I didn't hear it at first. Maybe because I was too tired, too drained, my body finally giving in to sleep after nights of running, hiding, fearing. But the sound came anyway, sharp, violent, unforgiving.
Glass. Shattering.
My eyes flew open before my brain even caught up. For a moment, I thought I was back in Sebastian's penthouse, where windows stretched from ceiling to floor, where everything was polished and perfect and suffocating. But the air here smelled of dust and smoke, not perfume. The curtains were drawn, blocking out the city, but I felt it, danger pressing against the glass.
Then I heard it.
Gunfire.
Not far. Not a movie sound. Real. Loud. Piercing.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
The door to the bedroom crashed open. "Aria!"
It was Lorenzo, voice rough and urgent. His pistol was already in his hand, his shirt half-unbuttoned, his hair still damp like he had just stepped out of the shower. His eyes scanned the room like a hawk, sharp, calculating.
"What" My voice caught as another window broke, this one closer, shards scattering across the floor like deadly diamonds.
"They found us." His tone was calm, too calm, but the fire in his eyes betrayed him. "Get up. Now."
The words jolted me out of shock. I stumbled out of bed, still in yesterday's clothes. My limbs were stiff, trembling, but I didn't get time to think. Lorenzo's hand closed around my wrist, firm, dragging me toward the hallway.
"Move!"
The safe-house was no longer a safe-house. It was war.
The air reeked of smoke, thick and choking. Somewhere down the hall, fire spread fast, flames licking up the kitchen walls. Someone had thrown a Molotov. Alarms wailed overhead, but they sounded like screams.
My stomach turned when my eyes landed on them, two of Lorenzo's men, sprawled on the tiles, blood pooling beneath them. I froze.
"Keep walking!" Lorenzo's voice snapped like a whip. He pushed me forward, firing at the shadows behind us. A scream answered his bullets.
"South exit's compromised!" a guard yelled through the chaos. "They're circling both sides!"
"Bastards," Lorenzo growled under his breath. He shoved me against the wall, his body blocking me, and reloaded his pistol in one clean motion. His face was all steel, no hesitation.
I pressed my hand to my mouth, shaking. "Sebastian… he sent them."
"Of course he did," Lorenzo muttered. His tone was flat, but it cut like a knife. "And he won't stop until you're back in his cage."
The words pierced deeper than the bullets tearing through plaster.
We ran. Boots pounding, smoke filling my lungs. Down the stairwell, every metal step vibrating with gunfire above. My chest burned. My body screamed to collapse. But Lorenzo didn't stop, so I didn't.
We burst out into the alley. A black car waited, engine roaring, back door flung open.
"Get in!" Lorenzo barked.
I didn't argue. I dove inside, collapsing against the seat. He followed, sliding in beside me. The driver hit the gas, tires screeching against asphalt as the car shot forward. Bullets sparked off the rear bumper, glass cracking.
I couldn't breathe. My chest rose and fell too fast, lungs fighting. The city lights blurred outside the window.
Then silence, except for my ragged breaths.
I turned to him, anger and fear spilling out. "This is insane! I can't," My voice cracked, breaking like glass. "I can't live like this. Running. Hiding. Watching people die around me!"
Lorenzo didn't even look at me at first. His knuckles were white around his pistol, jaw locked tight. Then his eyes met mine, hard and unforgiving.
"And what was your life before this, Aria? Tell me. A golden cage dressed in silk? A husband who smiled for the cameras while he broke you piece by piece?"
"At least it wasn't this!" My voice rose, raw with desperation. "At least I wasn't watching men bleed to death at my feet!"
His reply came low, sharp, each word a blade. "You were bleeding in silence. Every single day you stayed with him. Every fake smile, every headline, it was all your blood on his hands."
I froze. His words dug into places I didn't want touched. The truth.
The driver swore suddenly, jerking the wheel. "Roadblock ahead!"
I shot forward, gripping the seat. My eyes widened.
Up ahead, the street was blocked by black SUVs lined across, their metal bodies gleaming under the streetlights. And on the doors, I saw it, the crest. Sebastian's.
Men spilled out, rifles raised.
"No, no, no…" My voice shook as panic clawed at me.
"Hold on," Lorenzo muttered. His window rolled down. Before I could process, he leaned out and fired. The sound was deafening. Bullets ripped through the windshield of the first SUV. Glass exploded. Men ducked, shouting.
The driver slammed his foot down, and our car rammed straight into the barricade. Metal screamed. The SUV jolted aside, clearing just enough space. We shot through, gunfire chasing us from behind.
My heart wouldn't stop pounding. My hands shook uncontrollably.
We kept moving. The city skyline appeared ahead, bruised with dawn. I thought maybe, just maybe, we had escaped.
Then my phone buzzed.
I froze.
My phone was supposed to be gone. Lorenzo had smashed it days ago. But the screen lit up anyway, glowing.
Sebastian's face filled it.
Lorenzo's eyes narrowed. "Put it on speaker."
My trembling fingers obeyed.
And then his voice filled the car. Smooth. Calm. Too calm.
"To the people of this city," Sebastian said, his face plastered on every broadcast, every channel. "My beloved wife has been stolen from me. Kidnapped by criminals who think they can stand against my empire. I will not rest until she is returned. And to those sheltering her"
His eyes burned into mine through the screen. Cold. Possessive. Unbreakable.
"…I will burn this city to the ground if I must."
The broadcast cut, but not before flashing images: my wedding photos, smiling in gold like a doll. Then clips from last night's attack, edited. Twisted. Showing Lorenzo's men as "terrorists."
My blood turned to ice.
He wasn't just hunting me. He was rewriting the truth.
The car was silent, except for the sound of my heartbeat.
Lorenzo's jaw clenched, his fury visible, dangerous.
And me? I couldn't breathe. Because it was clear now, if I stayed hidden, the city would burn for me. If I went back, Sebastian would break me until nothing remained.
No escape.
No peace.
Only chaos.
Then came the sound, sirens. Louder, closer.
Through the windshield, red and blue lights flooded the street.
Another blockade.
And this time… there was no way out.