2025-11-24 17:20:26As Enzo walked back and forth in the small, dark room, his mind raced. The weight of betrayal hung over him like a cold fog. Serena, the only person he could trust, had teamed up with Luca Moretti, one of his most dangerous enemies. His fingers gripped the edge of the desk tighter, and the wood broke under his grip.
He couldn't make sense of it. The alliance and the shared goal of taking down Rossini that they had fought for were all lies. She had always been working with Moretti. His voice was very low, like a whisper. "She used me the whole time." Bianca looked at him from across the room, her eyes as cold and calculating as always. "Do you really think you're the first one to be betrayed, Ghost?" She stepped forward and spoke sharply. "Welcome to the real world." You either play to win or get played in this game. Enzo turned to look at her, and his face was hard. "I didn't think it would be Bianca." Bianca's lips curled up into a smile. "Of course you didn't. But it doesn't matter now. The city is moving. And you're still there. That's what counts. He clenched his fists but didn't say anything. The fact that Serena had betrayed him, not for power but to stay alive, hurt more than any physical wound. You could feel the tension in Havencroft. After Rossini and Enzo's chaos, Gabriel Torri, the leader of a rival gang, started to make aggressive moves, taking advantage of every chance to grow his power. Enzo could feel the danger closing in on all sides as the city slipped through their fingers. Bianca said, "Gabriel's making his play," as she looked out the small window at the horizon. "And he's not by himself. He has friends all over the place. We need to act quickly, or Havencroft will be his. Enzo's jaw got tight. It was never about winning the fight; it was about staying alive. Luca Moretti, Gabriel Torri, and Matteo Rossini all had their pieces on the board, and Enzo was just one of them. "Now I have to hit Rossini," Enzo said under his breath. "He has been in charge from the beginning." The city will fall apart if we take him out. We will have a chance. Bianca's eyes softened for a moment, but then she quickly hid it with coldness. "Don't worry, Ghost. You need to know that you're not just fighting Rossini anymore. The city is against you. And what about Serena? She is now working with Luca. Enzo's stomach turned. That truth weighed heavily on him. His plan was falling apart. What had started out as simple revenge had turned into a complicated web of betrayal, power plays, and changing loyalties. His voice was hard and cut through the tension when he said, "We move tonight." "We get to Rossini's inner circle before Gabriel or Luca can do anything. But first, we have to clean up our own mess. As Enzo stood in the quiet of the safe house, his mind was full of thoughts that didn't agree with each other. Every part of him wanted revenge on Rossini, the man who had killed his mentor. But with every step, the cost of that revenge became clearer. Bianca, who was always a cold strategist, sat on the couch and looked over the blueprints for Rossini's compound. "You want to kill him, but how much will it cost you, Ghost? This war is making you lose yourself. "You've turned into the same kind of man you're fighting." Enzo shot her a sharp look, his anger boiling over. "I'm not like them." Bianca said, "You're losing your humanity little by little," and her voice was firm. "I can see it." And you're not the only one. I've gone beyond what I thought I could do. But I'm not acting like a hero in this war. You can't afford to think you're anything but a player. Enzo clenched his fists as the weight of her words hit him. He had always thought he was fighting for something bigger, like revenge or justice. But now that the death toll was rising and the lines between friend and enemy were becoming less clear, he wasn't sure who he was anymore. Was he really better than the monsters he hunted? The silence was thick and heavy, and it lasted a long time. Finally, he said, "You're right," his voice tense. "But I don't know any other way." There is no other way. Bianca didn't answer. Instead, she went back to the plans and focused on the next step with her eyes. The city was a war zone, and in this game, trust was a currency he couldn't afford. As Enzo walked into the room, his hands shook. He knew they had a plan, but there was something in the pit of his stomach that made him uneasy. It felt like the walls of Havencroft were closing in on him, and every shadow felt like a threat. He went into the safe house and saw that his crew was already there, waiting for him to lead. But things felt uncertain in the air. The trust that had once been so strong now seemed broken, thanks to Serena's betrayal and the hidden agendas of everyone else around him. He looked around the room and met the eyes of each of his men and women, but Tristan Rocco stood out to him. The money genius stood by the table with a blank face, but Enzo could feel the tension coming from him. Enzo said softly, "Something's wrong," and his eyes locked on Tristan. "I can feel it." Tristan hadn't even had time to say anything when the door flew open and Carmela Santillo walked in, her eyes flashing with barely contained rage. She snapped, "You have no idea what you're getting into, Enzo." His heart raced. "What are you talking about?" And then it came. The betrayal. Tristan had been playing both sides the whole time. His cold eyes met Enzo's, and a smile that sent chills down his spine spread across his face. "I told you this game was bigger than you," Tristan said, his voice full of sarcasm. More than Rossini. Larger than anything you could ever think of. "You were always just a piece in my plan." Enzo stopped moving, shocked. "You" But before he could finish, the door slammed shut behind them, and they heard gunfire outside. Enzo reached for his gun as the men started to walk towards Tristan. He was ready to protect what little he had left. Bianca whispered, "He's not our only problem," just as he was about to shoot. As Luca Moretti's voice came through the door, the air became thick with tension. "How long can you hold on, Ghost?"
