LOGIN~LUCAS~Something is wrong.I feel it before I even understand it.It starts as a small, uneasy feeling in my chest as I step out of the bathroom, drying my hands on a towel.“Marcella?” I call casually, walking into the room. “Who was at the door?”No answer.I frown slightly, glancing around.She was just here….literally just here.She had said she heard a knock… said she wanted to check who it was.“Marcella?” I call again, louder this time.Still nothing.A strange tension creeps up my spine.I step further into the apartment, my eyes scanning every corner like she might suddenly appear out of nowhere.“Marcella, this isn’t funny,” I mutter, though there’s no humor in my voice.But the silence that replies me is thick and uncomfortable.My heartbeat starts to pick up.I walk toward the door, and I see that it's locked.I open it slightly, but see nobody there.That alone makes my stomach drop.“Marcella?” I push it open wider and step into the hallway.It
~MARCELLA~Lucas is in danger.“No!” I suddenly shout, my voice cracking as I push myself to my feet. “You’re not touching him!” The room goes still. Xavier raises a brow. “And how exactly are you going to stop me?” he asks softly. I step forward despite the fear clawing at me. “Let her go,” I say, my voice shaking but firm. “This is between you and me… not her… not Lucas…” Xavier’s smile fades slightly… not completely… but enough to turn colder. “Oh, Marcella…” he murmurs. “You still don’t get it.” My heart pounds violently. “This isn’t a negotiation,” Xavier says.His eyes darken slowly… dangerously.And then, his expression shifts into something far more cruel.“Take her and tie her up,” he says.The words fall flat and final.Before I can even react, two men move toward me at once.“What…..no….don’t touch me!” I snap, jerking backward instinctively.Rough hands grab my arms hard….too hard.“Let me go!” I struggle immediately, twisting vio
~MARCELLA~The moment I step out of my house, everything inside me explodes into motion.The hallway blurs around me as I rush forward.The elevator is right there.I slam the button, once, twice, three times, but it's too slow.“Fuck!” I breathe out, already turning away.I don’t have time for this, so I take the stairs, and I run.My feet hit each step hard, fast, almost slipping as I descend too quickly.My breathing becomes uneven, matching the wild rhythm of my heart.Stephanie’s face flashes in my mind….her tears, the ropes, the fear in her eyes.“Please don’t hurt her…” I whisper desperately, over and over again like a prayer. “Please don’t hurt her… please don’t hurt her…”My hand grips the railing so tightly my knuckles ache, and for a second, my foot misses a step.I stumble forward, catching myself just in time.“Shit…” I gasp, panic clawing up my throat.My mind betrays me with worse images now….Stephanie screaming, begging… bleeding.“No… no… no…”
~MARCELLA~I just got home not quite long from a breakfast date with Lucas.Lucas had free lessons today, and I…I decided to skip classes to go on a breakfast date with him.I got a message from Stephanie in the car on our way back home asking that we have lunch together because she's starving.But I was too lovey dovey to respond to her immediately.Now, I'm relaxing at home.I’m sitting on my bed, one leg tucked under me, the other dangling lazily off the edge, my back resting lightly against the headboard.The room is quiet… too quiet… especially compared to the warmth, the soft laughter, and the lingering tension I just left behind with Lucas.For a moment, I just sit there, staring at nothing.There’s still a faint smile on my lips… the kind I don’t even realize is there.My fingers absentmindedly trace the edge of my phone, my thoughts drifting back to him…the way he's being such a sweet gentleman earlier.Now, he's currently using the bathroom, and he's al
Albert doesn’t go far.He stops at the end of the hallway, standing in the dim light, Stephanie’s muffled cries still echoing faintly behind him.For a second, he just stands there… breathing slowly… steadying himself.His fingers twitch slightly at his side, like he’s fighting something internal… something he refuses to name. His jaw clenches, unclenches, then tightens again.Then, he pulls out his phone.His thumb hovers over the screen for a brief moment, just one second of hesitation, before he taps a contact.Xavier.The line rings once, twice, then…“Yeah?” Xavier’s voice comes through, low, amused… like he’s been expecting this call.There’s faint background noise….music, laughter, the clink of glasses….like Xavier is somewhere lively, completely unbothered.Albert’s expression hardens.“It’s done. I carried out my plans with the third person involved.”There's a pause, then a soft chuckle from the other end.“Already? That was fast.”“I have her,” Albert says coldly. “Stephani
The drive starts easy and calm…too calm.Stephanie leans back, relaxing.Her guard lowers… just a little.She even glances out the window, watching the streets pass by.The city slowly fades behind them, replaced by quieter roads, fewer cars… fewer people.Her eyes flicker toward Albert.He’s focused on the road, and he's calm…too calm.His fingers tap lightly against the steering wheel—slow, controlled… almost like he's counting something in his head.“Okay,” she says. “So… talk.”“Not yet.”She frowns. “Why not?”“Better in person,” Albert replies.“We are in person,” Stephanie counters.“You know what I mean,” Albert insists. “I don't like talking while driving.”She sighs.“Albert…”“You’re being weird,” she adds, narrowing her eyes slightly. “Since when do you care about ‘how’ you talk?”But she lets it go….for now.An hour passes, then her brows slowly pull together.“We haven't gotten to the restaurant yet? You've been driving since ages,” Stephanie says and squints her eyes to
~ELENA~The minutes crawl by after Riccardo leaves. I can still hear the faint echo of his words…“learn to live with it.” How can I? How do you live with something like that?I stand up from my bed and walk to the dressing mirror to look at myself.My reflection in the
Luciano commands his men to come inside the room. They come in and he sees how the other men tremble in fear.Good!!Today is the day those bastards that let his son die will wish that they're newer born.Luciano straightens, but his hands tremble for a beat…. not from anger, he reassures himself,
Somewhere across Florence…A crystal tumbler of whiskey shatters against the wall. Two men are kneeling and begging for their lives.“What did you just say?” roars Don Luciano Bianchi, his voice shaking the windows of his office.The two men flinch, trembling and shivering at once. One of them is s
~ELENA~I continue to stare at Alessandro's lifeless body, still in shock.I suddenly can’t breathe again.The world around me is a blur. Alessandro’s lifeless body lies sprawled across the floor, his eyes frozen wide open, staring at nothing.My fingers shake uncontroll







