a's per

h the scent of aged wood, lemon varnish, and a near suffocating silence. It w

asleep the moment his head touched the pillow, his small fi

hammer blows. I walked into the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and let the cold water flush over the swollen skin. The sting was sharp enough to dizzy me, but I didn't retreat. I found an old first-aid kit under t

faint bloodstains had already

tters wobbled due to intense pain, trembling on the paper. I stopped, took a deep breath, and forced my hand to steady. This tim

" I whi

confrontation at the door. I handed her the letter. The tugging movement di

ily's underground channels. Don't leave

s trembled uncontrollably. "This isn't like ordinary medicine... Oh my,

was. The innocent girl she had once served was already de

I said, my tone flat and cold,

left on the gauze. An invisible boundary had been drawn. Maria swallowed hard, clutching th

lanked by two Moretti family escort vehicles. This convoy was supposed to tak

ght, they were a bit stiff, but the bleeding had st

ghway outside the darkened car window. We were

Gary"-the former military strategist of an opposing family, whom everyone thought was dead. He held a black ledger, a book of sins, its contents suffi

n't let them ge

d only press the button on the driver's side panel with

n the rearview mirror. "Miss Isabella, the Don'

y off," I repeat

I fought back a sharp inhale. "Isabella, please! Blackwater Creek is a graveyard. It's f

in my wrist. I stared hard at the boss in the rearview mirror. The air in the car in

ering in its certainty, completely shattered

g town. Ahead, the blocked-up shops and crumbling brickworks looked like rotte

ut, a dull ache spreading to my elbow. This pain was a warning. I was no l

n the distance. The game was set, and I