Chapter 8 - The Decoy
A deafening gunshot echoed through the grand living room, shattering a priceless vase behind us.
Lorenzo twisted the weapon violently out of Sophia's grip, breaking her wrist with a sickening crack.
Sophia screamed in agony, stumbling backward into Matteo's arms.
I used the chaos to sprint behind a massive marble pillar, shielding Leo from the erupting crossfire.
Lorenzo pulled a hidden combat knife from his boot and slashed a mercenary's throat in one fluid motion.
He grabbed the falling man's assault rifle and unleashed a hail of bullets across the room.
Matteo returned fire, forcing Lorenzo to dive behind an overturned mahogany dining table.
"Burn them alive!" Sophia shrieked, clutching her broken wrist in absolute fury.
Matteo threw a fiery cocktail toward the expensive velvet curtains, instantly igniting the living room into a blazing inferno.
The heat was suffocating, and thick black smoke rapidly filled the air, making it nearly impossible to breathe.
Lorenzo crawled over to my pillar, his face covered in soot and minor cuts.
"We have to get out of here right now," he yelled over the roaring flames.
"They will trap us in the fire."
I nodded, coughing violently as I clutched the bundle of blankets tightly to my chest.
We made a desperate run toward the shattered glass patio doors leading to the courtyard.
Matteo intercepted us at the exit, aiming his weapon directly at my head.
"Give me the kid, Hunter, and I will let you burn in peace," Matteo sneered.
Lorenzo was completely out of ammunition, his rifle clicking uselessly.
With tears in my eyes, I slowly held out the tightly wrapped blanket bundle toward the traitor.
Matteo grinned victoriously and snatched the bundle from my hands.
He quickly unraveled the blue blanket to check on the prize.
Instead of a baby, a heavy, solid bronze statue of an angel tumbled out and smashed onto Matteo's foot.
Matteo howled in pain, dropping his weapon as the heavy metal crushed his toes.
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"You really thought I would bring my son into a warzone?" I yelled triumphantly.
Before Matteo could recover, Lorenzo delivered a devastating, lethal punch directly to his throat.
