Marco stood by the table, loading his gun, his movements steady, precise, deadly.
His face was blank, unreadable. But his eyes? Murderous.
“We end this tonight.”
Carmen watched him, her body rigid, her heart hammering violently.
Every breath she took felt too tight, too painful. Matteo was out there. With her. And this was their only chance to get him back.
Luca double-checked his weapons, his expression grim.
“The location is solid,” he muttered. “It’s an abandoned estate in the countryside. Remote. No security footage. No neighbors.”
Marco’s jaw ticked.
“Perfect,” he said flatly.
Carmen’s fists tightened at her sides.
“I’m coming with you.”
Marco’s head snapped up.
“No, you’re not.”
Carmen’s eyes burned with fury.
“Try and stop me,” she challenged.
Marco set his gun down with a loud clank, his jaw tightening in frustration.
“Carmen, this isn’t a negotiation,” he said. “This is war. I need you to stay back.”
Carmen let out a bitter laugh.
“Stay back?” she repeated. “While my son is out there? While that psychotic bitch is trying to erase me from his mind?”
Her voice cracked at the end, but she didn’t care.
She was past the point of fear.
Marco exhaled sharply, his fingers twitching as if he wanted to grab her—to hold her back.
“Carmen, this isn’t just about Matteo anymore,” he said, his voice low, urgent. “Ella wants revenge. And she knows the best way to hurt me is by taking you, too.”
Carmen’s chest ached, but she refused to back down.
“Then let her try,” she said fiercely.
Marco’s nostrils flared.
“You don’t understand—”
“No,” Carmen cut him off, stepping closer, her eyes blazing with fury. “You don’t understand, Marco. That is my son. I carried him. I raised him. And I will die before I let that woman take him from me.”
Silence. The kind that felt like a knife at the throat. Luca sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Just let her come, man,” he muttered. “You know she won’t stay behind.”
Marco’s jaw tightened even more.
He looked at Carmen for a long moment, his eyes unreadable.
Then—
“Fine,” he muttered. “But stay behind me.”
Carmen’s heart pounded.
This was happening.
They were going to get Matteo.
And they were going to end Ella once and for all.
The ride to the abandoned mansion was long, dark, and tense.
Marco was in the driver’s seat, gripping the wheel so hard his knuckles turned white.
Luca was beside him, his gun resting in his lap, his eyes scanning the roads.
Carmen sat in the back, her hands clutching a knife. The silence was thick, but no one spoke. There was nothing left to say.
Just one thought burned in their minds—
Get Matteo back. And kill Ella Moreau.
The moment they pulled up, something felt wrong. The estate was massive, hidden behind tall trees and covered in creeping vines.
The once-grand mansion was now old and crumbling, its windows dark, its walls cracked with age.
But that wasn’t what sent chills down their spines.
The front door?
It was open.
Carmen’s stomach twisted violently.
“She’s expecting us,” Luca muttered.