Chapter 6 - Collateral Damage
The words hung in the freezing air, chilling the blood in my veins far more than the Colorado winter ever could.
I stepped firmly in front of my children, my body becoming a human shield between them and the heavily armed men.
"Vance, get them behind the marble pillars," I whispered out of the corner of my mouth.
Without missing a beat, Vance smoothly pushed Noah, Ethan, Sophia, and Olivia behind the massive stone columns of the foyer.
The man in the trench coat chuckled, a dry, raspy sound that held absolutely no humor.
"There is no need for theatrics, Mrs. Sterling," the man said, casually tapping the signed contract against his palm.
"Marcus Reynolds borrowed five million dollars from my employers, and in his desperation, he signed over all of his legal assets."
I glared at the man, keeping my posture straight and my voice dripping with absolute authority.
"Human beings are not legal assets, and Marcus has zero parental rights to these children," I stated firmly.
"Therefore, your little piece of paper is completely worthless."
Marcus poked his head out from behind the velvet sofa, his face completely stained with tears and terror.
"I didn't know they would actually come for them!" Marcus whined, trying to justify his monstrous actions.
"I just needed to buy some time until the company stock rebounded!"
Richard suddenly lunged across the room, grabbing his son by the throat and slamming him against the wall.
"You sold your own children to the mob to cover your gambling losses?" Richard roared, looking ready to kill his own son.
Patricia screamed and tried to pull her husband off Marcus, adding to the deafening chaos in the room.
The cartel leader sighed, clearly annoyed by the pathetic family drama playing out in front of him.
"I really do not care about the legality of the document, Mrs. Sterling," the man said coldly.
He gestured to the twelve armed men standing behind him, all of whom raised their weapons slightly.
"My boss wants his money, and since you are the new owner of Marcus's company, that debt now belongs to you."
He took a step closer, his dark eyes locking onto the terrified faces of my children hiding behind the pillar.
"You have exactly two choices today," he announced, his voice echoing in the grand foyer.
"You transfer five million dollars into our offshore account right now, or we take the quadruplets as insurance."
I didn't blink, didn't flinch, and absolutely did not show him a single ounce of fear.
Instead, I slowly reached into my pocket and pulled out my custom gold-plated smartphone.
"I am not giving you a single penny, and you are not touching a single hair on my children's heads," I replied coldly.
The cartel leader laughed out loud, shaking his head at what he perceived as my foolish bravery.
"And how exactly do you plan to stop us, little lady?" he mocked, resting his hand on his holstered weapon.
I pressed a single red button on my phone screen and looked up at him with a deadly, victorious smile.
"Because while you brought twelve men, my pilot is a retired military drone operator," I informed him smoothly.
Before the cartel leader could even process my words, a blinding spotlight illuminated the front lawn from above.
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The deafening sound of a massive rotary cannon spinning up echoed from the belly of my customized helicopter, aiming directly at the black SUVs.
"Drop your weapons immediately," a booming, mechanical voice commanded through the chopper's external speakers, "or you will be vaporized."
