Chapter 13 - THE MEN AT THE GATE
Three black SUVs stopped beyond the lake-house gate.
Victor counted eight men.
They wore plain coats and moved with the confidence of people who expected the guards to obey. One held up a federal badge.
Detective Quinn studied it through binoculars. “Fake.”
The men cut the power and approached from both sides.
Victor carried Ethan into a reinforced safe room beneath the kitchen. Lily followed with blankets, formula, and the baby’s medication.
“You stay here,” Victor said.
Lily looked at the monitor showing armed men entering the house. “You said you were doing this legally.”
“I am.”
“You’re also thinking about going upstairs alone.”
He did not deny it.
Lily placed Ethan in the crib. “Then think again. Damien expects the old Victor—the man who answers every threat with a bigger threat. Give him something else.”
Victor contacted Quinn, who ordered the men through the house speaker to surrender. They laughed.
Then Victor triggered the fire shutters, dividing the hallways into sealed sections. The intruders found themselves trapped in separate rooms as state police arrived from the rear road.
No gunfight. No revenge. Just locked doors and handcuffs.
The team leader tried to swallow a small piece of paper. Officers recovered it.
It contained three names and payment amounts. One name belonged to a deputy police superintendent.
The second belonged to the judge who had approved Serena’s emergency release for medical transport.
The third name belonged to Marco.
Victor stared at his head of security.
Marco looked equally stunned. “That isn’t my handwriting.”
Quinn did not lower her weapon. “You’re still coming with us until we know.”
As officers searched Marco, they found a burner phone in his jacket.
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A new message glowed on the screen:
THE NANNY IS THE LAST WITNESS. FINISH IT.
