Chapter 5
The heavy oak door rattled as Marcus violently twisted the brass handle from the outside, finding it securely locked.
"Luca! Open this damn door!" Marcus shouted, his voice losing its professional sheen, replaced by a desperate, aggressive edge. "The Falcone syndicate is in the building! They came through the catering docks! We need to move you and Sophia right now!"
Luca stood inches from the wood, his suppressed weapon held firmly against his thigh. His piercing, intense eyes were completely devoid of emotion, operating now purely on the lethal instincts that had made him Chicago's most feared Mafia boss.
"Stand down, Marcus," Luca called back, his deep voice smooth, steady, and projecting absolute calm. "I am secure in the VIP suite. I ordered a lockdown, not an evacuation. Maintain your position in the hallway."
"Boss, we are sitting ducks here!" Marcus argued through the door. "The extraction team is ten minutes out. Let me get you to the garage!"
Hannah stood frozen by the wet bar, clutching the edge of the marble counter. Her warm face was ghostly white, her soft blonde-brown bun unraveling slightly as she watched Luca. She knew the truth. Marcus wasn't trying to save them; he had realized the missing nurse was in the building, and he needed to silence her and finish the job he started three years ago.
"I said maintain your position, Marcus," Luca ordered, infusing his tone with dark, uncompromising authority. "If anyone touches that doorknob again, I will shoot them through the wood. Are we clear?"
A tense, heavy silence fell over the hallway. Slowly, the shadow of Marcus’s feet shifted away from the bottom of the door. "Copy that, Boss. We will hold the corridor."
Luca didn't relax. He turned back to Hannah and Sophia, moving silently across the room. He crouched down in front of the velvet sofa, slipping his weapon into his waistband.
"Daddy, is the bad man outside?" Sophia asked, her innocent, bright eyes wide with worry. Her pale-yellow shoes dangled over the edge of the cushions.
"Yes, angel," Luca replied, gently brushing a golden-brown curl from her rosy cheek. "But he can't get to us. We are going to play a game, okay? A quiet game. You need to hold onto Hannah very tightly and not make a single peep."
"Okay, Daddy," Sophia nodded bravely.
Luca stood up and grabbed Hannah’s arm. "Marcus knows you recognize him. He’s isolating us to stage an ambush in the hallway. We aren't taking the main door."
"Then how do we get out?" Hannah whispered, her expressive eyes wide with panic. "We're trapped on the second floor!"
"I don't leave my life in the hands of hotel security," Luca stated coldly. He walked over to the massive, floor-to-ceiling bookshelf on the far wall. He reached behind a thick leather-bound encyclopedia and pressed a hidden biometric scanner.
With a soft, hydraulic hiss, the entire bookshelf slid forward and pivoted to the side, revealing a sleek, steel-lined private service elevator.
"Get in," Luca commanded, motioning toward the hidden lift.
Hannah didn't hesitate. She scooped Sophia into her arms, the little girl’s layered ruffles spilling over Hannah’s mint-green uniform and white apron. She stepped into the cold steel box, holding the fragile three-year-old tightly against her nurturing chest.
Luca stepped in behind them and hit the button for the sub-basement. The steel doors slid shut, sealing them in absolute silence.
"The sub-basement connects to a private, restricted parking garage," Luca explained in a low whisper as the elevator began to descend rapidly. "My personal armored SUV is parked in Bay 4. It can withstand high-caliber fire. I need you to run straight to it and get inside."
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"What about you?" Hannah asked, her voice trembling as she looked at his incredibly handsome, determined face.
"I'm going to introduce Marcus to the consequences of treason," Luca replied, his sharp masculine jawline set in stone.
