Chapter 5 - The Darkness
The pitch-black room felt like a shrinking cage as the cool draft from the open hallway drifted in.
Dominic moved with lethal silence, grabbing my arm and pulling me behind the massive mahogany desk.
"Keep your hand over Lily's mouth," he whispered directly into my ear.
I nodded in the dark, wrapping my body around my terrified daughter to shield her from whatever was coming.
Footsteps echoed softly from the hallway, slow and deliberate.
Dr. Harris crouched near the sofa, holding his hands protectively over Ethan's unconscious body.
A beam of a tactical flashlight pierced through the darkness, scanning the empty center of the study.
"Come out, Dominic," Vincent's voice echoed with a sickeningly cheerful tone.
"It's just family, brother."
Dominic tightened his grip on his pistol, his muscles coiled like a predator ready to strike.
"Why are you doing this, Vincent?" Dominic called out, his voice echoing from the shadows.
Vincent laughed, a cruel sound that sent shivers down my spine.
"Because you went soft the day that boy was born," Vincent spat angrily.
"The Moretti empire needs a ruthless king, not a tragic father mourning his dead son."
I could feel Dominic's fury radiating through the small space between us.
He leaned close to me, his breath warm against my cheek.
"When I start shooting, you grab the kids and run to the secret elevator behind the bookshelf," he instructed softly.
I didn't even have time to agree before Dominic stood up and fired three rapid shots toward the flashlight.
The flashlight shattered, plunging the room back into absolute darkness, followed by a loud groan of pain.
"Go now!" Dominic roared over the sound of return fire.
I scrambled on my hands and knees, pulling Lily along while Dr. Harris carried Ethan's limp body.
We reached the massive wooden bookshelf just as bullets began tearing through the leather sofa.
I blindly felt for the hidden latch Dominic had mentioned, my fingers desperately searching the carved wood.
With a loud click, a section of the wall swung open, revealing a small, dimly lit elevator car.
Dr. Harris pushed Ethan inside, and I practically threw Lily in behind him.
I turned back to grab Dominic, but a pair of strong hands suddenly grabbed my waist from behind.
"Not so fast, housekeeper," Vincent hissed in my ear, pressing the cold barrel of a gun against my temple.
The elevator doors began to slide shut, separating me from my screaming daughter.
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Lily banged her tiny fists against the glass as the car descended into the hidden depths of the mansion.
I was completely alone in the dark with the man trying to kill us all.
