All Chapters of Under the Sign of Danger: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

It was raining. Not violently, but with that relentless, heavy drizzle that seems to wash everything away but cleans nothing.Luca drove silently through the side streets of Brooklyn. The city lights reflected on the windshield, while Elena, wrapped in a thick borrowed coat, stared into the void. Only a few hours had passed since her escape, yet time felt distorted.They arrived in front of an old building with metal shutters drawn down. An abandoned motorcycle workshop on the outside. Inside, however, it was a different world.“Welcome to the house of ghosts,” Luca said as he pulled open a heavy metal door. “It’s where we hide when the world wants to forget us.”The interior was surprisingly warm. Red brick walls, a broken sofa, an old radio tuned to shortwave frequencies, a table covered with maps, and in the background — a bed. Just one.“It’s not much, but it’s ours for tonight.”Elena said nothing. In a way, that was the hardest part: feeling safe. In that silence, memories came

Luca switched on the flashlight on his phone and aimed its beam at the heavy metal door in front of them. Behind, the rain hammered relentlessly against the pavement, sounding like the ticking of a clock counting down to an inevitable disaster. The drops fell in a steady rhythm, cold and unforgiving, echoing the urgency of their situation.“On three,” Luca said quietly, his voice steady but urgent as he squeezed Elena’s hand firmly. “One… two… three. Go.”Elena met his gaze, wrapping her jacket tightly over her still-damp clothes. She knew this wasn’t just a simple escape; it was the beginning of a chase, a desperate flight from forces that wanted them silenced — permanently. Her heart pounded fiercely in her chest, adrenaline flooding her veins, sharpening every sense.The door creaked loudly as Luca pushed it open slowly, leaving behind the shelter of the workshop — their fragile refuge — and stepping out into a world much colder, much darker, and far more dangerous. The sharp smell

The air in the dark room was thick, heavy as if every word spoken sliced through the silence like a sharp blade. Luca stood motionless by the single window, gazing out at the sprawling city that never slept, its distant lights flickering like scattered stars. Elena watched him carefully, her heart tightening with a mix of fear and sorrow.“You know who it is, don’t you?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, trembling slightly with the weight of the question.Luca turned toward her slowly, his eyes dark pools swirling with pain, anger, and betrayal all at once.“It’s someone I trusted. Someone I called a friend… Ryan,” he said, his voice low, almost hoarse.Elena froze, her breath catching in her throat. Ryan — the man who had been their ally, the one who’d handed them crucial information, guiding them through the dangerous maze of the mafia’s hidden world.“But why? Why would he do this?” she asked softly, struggling to grasp the reality.Luca sighed deeply, running a hand thr

Night slowly descended over New York, wrapping the city in a blanket of shadows and muted lights. In a modest apartment nestled in a quiet neighborhood, Elena and Luca prepared to initiate their risky plan. The walls were covered with maps, photographs, and lists of names, while their phones lay on the table, fully charged and set up for the mission.“Everything has to look natural,” Elena said, double-checking her pre-written messages one last time. “If Ryan senses even the slightest movement, it’s all over.”Luca leaned toward his laptop and pressed the “send” button. The false messages began to reach key players in Ryan’s network—fragments of truth mixed with lies designed to sow discord.“Many of his people won’t know who to trust,” Luca said, watching the monitor carefully. “We need them confused.”Elena’s phone buzzed with a terse, threatening message: “Be careful who you trust.” It was a clear sign that Ryan had already detected their move.“He felt it immediately,” Luca murmur

The next day, the sun rose over the restless city, its rays piercing through the tall skyscrapers and casting long shadows on the streets below. Yet inside Luca and Elena’s modest apartment, the air was thick with tension and determination. The chaos of New York outside seemed miles away, as if the world had narrowed to just the two of them and the plan they had to carry out.Luca stood by the large board plastered with maps, photographs, and cryptic notes. His finger traced a route along the city blocks, eyes sharp, calculating every detail. Elena sat nearby, meticulously checking the encrypted phones and communications devices they would rely on tonight.“Timing is everything,” Luca said quietly, voice steady but filled with intensity. “Carter’s office is our first target. If we can get inside and extract the data on Ryan’s operations, we’ll have the leverage we need. But it won’t be easy—his security is tight.”Elena nodded, biting her lip slightly. “Our informant is already inside