Continue the journey—the next chapter reveals the truth behind it all.

1210 -

Back in the heavily fortified sanctuary in Westchester County, the digital clock on the command center wall clicked silently to midnight.

Serena stood before the massive holographic wall display, reviewing real-time satellite imagery of the Atlantic seaboard. Every maritime arrival, private flight, and container ship entering New York Harbor was being cross-referenced against known Moretti aliases and Sicilian charter registries by her custom-built AI defense grid.

Elena walked in holding a fresh mug of herbal tea, handing it to her sister with a weary expression. "You haven't slept in thirty-six hours, Serena. Between managing the philanthropic foundation’s audit and monitoring the security feeds, you're going to burn out."

"I can't afford to sleep, Elena," Serena replied quietly, taking a small sip of the tea. "Lucian is moving. Don Salvatore Romano doesn't grant audiences to broken men unless they've forged a new alliance. Lucian has secured foreign backing and maritime access. He's coming back for Nico."

"The estate is locked down tighter than a nuclear silo," Elena pointed out, gesturing to the endless rows of security metrics and defense grids glowing on the screens. "We have twenty-four armed private security guards patrolling the perimeter, motion-activated turret cameras, biometric access control at every door, and a direct panic room linked to state police tactical units. No one can breach this property."

"Lucian doesn't need to breach the property through the front gate," Serena said, her voice dropping into a focused, analytical tone. "He knows every architectural flaw, every blind spot, and every structural vulnerability of this estate because I had him help me design the security layout two years ago under the guise of upgrading our family home."

Elena froze, her mug halfway to her lips. "Wait... you designed this place with him?"

"I planned every inch of it," Serena admitted with a faint, cold smile. "I let him think he was making the security choices, but I built intentional redundancies into the wiring, the ventilation shafts, and the subterranean drainage tunnels—pathways that bypass the primary electronic grid entirely."

Before Elena could respond, a sudden, piercing shriek cut through the silence of the command center.

Warning: Perimeter Sensor Sector Four Compromised. Optical Jamming Detected. Primary Power Grid Offline.

The holographic wall displays flickered violently, then cut to black. The bright, warm lights of the Westchester estate instantly died, plunging the entire mansion into pitch-black darkness, illuminated only by the emergency red glow of backup LED strips along the corridors.

"It’s starting," Serena whispered calmly, setting her mug down on the metal desk. She reached beneath the console, pulled out a sleek, matte-black custom-configured tactical firearm and a secure communication tablet, and checked the magazine with expert precision.

Elena’s heart pounded against her ribs. "Serena, the power is gone. The backup generators aren't kicking in."

"Because they've been disabled from the master subterranean junction box," Serena said, her eyes locked on the thermal-imaging monitor powered by an isolated backup battery pack. On the screen, multiple bright red heat signatures were already moving swiftly across the lawn, bypassing the automated turrets and heading straight toward the rear patio doors.

"Stay here in the command center, lock the blast doors, and monitor the police dispatch channel," Serena ordered, her voice leaving zero room for argument.

"Where are you going?" Elena demanded, panic rising in her throat.