Chapter 7 - The Siege of Lake Forest
The underground tunnel was dark, cold, and smelled of damp earth. We moved quickly, Damon leading the way with a tactical flashlight, his body moving with a fluid grace despite his bandaged torso.
Sloan walked behind us, clutching her kitchen knife, staring at the concrete walls in disbelief. "I've cooked in this house for five years and I never knew there was a bunker under the roses."
"That was the point, Sloan," Damon replied dryly.
We reached a heavy steel door at the end of the passage. Damon punched a six-digit code into the glowing keypad and scanned his palm. The hydraulic locks hissed open, revealing a brilliantly lit, concrete bunker lined with racks of tactical gear, automatic rifles, and wall-mounted surveillance monitors.
"Welcome to the real Volkov estate," Damon said, stepping inside.
I walked over to the bank of monitors displaying live feeds from forty cameras scattered across the property.
My breath hitched.
The driveway was filled with six dark armored vehicles. At least twenty-five men wearing black tactical gear were spreading across the front lawn, led by a tall, heavily built man with a scarred face and a fur-collared leather coat.
"Ivan Vane," Damon spat out, his eyes fixing on the screen.
"They're setting breaching charges on the front doors," I noted, pointing at three mercenaries attaching rectangular packages to the oak entrance.
"Let them," Damon said calmly. He walked to a central console, flipping open a red safety cover and exposing a master switch. "I had the front entrance reinforced with solid steel plates six months ago. The moment those charges detonate, the blast will blow outward, taking out their entry team."
"And then?" I asked, walking over to an arms rack and picking up a sleek submachine gun.
Damon looked at me, a dark, proud smile spreading across his sharp jawline. "Then we take back my home."
BOOM!
A massive explosion rocked the concrete floor beneath our feet. On the surveillance monitors, a brilliant flash of fire consumed the front portico of the mansion. The breaching charges had triggered the reinforced blast deflectors, sending a wave of shrapnel ripping through Vane's forward squad.
Panicked shouts echoed through Vane's tactical comms, which Damon had intercepted over the bunker speakers.
"Fall back! It's a trap! The entrance is sealed!"
"Sloan, stay here and lock the vault door from the inside," Damon ordered firmly. "Do not open it for anyone except me or Alina."
"You don't have to tell me twice," Sloan said, quickly stepping back into the secure zone.
May you like
Damon pulled a heavy assault rifle from the rack, chambered a round, and looked at me. "Ready, Princess?"
I clicked the safety off my weapon, my eyes burning with fierce determination. "Lead the way, Boss."
