Chapter 5 - The Devil's Bargain
The lawyer’s voice echoed coldly from the bunker's internal speakers.
Dominic stared at the screen, his mind racing through possible tactical responses.
"Arthur, you are a dead man," Dominic promised quietly into the intercom.
Sterling simply laughed, adjusting his expensive silk tie.
"Your threats do not work anymore, Dominic," the traitor replied.
"The Moretti family offered me fifty million dollars for the child."
Hannah pulled Grace closer, backing into the farthest corner of the room.
"Why do they want her so badly?" Dominic asked, buying time.
"Because the Moretti patriarch is dying," Sterling explained with a cruel smile.
"He wants to ensure the Caruso bloodline ends entirely before he passes away."
"As long as Julian's child breathes, your family has an heir."
Dominic looked at the heavy steel door, calculating its thickness.
"I will give you one hundred million to walk away right now," Dominic offered.
"Money is useless if the Morettis flay me alive for failing," Sterling countered.
"I am opening the gas valves now."
A harsh hissing sound began echoing from the ventilation shafts above them.
A pale yellow mist began filtering into the sealed room.
"Put the baby lower to the ground, the gas will rise," Dominic ordered Hannah.
He ran to the supply cabinet and ripped it open, searching for gas masks.
There were only two masks left on the shelf.
Dominic grabbed them and rushed over to the terrified mother.
He strapped one over Hannah's face and adjusted the straps quickly.
"Put the other one over the baby's face and hold it tight," he instructed.
"What about you?" Hannah’s muffled voice asked through the mask.
Dominic did not answer.
He pulled his suit jacket off and wrapped it around his own face.
He walked to the heavy vault door and began examining the locking mechanism.
The electronic keypad was fried, but the manual override gears were still intact.
Dominic pulled his customized pistol, removed the magazine, and jammed the steel barrel into the exposed gears.
Using all of his strength, he used the gun as a lever to force the lock open.
The steel groaned under immense pressure, resisting his efforts.
Dominic's lungs burned violently as he inadvertently breathed in the toxic mist.
His vision blurred, and his muscles screamed in agony.
With a final, desperate roar, he shoved the gun barrel down.
The metal gears shattered, and the heavy vault door swung slightly ajar.
Fresh air rushed into the room, dispersing the deadly gas immediately.
Dominic kicked the door fully open and stumbled out into the hallway, raising his fists.
He expected to find Arthur Sterling waiting to shoot him.
Instead, he found his traitorous lawyer dead on the floor with a knife in his chest.
Standing over the body was a man wrapped in a dark trench coat.
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The man turned around, lowering his hood to reveal a scarred, familiar face.
It was Julian Caruso.
