Chapter 10 - The Trap Closes
Before Ramon could shout a warning to the men upstairs, the heavy iron trapdoor above them slammed shut with a deafening, echoing bang.
Click-clack.
The sound of an automated steel deadbolt sliding into place resonated through the small subterranean vault.
"Boss!" Matteo’s voice filtered down through the thick wood, muffled but frantic. "The hatch is locked from the outside! Electronic override isn't responding!"
Down in the vault, the emergency overhead fluorescent lights flickered violently and buzzed to life, casting a harsh, clinical glare over the rows of servers. On the central monitor, the green text vanished, replaced instantly by a live video feed from a high-definition security camera mounted in the upper cabin above.
Ramon stepped back to the base of the stairs, staring up at the screen in cold fury.
On the monitor, the door of the hunting cabin had been kicked wide open. Three figures in matte-black tactical gear stood over the cot where Elena and little Lily were resting. Standing directly in the center, leaning casually against the doorframe with a smoking cigar in his hand, was a tall man with sharp, predatory features and a left eye that caught the light with a terrifying, mirror-like silver reflection.
Viktor Vance.
Through the cabin's hidden audio relay, Viktor’s gravelly voice echoed down into the vault, calm and dripping with malicious satisfaction.
“Hello, nephew,” Viktor said smoothly, blowing a thin ring of gray smoke toward the camera lens. “Did you really think a dog like you could bury me that easily? You took my empire, you took my name, and now... you walked my own flesh and blood right into my front door.”
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On the screen, one of the operatives grabbed Lily by the arm, jerking the terrified little girl to her feet as she screamed for help. Elena stirred weakly on the cot, blinking against the harsh light, her eyes widening in sheer terror as she looked up at Viktor’s face.
“The girl and her mother are coming with me,” Viktor continued, his silver eye gleaming mercilessly in the monitor light. “And you, Ramon? You can stay down in that hole and rot with your precious secrets, while I take back everything that belongs to the Calderon name.”
