Chapter 16 The forest behind the Rossi estate was thick with shadows and the stench of blood . We ran . Branches slapped against my face . Mud splashed my boots . The trees - tall , skeletal - loomed like the dead watching us . Behind us , the gunfire hadn't stopped . Not since we'd escaped the burning mansion . " They're still on us , " Sam gasped , glancing over his shoulder . No shit . They were fast . Smarter than we thought . The mafia hunters 24 nare about the war between families - they wanted bodies . And now that the Rossi empire had fallen , they came like vultures . This was the moment they'd been waiting for . I should've seen it coming . We were easy prey now , fractured and exhausted . Our enemies were many . Their weapons - worse . They had guns that weren't just loud . They tore through armor like it was paper . Special - forces - grade - illegal even by underworld standards . Every time one of my men fell , the blast left nothing but red mist and silence . We sprinted deeper into the trees . I guided them through old paths - paths I memorized as a child when I needed to escape the estate . But something felt off . The air was too quiet . The birds had stopped singing . I skidded to a halt near a fallen tree . Sam signaled from the right , waving for us to follow him toward a clearing . " This way ! " I hesitated . " This isn't " I started , but they were already ahead of me . Marlinn | Ramamber 1/5 32.3 % 7:09 Mon , Sep 15 I chased after them - and the ground dropped out beneath us . We stopped . Before us was a jagged cliff face . A wall of rock stretching up like the edge of the world . Behind us ? The forest - and the sound of boots closing in . " Dead end ," Lothario growled . No escape . Sam's face went pale . " Shit- " I spun around , gun raised , just as the first of them emerged from the trees . Hunters . At least twenty . Dressed in black , armed to the teeth . Faces masked . Eyes cold . We opened fire . The woods became a warzone . his Bullets tore through trees , splinters exploded into the air . My men dropped one by one . I ducked , rolled , shot , kept moving . Lothario was beside me , hands a blur with every shot . Sam tossed grenades , clearing small gaps - but they kept coming . They were better trained . Better armed . And they were not here to arrest . They were here to clean up . " We're pinned ! " Sam yelled . " This isn't working ! " I gritted my teeth . Then I saw them . Don Matteo and Marian . Slipping through the chaos - dragging themselves toward the side of the cliff , where a narrow trail curved into the rocks . Cowards . Always finding the cracks . Marian looked back once , her eyes meeting mine . She smirked . " Dammit ! " I snarled , raising my gun . I sprinted after them . Abaatar 14 7:09 Mon , Sep 15 But then- " IVANNA - MOVE ! " Lothario's voice . I turned - and saw the glint of a sniper scope . Too late . BANG ! The shot rang out . But I wasn't the one who fell . " CHRIS ?! " He stood between me and Lothario - just for a second . Then he dropped . JO Blood soaked his shirt , crimson pooling fast . He gasped for breath as he crumpled , his hand clutching Lothario's coat as he sank . I fell to my knees beside him . " No ... no , no - dammit , Chris ! " His eyes blinked slowly . He smiled , even as his lips turned red . " You told me ... not to die on you , " he whispered . " Sorry , I guess ... I didn't listen well . " " Shut up , " I snapped , my voice cracking . I pressed my hands against the wound , shaking . " Don't you dare go out like this . Not now . Not after all that guilt and brotherly crap you just dumped on me . " He coughed . " Still ... got it off my chest ..." Another shot whizzed past us . More hunters arrived , emerging from the trees like nightmares . We were surrounded . Trapped . Lothario reloaded , blood running down his arm . " This is bad . Ivanna- ! " Then we heard it . WUMP . WUMP . WUMP . Chapter 15 3/5 33.2 % 7:09 Mon , Sep 15 A heavy thumping sound - above . We looked up . : A black helicopter hovered above the clearing , slicing through the canopy . The emblem on its side made my blood run cold . I knew it . I knew that logo . And then- Gunfire exploded from the side door . Hunters dropped , one by one , taken out by precise , calculated shots from above . Another helicopter arrived . Then a third . Our enemies began retreating - scrambling through the trees , abandoning their pursuit . I kept staring up at the helicopters , dazed by the wind and noise , my heart pounding so loud it drowned everything else out . But I should've known better . I should've looked away . Should've remembered that in war , distraction is a weakness " Ivanna !! " Lothario's voice tore through the chaos - urgent , desperate . I whipped my head toward him , confused - then I felt it . A sharp burst in my side , like lightning tearing through my ribs . My body jerked before I even understood . The ground rushed up to meet me . W - What ... ? Why am I falling ... ? My knees hit the dirt . My gun slipped from my fingers . My vision spun as blood pounded behind my eyes . I could barely breathe . Lothario was running toward me - I could see his mouth open , shouting Phonlar 16 7:10 Mon , Sep 15 . something I couldn't hear . But behind him- A masked man . Rifle raised . Aiming .. " N - No ... " I gasped , voice shredded by panic and pain . I tried to scream . To reach him . But my body wouldn't move . My vision blurred , and the last thing I saw- Lothario collapsing not far from me . And Chris ... Chris being dragged away by two more masked figures , limp and bleeding . My fingers twitched against the earth . Shit ... Then- Everything went black . 5/5 SO TE 7:10 Mon , Sep 15 Chapter 17 Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!