Chapter 3 - The Lockdown
Elias dove hard behind a heavy mahogany desk just as bullets shredded the air where he had been standing.
Wood splinters rained down on the expensive Persian rug.
He pulled a hidden revolver from a secret compartment beneath the desk and fired back blindly.
A loud groan confirmed he had hit one of Vance's rogue men.
Anna screamed as the deafening gunfire echoed through the opulent room.
She curled her body entirely over the stroller to shield baby Leo from the flying debris.
"Stay down and do not move," Elias commanded with absolute authority.
He popped up from his cover and fired two precise shots.
Vance cursed loudly and ducked behind a marble pillar to avoid the lethal counterattack.
Elias knew he could not hold off a fully armed security team by himself for long.
He crawled quickly across the floor toward the terrified girl.
He grabbed Anna by the arm and dragged her toward the grand library attached to the drawing room.
They slipped inside just as Vance's men reloaded their weapons.
Elias slammed the heavy library doors shut and engaged the titanium deadbolts.
"They will blow through those doors in less than two minutes," Elias panted.
He rushed over to a massive bookshelf and pulled a specific leather-bound volume.
A loud mechanical click resonated through the room.
The entire bookshelf swung open to reveal a dark, damp set of stone stairs leading underground.
"Go down now," he ordered, pushing the stroller into the hidden passageway.
Anna did not hesitate to obey.
They descended into the cold catacombs just as a massive explosion blew the library doors off their hinges.
The underground tunnel was completely pitch black and smelled heavily of earth and old rain.
Elias used a small tactical flashlight to guide them through the winding maze.
He explained that these tunnels had been built a century ago for prohibition smugglers.
They finally reached a heavy iron door at the end of the long corridor.
Elias pushed it open, expecting to step out into the safety of the surrounding forest.
Instead, the blinding headlights of three armored SUVs illuminated the darkness.
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Standing in front of the vehicles was Elias's wife, Victoria, holding a silver pistol.
"You always were too predictable, darling," she sneered as a dozen laser sights locked onto Elias's chest.
