The motorcycle's engine roars and my heart thumps faster.

Anxiously I look around, trying to find a place to hold on to, but the bastard doesn't give me over five seconds and kicks off into motion. 

Instinctively, I wrap my arms around Elio the asshole, like my life depends on it. Frankly, it does.

The wind whips at us as he speeds down the dark and narrow alley.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

The irony! A prosecutor perched on a freaking motorcycle being driven way past the speed limit by a mob boss.

The harsh wind keeps slapping the exposed side of my face as I press myself closer to Elio, squeezing my eyes shut, seeing red and white dots. My fingers curl into fists against his hard torso.

With each inhale, Elio's strong cologne scent trickles into my system, along with a faint smell of gasoline and burnt wood, causing my heart to pound so fast I fear it might sputter and fail.

The images of the fire threaten to resurface but I shove them aside. My deep-rooted fear twists and turns my stomach. Being nearly shot to death is not helping either. Nor is being on this bike.

My emotions are all over the place and I can't tell if being glued to Elio's back has my skin tingling or if it's the stress of the night.

Loud sounds, uncontrollable speed, and fire are the three things I always stay as far away as possible. Now all three of them crashed on me tonight and I didn't even have the chance to go through a mental breakdown in peace.

At least, despite the frigid air, Elio is warm, and his warmth is the only reason I haven't frozen over.

He doesn't slow down and with each swivel, I squeeze my closed eyes tighter and grip him harder.

An eternity goes by. Eventually, I force myself to gather the bits and pieces of my shattered dare and crack an eyelid open. The alleys racing past us have grown wider, and every few feet a lamp post illuminates the streets.

As my courage grows, I dare to loosen my hold on him and straighten myself, taking in our rushing surroundings.

Closing my eyes once more, I inhale deeply, pushing the cold night air into my lungs, along with an overwhelming and overpowering woody cologne scent. They cool and burn my insides.

At last, he slows down the bike, turning into another narrow alley, making me tighten my hold on him again, until halfway through it he halts, and kills the engine.

I survey the place with confusion, my hands fall away from him a beat too late. My frown deepens when no cars are nearby and the buildings on both sides of the alley seem to be vacant and unused for decades.

Panic clutches my core as Elio wordlessly shifts and gets off the bike. I flinch, shutting my eyes and preparing myself for a painful crash but it doesn't come.

"Cerise," he calls, his held out for me.

Oh. Gingerly I grab it and he helps me get off the damn thing, placing a steady hand on my waist, guiding me, while enveloping my palm with the warm long fingers of his other hand.

He doesn't let go of me even after I'm on the paved ground, his dark eyes bore into me as if he can pierce through my walls and see straight into my bare soul.

For a long moment, I'm trapped in his intense gaze, my heart rate picks up speed, making my breath hitch.

Embarrassment trickles into my system. I take an unsteady step away from him, as heat creeps up my neck to my cheeks.

"Are you alright?" he asks after a long moment, his voice deep and low.

Avoiding his gaze, I nod. "Yeah," I mumble weakly and put more distance between us.

His hands fall away from me, and even though I should be relieved, I miss his touch. I lock the feeling away in the back of my head.

The events of the day have mentally and physically drained me. My thoughts are spiraling out of control, there's no other explanation for the effect he's having on me.

"Come." He begins to walk in the same direction we entered the alley. His arm reaches to me as if to wrap around my shoulders and take me with him, but he stops himself right before his arm makes contact with me.

A slight stinging feeling brushes past my senses, confusing and irritating me. What is wrong with me! I've grown so desperate for support and a break from this shitshow, I'm craving comfort from anyone, not even caring if it's from my enemy! I'm losing my mind.

Silently, we set down the path and once we're on the main street, I summon the remaining of my energy and inquire, "Where are we going?"

"Hotel." He shoves his hands into his pockets, not sparing a glance my way.

I wrap my arms around myself, plodding alongside him.

Long moments of silence stretch and tumble past us. I can't tell if it's me or if the bubble around us, setting us apart from people with normal lives, is growing tenser.

Not caring he might catch me staring like a creep, I study Elio. His defined jaw is set, making the angle of his jawline stand out more prominently and his eyes are fixed ahead. His expression holds a faraway gleam to it as though even if he's physically here, his mind is far away.

Pulling the jacket tighter around my frame, the sleeves reach past the tips of my fingers, I'm grateful for the warmth it offers, curling my frigid fingers into my palms.

"You said there won't be any violence," I feebly accuse him.

His head snaps to me, his brows furrowing. "I said if everything goes according to plan... which it didn't."

Incredulously I counter back, "You burnt down their place, what did you expect!"

Elio scratches his forehead before shoving his hand through his hair. "That was the plan... being attacked wasn't."

I halt and gape at him.

A pace ahead he stops and turns to me.

"You thought, you'll go in, burn three buildings and get away with it?"

He purses his mouth into a thin line. "That was the point, to make a statement, to show I'm the one who did that. And you are in no position to question my decisions as the capo."

