APRIL POV.I made an effort to regulate my breathing more naturally after she was gone. Angelo should have cautioned me that when he said she could be intense, he should have specified the actual level of intensity. What the hell was that? My heart rate still wasn't steady, but I was getting there. Standing in her presence had felt like I was on a trial with five judges preceding and staring me down as they threatened obvious death when it was just her, and her voice had been bone chilling frightening... It was also demanding. The way she worded her threat had been jolting but I was sure even if she'd said it with no inflection or fire, it would still have the desired effect. There was just something about that that made me want to do as she demanded of me, and it was so damn overwhelming, it was insane. It was a no-brainer that she seemed to think she owned Angelo which was not good for the investigation, considering how much effect she had over him.And now I knew it was not his

GABRIELLE POV.My motion detector turned on and I smiled at the sheer audacity of Angelo or was it, Blake. He had the nerve to go through my laptop while I was away. I wondered what he was doing... Was he at my desk right now? The camera to the office also seemed to be on replay, showing me that he was right at his desk. But I knew he was not. It got me thinking if he'd bugged my devices, or if he had any recording of my calls. I'd taken measures around him, but was it enough judging by the new development? Grandfather was right. I have been too lenient and careless. I knew Angelo was taking out his rage by doing this but it was not that funny since he was messing with my security system... but if my system could be so easily hacked then I needed new tech guys because the ones I had were clearly not doing their fucking job. Angelo- Blake- was sure to find something incriminating. That was if he knew to look in the right folders, but I bet he would because this was the sort of thing

***Blake relayed what he found to April, sending pictures, before exiting the files and deleting his activities. April would cover his track from the other end. As he shut the laptop, he felt like something was off. Everything felt too easy. It almost seemed Gabrielle had set a trap for him and he had easily fallen, victim. He quickly drafted up his resignation letter, waiting for her to come back to the office.He wondered if she would be quick to suspect. He tried to wave off his overthinking by getting his pending work done. He reasoned that Gabrielle trusted him more than he gave her credit for. They'd been working together for months anyway. He considered himself someone she could not easily dispose of. All they had to do was stakeout, and if it turned out that they were exporting and importing illegal drugs, humans, or weapons, they'd be arrested and taken for investigation. It would be even better if Gabrielle went there herself, with Luciano who was already a suspected drug

GABRIELLE POV.Trackers, seven of them. He must have been really desperate to tie me to a crime. Shame, I thought we shared the same blinding passion."I got rid of the car. They will never be able to connect it to you since all the database has been wiped out" he reported, and I nodded, feeling tired of it all. "Do you need me to take care of him". Simone asked, watching me cautiously.My eyes flashed at the question. Take care of him? He was asking for permission to kill Blake and I didn't like the sound of it at all. I was the only one who had the right. No one else."Don't worry about that. I'll keep an eye on him. Also, Luciano has already scheduled new locations for the drops, so just let him be. They'll be running a fool's errand if they think they can catch me that easy. Just make sure grandfather does not go near him". He looked like he wanted to argue, then changed his mind at the last minute. Yet, he continued standing at the same spot rigidly, his fist clenching and uncle

GABRIELLE POV Thud! The impact of his knee smacking against the tiles resonated deep within my razor-thin heartbeats. I felt no remorse, he'd been pissing me off since the very start. He deserved this, and more. My hands refused to lower the gun, the demons inside me urging me to make him bleed more than he already was.I wanted to put a bullet in his head, watch it splash, and stain the walls of my office, a souvenir to serve as a reminder of the time he existed, but my fingers refused to squeeze the trigger. I couldn't fucking kill him. His sharp gasp shot through my skin like dagger slashes, nicking away at my skin until I felt raw, edgy, and on the verge of collapse.He could never leave me. Not now, not ever. He was mine damn it. I haven't even played with him yet, but he'd managed to toy with me, messed with my head, and my business, he ruined everything.He twisted to look at me, his face contorted in pain, shock making his blue eyes glassy. He looked perfect and I was tempt