Chapter 19 - The Attack on Castellano's
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The attack came just after midnight.
It didn't start with a knock, or a shout. It started with the deafening roar of a heavy truck engine tearing down the quiet Brooklyn street.
Amelia was crouching behind the thick metal of the kitchen appliances, clutching Tony’s hand, when the front of the diner exploded inward.
A heavily armored delivery truck smashed directly through the front doors, tearing the steel security shutters off their tracks and sending glass and brick raining across the dining room. The impact was cataclysmic, destroying the booths where Derek had sat, crushing the stools where Mr. Del Monaco used to drink his decaf.
Before the dust could even settle, the back doors of the truck swung open, and heavily armed Moretti hitmen poured into the diner, assault rifles blazing.
The noise was absolute, terrifying chaos. The staccato pop of automatic gunfire shattered the coffee pots, shredded the menus, and ripped through the Formica counters.
Vincent’s men returned fire instantly. The diner became a war zone of flashing muzzle flares and screaming men. Marco, firing from behind the shattered cash register, took down two hitmen before being forced to dive for cover.
Amelia squeezed her eyes shut, pressing her hands over her ears, praying for the nightmare to end.
Suddenly, a Moretti hitman flanked the counter, stepping into the kitchen doorway. He raised his weapon, pointing it directly at Amelia and Tony.
Before he could pull the trigger, two suppressed shots hit him squarely in the chest. He collapsed backward into the dining room.
Vincent stepped over the body, his expensive suit covered in plaster dust, his eyes wild and protective. He grabbed Amelia by the vest, hauling her to her feet and pulling her deeper into the reinforced pantry at the back of the kitchen.
“Stay down!” Vincent roared over the gunfire, shoving her behind a heavy rack of canned goods.
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He didn't hide with her. He turned back toward the dining room, stepping directly into the line of fire to defend his sanctuary. The sound of his heavy handgun joined the chaotic symphony of destruction.
Amelia huddled in the dark, smelling gunpowder and burnt coffee, waiting for silence.
