Adler"...Hi, it's Lily. There's a high chance I'm taking a bath or my man has imprisoned me. Please leave a message at the first beep."Adler smiled. Once again, she wasn't picking up his calls. It was almost two weeks since he lost control; maybe it was about time she forgave him.If she wanted him to grovel at her feet, so be it. But she could at least pick up the phone; there was no man to imprison her now.The first beep brought him back from his thoughts.He could try leaving a message, although he had nothing to say.He cleared his throat. "Hey, Lily, it's Adler. I'm just checking to see how you're doing."Adler stopped. No, hell no, he was doing it wrong. "God, Lily, I'm so sorry. All I wanted was to keep you safe, but I was so stupid, I took it too far. If you had spoken to me, you'd know that you helped a great deal. You were right and I was wrong. I don't care what your conditions are; I just need you to forgive me."He hesitated, then hit the send icon.Dropping the phone
Adler's heart sank as he swiftly made a quick stop before the already blazing church.The firefighters had gathered around the church, all attempting to extinguish the relentless blaze.Dashing out of the vehicle, Adler raced towards the church. Noticing the police forming a human barricade to keep him and the crowd at bay, Adler urgently gestured for them to make way.They recognized him, but not without giving him a warning glance of the danger he was about to get into. However, Salvatore was there.Lily didn't need bad news at this stage; she had had enough. If he wasn't already dead, he needed to get the idiot out of there.Flames had taken over the church, from the pulpit to the room, and they were also inching along the stairs. It was a risky move to ascend, but if he acted swiftly, he could descend before the stairs became engulfed in flames.Placing the damp cloth over his head to shield himself from the heat, Adler charged up the stairs, shouting "Priest" at the top of his lu
RUNEHe gently brushed her hair off her face, listening to the musical sound of her breath. Pale-faced and vulnerable on the bed, she looked like an angel—a beautiful, helpless one.Rune covered her warm, stiff hand with his; the only proof that she had life in her was the beeps of the heart rate monitor that had kept him awake throughout the night.The doctor had said she was making progress but still had a fifty-fifty chance of surviving. He had prayed, and if he could call his hunger strikes fasting, then he did that, but she was showing less chance of opening those eyes.The nurses would frequently enter the room and offer to watch over her so that he could freshen up, but he consistently refused their offers.The only time he took his eyes off her was when Laron called, in his scared trembling voice to inquire if Kyra was getting better.Rune, choosing the easiest route to avoid further worrying him, always gave a reassuring nod, though deep down, uncertainty gnawed at him like a
RUNE"Mr. Rune," a soothing voice called, and a soft touch tapped him out of his slumber. When he looked up, he saw a nurse looking at him with pity. "Miss Kyra wants to see you now."Did she? Rune rubbed at his eyes. How long had he been asleep in the hospital's visitor area waiting for Luigi?Long enough if it was already dark. Sighing, he stood up, thanked the nurse, and walked towards her ward.He knew he wasn't prepared to receive whatever she was about to tell him, but he had to take it all in good grace. She had her life to live now, but he wished he could be happy for her.Reaching her ward, he knocked, and when she answered, he ambled in.Finding out Luigi was absent soothed his aching heart more than he wanted it to, and beside Kyra on the hospital bed was Laron, sprawled against her and sound asleep."He slept off immediately; Luigi left hours ago." Kyra, as if reading his mind, explained, "You left in haste; I thought you were gone."He stopped a safe distance away, still
RUSLAN.He died. Just as simple as that.Ruslan frowned, staring at the report papers; it was unbelievable. Adler had seemed immortal; the fire was only to shake him up and remind him that he was still lurking in the shadows.However, it had all gotten out of hand, and his purpose had slipped through his fingers. This was all he thought he wanted, so why did it feel void?"Conduct more searches," he flung the paper back to his men. "I want a DNA test on every body, every bone, every tooth, and even the fucking ashes."The men, about five of them, sauntered for the flying papers flying around, "But boss, he's really dead; the fire destroyed everything. Don sacrificed himself for his friend.""I'm saying nobody does that." Ruslan fell onto a couch in his bedroom. "Most especially not Adler. Something feels wrong; the game isn't over; Adler can't just die when he wants to." "Boss, what do you want us to do?" one of the men asked.What? Adler was a unique individual, adept at evading ris
LILY'It's a girl' was the last I heard, coupled with the musical shrill of my daughter's screams, before I let the unconscious take me.Now I was awake, faced with the same reality I wanted to escape—the sense of loss washing over me.He had said he was coming, said he was coming back to me, but now I was just going to accept that he was gone, just like that? And my baby? A few wards away from me—fighting for her life.It had to be a cruel nightmare. Life couldn't be so unbearable; it couldn't take two people away from me in one week. How could it snatch from him from the daughter he had always wanted? My heart ached with a pain I had never known before. The weight of my grief threatened to suffocate me as I lay on the hospital bed, my tears staining the pillow beneath my head.How could I raise our child without having him by my side? How could I find the strength to carry on, knowing that he would never hold our daughter, never watch her grow, and never share in the joys and chall
The next week, I spent time in my room with my daughter, whom I had named Constance after my mother. She was a beautiful child, carrying more of Adler's features than she did mine.Every time she looked at me with those piercing greens, I fought the urge to breakdown before her crib. It hurt that she was never going to know the man she took after.Salvatore came around often, even without a reason. Sometimes he brought a doctor; two days ago, he had hints of getting me a therapist, but I shut the offer down before a chance to think it through.Judging that I spent most of my time asleep, he needed the sessions more than I did, for although he no longer used the crutch, each day his health deteriorated.His cheekbones, with sunken eyes and patched lips, were sharper than a knife, and when he smiled at Constance, it never reached his pupils.I hadn't seen him in a few days, and when I called, his phone was off.One morning, I woke to my baby's cries and sunlight streaming through the op
EVA"It's been a year." He looked at her from under dark lashes, "You left without saying goodbye."If his eyes were hands, she would have been naked. His cigar lay forgotten on the tray, and she wished he'd crush the amber rather than let it pollute her air."I see you got your wishes granted," she said, looking around the office she once remembered as Adler's. Her throat became heavy. "Aren't you quite the opportunist, Don?"He chuckled and looked down at the ring on his finger. "I almost thought you came by to celebrate with me, but you've always been cruel to me." He looked up again. "So tell me now, what can I do for you?"She quickly replied, "My sister. Victor, I know you too well to know what you're up to. I've come to plead with you not to.""Plead with me?" He cupped his chin. "No way you're pleading with that hatred in those beautiful eyes, Evie."She would have known it wouldn't be easy to hide a feeling so deep. Eva dropped her gaze to the floor."Alright, sweetie," he re