STOLEN REVENGE

Chapter ten: Fire at Saint Gabriel

The SUV came to a screeching stop outside Saint Gabriel Hospital. Smoke poured from the upper floors. Patients, nurses, and visitors rushed toward the exits, screaming as firefighters struggled to control the growing blaze.

Dante stepped out before the vehicle had fully stopped. "There!" Valentina shouted.

Across the parking lot, six men dressed in black tactical gear surrounded an unconscious woman on a stretcher. Standing beside them, calm as ever, was Marco Bellini.

Bellini looked directly at Dante. "I wondered how long it would take you."

Dante drew his pistol. "Let her go."

Bellini smiled. "You still think this is about her."

Valentina frowned. "What does that mean?"

Bellini ignored her. He nodded once. His men immediately opened fire. Bullets ripped through parked cars. Windows exploded. People screamed and dropped to the ground.

Dante pulled Valentina behind an ambulance.

"You okay?" "I'm fine." She peeked around the corner. "There are at least twelve." "I counted fourteen." "You always count." "It keeps me alive."

Another burst of gunfire struck the ambulance. The metal doors shook violently.

Valentina reloaded. "They're trying to pin us down." "They're buying time." "For Lucia." "No." Dante shook his head. "They're buying time for Bellini."

Across the parking lot, Bellini calmly climbed into a black sedan.

Valentina raised her pistol. "I've got a clear shot." "Wait." "Why?" "He wants us distracted."

Before she could answer, another explosion shook the hospital. Part of the emergency entrance collapsed. A nurse stumbled out carrying a little girl. The child was crying. Three gunmen turned toward them.

Valentina didn't hesitate. She fired twice. Both bullets found their targets. The third gunman dove behind a patrol car. The nurse disappeared into the crowd.

Dante glanced at her. "You just saved two lives." "We're not leaving civilians behind." He gave a small nod. "I know."

Antonio's voice came through the earpiece. "Boss, we're almost there."

"How many?" "Eight men." "Bring everyone." "We're thirty seconds away."

A black van suddenly burst through the hospital gates. Its side door slid open. The unconscious woman was loaded inside. Bellini looked back at Dante one last time. Then the van sped away.

"The van!" Valentina shouted. Dante sprinted toward the SUV. Two gunmen blocked his path. The first swung a knife. Dante caught his wrist. The blade clattered to the ground. He drove his elbow into the man's jaw.

The second opened fire. Dante rolled behind a concrete pillar. Valentina appeared from the side. She fired once. The shooter collapsed.

"Go!" she shouted. "I've got this."

Dante ran for the driver's seat. The engine roared to life. Valentina jumped into the passenger seat just as Antonio's convoy entered the parking lot.

Antonio leaned out of his SUV. "We'll hold them here!"

Dante nodded. "Don't let Bellini's men escape."

Antonio smiled. "They won't." The chase began. The black van raced through the crowded streets of Raveno City. Dante stayed close behind.

"They're heading east," Valentina said. "The docks." "Too obvious." "They know we'll think that." "So?"

"They'll change routes."

The van suddenly swerved into a narrow side street. Dante followed. Laundry lines whipped across the windshield. Market stalls crashed as both vehicles sped through the neighborhood. An old man barely managed to jump aside.

A motorcycle flew out of an alley and nearly struck the SUV. Valentina grabbed the dashboard. "Easy!"

"I don't do it easily."

Gunfire erupted from the back of the van. Bullets shattered the windshield. Glass sprayed across the dashboard.

Valentina leaned out of the window. She fired three controlled shots. One hit the van's rear door. Another struck the bumper. The third pierced a tire. Smoke burst from the damaged wheel.

"They're slowing down!" "No." Dante narrowed his eyes. "They're setting something up."

The van suddenly braked. Three armed men jumped into the street. Automatic rifles opened fire. Dante slammed the brakes. The SUV skidded sideways.

