جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 130

The moment the door closed behind Dominic and Dante, silence filled the safe house. It wasn’t comforting silence; it was heavy, suffocating, and full of unspoken fears. I paced the small living room, trying to distract myself from the growing sense of dread clawing at my chest.The events of the last twenty-four hours replayed in my mind like a broken record. Dominic’s cold, calculating demeanor. Dante’s smug confidence. The chaos at the docks. The idea that Creed had already retaliated left a bitter taste in my mouth.I glanced at the duffel bag Dominic had left on the table earlier. Curiosity gnawed at me. Maybe there was something in there that could make me feel more prepared—more useful. I hesitated for a moment before unzipping it.Inside was an assortment of items: spare clothes, ammunition, a couple of burner phones, and a sleek black handgun. My hand hovered over the weapon, unsure whether I should even touch it.“You’re not going to learn by staring at it.”I jumped at the v

The quiet that enveloped our lives in the months that followed felt earned, as if we’d clawed it from the jaws of chaos itself. The house Dante found was perched on the edge of a quiet forest, its wide windows inviting sunlight to flood every corner. It was the kind of place I’d once dreamed about when the noise and danger of Creed’s world had made peace feel like a distant fairy tale.But even here, where life had finally slowed, the past had a way of whispering in the dark.One evening, as I was unpacking a box of books I hadn’t touched in years, I came across a journal I’d kept before my life unraveled. Its leather cover was worn, the pages inside filled with scribbled dreams and plans for a future I barely recognized anymore.Flipping through, I saw the person I used to be—the one who believed in simple joys, who thought nothing was beyond reach if she worked hard enough. That person felt so far removed from who I was now. I wasn’t sure if she would recognize me.“What’s that?” Da

The storm raged outside, but the tension inside was even heavier. Creed stood in the doorway, dripping water onto the wooden floor, his breath coming fast and uneven. His eyes darted between me and Dante, as if measuring how much he could say in front of him."Who’s coming?" I asked, forcing my voice to be steady.Creed wiped a hand down his soaked face, his fingers shaking slightly. "The ones who never stopped looking for you. You think you left it all behind, but they never forgot. And now they know where you are."Dante’s grip on my hand tightened. "She’s not alone," he said, his tone edged with steel. "And she’s not running."Creed let out a humorless laugh. "You think you can just stand your ground? You don’t understand who you’re up against. They don’t knock on doors. They don’t send warnings. If they know where you are, it’s already too late."A crack of thunder rattled the windows, making me flinch. I hated how much Creed’s words unsettled me. He wasn’t someone who scared easi

Dante stepped closer, his dark eyes searching mine. The weight of unspoken words pressed between us, thick as the storm outside. I could feel the tension in his grip, the demand for answers."Tell me the truth, Elise," he said, voice low but firm. "Who are they? What do they want?"I exhaled, dragging a trembling hand through my damp hair. The truth was a wound I had kept stitched shut for too long, but now the stitches were unraveling."They’re the ones I escaped from," I admitted. "I thought I was free. I thought I could start over." I looked away, swallowing hard. "But no one ever really escapes them."Creed leaned against the wall, arms crossed, watching me with an expression I couldn’t decipher."They were never going to stop looking for you," he muttered. "I warned you."Dante’s jaw tightened. "You knew?""I suspected," Creed admitted. "Didn’t have proof until now."Dante turned to me, his hands gripping my arms, grounding me. "Why didn’t you tell me?"My throat tightened. "Beca

Callum lunged at me again, his knife flashing in the storm’s light. I twisted, barely dodging his attack, feeling the rush of air as his blade sliced past my cheek. The sting came a second later, warm blood mixing with the rain. But I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.Dante fired another shot, taking down one of Callum’s men who had been closing in on us. Creed had disappeared into the trees, picking them off one by one, silent and efficient. But Callum was mine.I ducked under his next strike, driving my knee up into his gut. He grunted, stumbling back. I pressed forward, slashing at his arm, drawing another line of crimson. His face twisted in fury, but there was something else there—something I hadn’t seen before.Fear.“Not so confident now, are you?” I taunted, circling him.Callum let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “You think you’ve won?” he sneered. “You’re still that scared little girl, Elise. And deep down, you know it.”I ignored his words. He was trying to get inside my head, to make