Chapter 7 - The Siege of Vance Manor
The storm struck the mountain estate with violent fury. Lightning illuminated the driving rain as the power across the entire estate went pitch-black.
CRASH!
The iron security gates at the front of the driveway were shattered as two heavy armored SUVs rammed through the entrance, tearing across the wet lawns. Twelve men clad in black tactical gear, armed with automatic carbines and night-vision goggles, poured out of the vehicles and fanned out toward the mansion's terrace.
Inside the dark estate, emergency red backup strip-lights hummed to life along the baseboards.
In the sub-basement vault, Rose held little Maya close against her chest. The steel vault door was six inches thick, equipped with an independent oxygen supply and bulletproof reinforced plating. Yet even inside the safe room, the muffled thud of distant gunfire echoed through the structure.
"Mommy... are the bad men here?" Maya whispered, hiding her face in Rose’s neck.
"It’s okay, baby," Rose whispered back, kissing her hair. "Grandma and Mr. Marcus are protecting us. Nobody is getting inside this room."
Upstairs in the grand foyer, the heavy oak front doors were blown inward with a deafening charge of breaching explosives!
Dust and smoke filled the air as six Blackwell mercenaries rushed into the hall, their weapons raised.
"Clear the ground floor!" the mercenary captain barked over his radio. "Locate Eleanor Vance and the girl! Executing primary contract!"
Before the squad could advance past the central fountain, Marcus Cole and four elite guards stepped out from the balcony above, opening fire with suppressed rifles!
Tracer rounds cut through the smoke in a deadly crossfire. Two mercenaries fell instantly, while the remaining four scrambled for cover behind the marble pillars.
Meanwhile, in the second-floor control room, Eleanor stood before a wall of battery-powered security monitors. She wore a headset, watching the tactical feeds sweep across the property.
On camera four, she saw Arthur Vance himself stepping out of the lead SUV in the driveway, wearing a trench coat, holding a heavy pistol in his gloved hand. He was personally supervising the hit to ensure no bloodline survived the night.
"Marcus," Eleanor spoke coldly into her microphone. "Arthur is in the driveway."
"Copy that, ma'am," Marcus replied over the comms amidst the sound of gunfire. "The ground floor is secure. We’ve pinned their entry team."
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Eleanor turned toward the side door of the control room. She picked up a small silver handgun from her desk drawer, checked the action, and walked calmly toward the elevator shaft that led down to the main courtyard.
It was time to face her brother-in-law face-to-face.
