Chapter 7 - The Abduction at Dawn
"Lily!" Nora screamed, throwing her entire body over her daughter as the smoke grenade filled the banquet hall with blinding white fog.
Through the haze, Marco’s gloved hand clamped over Nora’s mouth, dragging her violently backward across the wet marble.
His second operative grabbed Lily from the floor, muffling her terrified cries inside a heavy canvas jacket.
"Move and the girl gets a blade through her throat!" Marco hissed into Nora’s ear, dragging both mother and child through the concealed servant exit behind the pantry.
Vincent charged through the smoke, his Kimber .
45 roaring twice as he neutralized two rogue mercenaries who had attempted to cover Marco’s retreat.
By the time Vincent kicked open the heavy iron service door leading to the rear courtyard, the screech of tires echoed across the gravel driveway.
A modified black armored van tore through the ornate wrought-iron gates, leaving behind a trail of smoking rubber and splintered masonry.
On the damp grass near the shattered gate lay Lily’s battered gray plush bunny, its ear stained with a single drop of blood.
Vincent dropped to his knees, picking up the small toy with hands that trembled with an agonizing, ferocious fury.
Leo and twenty armed operators sprinted out into the morning mist, their tactical weapons drawn and radios crackling with frantic traffic.
"Boss! The port authority reports an unauthorized vessel departing Terminal 4 in thirty minutes!" Leo reported, breathing heavily.
"Marco had a private container freighter fueled and ready under an offshore Panamanian registry.
He’s heading for international waters with Nora and the child."
Vincent stood up slowly, pressing the plush bunny securely inside the breast pocket of his tailored suit jacket.
The grief and remorse that had weighed on his heart for four years vanished completely, replaced by the terrifying, unyielding resolve of a father going to war.
"Call in every heavy assault team from Chicago to New York," Vincent commanded, his voice cold as liquid nitrogen.
"Alert our private air wing and scramble the tactical gunships from the airfield.
Tell the coast guard that if any civilian vessel attempts to intercept us, they will be considered hostile combatants."
"What about the syndicate rules of engagement, Don Vincent?" Leo asked, his eyes wide at the unprecedented scale of the mobilization.
Vincent racked the slide of his firearm with a deafening metallic click that echoed across the courtyard.
"The syndicate is dead, Leo.
May you like
Today, I am not a Don.
I am a father bringing my family home."
