Chapter 7 - Counterstrike
Gio didn't wait for the mercenaries to advance. He stepped out from behind the rack and fired two precise shots, dropping the lead mercenary instantly.
The wine cellar erupted into gunfire. Muzzle flashes illuminated the ancient stone arches as bullets shattered vintage glass bottles, showering the floor with red liquid that looked alarmingly like blood. The scent of spilled alcohol mixed with the acrid smell of gunpowder filled the narrow subterranean space.
Luca opened fire with his submachine gun, pinning down three mercenaries behind a stone pillar. Isadora, utilizing her intimate knowledge of the room, ducked under a row of display shelves and reached the main power breaker on the far wall.
She pulled the heavy iron lever.
The basement plunged into absolute, pitch-black darkness.
Shouts of confusion erupted from Marco's men as their night-vision goggles flickered, momentarily blinded by the sudden loss of ambient light. Gio, who had already memorized their positions, moved through the dark like a specter. Three rapid gunshots echoed through the vault, followed by the heavy thuds of falling bodies.
"Isadora! Stay down!" Gio shouted above the noise.
One of the remaining mercenaries, panicking in the dark, grabbed Isadora by her arm, dragging her rough against his chest as a human shield. "Move and I snap her neck!" he yelled, pointing his rifle into the darkness.
Isadora didn't wait to be saved. Using the sharp heel of her server shoes, she stomped down hard on the man's instep, following up with a violent elbow to his ribs. The mercenary gasped, his grip loosening just enough for her to break free.
Gio appeared from the shadows, striking the man with the butt of his pistol, dropping him instantly to the stone floor.
Gio grabbed Isadora's hand, pulling her toward him. "Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine," she panted, her heart hammering against her ribs. "That was for the suit."
Gio let out a genuine, rare laugh that rang through the damp cavern. "Remind me never to get on your bad side again."
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"Boss!" Luca called out from the end of the corridor. "The tunnel is clear. But Marco wasn't with them. He's at the harbor on his yacht, waiting for confirmation."
Gio's expression turned back to ice. "Then let's go give him his answer."
