Chapter 6 - The Phantom in the Mirror
The concrete bunker fell into absolute, heavy silence. The only sound was the steady hum of the air filtration unit and the soft scratching of Lily’s colored pencil against her paper.
Vincent turned around slowly, his dark eyes locking onto Elena. She was weeping softly, her hands covering her face, her shoulders shaking violently with raw, overwhelming relief and guilt.
"You knew they were poisoned," Vincent said, his voice dropping into a dangerous, low vibration.
"They told me... they told me it was a mild fever!" Elena sobbed, looking up at him through her tears. "Vance gave me a bottle of drops to give Luca and Nico every morning! He said if I ever told you the truth, he would stop sending the drops and let them die! I was terrified, Vincent! I didn't know who to trust!"
Vincent walked over to his nephews’ cot. He gently pulled back the blanket, looking at Luca's small wrist. Beneath the fair, rosy skin, faint blue veins were slightly raised—a subtle sign of systemic inflammation that Vincent had previously attributed to exhaustion and cold.
Vincent looked at Marcus. "Get Dr. Harrison down here immediately. Have him analyze the vial we recovered from Lily's rabbit. Synthesize a full dose of the antibody for Luca and Nico within the hour."
"Right away, Boss," Marcus said, pulling his radio and rushing out of the bunker.
Vincent turned to Elena. "Where is Arthur Vance right now?"
"He... he called an emergency meeting of the corporate board of trustees for nine o'clock this morning," Elena stammered, wiping her eyes. "In the grand ballroom upstairs. They are preparing to execute the legal transfer of the Valenti estate assets using Michael's forged death certificate."
Vincent looked at his luxury watch. It was 8:15 AM.
He walked over to a heavy weapons locker built into the bunker wall, unlocked the steel doors, and pulled out a shoulder holster containing a custom suppressed sidearm. He strapped it over his beige suit vest, pulling his jacket on to cover the weapon.
He walked over to Lily, kneeling down beside her chair. The little girl looked up at him, holding out her drawing. It was a picture of a large house with a golden gate, with a tall man holding a little girl's hand.
"Are you going to find my daddy?" Lily asked softly, her wide brown eyes searching his face.
Vincent reached out, gently tucking a strand of brown hair behind her ear. "I'm going to bring him upstairs, Lily. I want you to stay here with Marcus and your mother until I come back."
"Take Mr. Rabbit," Lily said, holding out her plush toy to him. "He keeps the bad men away."
Vincent looked at the simple stuffed rabbit, feeling an unyielding wave of protective strength surge through his chest. He took the toy, tucking it carefully into his deep suit jacket pocket.
"Thank you, little boss," Vincent whispered softly. "I'll keep him safe."
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Vincent stood up, turning to face the concrete exit corridor. He signaled to four of his most elite, heavily armed security officers who stood ready at the door.
"We go to the grand ballroom," Vincent ordered, his voice cold, steady, and sharp as iron. "No board member leaves the mansion alive if they raise a hand against this family."
