Chapter 8 - The Hostage Crisis
The air in the room instantly turned to liquid ice.
"Fifty children?" I gasped, horror gripping my chest. "He took a children’s hospital hostage?!"
"Anthony Moretti has lost his mind," Victoria said, her voice shaking—for the first time, showing real fear. "He knows his empire is collapsing. He knows your men are wiping out his safehouses. This is a suicide mission. He broadcasted a video across all private syndicate channels. If Lena and Ellie aren't delivered to the hospital within one hour, he starts executing patients."
I stood up instantly, my hands clenching into fists. "We have to go."
"No!" Victor stood up, his massive frame blocking my path, his eyes blazing with fury. "You are not going anywhere near that monster!"
"Victor, there are fifty sick children in that building!" I yelled, tears of anger bursting from my eyes. "He wants me! He wants Ellie! If we don't go, those innocent kids die because of your family’s war!"
"I will go! My strike team will storm the building and kill Moretti!" Victor roared back.
"If your team storms the building, Moretti will trigger explosives or kill the kids before you even reach the floor!" Victoria interjected, looking at Victor. "Victor... as much as I hate to admit it, she’s right. Moretti set up snipers on the roof and wired the entrance with C4. A force entry will result in a massacre."
Victor slammed his fist onto the heavy mahogany desk, splitting the wood with a loud CRACK. The sheer power of his rage sent chills down my spine, but I didn't back down.
I stepped right up to him, placing my hand over his chest, feeling the wild, furious pounding of his heart beneath my palm.
"Victor, look at me," I pleaded softly.
Victor looked down, his chest heaving, his blue eyes filled with a terrifying mix of agony and rage.
"You protected me," I whispered softly. "You protected Ellie. Now let me help you end this. We do this together."
Victor stared at me for a long, agonizing moment. He reached up, cupping my face in his large, warm hand, his thumb gently wiping away a tear.
"If anything happens to you..." Victor’s voice broke slightly.
"Nothing will happen to us," I said with absolute conviction. "Because you won't let it."
A sharp, dangerous calm settled over Victor’s face. The hesitation vanished, replaced by the lethal commander he truly was.
"Victoria," Victor ordered, turning to his cousin. "Take Ellie and hide her in the estate’s underground vault. If anyone comes near her, execute them."
Victoria nodded solemnly. "On my life, Victor. I promise."
Victor turned back to me. "We bring a body double baby in a covered carrier. Moretti won't know the difference from a distance. You will be the distraction. I will be the shadows."
"What’s the plan?" I asked.
Victor pulled a tiny, flesh-colored earphone from his desk drawer and placed it gently inside my ear, then clipped a small button-sized microphone onto the inside of my collar.
"You walk through the front door carrying the basket," Victor instructed, his eyes fixed on mine. "You keep his attention on you. I will enter through the underground maintenance tunnels with my elite unit. The second I give you the signal... duck."
"Duck," I repeated, swallowing hard.
"I won't miss, Lena," Victor promised, placing a small, concealed silver dagger into my coat pocket. "And if anyone touches you, kill them."
Thirty minutes later, the armored convoy pulled up two blocks away from the city hospital. The entire block was surrounded by police cars with flashing red and blue lights, but the police were held back—Moretti’s men had threatened to blow up the building if law enforcement stepped onto the property.
I stepped out of the vehicle into the pouring rain, holding a baby carrier wrapped in a thick pink blanket. My heart was pounding like a war drum in my chest, but my mind was strangely clear.
Through the hidden earpiece, Victor’s quiet, steady voice whispered in my ear.
"I am inside the lower level. I'm moving toward the pediatric floor now. Stay strong, my love. I am right behind you."
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My heart skipped a beat at the words 'my love', giving me an unexpected wave of courage.
I walked past the police barricades, stepping up the grand concrete stairs of the hospital, and pushed open the heavy glass doors into the main lobby.
