Chapter 7 - The Tunnels Beneath
The air inside the subterranean drainage tunnel was damp, freezing cold, and smelled strongly of wet stone and old river silt.
Liana descended the iron ladder step by step, her boots slipping on the rusted rungs. Below, Dr. Mercer stood holding a small emergency flashlight, his beam shaking violently against the curved concrete walls.
“Fast! We have to move fast!” the doctor panicked, whispering frantically as he began shuffling down the dark tunnel.
Liana reached the concrete floor, pulling her wool coat tightly around Nico to shield his frail body from the biting underground draft. The nine-month-old baby was remarkably brave, his wide hazel eyes staring up at Liana in the dim beam of the flashlight, his tiny hands clutching the lapels of her coat.
“It’s okay, baby,” Liana whispered, her shoes splashing through three inches of stagnant water as she followed Dr. Mercer. “Mommy’s got you. We’re going to be okay.”
High above them, through thick layers of concrete and soil, the muffled roar of an explosion echoed down the shaft.
BOOM!
The ground shook slightly, sending small bits of dust and dry mortar showering down on their heads.
Liana stopped, looking back toward the dark shaft they had just descended. “Matteo...”
“He’s dead!” Dr. Mercer hissed, turning around with a hysterical look in his eyes. “They blew the vault door! There’s twenty armed men up there, Liana! He can’t survive that! We have to get to the river!”
“He’s not dead!” Liana snapped, her eyes flashing with a sudden, fierce protectiveness she didn't know she possessed. “Keep moving!”
They sprinted down the narrow concrete pipe for ten agonizing minutes. The tunnel sloped gradually downward, the sound of rushing water growing louder with every step.
Finally, the concrete pipe opened up into a wide, brick-lined junction chamber. At the far end, a heavy iron grate stood slightly ajar, framing the dark, moonlit surface of the Hudson River.
moored right beside the outlet grate was a sleek, black twin-engine speedboat, bouncing gently against the wooden pilings of an abandoned boathouse.
“The boat!” Dr. Mercer cried in relief, stumbling forward toward the open grate. “We made it!”
Before he could lay a hand on the iron bars, a harsh voice cut through the dark from the shadow of the boathouse pilings.
“I was hoping you’d take this exit, Julian.”
A man stepped out from behind a wooden pillar into the bright moonlight. He was tall, thin, and wore a expensive tailored trench coat over a dark suit. In his right hand, he held a sleek, silenced automatic pistol.
Dr. Mercer froze instantly, dropping his flashlight into the shallow water. “Gabe...”
Liana pulled back into the shadow of the tunnel, her heart hammering against her ribs.
The man named Gabe was Gabriel Moretti—Vincent Moretti’s eldest son, and Giulia’s adoptive brother.
“Father knew about this old smuggler’s run,” Gabriel said with a cruel, mocking smile. “He sent me down here to make sure nobody left the grounds with anything... valuable.”
His dark eyes swept past Dr. Mercer and locked directly onto Liana, standing in the tunnel shadow with the child.
Gabriel’s smile widened, revealing white, perfectly straight teeth.
“Well, well,” Gabriel purred, taking a step toward her. “Look at you. You really do look just like my dead sister. It’s almost uncanny.”
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He raised the silenced pistol, aiming it directly between Liana’s eyes.
“Give me the ledger in your pocket, little maid,” Gabriel demanded softly. “And give me the child. Do that, and I’ll make your death quick and painless.”
