Chapter 5 - The Penthouse Under Siege
The penthouse at Lake Shore was designed to withstand a military siege. Sitting on the fortieth floor overlooking Lake Michigan, it featured three-inch ballistic glass, reinforced steel doors, and an independent power grid. But as our convoy approached the tower, the darkness of the surrounding streets confirmed that Marcus had already severed the neighborhood grid.
""They're waiting in the lobby and the underground parking,"" Marco reported from the front passenger seat. ""If we drive in normally, we're walking into a crossfire kill-zone.""
I glanced back at Emily, who pulled Daisy closer to her chest. Daisy rubbed her eyes, yawning loudly. ""Are we home, Mister Teddy? I want macaroni and cheese with the orange sauce.""
""Soon, princess,"" I said softly, before turning to Marco with a grim smile. ""We don't use the lobby. We use the rooftop service helipad. Contact our aerial unit. We're going in from above.""
Fifteen minutes later, a blacked-out transport helicopter hovered fifty feet above the penthouse roof in the lashing rain. Down below, we could see armed figures patrolling the glass balconies, flashlight beams slicing through the storm. Marcus had already breached the lower floors and was working his way up.
""They haven't breached the interior vault yet,"" Marco shouted over the roar of the rotors. ""The security locks on forty are holding, but they're using thermal lances on the elevator shafts!""
""Fast-rope down,"" I ordered. ""Secure the perimeter of the terrace. Emily, keep Daisy behind me.""
We descended onto the wet, wind-swept terrace like ghosts. My men eliminated the two rooftop snipers before they could alert the ground forces. I carried Daisy inside my heavy trench coat, shielding her from the biting wind and cold rain.
""Wheee!"" Daisy squealed under the coat. ""We're flying like birds!""
""Quiet as a mouse now, Daisy,"" I whispered, stepping through the broken glass doors into the darkened luxury penthouse.
The smell of ozone and burning metal filled the air. Down the long marble corridor, the sound of a high-powered thermal lance hissed violently against the reinforced vault doors. Marcus's men were trying to cut through to the control room.
""Spread out,"" I whispered to Marco. ""Flank them from the master suite. Don't leave a single one standing.""
Leaving Emily and Daisy inside a reinforced panic room hidden behind the library bookshelf, I locked the heavy steel panel. ""Stay here, Em. No matter what you hear, don't open this door until you hear my voice give the passphrase: 'Teddy bear'.""
Emily nodded, her jaw set with determination. ""Kill him, Dom. End this.""
I racked the slide of my tactical shotgun. ""With pleasure.""
I moved down the corridor like a shadow through water. The penthouse, once my peaceful sanctuary high above the city, had become a war zone. Four Petrov mercenaries were huddled around the elevator bank, monitoring the blue flame of the thermal lance cutting through the steel hinges.
I didn't give them a warning.
I stepped into the open hallway and opened fire. The heavy blast echoed like thunder, dropping two mercenaries instantly. Marco’s team opened fire from the opposing corridor, catching the remaining two in a devastating crossfire. Within three seconds, the hallway was cleared, the hiss of the dying torch sputtering out on the charred floor.
Suddenly, a voice echoed through the building's internal intercom system.
""Dominic! I know you're up there!"" Marcus’s voice crackled, distorted and mocking. ""Did you really think the vault was my only objective? Look out the northern window, my dear friend!""
I stepped into the living room and looked through the cracked ballistic glass toward the adjacent tower. On the rooftop directly opposite my terrace, a mobile surface-to-surface missile battery was being prepped by a squad of Petrov soldiers.
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Marcus had never intended to capture the penthouse. He was going to level it entirely.
""You took everything from me, Dominic!"" Marcus screamed over the speakers. ""Now I erase your entire family line in one clean strike! Goodbye, Romano!""
