Chapter 3 - THE AMBUSH IN THE DARK
The guests erupted into panicked screams.
Glass shattered as someone knocked over a table in the pitch-black dining room.
“Get down!” Luca roared over the chaos.
I didn't think. I grabbed Lily by the waist and pulled her underneath the heavy mahogany dining table, shielding her small body with my own. Bruno hobbled under the table with us, pressing his warm, trembling body against the little girl.
The chaotic flashes of suppressed gunfire illuminated the room in brief, terrifying bursts of light.
“Dominic! Secure the perimeter!” Luca’s voice boomed from the darkness.
“They cut the backup generators!” Dominic yelled back over the gunfire. “They’re already inside!”
I held Lily tight. She was crying silently, her face buried in my maid’s uniform.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, though my own heart was hammering against my ribs. “Bruno’s got us. I’ve got us.”
Footsteps crunched on the broken glass nearby. Heavy, deliberate boots.
A flashlight beam clicked on, sweeping across the ruined dining room. It settled on Vanessa, who was cowering near the fireplace.
The man holding the flashlight stepped into the beam.
He was tall, wearing a black tactical coat. And strapped to his left wrist, reflecting the light, was a massive silver watch with a shattered face.
Marco Rossi.
“Get up, Vanessa,” Marco sneered, grabbing her by the arm and hauling her to her feet. “You were supposed to unlock the back gates an hour ago. You’re useless.”
“I tried!” she wept. “The maid brought the dog downstairs! It ruined the distraction!”
Marco pulled a gun and pressed it to her temple. “Where is the safe?”
“In the study!” Vanessa cried instantly, selling out the man she claimed to love to save her own life. “The code is Lily’s birthday! Just let me go!”
From the shadows, Luca stepped into the flashlight beam. He had a weapon raised, pointed directly at Marco’s chest.
“Let her go, Marco,” Luca said, deadly calm.
“I don't think so, Luca,” Marco smiled. “My men have your guards pinned in the foyer. The house is mine. The territory is mine. And tonight, you sleep in the dirt.”
“You’re not walking out of this house alive,” Luca promised.
Marco laughed. “I don't plan on walking out. I plan on moving in.”
He turned his gun away from Vanessa and aimed it wildly into the dark room.
“Where is the little brat?” Marco yelled. “Vanessa said she’s the only heir! Bring me the girl, Luca, or I start executing your guests!”
Lily whimpered against my chest.
Bruno let out a low, terrifying growl.
Before I could stop him, the fourteen-year-old dog surged out from under the table. He didn't look old or weak. He moved with the fierce, protective instinct of a guardian.
Bruno lunged, his jaws clamping down hard on Marco’s wrist.
Marco screamed, dropping his flashlight and his gun. He kicked the dog brutally in the ribs. Bruno yelped but refused to let go.
“Shoot the dog!” Marco roared to his men in the hallway.
“No!” Luca yelled.
But I was closer.
I scrambled out from under the table, grabbing the heavy silver candelabra that had fallen nearby. I didn't hesitate. I swung it with every ounce of strength I had, smashing it directly into the side of Marco’s knee.
A sickening crack echoed through the room. Marco collapsed, howling in agony.
“Emma, run!” Luca shouted.
I grabbed Lily’s hand, calling Bruno to my side. The old dog released Marco and hobbled toward me.
We sprinted toward the back servant’s doors as Luca opened fire on Marco’s approaching men.
We burst into the kitchen, slamming the heavy wooden door behind us.
“We have to hide,” I gasped, looking around the dark kitchen.
May you like
But as I turned toward the pantry, a hand clamped over my mouth from the shadows.
TITLE: THE TRAITOR IN THE KITCHEN
