Chapter two continues this story...

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the high-rise tower like a bomb detonation. A high-calibrated sniper round slammed into the thick mahogany desk, inches from where my hands had been resting a second prior.

"GET DOWN!" I roared, throwing myself off my chair onto the carpet.

Julian screamed hysterically, rolling off his seat and curling into a tight ball beneath the window sill, covering his head with his hands. "THEY'RE KILLING US! THEY'RE KILLING US!"

I didn't hesitate. I crawled rapidly toward my desk, reached under the center drawer, and pressed a concealed red emergency button that triggered a lockdown of the entire executive floor. Thick, bulletproof steel blast shutters immediately descended over the panoramic windows, sealing the office in darkness before a second shot could be fired.

The emergency red lights overhead began to pulse, casting a sinister crimson glow across the room.

My phone on the floor was still active. Arthur’s frantic voice screamed through the speaker: "RAYMOND! RAYMOND! ARE YOU THERE?!"

I grabbed the phone. "I'm alive! The office was targeted by a sniper!"

"Raymond, listen to me!" Arthur yelled, his voice cracking with sheer panic. "It's a coordinated strike! Two minutes ago, the security team at your Long Island estate reported a blackout! All landlines are dead, and private security guards wearing unmarked tactical gear just breached the perimeter gates!"

My heart stopped. My blood turned to ice.

"Elena..." I whispered, horror choking my throat. "Leo..."

"They're after the boy, Raymond!" Arthur screamed. "They know about the trust shares! If Leo is gone, the guardianship reverts to Julian, and the military files die with him!"

I sprang to my feet, completely ignoring Julian, who was weeping uncontrollably on the floor. I grabbed my coat, pulled a concealed 9mm pistol from the safe behind my painting, and charged out the private executive exit toward the basement garage.

"Arthur! Call the State Police! Tell them there is an armed invasion at the Sterling Estate!" I shouted into my phone as I sprinted down the concrete stairs.

"I've already called them, but the nearest state trooper unit is twenty minutes away!" Arthur replied. "Raymond, don't go there alone! Marcus Cole's men are military contractors!"

"They have my grandson, Arthur!" I roared, slamming through the heavy fire doors into the underground parking garage. "I will burn this city to the ground before I let them touch him!"

I threw myself into the driver's seat of my armored V8 SUV, turned the ignition, and slammed my foot onto the accelerator. The tires shrieked against the smooth concrete floor as the heavy vehicle rocketed out of the garage into the congested streets of Manhattan.

The drive to Long Island was a blur of flashing red lights, sirens, and sheer adrenaline. I wove through traffic at ninety miles an hour, my mind racing with terrifying images of my late son’s face, Elena’s tear-stained cheeks, and little Leo’s innocent smile.

Liam had died trying to stop these monsters. He had given his life to protect the truth. And I had allowed his killers to walk into his home while I was sitting in an office three thirty miles away.

"Not today," I growled through gritted teeth, gripping the steering wheel so hard my hands bled. "Not today."

As I turned onto the long, wooded estate road leading to the property, dark plumes of heavy black smoke were already rising into the afternoon sky.