A billionaire’s baby was trapped inside a boiling hot car—and the only person who knew was a housekeeper's four-year-old daughter with a plastic stethoscope.

The radio static hissed in the dim room like a coiled rattlesnake.

Roman’s posture shifted in less than a second. The vulnerable father vanished; the dangerous man whose name made Charleston shudder returned instantly.

He stood up, pulling Sophie gently behind him and shielding Rachel with his body.

"Marco," Roman spoke into his radio, his voice dropping into an icy, commanding pitch. "Initiate lockdown protocol Delta. Lock the iron storm shutters on the ground floor now."

"Copy that, Boss! Heavy fire near the front garage—" The transmission cut off with a sharp pop of gunfire echoing through the speaker.

Rachel gasped, slapping her hand over her mouth as she grabbed Sophie and pulled her close. "Roman... what's happening?!"

"Evelyn," Roman growled through gritted teeth. "She knew her custody scam failed. She knew I’d have the police on her by morning. She’s using her late father’s old enforcement contacts to finish this tonight."

Heavy metallic thuds echoed throughout the mansion as thick, reinforced steel shutters descended over every window and door on the ground floor, sealing the house like a fortress.

"Rachel," Roman said, turning to her with absolute focus. "Take Sophie and Nico up to the panic room behind the library wall. The code is 0-4-1-3—Claire’s birthday. Once you're inside, hit the red deadbolt button. Nothing short of a military explosive can breach that door."

"What about you?!" Rachel cried, holding Nico in one arm and Sophie’s hand in the other.

"I’m going to clean my house," Roman said, pulling a sleek black handgun from a hidden drawer beneath his desk and racking the slide with a cold metallic clack.

"No! Roman, don't!" Rachel pleaded, reaching out and grabbing his sleeve. "There are four of them! Call the police!"

"The police are fifteen minutes away," Roman said, looking into her terrified green eyes. "I lost nineteen minutes the night Claire died, Rachel. I won't lose another second tonight. Go. Now!"

Rachel hesitated for one second, then nodded. She scooped Sophie up, held Nico tight against her chest, and sprinted up the grand mahogany staircase toward the second-floor library.

Downstairs, the heavy oak front doors groaned under a violent impact.

BOOM!

A breaching charge detonated, shattering the wooden lock. Four men in dark tactical gear, faces covered in balaclavas, burst into the marble foyer, weapons raised.

"Clear the ground floor!" their leader barked, his voice muffled by a mask. "Evelyn said the baby is upstairs! Take out Bellini and get the kid!"

"Looking for me?"

Roman’s voice echoed from the dark upper balcony.

Before the intruders could raise their weapons, Roman fired three rapid shots. The lead intruder dropped instantly, shot through the shoulder, his weapon clattering across the marble floor.

The remaining three men dove behind the grand marble pillars, opening fire upward in a deafening barrage of automatic gunfire. Plaster exploded off the walls; crystal chandeliers shattered, raining sparkling glass down onto the foyer floor.

Roman rolled behind a heavy oak doorframe, his teeth gritted as pain flared through his bandaged hand.

Upstairs in the library, Rachel pushed the hidden button behind the leather-bound set of encyclopedias. The bookcase swung open with a hydraulic hiss, revealing a small, reinforced room with steel walls, emergency monitors, and medical supplies.

Rachel shoved Sophie and Nico inside.

"Stay here, sweetie!" Rachel whispered frantically to Sophie. "Don't come out no matter what you hear!"