The air inside the auction house was no longer filled with the sounds of laughter, clinking glasses, or wolfish cheers. Instead, it was deafening chaos. The rattle of gunfire was loud echoing off the walls and rattling the chandeliers above.Rat-tat-tat-tat!Men screamed. Some ducked under tables, some reached for their weapons too late, and others simply dropped as bullets sliced through their limbs.Scott didn’t flinch.He stood tall in the center of the hall, calm, even as bullets shattered glass and tore into walls. Around him, Victor Kane’s heavily armed men fell one after another.Each shot from outside was precise. A leg. A shoulder. An arm. A bullet never wasted. Within seconds, the men who had moments ago been surrounding Scott with snarls and cocky grins were now on the ground, groaning, clutching their wounds, their weapons clattering uselessly to the floor.Clang!Victor stumbled back toward the shadows, his face pale with disbelief. The confidence he’d worn like a crown

The hospital room was quiet except for the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor. Leah lay curled on the bed, her face pale and her lips dry. Her breathing was uneven, shallow, almost frantic, as if her body hadn’t yet realized it was safe.Her fingers twitched against the sheets. A whimper escaped her lips, soft at first, then louder, broken words tumbling out in her sleep.“No… please… don’t hurt me… don’t… let me go… I didn’t do anything… please…”Aunt Kate, who had been dozing in the chair nearby, jerked awake at the sound. Her heart clenched at the sight of Leah thrashing weakly, her head tossing from side to side, tears leaking from the corners of her closed eyes.Scott was already on his feet. He moved quickly to her side, reaching out and placing a steadying hand on her arm. “Leah. Leah, it’s okay. You’re safe now. You’re not there anymore.”But Leah’s cries only grew louder. Her eyes flew open suddenly and she gasped so loudly. Her chest heaved, her pupils darting wildly arou

The office was quiet again after Benjamin stormed out. Hours crawled by before Lisa’s assistant, Mia, walked down the hallway toward her boss’s office, clutching a notepad in her hand. She glanced at the clock on the wall. “She should be done with the reports by now,” Mia muttered under her breath. “If she doesn’t leave soon, she’ll be late for her next appointment.”Reaching the door, Mia gave a polite knock. “Ms. Lisa?” she called softly. No response. She frowned and knocked again, this time louder. “Ms. Lisa, your three o’clock appointment is—”She stopped mid-sentence as her hand turned the knob and the door creaked open.What she saw inside froze her blood cold.“Ms… Lisa?”Lisa was sprawled on the floor, her hair splayed across the tiles, her blouse stained dark red. A pool of blood spread beneath her head, stark against the cream-colored floor. For a moment, Mia’s brain refused to process what she was seeing. Her chest tightened, her notepad slipped from her trembling fingers

SCOTT'S GUEST HOUSE It was evening when Scott pulled into the driveway and shut off the engine. He had spent the entire day at the hospital, lingering even after the doctor informed them that visitors weren’t allowed for the time being.He sat in the car for a long moment, gripping the steering wheel with both hands, staring at nothing. His mind was a storm, every thought coming back to the image of Lisa lying in a pool of blood on her office floor. He could almost see it, even though he hadn’t been there — Mia’s trembling voice had painted the scene vividly enough.Finally, he exhaled, shoved the door open, and stepped out. When he walked inside, expecting emptiness, he was surprised to find Leah curled up on the couch, munching on a bag of chips and scrolling through her phone. She looked up the moment he entered, her face lighting up. “Scott!” she exclaimed, springing up and rushing toward him. “You’re home! Finally. I was starting to think you wouldn't come home today.”Scott

THE HOSPITAL Lisa stirred against the stiff sheets, her eyelids fluttering before she blinked herself awake again. Her body felt heavy, her head throbbing, and the ache that crawled down her limbs was almost unbearable. She tried to shift a little but hissed, her face twisting in pain.Scott, who had just arrived a few minutes ago and was seated in a chair pulled close to her bedside, immediately leaned forward, his sharp eyes watching every movement she made. “Lisa,” he said softly. “Don’t push yourself. You just woke up. How are you feeling?”She turned her head slightly toward him, wincing as her neck protested. Her lips curved into the faintest of tired smiles. “How am I feeling?” she repeated weakly, letting out a dry chuckle that broke midway into a cough. “I feel like I’ve been run over by a truck. My whole body aches. My head feels like someone smashed it against a wall… oh wait, someone actually did.”Scott’s jaw tightened at her attempt at humor.There was a few minutes of