Chapter 9 - The Ultimatum
"Drop the gun, Dominic," Lauren ordered.
Her voice was stripped of all warmth.
It was the cold, authoritative bark of federal law enforcement.
Dominic raised his pistol.
"You ruined my family, you bitch."
"I said drop it!"
Vincent slammed his hand on the nightstand.
"Enough!"
The sheer force of Vincent's voice made both of them freeze.
"Dom, put it down," Vincent commanded.
"She's wearing Kevlar."
"You'll get one shot off, and she'll put three in your skull."
Dominic hesitated, then slowly let his gun clatter to the floor.
Lauren kept her weapon trained on him, but her eyes flicked to Vincent.
She saw the open FBI file on his lap.
"So you know," she said quietly.
"Special Agent Carter," Vincent replied, tasting the bile in his throat.
"Three years."
"Was the wedding just a prop for the jury?"
Lauren's eyes hardened.
"My job was to dismantle the Corvino syndicate."
"But things changed six months ago."
"The Cartel moved in."
"I tried to stop the hit on you, Vincent."
"I paid off their local fixer fifty thousand dollars to alter the sniper's aim."
"I paid them to miss your head."
Vincent stared at her.
The note under the mattress.
She had actually saved his life.
"Why?" Vincent asked.
"Because the Cartel is a global threat," Lauren explained.
"You're just a local warlord."
"My superiors wanted you dead so the Cartel could take over, giving us a bigger target to investigate."
"I went rogue to keep you alive."
Dominic scoffed.
"So you're a rogue cop?"
"How noble."
"Shut up, Dom," Vincent snapped.
He looked at Lauren.
"Why are you standing in my bedroom in tactical gear?"
"Because Marco sold you out," Lauren said grimly.
"He's been working with the Cartel the whole time."
"He planted that bug to monitor my investigation."
"And right now, Marco is downstairs opening the front gates."
Vincent's heart stopped.
"Opening the gates for who?"
"For a Cartel hit squad," Lauren said.
"They aren't here to arrest you, Vincent."
"They are here to wipe out the entire Corvino bloodline tonight."
A heavy explosion shook the foundation of the mansion.
Screams echoed from the first floor.
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Lauren tossed a spare magazine onto Vincent's bed.
"We have exactly three minutes before they reach the stairs."
