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Ten minutes passed by, and I heard the low rumble of Luca’s car pulling up next to mine. With practised ease, I put the gun back it its holster and straightened up, putting on the mask of indifference I had perfected over the years. This was just another job. Just another necessary step to keep myself alive. I was doing this to keep myself alive. That's what I've always told myself. And that's what I'd always believed. It was a necessary move in this world to ensure my own survival. I stepped out of my car, the gun tucked away inside my coat. Luca stepped out of his car, rain droplets shimmering in the dim light as he walked over. He pulled his coat closer to shield himself from the rain. The unkept stubble and dark circles underneath his eyes carved out his dedication to the precinct. A signature of the years he'd spent as a detective, chasing one criminal after another. But after years of toiling in the underworld, I've learnt the difference between him and me. I knew when to loo
I let out a long breath, my exhaustion seeping into my bones. I could feel the weight of the gun on my hip, a constant reminder of the life I led now. Ever since I was young, I dreamt of being an outstanding cop, to serve and protect...tch. life had a way of playing sick jokes on people. A bitter smile cracked on my lips as I sped down the road. This life had driven me to the point of no return. I wasn’t the man Vivian had fallen in love with all those years ago. That man was long gone. In his place was someone else—someone shaped by the Montellis, by Rico, by every dirty deal and decision that had led me to this point. His phone buzzed again, and my jaw clenched. I knew what needed to be done. The Montellis were breathing down my neck, and i couldn’t afford to make a mistake. “Damn you, Vivian,” I muttered under my breath, my voice thick with emotion. “Why did you have to leave?” ---12:50pm--- I glanced at the clock on my dashboard. The red lights felt blinding as the car pulle
His glare was fierce, but I held my ground. “This isn’t the time to act reckless. And you know it. We need a plan. If you go after them now, you'd be playing right into their hands.”“I don’t care! They took her, Nik. They crossed the fucking line,” he huffed, knocking over a stack of magazines on his desk.I took a breath, keeping my voice steady. “I know. But if you charge in there like this, you could lose more than Vivian. You could lose everything. They’re waiting for you to snap, and when you do, they’ll be ready.”Damien’s eyes flickered with rage, but deep down, he knew I was right. He was smart enough to see the bigger picture, but in moments like this, his emotions were getting the best of him.I placed a hand on his shoulder, locking eyes with him. “We’ll get her back. But not like this. You need to stay focused, stay sharp. We’ll find another way.”He didn’t say anything, but the tension in his shoulders eased, if only a
Nikolia nodded in agreement, though his gaze remained locked on Sly, watching his every move. “Enzo’s right, Damien. The moment you go after them, you’ll be walking right into their trap.” I took a deep breath, trying to let the words sink in. Rico and Marcello were conniving bastards. They would use any weakness to get a leverage. “What do you suggest, then?” I asked after a moment, my tone hard but more measured now. Enzo relaxed slightly. “Sly," he motioned for Salvatore and the man moved quickly, pulling out a laptop from his bag. He perched himself behind a wooden desk and turned on the system, the cold light reflecting over his face as his fingers worked through the keys like a madman. "We got our Intel..." Sly grinned, his fingers already flying over the keys of the laptop. “I’ve been digging into Rico’s operations. I might have an idea where he’s keeping her.” My eyes locked onto Sly’s. “Where?” Sly pulled up a map on the screen, a series of routes and locations highligh
Sly turned back to his laptop, as if he hadn’t just tried to push my buttons. “We make our move tonight. They don’t know that we know where they are, so we have the upper hand. We’ll strike fast, hit them from all sides.”Right in the middle of our conversation, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out immediately, my gut tightening the moment I saw the notification. An unknown number had sent me a message. I opened it immediately, and my blood ran cold.It was a picture of Vivian. She was tied up, her face streaked with tears, her eyes wide with fear. A message followed: **“Come alone, or she dies.”**I stared at the screen, my breath catching in my throat. Rage, fear, and panic crashed into me all at once, threatening to rip through the thin control I had left. I tightened my grip on the phone, the edges digging into my palm.Nikolia leaned in, his face hardening as he saw the picture. “Shit.”Sly glanced over, his smirk fading when he saw the image. “Ah... there it is. The bai
Vivian gasped, her eyes widening in horror to think that Bruce was confessing to a murder made her question everything now. “No… no, Bruce, that’s not—” She shook her head, refusing to believe what she was hearing. The man she once knew, the man she had loved, couldn’t be capable of something like that. “You didn’t… You couldn’t have…”His face twisted in a madden excitement. A sick smile marked his features as he grinned from ear to ear like a mad man, but there was no denying it now. “I did. Hah, I shot him. Clean, one bullet to the heart. Just like Rico told me to.”Rico?? Why did that name sound so familiar. Vivian recalled going through Damien's notes the days he had been absent from work. But who exactly was Rico and how were Bruce and Damien even connected to it all.Vivian recoiled in her chair, her body trembling. “How... how could you?"“I didn’t have a choice!” Bruce snapped, his voice rising, raw and defensive. “They have everything on
