Chapter 14 - The Catacomb Ambush
The shadows in the cavern shifted immediately as Cassian’s confession left his lips.
Julian did not hesitate.
He drew a silenced pistol from his tailored jacket and put a bullet directly through Cassian’s kneecap.
The smuggler collapsed, screaming in agony, clutching his shattered leg on the damp stone floor.
"Who told you to trap us?" Julian demanded, his voice dangerously calm.
Before Cassian could answer, the grating sound of metal grinding against metal echoed from the ceiling above.
Three hidden grates in the cathedral floor had been opened, and the distinct, mechanical clattering of assault rifles being cocked filled the cavern.
"Move!" I roared, grabbing Julian by the shoulder and shoving him behind a massive wooden crate just as the ceiling erupted in gunfire.
Sparks flew as bullets rained down in the dark, shattering ancient statues and splintering the wooden crates holding illegal weapons.
"They are shooting blindly from above!" Julian shouted over the deafening roar of automatic fire.
"We are trapped in a fishbowl!"
I peered around the edge of the crate, my tactical mind assessing the geometry of the room.
There was only one way out—a narrow drainage tunnel hidden behind a pile of medieval armor at the far end of the cavern.
"I need covering fire!" I yelled, pulling a flashbang grenade from my tactical vest.
Julian nodded, seamlessly ejecting his spent magazine and slapping a fresh one into his weapon.
"On three," Julian said. "One. Two. Three!"
Julian stepped out, firing precise, suppressive shots upward into the open grates.
I pulled the pin on the flashbang and hurled it perfectly through the center grate.
The explosion was blinding, followed instantly by the agonized screams of the ambushers above as the intense light and sound ruptured their senses.
"Go!" I commanded, breaking cover and sprinting across the room toward the drainage tunnel.
We dove behind the pile of rusted armor just as the mercenaries recovered, their bullets chipping away at the stone where we had been standing seconds before.
I kicked the rusted grate of the drainage tunnel, the brittle metal snapping under the force of my heavy boot.
We crawled into the narrow, foul-smelling pipe, the sounds of shouting mercenaries echoing behind us as they finally breached the cavern door.
We navigated the claustrophobic tunnels for what felt like hours, guided only by the dim light of Julian’s phone.
Finally, we broke through a rusted grate and spilled out onto the muddy banks of the Tiber River, gasping for fresh air in the cool night.
I collapsed onto the riverbank, wiping the grime and blood from my face.
"They knew we were coming," I panted, looking at Julian, who was straightening his ruined tie.
"The Commission has eyes everywhere," Julian replied grimly.
"But Cassian gave us the location before he sold us out. Venice."
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I stood up, staring out over the dark water of the river, a lethal calm washing over me.
"Then we go to Venice. And we burn the masquerade to the ground."
