Chapter 14 - THE STORM AT THE GATES
The rain lashed against the massive glass windows of the foyer like handfuls of gravel.
Outside the front gates, the figure in the raincoat stood motionless beneath the flickering security light, staring directly up at the camera lens with a cold, mocking grin.
“Marcus,” Luca commanded without breaking his stare at the monitor.
“Deploy the perimeter response team. Non-lethal takedown. I want him conscious before he hits the ground.”
“Right away, sir,” Marcus said, turning sharply and speaking rapidly into his radio handset.
Within forty seconds, the heavy iron perimeter gates swung inward—not because the intruder breached them, but because Luca’s tactical security team flanked the courier from the shadows of the estate hedge rows.
Before the man could reach for the metallic cylinder strapped to his chest, three tactical operators tackled him into the mud.
The signal jammer went dead with a loud electronic pop, and the estate’s secure communications snapped back online instantly.
“Bring him up to the holding cell in the lower sub-level,” Luca ordered over his radio.
“I’ll be down in five minutes.”
I stood beside him in the foyer, my heart hammering against my ribs.
“They were trying to blind the estate’s security systems,” I whispered.
“Why?”
“Because Victor Vance’s federal trial begins in forty-eight hours,” Luca replied, turning to look down at me.
“They were trying to plant a false surveillance drive in our archive room to compromise the evidence we found in the iron trunk.”
“They thought they could blackmail us into dropping the charges.”
“Are we safe, Luca?” I asked, my voice barely a tremor.
Luca stepped closer, his broad shoulders shielding me from the draft of the heavy front doors.
He reached out, his hand gently cupping my cheek, his thumb brushing away a stray lock of hair from my forehead.
“As long as I am breathing, Hannah, nobody will ever lay a hand on you or this family.”
“The trial starts the day after tomorrow.”
“And when the gavel drops, Victor Vance will spend the rest of his natural life behind bars.”
His dark eyes held mine with a fierce, absolute protection that made every fear melt away.
May you like
I leaned into his touch, my fingers resting lightly against his chest, feeling the steady, rhythmic beat of his heart.
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