Crimson Betrayal

High-caliber rounds tore through the ceiling, pulverizing the massive crystal centerpiece overhead and showering the blood-slicked carpets in sharp, jagged glass. Panic stripped the elegance from the ballroom as hundreds of guests scrambled blindly for exits, the symphony replaced by frantic shrieks and the dull thuds of stray bullets claiming anyone caught in the crossfire.

At the epicenter of t