The first impact from the siege ram sounded like thunder.
The entire mansion shuddered.
Vanessa felt the vibration run through the wooden floorboards beneath her boots, up through her spine, and into her chest like the building itself had taken a breath of pain.
Marco grabbed the edge of a bookshelf to steady himself.
"Okay," he muttered, glancing toward the shattered window, "that thing is definitely bigger than I expected."
Outside, the ram struck the outer wall again.
The sound was brutal.
Stone grinding against metal.
Mortar cracking.
Vanessa stepped closer to the window frame and carefully looked down into the courtyard.
The armored vehicle sat like a beast in the driveway, its massive steel ram swinging backward before slamming forward again.
The third hit carved a visible fracture through the lower wall of the mansion.
Vanessa exhaled slowly.
"They're not bluffing."
Behind her, the Circle commander stood calmly despite the gun aimed at his chest.