"Out!" he shouted. They dove behind a delivery truck. Bullets ripped through the vehicle. Valentina whispered, "They're trying to trap us."

Dante looked around. "There." A narrow alley. "Follow me." They sprinted through the alley while the gunmen continued firing toward the SUV. One of Bellini's men noticed too late.

"They're moving!" He chased after them. Dante waited around the corner. The gunman rounded the bend. Dante struck him across the throat. The man collapsed without a sound.

Valentina picked up his rifle. "Useful." They emerged onto the next street. The van was still moving. Dante smiled. "Now we're ahead of them."

He jumped back into the SUV from the opposite side of the street. The chase resumed. This time they were closing fast.

Valentina aimed carefully. "I can hit the driver." "No." "Why not?" "If the van crashes, Lucia dies."

She lowered the rifle. "Good point."

Suddenly another black van appeared from an underground parking garage. It merged beside the first.

"They've got backup." "No." Dante's expression hardened. "They're switching."

Within seconds, the unconscious woman was transferred from one van to the other while both vehicles continued moving.

Valentina stared in disbelief. "How did they do that?" "They practiced."

The two vans reached an intersection. One turned left. The other turned right.

Dante slowed. "Which one?" Valentina looked from one vehicle to the other. "I can't tell." Neither could Dante.

His phone rang. Unknown number. He answered without taking his eyes off the road. "Bellini."

The familiar voice laughed softly. "You know me well." "Where is Lucia?" "Safe." "For now." "If you hurt her" "You'll what?"

Dante remained silent. Bellini continued. "You're chasing the wrong van."

Dante frowned. "You expect me to believe you?" "No. I expect you to doubt yourself."

Valentina listened carefully. Bellini's voice became serious.

"Tell me something, Dante." "What?" "When your father died..." Dante's grip tightened. "...did you actually see who pulled the trigger?"

Silence. "No." "Exactly." "You admitted you were there." "I was." "You ordered the attack." "No." "You murdered him."

Bellini sighed. "I obeyed orders." Valentina looked at Dante. His face had gone pale.

Bellini continued. "So did everyone else." Dante's voice dropped. "Whose orders?" "The man you've never questioned." "What are you talking about?"

"The man who inherited everything after Alessandro Moretti died." Dante froze. "My uncle?" Bellini laughed. "I didn't say his name."

The line went silent for a moment. Then Bellini spoke again. "You did."

The call ended.

The SUV rolled to a stop. Neither Dante nor Valentina spoke. Finally, she broke the silence. "You don't believe him." "I don't know." "Bellini lies." "Yes."

"But sometimes lies hide the truth." She looked at him carefully. "Your uncle raised you."

"I know." "He protected you." "I know." "He helped build the Moretti family again." "I know."

"So why are you thinking about what Bellini said?" Dante stared through the windshield. "Because Bellini has never tried to save himself before."

"What do you mean?"

"Every time we've met, he's attacked." "And now?" "He wanted me to hear that." Valentina's phone vibrated. It was Antonio. She answered immediately.

"Antonio?" His voice was breathless. "We captured one of Bellini's men."

"What did he say?" "He admitted the vans were a decoy."

Dante looked at her. "Where's Lucia?" Antonio hesitated. "That's the problem." "What?" "Neither van had her."

Valentina felt a chill run through her body. "What?" "The woman Bellini took from the hospital" Antonio swallowed. "wasn't Lucia."

Silence filled the SUV. Dante slowly looked toward the burning hospital in the distance.

"If that wasn't Lucia..." Valentina finished the sentence. "...then where is the real Lucia?"

Before either of them could speak again, Dante's phone vibrated. A message appeared on the screen.

STOP LOOKING FOR THE WOMAN IN THE HOSPITAL. SHE HAS BEEN INSIDE THE MORETTI ESTATE FOR THREE DAYS.

Dante's blood ran cold. He slowly raised his eyes to meet Valentina's. Neither of them spoke.

Then, without another word, Dante started the engine and turned the SUV toward home.