Chapter 8 - the hidden connection
Gabriel stood tall in the flashing red light of the emergency lamps, shielding Hannah and Grace behind his broad frame.
"You brought mercenaries into my home, Vincent," Gabriel said, his voice flat and deadly. "After twenty years of sitting at my father's table."
"Your father was a fool!" Vincent spat back, his knuckles white on the grip of his submachine gun. "He promised me half the port operations when he died, but he gave everything to you and Julian! I spent thirty years serving the Caruso family, and what do I have? Nothing!"
"You had my trust," Gabriel said coldly.
"Trust doesn't pay for an empire!" Vincent yelled. "Julian found my Montreal offshore accounts six months ago. He threatened to show you the books! So I had his steering column rigged on the Upstate highway!"
Hannah let out a choked sob behind Gabriel, clutching his waist in terror as the confession echoed through the dark room.
Gabriel’s eyes burned with lethal fury. The medium-term mystery of Julian's death was fully laid bare: Vincent was the architect of the crash, driven by greed and bitterness over the family inheritance.
"You killed my brother," Gabriel whispered.
"And now I'm going to take his daughter's trust fund!" Vincent declared, gesturing to his men. "Grab the child!"
The two mercenaries stepped forward into the study.
Before they could reach the desk, Gabriel acted with terrifying speed. He reached under the lip of his desk with his foot, slamming a hidden kick-plate embedded in the floorboards.
A heavy steel security shutter slammed down from the ceiling frame with an iron thunderclap, severing the doorway and trapping Vincent and his four mercenaries on the outside corridor!
The thick reinforced steel shuddered as bullets impacted the outer side, but the shutter held firm.
Gabriel didn't waste a second. He grabbed Hannah's hand, holding Grace tightly against his chest, and pulled them toward the private rear elevator inside his archival room.
"Where does this go?" Hannah asked frantically over the sound of muffled gunfire outside.
"To the subterranean vault beneath the estate," Gabriel said, swiping his master keycard inside the elevator cab. "It's a reinforced bunker. Nobody gets in without my biometric thumbprint."
The elevator doors closed, descending rapidly into the dark depths of the mansion.
As the cab descended, Gabriel pulled out his phone and dialed Marco.
"Marco," Gabriel commanded. "Activate lockdown protocol Omega. Bring every loyal guard to the basement level. We are executing Vincent Romano tonight."
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"Boss!" Marco shouted over the radio, the sound of heavy gunfire roaring in the background. "Vincent's team brought a heavy breach charge! They're blowing the main floor!"
An explosion shook the elevator shaft, sending dust cascading down from above.
