The first sound Luca Ferraro heard inside his mansion was not the alarm system, the security team, or the polished voice of his estate director announcing his arrival.

“Get down!” Luca roared, his instincts taking over before the echo of the explosion had even faded.

He lunged across the room, grabbing Elena and Nora, dragging them both off the bed and forcing them down to the hardwood floor beneath the heavy wooden window frame. Glass rained down around them, embedding like diamonds into the mattress where Elena had just been sitting.

“What’s happening?!” Elena screamed over the blaring sirens, wrapping her body tightly around a terrified, sobbing Nora.

“We are under attack,” Luca said coldly. He pulled a sleek, heavy 9mm pistol from the shoulder holster hidden beneath his suit jacket. He racked the slide, chambering a round with a sharp, metallic clack.

His earpiece buzzed to life.

“Boss!” Matteo’s voice shouted through the static, gunfire echoing wildly in the background. “The lower east gate is gone. A bomb. Three armored SUVs breached the perimeter. It’s the Morettis. They have our security rotation schedules!”

“Harland,” Luca sneered, his blood running ice cold. The fired estate manager had sold them out.

“They are pushing toward the main house, Luca! We are holding them at the courtyard, but there are too many. Where are you?”

“I am at the carriage house,” Luca replied, his eyes scanning the tree line outside the broken window.

“Get to the bunker! Now!” Matteo yelled before the line dissolved into chaotic shouting.

Luca looked down at Elena. She was shaking violently, clutching Nora to her chest, surrounded by a world of violence she did not understand.

“Listen to me very carefully,” Luca commanded, gripping Elena’s shoulders. His intense, dark eyes locked onto hers, forcing her to focus. “I am going to get you out of here. But you must do exactly what I say. Do not hesitate. Do not look back.”

Elena nodded, her jaw trembling. “Okay.”

“Nora,” Luca said, his voice instantly softening as he looked at the crying child. “I need you to be a brave girl. Can you hold onto Mama tight?”

Nora buried her face in Elena’s neck and nodded.

“Let’s move.”

Luca stood up, leading them out of the apartment and down the narrow wooden stairs. As they burst out into the chilly night air, the sky above the main house was illuminated by the orange glow of burning vehicles. The sound of automatic gunfire echoed like thunder across the manicured lawns.

Suddenly, the bushes near the garage rustled.