[ Later in the future ] - Omniscient Narrator - The screams of pain and agony echoed through the room, like an echo in an empty room, repetitive and sharp; a non-musical melody that could satisfy the most perverse and hallucinated ears; a mixture of pleasure and ecstasy, like a harmful drug. The dance that the four-walled space perceived, was being adorned by the dark color and pungent odor of living blood, flowing like water fountain from the jugular. How damaged could a human being be to lose sensitivity to another human being? What level of dementia was needed to work as a serial killer? What punishments did he have to receive to lose his sanity? Was there a choice? Was there such power, in a world full of leaders and slaves? How many lives did it take to get his hands on to stop, or was there no return from that abyss? Her slender fingers wrapped around Dax's neck, her gaze furtive and charged with emotions that could not be recognized by the mind; she seemed into
After watching as the man next to me assembled a rocket launcher and aimed it at the crowd of cars following us, I felt for the first time in hours that I could breathe normally. However, that also gave way to the aches in my body and the tension I had been holding back since the moment Dax asked me to escape. "Yeah, I'll drive now, don't go passing out in there," said the aforementioned, picking me up in his arms as I was sliding to the side and he took the wheel as I kept walking. He lifted me up so he could position himself underneath my body so he could effortlessly drop me into the seat next to him. "I don't know what I was thinking staying in such a showy place, you were right. You're still not well and I left you alone," Dax said, as I looked at him with my eyes a little closed, "Let's go back to the hospital, it should be clear by now." As I pushed my mind away from reality, the recent images invaded my mind, as if it was a horror movie; I was trying to make my heart str
My heart began to beat wildly, as I watched in terror as Dax changed without a care in the world and Draven was already on his way up the stairs. In a few short seconds, I fixed myself and cleaned up where the sample of what I shouldn't have done on the couch was left; they were moments of great terror, which a man like Dax did not perceive, since in his mind there was no remorse and he was not afraid to face anyone who crossed him. He hid behind the front door as if that was the solution and he signaled me to be quiet, breathe and sit down, as if nothing had happened. His look was calm, as if he was prepared for any action and I feared I was endangering Draven. The door opened cutting my breath for a second and the small lamp next to the door lit up, it was a minimal presence, but it was enough to let my presence be noticed and he was surprised for a second. "God, Amy, you scared me," he said, setting things down on the couch, "Honey, are you okay, you look strange. After wha
"Dax," I said in surprise, unable to believe what I had done. He was supposed to let me say goodbye without anyone knowing the truth, I was simply supposed to disappear from the lives of all my loved ones, as if a new person had taken over me. That I had changed, that the traumas of the Vegas trip had made me realize the life I was missing out on, everything I really wanted. Draven wasn't aggressive, he didn't have the slightest intention of hurting another person and he didn't know how to fight, so he was easily overpowered by Dax: the fear that the Dangello's could provoke, it froze your blood, as if they had taken over your system. However, I wasn't planning on letting Dax go hurt my fiancé, it wasn't part of the plan. He wasn't even supposed to be in the apartment and I let him be, simply because of how I felt. I got carried away and made the worst mistake. At that moment I felt betrayed in a way for trusting someone who had already shown me that he was not to be trusted;
I felt like I was on a roller coaster, dizzy before the emotions that hit my abdomen with force and how lost my conscience was, before the turmoil of my life and the eyes of different color that accompanied me that same night; the cause of my hormonal desperation, as if the law of male pheromones had been injected into my skin as soon as he his hands surrounded my existence.Learning to reason clearly probably had to be some of my worst flaws in the view of my captors, yet I had not had to be forced to pretend to live ever and that was what I had to do to keep my heart beating.What was wrong with my mind to hide my suffering and replace it with the burning fire that melted me from within?His hands squeezed the black leather steering wheel, swelling the veins and exposing the tension of his muscles, like an image no woman would want to miss. While his bushy, dark eyebrows pressed against his eyelids, invading the small space with a clear sign that he was not in the mood and that a sim
Chapter 29The roar of the private jet’s engines barely masked the sound of my racing heart. From the moment Dax had dragged me onto this plane, I’d been on high alert, searching for options, a way out—anything. But there was nothing. No open door, no friendly face. It was just me, trapped in a world I didn’t understand, spinning completely out of control.Maddox sat on the other side of the cabin, a glass of whiskey in hand, his piercing gray eyes locked onto mine. That glacial gaze made me feel stripped bare, as if every thought I had was on display for him to dissect.“Enjoying the flight, Amalia?” he asked, his voice calm yet laced with a warning that sent shivers down my spine.“What do you really want from me?” My voice came out steadier than I expected, though my hands trembled at my sides.He set his glass down on the polished table and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.“I want you to understand your place.”“My place?” I scoffed, feeling a surge of defiance rise
