Chapter 7 - The Battle for the DeWitt Empire
Midnight arrived not with quiet shadow, but with fire.
Despite Victor’s capture, the Moretti syndicate had already launched their planned assault. They knew that if Victor failed, Gabriel would hunt them down to the last man. It was an act of pure, suicidal desperation.
At 12:15 AM, three heavy armored trucks rammed through the outer gates of the estate, blowing through the perimeter security with high-explosive charges.
The peaceful silence of the hills was shattered by the deafening sound of automatic gunfire, explosions, and screaming sirens.
Inside the mansion’s secure safe room—a subterranean bunker hidden beneath the wine cellar, lined with three feet of solid lead and reinforced steel—I sat holding Mikey on a plush sofa.
The heavy steel door was locked from the inside, guarded by Marco and two senior enforcers armed with assault rifles.
BOOM!
Even three floors underground, the deep thud of explosives detonating on the surface made the concrete floor vibrate beneath our feet.
Mikey buried his face in my lap, whimpering quietly. “Is Dad going to be okay?”
I held the boy tightly, kissing the top of his head while my own heart hammered frantically against my ribs. “Your father is the strongest man in this city, Mikey. Nothing is going to happen to him. I promise.”
Above us, Gabriel was leading the defense.
Outfitted in black tactical armor, holding a heavy assault rifle, Gabriel moved through the grand hallways of his ancestral home like a grim reaper. Backed by fifty elite guards, Gabriel met the invading Moretti mercenaries with a wave of absolute, uncompromising violence.
The battle raged for forty minutes.
The Moretti forces, stripped of their element of surprise and lacking the estate schematics Victor was supposed to provide, were funneled into crossfire zones prepared by Marco’s defense grid.
By 1:00 AM, the gunfire faded into a heavy, smoke-filled silence.
Down in the safe room, the heavy steel door hissed as the hydraulic locks disengaged.
The door swung open.
Gabriel stood in the frame.
His tactical armor was scorched, smudged with soot and drywall dust, but he was completely unharmed. In his eyes burned the quiet, triumphant satisfaction of a king who had decimated his foes completely.
Behind him, Marco gave a subtle nod. “The Moretti syndicate leadership has been eliminated, boss. The city is clean.”
Mikey let out a squeal of joy, jumping off the sofa and running into his father’s arms.
Gabriel caught his son, swinging him up into a tight hug, before his eyes found mine across the room.
He walked over to me, setting Mikey down, and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me fiercely against his chest. He didn't care about the soot or the smell of cordite; he buried his face in my neck, holding me like I was his sanctuary.
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“It’s over, my love,” Gabriel whispered into my skin, his voice rough and deep. “The war is over. No one will ever threaten this family again.”
I closed my eyes, wrapping my arms around his neck, feeling the steady, powerful heartbeat of the man I loved, knowing that the long dark night was finally at an end.