Bruce had taken a photo of Vivian and driven down to the fake location where Rico and Marcello had planned to ambush him when he showed up. About a dozen foot soldiers were positioned at strategic places around the warehouse, waiting for the time. But as Bruce stood before the depleted building, he couldn't tear his gaze away from the the picture of Vivian. He stared at the picture for what felt like an eternity before delivering the message to Damien along with the fake location. A bitter smile appeared on his lips as he watched the file deliver. Somehow, he felt Damien wouldn't believe this crap. If he truly did love Vivian, he could tell from a mile away that these coordinates were bullshit. A part of him wanted to call it off, but he knew better than to intervene. No, that's not it. Bruce was just a coward, a dog on Rico's leash and it gnawed at him.Vivian was now a part of his past, but she wasn't the one to blame for the path he had condemned himself to be
Rico stormed back to the center of the room, his face twisted in fury as more gunfire erupted outside. “This was supposed to be foolproof!” he spat, turning on Bruce with venom in his eyes. “You told me this would work!”Bruce gave a nonchalant shrug, not bothering to defend himself. He’d done what he was told. If Rico’s plans were crumbling, that was on him.“Looks like you’re the one who underestimated Damien,” Bruce muttered under his breath.“You—” Rico’s hand shot out, grabbing Bruce by the collar of his shirt, yanking him to his feet. “I swear to God, if you had anything to do with this—”“Enough!” Marcello barked, stepping between them, his eyes wide with barely concealed panic. “This is getting out of hand! We need to get out of here before it’s too late!”For the first time since the gunfire began, Bruce’s pulse quickened. He could hear the approaching footsteps, the gunfire getting closer. The time had come. The inevitable was h
“Please… give me another chance,” he begged, his words raw with desperation. “I can’t lose you. I don't think I can go on without you. I know I’ve hurt you… I know I’ve failed you… but I swear, I’ll do anything to make it right.” His eyes shimmered with unshed tears as he leaned forward, his voice barely above a whisper. Compared to the cold hearted killing machine she had just witnessed some hours ago, this version of Damien, the way he made himself to bare and vulnerable to her made her heart clench, but could she forgive him so easily? He lied about who he was, putting her in danger. But he hadn't been the only one who lied, Bruce. She couldn't tell who's betrayal hit her more. Bruce or Damien? “But Vivian… if you want to leave… I won’t stop you. I won’t force you to stay in a life you don’t want. I’ll let you go, if that’s what you need.” The silence that followed was suffocating, heavy with uncertainty. Damien’s heart pounded in his chest as he waited patiently for her next wor
Damien stood there, still holding the gun in his hand, as if Marcello’s death meant nothing to him. He didn’t flinch at the sound of Vivian’s distress, didn’t look away from the corpse lying at his feet. This was just another day in his world. But somewhere deep inside, something twisted in his chest at the sound of Vivian’s sobs.Nikolia glanced at him, his expression unreadable. “Enzo will be here soon,” he said quietly, as if the violence they had just witnessed was already being brushed aside. “We’ll take care of the rest.”Damien nodded, his jaw clenched. Without another word, he holstered his gun and turned to face Vivian. But before he could reach her, she swayed, her body giving out from the sheer exhaustion and trauma of the night. She collapsed, her world turning black as she slipped into unconsciousness.---When Vivian woke again, the harsh lights of the white room assaulted her senses. She blinked, disoriented, her body feeling heavy
Marcello’s heart dropped into his stomach. For a split second, it felt like he had seen a ghost. Nikolia stood there, bathed in the faint moonlight, his tall frame exuding a cold menace that froze Marcello in place. His expression was hard, disgust etched into every line of his face and his golden eyes cutting through Marcello like a silent reaper of damnation.“Going somewhere, Marcello?” Nikolia’s voice was as cold as the night air, sending a shiver down Marcello’s spine.Marcello’s eyes widened, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to find words. “N-Nikolia…” he stammered, taking a step back, but there was nowhere to run. The fat in his cheeks trembled. The wall behind him felt like a cage, closing in around him.Nikolia stepped closer, his eyes darkening with contempt. “ what's the matter, uncle Marc? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he said quietly, his voice dripping with disgust. “I guess betrayal has that effect, doesn’t it?”Marcello tried to swallow, but his thr
