Chapter 5
Three days later, the quiet sanctuary of the Moretti estate was tested.
It was a crisp afternoon, and Emma was sitting on a soft blanket in the central glass atrium, surrounded by blooming orchids and tropical plants. Alessandro sat nearby in his black wheelchair, watching her intently as she used colored crayons to draw pictures of flowers, puppies, and a giant black wheelchair on a large pad of paper.
Sophia sat beside him on a wrought-iron bench, sewing a loose button onto Emma's pale-yellow floral dress. The peaceful domestic scene was something neither of them had ever dreamed possible, yet it felt entirely natural, as if the missing pieces of a puzzle had finally locked into place.
Suddenly, the heavy glass doors of the atrium opened sharply. Marco hurried inside, his face pale, holding an encrypted satellite phone in his hand.
"Boss," Marco said, his voice hushed and urgent. "We have a major breach. Two of our perimeter security teams in the East Sector just dropped offline. No radio response."
Alessandro’s eyes narrowed into razor-sharp slits, his relaxed posture instantly transforming into that of a master predator. "Falcone?"
"It has to be," Marco confirmed, drawing his suppressed sidearm. "They must have used a low-frequency jammer to disrupt our primary sensors. They're already inside the outer woods, moving toward the main house."
Sophia gasped, dropping her sewing needle as sheer panic seized her chest. She scrambled off the bench, pulling Emma into her arms.
"Mommy?" Emma whimpered softly, sensing the sudden terror in the air, her bright blue eyes widening as she held onto her mother's neck.
"Shh, baby, it's okay," Sophia whispered frantically, her voice trembling.
Alessandro turned his wheelchair smoothly, stepping into command mode with terrifying efficiency. "Marco, activate the lockdown protocol. Seal the lower blast shutters. Get the strike team to the courtyard."
"What about you, boss?" Marco asked anxiously.
"Take Sophia and Emma to the panic room behind my office," Alessandro commanded, his voice echoing with absolute authority. "Now!"
"No!" Sophia cried out, her expressive brown eyes wide with desperation as she looked at Alessandro. "We aren't leaving you here alone!"
"Sophia, go!" Alessandro barked, his gray eyes blazing. "My chair cannot clear the lower stairs fast enough! You need to get Emma behind reinforced steel!"
"I'm not leaving you!" Sophia repeated fiercely, stepping directly in front of his wheelchair, her fair rosy face flushed with stubborn determination. "Four years ago, I hid you in my bakery when armed men were outside! I am not abandoning you now, Alessandro Moretti!"
Alessandro stared at her, stunned by the absolute courage radiating from the fragile young woman standing before him. Despite her fear, despite the modest maid uniform she had worn just days ago, she was standing her ground to protect him.
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Before Alessandro could respond, the sound of heavy gunfire echoed from the front courtyard—the sharp, metallic thunder of automatic rifles tearing through the quiet afternoon.
The invasion had begun.
