Chapter 9 - The Confrontation in the Yard
"I wouldn't move that hand if I were you, Moretti," a harsh, venomous voice rang out across the manicured lawn.
Stepping around the side of the house into the amber glow of the patio lights was a man I recognized instantly from the security briefings Marcus had shown me weeks ago: Dominic Rossi, Vincenzo’s younger brother, flanked by two armed thugs holding silenced pistols.
Dominic’s face was twisted in a mask of pure, unadulterated hatred.
"You took everything from my family," Dominic sneered, leveling his weapon directly at Alessandro’s chest. "You exiled my brother, you seized our shipping routes, and you replaced our men with corporate flunkies. And all because of a maid and a brat."
Alessandro stood completely calm, his hands resting loosely at his sides, his gray eyes locked onto Dominic with chilling detachment.
"Vincenzo tried to kill me with industrial poison," Alessandro said, his voice level and steady. "He brought a death sentence upon himself. You should have stayed in Chicago, Dominic."
"I'm here to finish what he started," Dominic snarled, his finger tightening slightly on the trigger.
My breath caught in my throat. I held Emma tightly against my chest, shielding her eyes with my hand so she wouldn't see the barrel of the gun. Every instinct screamed at me to run, but there was nowhere to go. We were trapped in the open.
Dominic shifted his aim slightly, his eyes darting toward us on the deck. "Or maybe I'll start with the little rat who ruined everything. Let's see how brave Moretti is when—"
He never finished the sentence.
From the shadows of the tall oak trees near the driveway, a soft, metallic click echoed through the crisp night air.
Before Dominic’s finger could pull the trigger, three red laser dots appeared simultaneously on the chests of Dominic and his two thugs.
"Drop the weapons," Enzo’s voice rang out from the darkness, cold and absolute, backed by half a dozen Moretti security operatives who had been monitoring the perimeter from the tree line.
Dominic froze, his eyes widening in sudden, panicked realization. He had come looking for a lone target, walking right into a fortress disguised as a quiet suburban home.
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"Lower your guns, Dominic," Alessandro said, taking one slow, deliberate step forward. "Or you won't make it off this grass alive."
Dominic’s hands trembled. For a second, he looked like he might try to force the shot. Then, with a curse of absolute defeat, his pistol slipped from his fingers and hit the grass with a dull thud. His two thugs dropped their weapons immediately, raising their hands into the air as Enzo and his men swarmed in, wrestling them to the ground with practiced efficiency.
