Chapter 6 - FIRE IN THE CONSERVATORY
At eleven-forty, the first breach occurred.
Matteo Valenti had not sent a full assault team; he had sent three professional arsonists equipped with high-grade incendiary charges. They avoided the main gates entirely, cutting through the dense woods along the estate’s southern boundary, scaling the high stone perimeter wall in the blinding rain.
Their objective was simple and cruel: set fire to the glass conservatory to draw the Moretti security team to the south wing, then breach the main house.
A sudden, muffled thump echoed through the mansion, followed immediately by the sharp blare of the internal fire alarm system.
In the basement, water sprinklers activated in the conservatory, but the chemical incendiaries burned bright and hot, filling the long glass hall with thick, black smoke.
Alessandro was on the ground floor when the alarms hit.
"Vane!" Alessandro barked into his radio. "Hold the main stairs! They’re using the fire as a distraction!"
"Copy, boss!" Vane’s voice crackled through the speaker. "We’ve got movement near the patio doors!"
Alessandro moved through the dark dining room like a shadow, his weapon raised, his eyes scanning every window.
Through the thick smoke billowing out of the conservatory archway, he saw two dark figures in tactical gear kicking through the shattered glass doors. One carried an automatic shotgun; the other held a heavy iron crowbar.
Alessandro did not call out a warning.
He raised his weapon and fired three rapid shots.
The two suppressive rounds hit the first man in the center chest, dropping him instantly to the marble floor.
The second man ducked behind a heavy concrete pillar, blind-firing his shotgun down the corridor. The blast shattered a antique mirror behind Alessandro, showering the floor with silver glass fragments.
Alessandro rolled smoothly behind a heavy oak sideboard, his weapon steady, his heart rate slow and cold.
He waited for the man to rack the shotgun slide—a distinct, metallic clack-clack—then stepped out from cover and placed two rounds cleanly through the pillar’s edge into the shooter’s shoulder and neck.
The intruder dropped his weapon, collapsing into the pooling rainwater near the shattered glass.
Alessandro stepped forward, his leather boots crunching on broken glass, and stood over the wounded intruder. It was a young man, no older than twenty-five, wearing a black tactical mask.
Alessandro reached down, yanked the mask off, and grabbed the boy by his collar, dragging him up against the concrete pillar.
"Where is Matteo?" Alessandro growled, his voice vibrating with raw, terrifying murder.
The boy choked, blood bubbling at his lips. "He’s... he’s at the north wall... with two more guys..."
Alessandro dropped him back onto the wet floor, pulled his radio, and tapped the channel. "Vane. North wall. Matteo is there himself. Close the trap."
"Moving now, boss," Vane replied.
Alessandro turned back toward the main staircase, but as he reached the central foyer, his eyes drifted up toward the second floor.
Thick black smoke from the burning conservatory was rising rapidly through the open rotunda, filling the upper corridors with choking carbon gas.
The fire alarm was shrieking incessantly.
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And from the second floor, a high-pitched, terrifying child's scream echoed through the smoky dark.
It was Mia.