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Chapter 61: Rebirth or Ruin
Enzo stood in the middle of it, with cold sheets of rain falling all around him, making the skyline and the rubble below his feet hard to see. The air was full of smoke, and the distant sounds of gunfire reminded him that the city, the very thing he had once fought for, was slipping through his fingers. He couldn't save it or destroy it anymore.He clenched his fists, feeling the weight of every choice he had made, every betrayal, and every alliance. Serena, Bianca, and Luca had all pushed him to this point. And now that everything was falling apart, he had to choose between fighting for the throne or giving it all up.His men were spread out across the city, fighting to stay alive, but Enzo knew that the city would never be the same, no matter how many people died. He could feel it in his gut: the cost of power and the price of redemption. He heard his name whispered in every corner of Havencroft, but in the back of his mind, he wondered if it was too late to save anything, even hims
Chapter 60: The Price of Power
Rain fell in thin, stubborn sheets, making Havencroft's main square look like a mirror with broken lights and muddy water.Enzo stood under the broken awning of an old bank and watched his men take up positions on the roofs and in the alley mouths. Their numbers were fewer now, and their faces looked older than they were.Marco came up behind him with a low rifle. "We're too spread out," he said. "People who work for Serena are dug in by the fountain." Bianca's crew is acting like they're not taking sides, which usually means they're overthinking things.Enzo said, "Bianca always thinks too much." "That's why she's still alive."Marco thought about it. "Are you sure we want her here at all?"Enzo said, "No, we don't." "We need her guns." There is a difference.Bianca stepped out of the shadows on the other side of the square. Her coat was dark with rain, and two of her men were behind her. She raised her hands to show that they were empty.She yelled, "You really made the place look n
Chapter 59: The Heart of Darkness
The rain on the roof of the warehouse made a loud, steady noise that drowned out the sounds of the city outside.Enzo stood on the floor, not the catwalk, with his boots planted in a loose circle of chairs. His men stayed in the shadows along the walls. Bianca was sitting to his right, with her back straight and her fingers loose on the armrest."This is like the part in a bad movie where everyone dies," she said."Then let's try to make the script mad," Enzo said.The door on the side opened. Three of Luca's former lieutenants came in with Serena. No masks. No attitude. Just tired eyes and hands close to their holsters.She stopped in front of him. "You chose a nice place," she said. "Romantic in a way that comes after the end of the world."He said, "It has been the cause of most of our problems." "Sit."They grabbed their chairs. The lieutenants stayed standing and watched everyone.Serena said, "You wanted to talk." "Talk before someone changes their mind.""You built a council an
Chapter 58: Broken Bonds
Havencroft had stopped yelling, but it still didn't know how to talk quietly.Enzo watched a line of people go around a relief truck from the window of the old tax office. His men kept the peace, keeping their eyes on the crowd and their hands on their rifles.He could hear Bianca's voice coming from the table behind him."You see faces that are hungry," she said. "I see leverage."He looked back. "You always knew how to make love."She put the reports all over the table. "Food goes out with our stamp on it." Medicine moves along our paths. People complain, but they know who to ask for help when they need it.Enzo said, "They also whispered Luca's name." "Until they spat on it."Bianca looked up and laughed. "Scared of becoming him?"He said, "I'm afraid of becoming someone worse and not knowing it."She walked over to the window and joined him. "Take it easy. You still jump when the bodies start to stack up. That means you're still here."Comforting," he said softly.Marco stepped in
Chapter 57: A Crown of Ashes
In the morning, Havencroft seemed smaller.Enzo looked out the broken windows of what used to be a tax office and was now his headquarters. He saw smoke still coming from two blocks away. The sirens screamed and then stopped. Someone yelled from the street below, then went quiet.Marco, one of his oldest officers, stood at the table with coffee and maps on it. "You have the city, boss," he said. "What's left of it?"Enzo didn't take his eyes off the window. "I have rubble that answers to my name." That is not the same thing.Marco said, "You wanted the throne." "Now it is yours."Enzo said, "The throne is a broken chair with bullets in it." "Sit on it wrong, and it kills you."Marco laughed half-heartedly. "Some men kill for seats that are less comfortable."He got serious and tapped a mark on the map. "The south blocks are on edge. Stores were robbed and kids were running around. "Who is in charge now that Luca and Carmela are gone?" people are asking.Enzo turned around. "Tell them
Chapter 56: The Ghost's End
Havencroft was almost silent.Enzo watched smoke drift over the river road from the top floor of the broken office building.Serena was behind him, one hand on the wall and the other on her stomach. She said, "It's almost over."Enzo asked, "For who?""Everyone," she said. "Luca. Carmela. You. Me. This spot.He kept looking at the skyline that was on fire. "Luca is still alive." "It's not over until he stops breathing."Serena said, "You could just leave." "Tonight." We get in a car, go through the tunnels, and then we vanish. No more crowns. "Stop painting the streets red.""And leave him here to fix all this," Enzo said. "Let him raise our child according to his own rules."She said quietly, "You already chose war after you found out about the baby." "Don't act like this is a sacrifice for us.""I stopped acting like I was innocent," he said. "That's it."She got closer until he could feel her breath on his shoulder. "You say you're doing this for our child. But what's the point of
