MasukNo matter how hard she tried, Mia couldn’t keep her eyes ahead. Instead, her eyes kept darting nervously over her shoulder, half-expecting him to fire that massive weapon at any moment. She tried carefully not to step in blood and avoided glancing at any of the bodies, but it was nearly impossible. Every time her foot touched something warm, or her eyes caught sight of a body. Or worse, a body part, she let out a louder, choked cry. She didn’t realize when her pace slowed. "Move." Mia jumped but forced herself forward. As she passed the couch, she noticed that the man behind her had stopped and lowered the weapon. That made her halt too. But why? She was too caught up in that thought to notice the presence in front of her. Then, almost against her will, her eyes fell on the boots. The boots of the person standing silently before her. Mia paused. Her tears stilled. The aura around him was strangely familiar, impossibly strong. Her gaze traveled upward, and when
However, the person she saw wasn’t who she expected. The figure was mostly swallowed by darkness, but the faint light spilling from the living room allowed her to make out the outline of a huge man. His head, however, looked strange, almost too square to be natural. Perhaps he was wearing something that covered his face. He stood just outside the doorway, carrying a gigantic object in his arms. What could be that big? And where did he even get that thing from? Mia wondered. Instinctively, she stepped back. The man looked nothing short of intimidating. “What are you doing here?” Despite the rain pouring down, his voice reached her... odd and mechanical, like it was being filtered through something. Now she was sure of it. His face was covered. And that couldn’t be Axel. Axel wasn’t that big. He was tall and slender, not towering and broad like this man. No… it couldn’t be him. "W-who are you?" Mia stammered. Instead of an answer, a sudden crash of thunder sp
"Who was that?" Luis asked as Mark stepped back into the living room. It was already 9:35 p.m., and everyone was still gathered there except Luke, who had stepped out to get Luis a new sword around the time Mark went outside to take a call. "My younger brother, Taylor," Mark replied. "He’s worried I’m not home yet." "I didn’t ask for an explanation." Connor had to suppress a laugh at Luis’s bluntness toward their boss. Keeping a straight face was difficult, but he somehow managed it. If he slipped even once, Mark would definitely kill him when this was over Mark then simply returned to his previous seat as they all continued waiting for Luke to come back and for 10 p.m. to arrive. As if on cue, a knock sounded. One of the seated men rose and went to open the door. Luke stood outside, and the moment their eyes met, the man caught the glare in his eyes. Luke always looked angry. Stepping aside, Luke walked in. He wasn’t alone though. An extremely long, thin sword wr
That afternoon, Luis ensured the story of Axel burning his parents’ skeletons made headlines. He claimed Axel had done it and had even sent him another threatening video, carefully painting himself as the victim. "If only the government would put him in custody… then perhaps I could sleep peacefully at night," he said. The reporter frowned. "And what exactly is the reason behind all these threats? The masses are curious." Luis didn’t think twice before speaking. "It’s simply because I k—" Then he froze. "You what, Mr. Luis?" Luis’s eyes had widened. Brenda, watching from home, stiffened in her seat, her heart pounding. Luis was definitely going to ruin them. David’s reaction was no different, while Mia sat in her room, lost in thought. "I… I… It’s complicated," Luis stammered. "He assumes I was involved in his parents’ murder." The reporter’s gaze shifted to confusion. "And why would he assume that? I thought things were fine between you two. Your daughter even hu
"What do you mean you didn’t bring the tools?!" Luis yelled at Mark. It was already late… around 10 p.m. They were standing outside the gates of a mortuary for some very questionable reason, all dressed in black like thieves in the night. Luke and Connor were there too. And at the moment, Mark was being yelled at for failing to bring the tools they were supposed to come with. "Boss, please relax," Mark tried. "Relax?!" Luke and Connor only watched from the side. Luke’s jaw had tightened, while Connor’s brows pulled together in a light frown. "I brought the tools," Mark hurried to explain. "I just didn’t bring anything to light it. I forgot the matchbox… and the lighter." In the next second, Luis grabbed his shirt collar and yanked him closer. "Forgot?" His eyes narrowed dangerously. "What do you mean you forgot?" "It just… slipped my mind." Luis drew in a breath, clearly about to explode again, when Luke suddenly cut in with the flick of a lighter. The small fla
Seated in the living room, legs crossed and arms folded, Axel fixed Officer Daniel with a look that hid so much beneath it. Intense as it was, Daniel remained completely unfazed Instead, the officer sat opposite him with an easy smile. The remaining officers were positioned around the room while a female officer stood behind him, pen and notebook in hand. Andrew sat right beside Axel and could practically feel the heat radiating from him Given the chance, Daniel wouldn’t survive his wrath, not even a second of hesitation. Luis… that was another story entirely. "So," Officer Daniel began, that smile still in place, revealing the deep dimples in his cheeks. He was undeniably handsome... pretty green eyes, perfectly shaved beard… but none of that mattered now. "I hear you sent a warning to Luis Hawthorne… by torching your own house." Andrew almost scoffed, though he kept it quiet. "We’ve seen reports… that you supposedly burned down every one of his companies and lef
"So, where would you like to go?" Andrew asked a few minutes into the drive. Axel, who had finally torn his gaze away from Mia and fixed it on the passing streets, turned to Andrew at the sound of his voice. Mia blinked. "Uh, I—" "You can go wherever you want," Axel cut in. "I’m not leaving for
"What’s that?" Mia asked concernedly, her gaze fixed on the red marks Angela had tried, and failed to hide. "Are those mosquito bites, or…?" Oh, Mia. Still so innocent. Angela used that innocence to her advantage. She smiled and quickly raised her collar, tugging it higher to cover her neck. "Y
Luis sat at his desk, one hand gripping the armrest of his chair while the other rubbed thoughtfully at his chin. His mind was stuck on how badly his companies had been performing lately. Ever since he had stopped the organ harvesting business, profits had plunged. He was already beginning to co
Warning: This chapter has some strong language that might be a little upsetting. You can skip the naughty parts or the whole chapter if you like. Thanks for making it this far in my book! (✷‿✷)_______When Mia got to his gate, she found only one of Axel’s guards standing watch. Axel had paid the o