The constant sound of the jet's engine became a distant hum as the plane ascended into the darkness of the night. I didn’t care about the noise or the movement of the air. Everything seemed irrelevant, as if time had stopped existing. I was caught between fear and curiosity, between the decisions I had made and the ones I still couldn’t understand.I looked out the window, watching the lights of Rome fade quickly into the distance. Everything I knew, everything that had once been familiar, was disappearing as we flew higher. What was I really doing? Where were they taking me? The question hammered in my mind over and over, but the answer was always the same: I had no idea.Beside me, Maddox sat motionless in his seat, staring out at the horizon. It wasn’t a look of love or concern. It was a cold, calculating look that always made me feel small and insignificant. He didn’t look at me like a woman; he looked at me like another piece on his chessboard. And I was well aware of that. Someho
The plane descended smoothly, the sound of the engine changing as we touched down. I was trapped in my own silence, not because I wanted to be, but because I couldn’t break it. The Dangello brothers had dragged me into their world, and now that I was in the heart of it, everything seemed unreal. The lights of Rome quickly faded as the plane landed on the runway. I didn’t know what to feel.Maddox and Dax didn’t bother to look if I was feeling comfortable or nervous. They simply stood up, as if this moment were nothing out of the ordinary. I no longer had space for questions. My doubts faded into the air like smoke. I was here with them, and that meant I no longer had control over my destiny.The ride in the car was silent. Not a word between us. Not a single gesture indicating that they cared about me, or that I cared about them. The Dangello brothers looked at me only as a piece that needed to fit into a place they had designed for me, and the more I thought about it, the clearer it b
The French city rose before them with indifferent beauty. Marseille welcomed them with a salty breeze and a sky covered in low-hanging clouds, as if the very weather sensed the war that was coming.Amalia stepped off the jet with her coat tight around her body, eyes fixed on the urban horizon. Beside her, Maddox walked with a steady pace, flanked by Max and Dax. Lev, slightly behind, held her purse discreetly, observing everything with sharp eyes."This is the point of no return," murmured Dax as the armored vehicles approached on the private runway."We passed it a long time ago," Max replied, without taking his eyes off the approaching cars.They boarded in silence. The convoy took them through the streets of Marseille to an old manor on the outskirts, a property that had belonged to the Dangello family for generations. Now turned into a temporary headquarters, it would be their base for the final operation.Inside, maps, screens, and electronic devices buzzed with the energy of the
The early morning left a faint trace of mist over the land surrounding the house. Amalia woke wrapped in a warmth that had nothing to do with the fire: Maddox’s arms held her with measured strength, as if he feared the world could take her even in sleep.She said nothing. Just watched his face. Serene, contained, human.For a moment, she allowed herself the luxury of thinking the end was near.But the sound of the cell phone on the nightstand shattered that fantasy.Maddox sat up instantly, his gray eyes already alert."Who is it?""Dax," she said, picking up the phone. "He says they found something."Half an hour later, they were all gathered in the main living room."We intercepted a call," Dax reported, opening a recording on a laptop. "The number belongs to one of the Council's old contacts. They’re organizing a secret meeting in less than 72 hours.""Where?" Max asked."Marseille. A private yacht, in international waters. It’s not an ambush, it’s a power statement."Amalia crosse
The morning light filtered softly through the windows of the Dangello’s old hideout—far from Las Vegas, far from the noise, far from the chaos. The stone walls held a strange silence, one that didn’t come from the absence of sound, but from the weight of what had just ended.The war had been stopped.Cillian was dead. Project Phoenix, neutralized. The Council, weakened.But no one spoke of victory.Amalia had locked herself in the room she shared with Maddox and hadn’t come out since they arrived. She had been the first to shoot. The first to bring down the monster. And though everyone looked at her like a hero, all she felt was a strange emptiness.Maddox didn’t push her.He waited.Outside, Max was coordinating the final cleanup of what was left in Las Vegas. Dax was training the new allies with a seriousness he had never shown before. And Lev… Lev was resting more peacefully. Her pregnancy was progressing well, and peace was reflected in her eyes every time Max came near. There was
