Chapter 3 - The Lockdown
The Corso mansion was instantly plunged into chaos.
Vincent initiated a total lockdown, sealing the heavy steel gates at the front of the estate.
Armed guards flooded the hallways, their boots echoing loudly against the Italian marble floors.
Dominic remained in his room, his face a mask of cold, calculating fury.
Fay stood in the corner, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs.
She had only wanted a job to pay her rent, and now she was trapped in a mafia warzone.
Dominic wheeled himself toward his mahogany desk and unlocked the bottom drawer.
He pulled out a heavy black pistol and checked the magazine with practiced efficiency.
He placed the weapon on his lap and finally looked at Fay.
He told her she was a liability because she had seen too much.
Fay felt a cold sweat break out across her neck.
She asked if he was going to kill her to keep her quiet.
Dominic almost smiled, though there was no humor in his eyes.
He said he did not kill people who saved his life.
Vincent walked back into the room, locking the heavy double doors behind him.
He reported that the security cameras in the kitchen had been remotely disabled right before the murder.
Whoever killed Mrs. Gable had high-level access to the mansion's internal network.
Dominic gripped the armrests of his wheelchair, his knuckles turning white.
He realized the assassin was not an outsider trying to break in.
The assassin was one of his own men, currently locked inside the house with them.
Vincent suggested they move Dominic to the underground panic room until the police arrived.
Dominic laughed bitterly, a harsh sound that held no warmth.
He reminded Vincent that the police were not their friends.
Fay watched the two men argue, her mind racing to connect the pieces.
She remembered brushing past a tall guard on the stairs when she carried the soup.
She had noticed a very distinct smell of bleach on the guard's uniform.
Fay interrupted the men, her voice cutting through the tension.
She told Vincent to check the hands of every guard in the house for bleach stains.
Vincent stared at her, completely confused by the request.
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Fay explained that the assassin used bleach to clean the blood off his clothes before blending back in with the security team.
Before Vincent could reach for his radio to issue the order, the lights in the mansion suddenly went completely black.
