Before Toni could collect himself, Thomas moved with brutal, deliberate speed—drove the blade clean through his own palm.Blood spattered across the table and ran in dark rivulets over the wood. Toni, standing too close, felt hot droplets hit his face. For a second, the world narrowed. Theo, frozen and muffled, stilled; Toni's composure evaporated. Everything had changed in an instant.Thomas didn't flinch. He smiled, a small, almost careless curl of his mouth. "Toni," he said, "don't you think this has more force than your little threats just now?"Toni's pupils contracted; he stared at the steady calm on that face and, with a tremor, spat the word out, "You… lunatic!"Thomas pulled the knife free and tossed it toward Toni. "Would you like to try?" he offered. "Taste what it's like to stab your enemy."Before Thomas arrived, Toni had wanted nothing more than to tear him to pieces. Now Toni watched, bewildered and off-balance: the traps outside foiled, the stranger unhurt, and
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