INICIAR SESIÓN69AFTERMATHARIAThe silence after the gunfire felt heavier than the noise itself.For several seconds, I couldn’t move.Couldn’t breathe properly.Couldn’t think.My eyes remained locked on the monitors, watching as Luca and his men secured the area outside. One of the guards kicked the fallen weapon away from the nearest attacker while another checked for any sign of movement.There was none.Both men lay still.The reality of it hit me slowly.They were dead.Because of me.A sharp wave of nausea rose in my stomach.I stepped back from the console, my hand instinctively covering my mouth as I tried to steady my breathing.This wasn’t like the explosion.This wasn’t a warning shot.This was real.Final.Irreversible.Footsteps approached behind me.I turned.One of the guards stood at the doorway.“Miss, you should stay here.”His tone wasn’t harsh.But it wasn’t gentle either.It was practical.Controlled.Just like everything else in this house.“I need to see him,” I said.“He’l
68NO MORE WARNINGS ARIA But it didn’t break.The reinforced steel held.The car reversed slightly.Then—It rammed the gates again.Harder.The structure groaned under the pressure.“They’re trying to force entry,” I said, my voice tight.“Yes.”“Aren’t we stopping them?!”“We are,” Luca replied calmly.“Just not the way they expect.”The car pulled back once more.And then—The passenger door opened.Two men stepped out this time.Both armed.Both moving with purpose.My breath caught.“This isn’t like last night…”“No,” Luca said.“It isn’t.”One of the men raised his weapon and fired directly at the gate lock mechanism.Sparks flew.Metal cracked.Another shot.Another.The lock gave way with a sharp snap.The gates creaked open slightly.“They’re getting in!” I said.“Not for long.”Luca stepped forward, his entire presence shifting in a way I hadn’t seen before.This wasn’t the composed man from earlier.This was something else.Something colder.More dangerous. Like some deep
67CREATING PRESSUREARIALuca pushed away from the counter and stepped closer to me.“What would you suggest?”I hesitated.Then—“We stop reacting.”He tilted his head slightly.“Go on.”“We’re waiting for them to make moves,” I said. “We’re letting them set the pace.”“That’s how information is gathered.”“And it’s also how you lose control.”Luca watched me more closely now.“So what’s your alternative?”I took a breath.“We force them out.”His expression shifted—subtle, but noticeable.“That’s risky.”“So is waiting.”“Yes,” he admitted.“But at least this way we’re doing something.”Luca studied me in silence for a few seconds.Then—A faint, approving smile appeared.“Interesting.”“That’s not an answer.”“It means I’m considering it.”“Good.”He turned slightly, walking back toward the monitors.“Because you’re right about one thing.”“What?”“We can’t let them control the pace.”I followed him.“So what do we do?”Luca tapped a few controls, bringing up a different set of im
66THE NAME THAT CHANGES EVERYTHINGARIAThe name lingered in the air long after it was spoken.Viktor Sokolov.It didn’t mean anything to me—not yet—but the way Luca reacted to it made my chest tighten with unease. Names only carried that kind of weight when they came attached to power… or danger.And from the look on Luca’s face, this one carried both.“Tell me who he is,” I said.Luca didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he walked over to the bar area, poured himself a drink, and took a slow sip, as if organizing his thoughts carefully before speaking.“That depends,” he said finally.“On what?”“On how much you actually want to know.”I frowned.“Everything.”His eyes flickered toward me.“Be careful with that word.”“I’m serious.”“So am I.”The tension between us tightened slightly.I stepped closer.“You said this isn’t just about me anymore. That means I deserve to understand what I’m caught in.”Luca studied me for a long moment.Then he nodded once.“Fair.”He set the glass
65SENTRY VEHICLE ARIAThe man handed him a tablet.I stepped closer, curiosity pulling me in despite the knot forming in my stomach.“What is it?” I asked.Luca angled the screen slightly so I could see.A grainy image filled the display.A car.Dark-colored.Parked briefly along the roadside.The same one from last night.“You got the plate?” Luca asked.“Partial,” the man replied. “But we enhanced it.”He tapped the screen.The image zoomed slightly.The license plate became clearer.Not perfect.But enough.Luca’s expression shifted almost imperceptibly.“Run it,” he said.“Already on it.”The man stepped back again, pulling out his phone to make a call.I looked at Luca.“You’re really going to track them from that?” I asked him. “It’s a start.” he said. “And when you find them? What will you do?"He glanced at me.“You already asked that.”“And you didn’t really answer.”Luca’s lips curved faintly.“That’s because you already know.”I didn’t like how right that felt.A few mi
64HE'S GOT A PLAN ARIAThe second man noticed me first.He gave a small nod before stepping back.Luca turned.“You’re awake.”“Obviously.”His gaze swept over me briefly, as if confirming I was unharmed.“How did you sleep?”“Like someone hiding in a fortress after being shot at.”A faint hint of amusement crossed his face.“That bad?”“That accurate.”The two men quietly excused themselves and moved out of the room, leaving us alone again.I crossed my arms.“My dad knows.”Luca raised an eyebrow.“About last night?”“Yes.”“And?”“He’s not happy.”“I wouldn’t expect him to be.”“He’s pushing harder on the investigation.”“That’s good.”“Is it?”Luca studied me for a moment before answering.“Yes.”“Why?”“Because pressure forces mistakes.”“That sounds like something you said yesterday.”“It’s still true.”I sighed softly and leaned against the edge of the table.“They’re not scared of him.”“No.”“They’re not scared of you either.”Luca’s expression didn’t change.“Not yet.”Tha







