Chapter 11 - The Lake of Shadows
The speedboat burst from the dark mouth of the cavern into the open expanse of Lake Como. The night was bitterly cold, and thick mist hovered over the dark waters, reflecting the distant peaks of the Italian Alps.
Behind them, a terrifying subterranean rumble shook the shoreline. The side of the mountain shuddered, and a massive plume of fire and debris erupted from the hidden entrance, collapsing thousands of tons of rock into the water. The shockwave created a massive swell that lifted the boat, sending Elena slamming against the steering console before the craft settled back onto the water.
Elena throttled down, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face. She looked back at the mountain, where black smoke billowed into the starlit sky.
""Dante..."" she sobbed, clutching the steering wheel until her hands went numb.
""Mom,"" Ethan said, his voice unnaturally calm despite the tears rolling down his dirt-streaked cheeks. ""Look. On the water.""
Through the heavy fog, three high-speed tactical patrol craft emerged, their searchlights cutting through the mist like blinding white sabers. They were Castiglione boats, heavily armed and closing in from the south.
""They blocked the northern route to the airstrip,"" Ethan said, analyzing the radar screen with an instinct born of growing up in Dante's fortress. ""They're herding us toward the southern shallows.""
""We can't outrun three of them,"" Elena gasped, noticing the fuel gauge flashing low. The explosion had ruptured an auxiliary line.
Lily reached out from her seat, tugging at Elena's sleeve. ""Mommy, look... the water is burning.""
Elena looked toward the shoreline. A flare shot up into the sky—a brilliant, emerald-green beacon arching over the southern cliffs.
""That's Leonardo's distress signal,"" Ethan shouted, recognizing the Moretto family tactical code. ""Dad's brother! He didn't wait at the airstrip—he came to the water!""
Elena slammed the throttles forward once more, the engine screaming as the boat skimmed across the surface toward the green light. The enemy boats opened fire. Heavy caliber rounds ripped through the fiberglass hull, tearing away the windshield and showering them in shards of safety glass.
May you like
Elena leaned over Lily and Ethan, shielding them with her own armored body as bullets pinged off the Kevlar vest on her back. The impact knocked the wind out of her lungs, sending excruciating pain radiating through her ribs.
Just as the enemy boats converged to ram them, a massive 50-caliber machine gun opened fire from the tree line along the shore, tearing the lead pursuer into shredded scrap and fuel-drenched flames.