A breathy laugh tumbles out of my mouth. "Obviously I'm not, because they're so stupidly irrational and dumb it's impossible to make sense of them. To understand them, I have to stoop so low, into deeper levels of stupidity that'll probably end up making myself stupid too."

His nostrils flare and he jabs his index finger at the space between us as he strides toward me. "Watch it," he growls.

"Or what?" I throw my hands up. "You'll shoot me?" I take a step toward him, craning my neck to hold his glacial glare with a steely stare. "Tell me something new, because I was less than an inch away from a bullet, not an hour ago."

We glower at each other, neither of us backing down. In the dimly lit street, Elio's eyes appear black, with the white light coming from the lamp post a foot away, the angles of his features stand out more prominently. The shadows it throws on his face make him more striking yet dangerous.

After what seems like forever, Elio inches toward me. "It'll be in your best interest to not piss me off."

I huff and his eyes glint with a flicker of annoyance.

"I thought after what just happened, you'd have a better grasp of what sort of fuckery you've got yourself into. You're way deeper in this shitshow than any of us thought, and you're giving me an attitude. Unbelievable."

"I'm in this mess because of you," I yell.

He barks a harsh laugh. "No, tesorino, you're in it because of yourself and your father. Wake up before it's too late."

I ball my hands at my side and glare at him harder. "Don't drag my dad into this again."

He clicks his tongue and turns, setting down the street.

Dumbfounded, I watch him for a moment. Could it really be because of my Dad? Is it possible he messed with the wrong people and now I have to pay the price? I shake my head, I'm too tired and can't think straight.

"Why did they want to kill me? Who were they?" I ask as I reach him, barely keeping up with his long strides.

"I'm not sure," he mutters.

"Then how can you know their motives, if you don't even know who they were?" I throw a pointed look at him.

"You're astonishingly dumb for a prosecutor."

"And you're a mentally unstable capo."

He halts just to scowl at me before picking up his pace, making me jog after him.

Stupid mafioso with stupid long legs.

"In Cosa Nostra, the motives for killing are quite limited and obvious."

I push a stray strand of my hair behind my ear and wrap the jacket tighter around myself as I roll my eyes. I can't wait for this night to be over. "What are they?" I inquire just to prevent the silence from gripping us and give my messy mind the time to allow the events of the day to unravel.

I can't let him see me fall apart. Not now, not ever.

Elio sighs and rubs his face. "Words travel fast, it could've been Fabris' men... but since they were only aiming at you, it could mean they've joined forces with Esposito." He shrugs.

"So let me get this straight." I stop in my tracks, forcing him to halt. "Two Sicilian mafias want me dead?"

"And the Mexicans," he adds.

I nod, running my fingernails softly over my cheek.

"And the Russians," Elio says after a beat.

With my mouth agape, I stare at him. I really don't need him to be this specific.

My gaze sweeps across the buildings on either side of the street. None of their lights are on. It must be well past midnight.

Each passing day is making my situation worse than before.

Half of me is tempted to sit here, in the middle of this wide alley, and just cry, or sleep. Or maybe cry until I fall asleep.

The other half of me wants to laugh at the irony of the situation.

I went through hell and back, watched my dad beat my mom, saw them go through a divorce, lost my mom, saw and suffered through my dad's alcoholic phase. I worked my ass off to become the perfect child for my father in hopes of earning his love.

After all of that, instead of reaching a semblance of peace, I'm being hunted down by almost ten mafias.

Might as well jump down a cliff and be done with it.

I shove my hand through my hair and tug at the root.

What I've been telling myself for over a decade now, I'm strong and I'm in control, has never sounded stupider than now. I've never been in control.

I can see the end, clear as a day. One of these mafias will kill me. It's just a matter of time now. Death looms before me.

An icy numbness settles in my core as reality spreads its blanket of harsh truths over my brain.

All this time I've been trying to figure out a way to make out of this situation alive was useless. My death was marked the second I picked up the flash drive.

As I come back to my senses, I catch Elio studying me, an unreadable emotion smeared over his features. I can't tell if it's pitty, sadness, or wonder.

But, if I'm going down, if these people are going to be the end of me, I won't go down without a fight. No, I'll take down as many as I can before hitting the ground. I have nothing to worry about when I know my chance of survival is zero.

"You don't need to worry, you're safe as long as you're with me."

I watch him blankly for a moment before nodding.

"But you need to pick your side, Cerise," he adds, pushing a hand into his jeans pocket.

I tilt my head with confusion, furrowing my brows.

He finishes, "I cannot protect you from others if you act as my enemy. This is just the start and I'm sure things will get worse, so choose your side wisely." He waves his hand. "Let's get going, we'll talk about it tomorrow."

Even though my muscles tremble with what my life has turned into, and it's a mystery how my knees haven't buckled yet, I keep on going ahead.

❈ ☯︎ ❈

So... we know where Elio stands, do you guys think he'll actually protect her or he's just making fake promises to keep her by his side until his work with her is done? =)

Thank you for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment your thoughts!

Stay safe, lots of love, happy reading <3