MasukThe night was a cathedral of silence.Only the low hum of the yacht’s engine and the whisper of the waves against the hull disturbed it.Inside the cabin, golden lamplight spilled across mahogany walls and gleamed off polished brass fixtures. The scent of expensive wine lingered in the air—rich, cloying, deceptive.At the center of the room, Alessandro Moretti set a black leather briefcase on the table and flicked the clasps open. The sound was crisp, deliberate, final.DeLuca watched, arms crossed, irritation simmering just beneath his composed exterior. He didn’t like being summoned, and he liked being surprised even less.When the case opened, a fan of documents spread out before them—blueprints, schematics, and glossy photographs.Alessandro began to arrange them with surgical precision.Blueprints of the Moretti estate.Aerial shots of the old Milan villa.Floor plans of known safe houses.Even satellite captures of the rural hideout where Damien currently stayed.But it wasn’t u
The house had fallen into that strange, delicate quiet that followed laughter.A stillness too complete. Too careful.The empty wine glasses sat abandoned on the counter, candlelight flickering low, almost guttering out. Somewhere down the hall, a door clicked softly as the night settled in around them.Elena stood by the window, arms folded loosely, staring out into the darkness beyond the trees. The moonlight painted the forest silver, but even that light seemed subdued—muted beneath the weight of the night.Something felt wrong.She couldn’t explain it.Maybe it was the way the wind had shifted, whispering against the glass like a warning. Or maybe it was the quiet itself—the heavy, unnatural kind that didn’t bring peace but expectation.Her breath fogged faintly against the windowpane. “Do you ever feel,” she murmured, “like the quiet’s just… waiting for something to happen?”Lorenzo looked up from where he sat slouched in a chair, his expression unreadable. He toyed idly with the
The clock ticked past midnight.The safe house was swallowed by silence—the kind that came only after exhaustion, after too many battles fought both outside and within. The wind moved softly through the trees outside, rattling the old shutters against the frame. Inside, the dim glow from the kitchen spilled into the hallway, painting long, uneven shadows across the floor.Elena padded softly across the wooden boards, her bare feet barely making a sound. She wasn’t sure what had woken her. Maybe the silence. Maybe the memories.She wore one of Damien’s shirts—the white one he’d tossed aside earlier after washing up. It hung loose over her frame, brushing mid-thigh, the fabric smelling faintly of soap and whiskey. Her hair was unbound, falling in loose waves over her shoulders.She had told herself she was just getting a glass of water. That was all. Nothing more.But as she stepped into the kitchen, she froze.He was already there.Damien stood by the counter, a half-empty glass of whis
The sky was painted in shades of orange and rose, the last threads of sunlight spilling across the grass. The laughter that had filled the yard all afternoon began to fade into softer tones—contented sighs, small chuckles, and the occasional tired giggle from Draco, who was visibly slowing down.The game had stretched longer than any of them expected. Even Nico, usually tireless in his teasing, had finally collapsed onto the lawn, one arm draped dramatically over his face.“I’m retiring from sports,” he muttered. “Tell the press I went out undefeated.”Lorenzo smirked from his seat on the porch steps. “You were beaten by a five-year-old.”Nico cracked open one eye. “Semantics.”Elena laughed quietly, her hand still wrapped around a lukewarm cup of coffee. The mug had gone untouched for nearly an hour, but she didn’t care. The sound of Draco’s laughter had been worth more than warmth.In the yard, Damien stood motionless for a moment, ball in hand, watching Draco as if memorizing every
The golden light of late afternoon stretched long and slow across the safe house yard, painting everything in warm hues. The air carried the crisp scent of freshly cut grass, mingled with faint laughter—the kind that felt rare and fragile among them.Nico had just tossed the ball high into the air when he spotted Damien stepping closer, sleeves rolled up, expression caught somewhere between discomfort and determination.He couldn’t resist the jab. Nico smirked, tossing the ball lazily from hand to hand. “Well, look who’s finally decided to join humanity.”Damien’s brow arched, unimpressed. “Shut up and throw the ball,” he said evenly, voice low but not sharp—more amused than annoyed.Nico grinned wide. “As you wish, boss.” He threw the ball hard, intentionally fast.Damien caught it easily, of course. Years of reflex honed in gunfire and blood made something as simple as a baseball feel almost trivial. Still, the moment he caught it, he froze—not out of fear, but uncertainty.It wa
The day unfolded lazily, the kind of afternoon that felt borrowed from a life none of them truly belonged to. The safe house, usually thick with tension and whispers of danger, now basked in a rare stillness.Sunlight streamed through the trees, filtering in warm streaks across the porch. The distant hum of cicadas filled the air, mingling with the occasional laugh that floated from the yard.Elena sat on the porch steps, a chipped mug of coffee cradled between her hands. Her fingers traced the rim absentmindedly as her gaze followed Draco, who was running barefoot across the grass. His laughter—bright and unrestrained—rose like music against the quiet backdrop.For the first time in days, she felt her lungs expand fully. No rushing footsteps, no arguments, no guns. Just her son’s laughter.On the far side of the porch, Lorenzo lounged in a weathered chair, sunglasses perched low on his nose, a paperback open in his lap. He hadn’t turned a page in at least fifteen minutes. His head t







