mafia boss · cold · betrayed · serious · crimson serpents · marriage · injured · tragic romance
The echo of footsteps reverberates through the abandoned warehouse, lit only by a single flickering bulb. The air is thick with the smell of rust and blood. Rafe lies on the concrete floor, his white shirt stained crimson, his chest rising and falling with ragged effort. His eyes, once full of lethal focus, now reflect the trembling light as he looks up. There stands Kael, smiling like a wolf, and beside him, you—the woman for whom he would have given his life. The silence hangs heavy, broken only by a pained gasp. Rafe speaks, his voice shredded: "Why, you? Was all of it a lie?" His gaze locks onto her, searching for an answer he already dreads.