Chapter 96 - Fire in the Cloister
The monastery smelled of cordite, burning tapestry, and copper. Daniel dropped another cloaked attacker who attempted to flank the dais, then grabbed the heavy gold-bound ledger from the altar top, shoving it violently into his tactical pack despite its massive weight.
"We can't hold this room!" Daniel shouted, ejecting an empty magazine and slapping a fresh one home with the heel of his hand. "They're bringing heavy caliber down from the cloisters!"
A grenade clattered across the flagstones forty feet away. Daniel shoved Emma, Lily, and Clara flat against the rear wall just as the blast detonated, sending a shockwave of heat, shattered marble, and smoke roaring through the sanctuary. The concussive blast blew out the stained glass windows facing the lagoon, letting in a howling rush of cold Adriatic wind and rain.
"Follow me!" Clara choked out through the smoke, pointing toward a low iron gate hidden behind the shattered remains of the choir screen. "There’s an escape route through the bell tower catacombs! It leads directly to the water gates on the north side!"
"Can we trust her?" Daniel looked at Emma, his eyes hard and unblinking.
Emma looked at the woman with her own face. Clara's lip was bleeding, her expensive robes torn and stained with soot, but there was no deceit in her eyes now—only the primal terror of someone who knew the monster she had tried to bargain with had broken its chains.
"We don't have a choice," Emma said, hoisting Lily into her arms. "Move!"
Daniel laid down a suppression pattern toward the remaining two Council members who were frantically reloading behind their overturned thrones. The four of them scrambled through the iron gate, Clara slamming the heavy rusted bolt into place behind them just as a barrage of bullets slammed into the iron plating, sending orange sparks dancing in the gloom.
They found themselves in a narrow, spiral stone staircase winding steeply upward into the shadows of the bell tower. Lily clutched Emma’s neck, her small hands trembling, but her voice remained fierce.
"Mom," Lily whispered, her mouth pressed against Emma's ear. "The book told me something before the shooting started."
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Emma paused on the fifth step, breathing hard. "What did it tell you, sweetheart?"
"It told me grandmother isn't in London," Lily said chillingly. "She's here. In Venice."
