Chapter 5 - A Deal with the Devil
The blinding light from the helicopter flooded the interior of the SUV, turning the bloodstained cabin completely white.
Marco squinted against the glare, his gun still aimed steadily at Evelyn's chest.
Evelyn raised her hands, begging him to listen to her before doing something stupid.
She explained about the phone call, the threat against her sister, and the paper in the dead driver's pocket.
Marco's hand began to shake as his strength faded, but his eyes remained deadly serious.
He told Evelyn that if she gave them the phone, Antonio would be dead within the hour.
Evelyn shouted over the roaring helicopter blades that she did not care about a mafia boss.
She only cared about Sarah.
The helicopter slowly descended, kicking up a storm of dirt and dead leaves around the vehicle.
Marco lowered his weapon just a fraction of an inch.
He proposed a deal.
If Evelyn helped him get inside the helicopter, he would use the satellite phone onboard to call Antonio's loyalists in Boston.
He promised to have heavily armed men surrounding Sarah's apartment before the assassins even knew what was happening.
But Evelyn had to surrender her own phone and completely sever contact with the enemy.
Evelyn looked at the gun, then at the desperate sincerity in Marco's fading eyes.
She realized this was the only way to save both her sister and herself.
She nodded her agreement and helped Marco push the heavy SUV door open.
Two armed men in tactical gear jumped from the helicopter and ran toward them, shielding their faces from the rotor wash.
Evelyn tensed, fearing these were the assassins who had been hunting them.
Instead, the men respectfully grabbed Marco by his good arm and helped him toward the aircraft.
They ushered Evelyn inside and strapped her into a leather seat.
As soon as the doors closed, the deafening noise of the rotors faded to a dull hum.
The helicopter banked sharply and accelerated into the dark Irish sky.
A medic immediately began working on Marco's shoulder, injecting him with painkillers and packing the wound.
Marco weakly pointed to a secure satellite phone mounted on the cabin wall.
He instructed one of the tactical operators to initiate Protocol Winter in Boston.
The operator nodded and began barking urgent commands in Italian into the receiver.
Five minutes later, the operator confirmed that a twenty-man strike team had secured Sarah's building.
Evelyn collapsed against her seat, weeping silently with profound relief.
She asked Marco where they were going now.
Marco closed his eyes and said they were going to the only place in Ireland the syndicate could not breach.
The helicopter flew for another hour before beginning a steep descent toward a rocky cliff overlooking the ocean.
A massive, centuries-old stone castle emerged from the fog, heavily illuminated by floodlights.
Armed guards patrolled the ancient battlements.
They landed in the courtyard, and Evelyn was escorted into a grand, fire-lit dining hall.
She expected to be locked in a room and interrogated.
Instead, she saw a man sitting in a leather chair by the fire, holding a glass of whiskey.
It was Antonio Vitelli.
He looked pale but entirely alive, wearing a dark sweater instead of a hospital gown.
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He smiled coldly at Evelyn and thanked her for her excellent performance on the plane.
He took a sip of his whiskey and casually mentioned that he had poisoned himself.
