Chapter 4 - The Hunted
Hannah felt the blood completely drain from her face as she stared at the security monitor.
The heavily armed tactical leader was pointing at her photograph, shouting orders to his men.
She was just a struggling waitress from Queens who could barely afford her monthly rent.
She asked Dominic why a ruthless mafia syndicate would risk a full-scale war just to kidnap her.
Dominic furiously reloaded his weapon, his mind racing through all the terrible possibilities.
He explained that the Moretti family never made a move without a massive financial or strategic incentive.
If they were hunting her, it meant her stolen biology was worth more than money to them.
He grabbed a heavy tactical vest from the bunker wall and strapped it over his ruined suit.
He tossed a smaller, bulletproof jacket to Hannah and ordered her to put it on immediately.
She hesitated, her hands shaking so violently that she could barely manage the heavy velcro straps.
Dominic stepped forward, brushing her hands away and securing the vest tightly around her chest.
His touch was surprisingly gentle despite the chaotic violence happening just above their heads.
He looked deeply into her eyes, promising her that he would never let anyone take her or the girls.
Hannah nodded silently, suddenly realizing she trusted this dangerous criminal more than anyone else in the world.
He opened a secondary hatch in the floor that led to a dark, subterranean escape tunnel.
He instructed her to carry the girls down the ladder while he covered their retreat.
Hannah climbed down into the damp darkness, holding the triplets as tightly as humanly possible.
They navigated the endless concrete tunnel using only the dim flashlight on Dominic’s phone.
After walking for nearly a mile, they reached a hidden steel grate that opened into the surrounding forest.
The freezing rain was still pouring down, turning the forest floor into a slippery, muddy trap.
Dominic led them through the thick trees toward a secondary extraction point he kept secret from his own men.
A dark, unmarked sedan was perfectly hidden beneath a canopy of dense evergreen branches.
He quickly loaded the exhausted children into the backseat and told Hannah to get into the passenger side.
As Dominic moved toward the driver’s door, a blinding spotlight suddenly snapped on from the tree line.
A voice echoed through a megaphone, completely shattering the silence of the woods.
The voice belonged to Detective Miller, a high-ranking NYPD officer.
He commanded Dominic to drop his weapon and surrender, claiming the estate was surrounded by law enforcement.
Hannah felt a wave of absolute relief, believing the police had finally arrived to save them.
But Dominic did not lower his gun.
He coldly told Hannah to look closely at the shoes the supposed police officers were wearing.
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Hannah squinted into the bright light and gasped in absolute horror.
Every single officer wearing an NYPD uniform was wearing the exact same tactical combat boots as the Moretti assassins.