Rico stormed back to the center of the room, his face twisted in fury as more gunfire erupted outside. “This was supposed to be foolproof!” he spat, turning on Bruce with venom in his eyes. “You told me this would work!”Bruce gave a nonchalant shrug, not bothering to defend himself. He’d done what he was told. If Rico’s plans were crumbling, that was on him.“Looks like you’re the one who underestimated Damien,” Bruce muttered under his breath.“You—” Rico’s hand shot out, grabbing Bruce by the collar of his shirt, yanking him to his feet. “I swear to God, if you had anything to do with this—”“Enough!” Marcello barked, stepping between them, his eyes wide with barely concealed panic. “This is getting out of hand! We need to get out of here before it’s too late!”For the first time since the gunfire began, Bruce’s pulse quickened. He could hear the approaching footsteps, the gunfire getting closer. The time had come. The inevitable was h
Bruce had taken a photo of Vivian and driven down to the fake location where Rico and Marcello had planned to ambush him when he showed up. About a dozen foot soldiers were positioned at strategic places around the warehouse, waiting for the time. But as Bruce stood before the depleted building, he couldn't tear his gaze away from the the picture of Vivian. He stared at the picture for what felt like an eternity before delivering the message to Damien along with the fake location. A bitter smile appeared on his lips as he watched the file deliver. Somehow, he felt Damien wouldn't believe this crap. If he truly did love Vivian, he could tell from a mile away that these coordinates were bullshit. A part of him wanted to call it off, but he knew better than to intervene. No, that's not it. Bruce was just a coward, a dog on Rico's leash and it gnawed at him.Vivian was now a part of his past, but she wasn't the one to blame for the path he had condemned himself to be
Vivian gasped, her eyes widening in horror to think that Bruce was confessing to a murder made her question everything now. “No… no, Bruce, that’s not—” She shook her head, refusing to believe what she was hearing. The man she once knew, the man she had loved, couldn’t be capable of something like that. “You didn’t… You couldn’t have…”His face twisted in a madden excitement. A sick smile marked his features as he grinned from ear to ear like a mad man, but there was no denying it now. “I did. Hah, I shot him. Clean, one bullet to the heart. Just like Rico told me to.”Rico?? Why did that name sound so familiar. Vivian recalled going through Damien's notes the days he had been absent from work. But who exactly was Rico and how were Bruce and Damien even connected to it all.Vivian recoiled in her chair, her body trembling. “How... how could you?"“I didn’t have a choice!” Bruce snapped, his voice rising, raw and defensive. “They have everything on
Sly turned back to his laptop, as if he hadn’t just tried to push my buttons. “We make our move tonight. They don’t know that we know where they are, so we have the upper hand. We’ll strike fast, hit them from all sides.”Right in the middle of our conversation, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out immediately, my gut tightening the moment I saw the notification. An unknown number had sent me a message. I opened it immediately, and my blood ran cold.It was a picture of Vivian. She was tied up, her face streaked with tears, her eyes wide with fear. A message followed: **“Come alone, or she dies.”**I stared at the screen, my breath catching in my throat. Rage, fear, and panic crashed into me all at once, threatening to rip through the thin control I had left. I tightened my grip on the phone, the edges digging into my palm.Nikolia leaned in, his face hardening as he saw the picture. “Shit.”Sly glanced over, his smirk fading when he saw the image. “Ah... there it is. The bai
Nikolia nodded in agreement, though his gaze remained locked on Sly, watching his every move. “Enzo’s right, Damien. The moment you go after them, you’ll be walking right into their trap.” I took a deep breath, trying to let the words sink in. Rico and Marcello were conniving bastards. They would use any weakness to get a leverage. “What do you suggest, then?” I asked after a moment, my tone hard but more measured now. Enzo relaxed slightly. “Sly," he motioned for Salvatore and the man moved quickly, pulling out a laptop from his bag. He perched himself behind a wooden desk and turned on the system, the cold light reflecting over his face as his fingers worked through the keys like a madman. "We got our Intel..." Sly grinned, his fingers already flying over the keys of the laptop. “I’ve been digging into Rico’s operations. I might have an idea where he’s keeping her.” My eyes locked onto Sly’s. “Where?” Sly pulled up a map on the screen, a series of routes and locations highligh
His glare was fierce, but I held my ground. “This isn’t the time to act reckless. And you know it. We need a plan. If you go after them now, you'd be playing right into their hands.”“I don’t care! They took her, Nik. They crossed the fucking line,” he huffed, knocking over a stack of magazines on his desk.I took a breath, keeping my voice steady. “I know. But if you charge in there like this, you could lose more than Vivian. You could lose everything. They’re waiting for you to snap, and when you do, they’ll be ready.”Damien’s eyes flickered with rage, but deep down, he knew I was right. He was smart enough to see the bigger picture, but in moments like this, his emotions were getting the best of him.I placed a hand on his shoulder, locking eyes with him. “We’ll get her back. But not like this. You need to stay focused, stay sharp. We’ll find another way.”He didn’t say anything, but the tension in his shoulders eased, if only a