The sun had just begun to tint the edges of the windows with gold when Amalia woke up. Not from exhaustion, but from the intensity of the thoughts that wouldn’t let her rest. The day had come.The operation against Project Phoenix would begin that very night.She went down to the living room and found it empty, though it still smelled like freshly brewed coffee. Max was on the terrace, speaking softly with Lev. From a distance, Amalia noticed the gentleness of his smile and how Lev looked at him with a mix of admiration and curiosity. A silent connection that seemed to grow without words.Dax appeared with a folder under his arm.“We already have the internal blueprints of the Cosmopolitan. Maddox wants us to review them together before noon,” he announced, placing the documents on the marble table.Amalia nodded, taking a quick glance. Internal corridors, emergency exits, evacuation routes, and most importantly, the camera blind spots. Dax’s work was clean. Precise. And that gave her
The morning light filtered through the curtains, bringing with it an unusual calm. Amalia was in the kitchen, making coffee, when a soft knock at the door made her turn around."Who could it be at this hour?" she thought, drying her hands with a towel.When she opened the door, the world seemed to stop. Standing in front of her were June and Kari, her lifelong friends—those she had believed lost forever."Amalia?" June whispered, tears in her eyes.Without a word, Amalia hugged them tightly, feeling overwhelmed by emotion."I thought I’d never see you again," she said between sobs.After a few minutes, they sat down in the living room, still processing the reunion."What happened to you? Where have you been all this time?" Amalia asked, searching for answers.June was the first to speak:"After that night when everything changed, we were kidnapped by a group looking for information about you. They kept us separated, interrogating us constantly."Kari nodded, adding:"We managed to esc
The night fell like a sigh over the quiet neighborhood, so different from the chaos I had grown used to. My mother's house, with its scent of cinnamon and aged wood, felt more like a memory than reality. Everything was silent, except for the soft murmur of trees swaying in the wind.Maddox stood by the window, his silhouette outlined by the warm light inside. He was still wearing his black shirt, though it was no longer fully buttoned. His gray eyes, as intense as ever, were fixed on the darkness beyond the glass."You're not going to sleep?" I asked softly, pausing at the threshold of the living room.He didn’t turn at first. He only answered after a long second."Everything here feels... too quiet. It’s strange."I walked closer. The sound of my steps was nearly inaudible on the handwoven rug. He tensed slightly when I stopped beside him, but didn’t pull away."It’s not strange," I said, looking at the same point he was. "It’s peace. Something we don’t know how to hold for too long.
The forest was covered by a fog so thick it seemed to swallow sound. Only the crunch of boots on damp earth broke the silence. Maddox led the march with steady steps, flanked by Dax and Max, while Amalia followed a few steps behind, feeling each heartbeat sync with the looming danger.Ivan and Nina had taken forward surveillance positions. Cillian didn’t know they were there. Not yet."You have five minutes to cross into the perimeter undetected," Ivan whispered through the communicator."Plenty of time," Maddox replied coldly.Amalia hadn’t seen this side of him in days. The lethal leader. The strategist who turned every decision into a perfect calculation. In that moment, he wasn’t just the man who desired her. He was the shadow walking ahead to face the darkness.Dax crouched behind an oak, studying the complex's map on a tablet."Side entrance. Three men. Active cameras," he said. "We need a distraction.""You’ve got one," Nina interrupted from the other end. "There’s a thermal gl
Dawn arrived with a sky tinted gray. There were no birds, no sounds. Only silence.The kind of silence that feels like a warning.I sat at the edge of the bed, wrapped in a white sheet, watching the first rays of light slip through the window. Beside me, the space was empty.The three of them had gotten up before me.I could hear their muffled voices downstairs. They weren’t arguing, but they spoke with the tension of people about to walk into fire.I got dressed slowly, as if any sudden movement could shatter what we’d lived the night before. I could still feel their lips, their touch, their intensity. Everything we’d shared had clung to my skin like a fresh scar.When I came down, Maddox was the first to turn toward me.Impeccable. Elegant. Imposing.He wore a long black coat over his combat gear. His presence was so dominant that everything in the room seemed to lean toward him. Dax, leaning on the counter with a cup of coffee, looked up and gave me a half-smile. Max already had th
The clock read 3:47 a.m.The silence of dawn was heavy with something unnamed. It wasn’t fear, it wasn’t desire. It was expectation. The calm before a storm.Max was checking weapons on the central table, the muscles in his back outlined beneath his tight black shirt. Dax paced from one side to the other, focused on the escape route, on the blueprints, on everything… except me. But I felt it. Felt his eyes sliding toward me every time he passed nearby.And Maddox…Maddox was leaning against the window frame, arms crossed, watching the darkness of the forest like he could control it. He didn’t speak. He didn’t move. But his presence alone was enough to dominate the air.I had tried to sleep. I had closed my eyes. Counted breaths. But every time I did, one image pulled me back to the present: the three of them. And everything I hadn’t said."Three hours left," Max murmured. "That’s our window before the security shift changes. If we’re doing this, it has to be before seven."Dax nodded