into stone.
“Daniel!” Luca roared into the hallway.
Daniel appeared in the doorway, bleeding from a shoulder wound but steady on his feet, his assault rifle lowered. “Boss?”
“Take my daughter and Hannah to the underground vault,” Luca ordered, rising to his feet, picking up his sidearm from the floor. “Lock them in.”
“What about Vanessa and Antonio?” Daniel asked grimly. “Our snipers spotted their convoy trying to pull back toward the highway.”
Luca looked down at his unconscious brother, then toward the dark expanse of the burning estate grounds.
May you like
“They came into my home,” Luca said, his voice flat, devoid of mercy. “Now I finish the Bellini family once and for all.”
***
