𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡

𝟓𝟑 | 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢 𝐠𝐨, 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬

I turned around and saw Patrick's body crash to the ground with the weapon in his hand, which he aimed at himself. The barrel that had been near my head a few minutes ago was now touching his shot skull.

Something else caught my eye.

The door to this room was open and there was a figure standing in it.

"Father?" I said foggily, my own voice seemed strange. The moment of courage passed and was replaced by minutes of cold despair. I tried to focus my eyes and recognize the silhouette in front of me, approaching me with heavy steps. The shock of what had just happened prevented me from seeing and thinking clearly. Disoriented, I lost coordination and almost stumbled over my own legs.

"Ria," the person murmured loudly in front of me. "Ria, can you hear me?"

Looking at Patrick's motionless face, I got suddenly dizzy. He was smiling. Did he smile because he thought there was peace waiting for him on the other side? I'll probably never know.

I fell helplessly to my knees. My throat tightened again, and I felt like I couldn't breathe anymore.

"Ria, we have to go, come on," a hand pulled me away. I finally began to perceive the world around me. I raised my head, and my eyes met his eyes. However, they did not belong to my father, as I initially thought.

"Leo," I blurted out. He came back for me. Again.

"Shh," he tried to calm me down with a soft voice and by caressing my hair gently. "It's okay, Ria," he reassured me. "YOU are okay."

"Patrick he-"

"He is dead. I ended it. I got him," he said heroically. I tried to ignore the forced shiver that went through my whole body. I pressed my palms away from his chest, which was still rising wildly and falling from the rush of adrenaline. I overheard all the talk about how I didn't have to worry and that it was okay. I focused my attention only on the phrase "I got him."

"It was you," I whispered, taking a step back. Something behind me didn't allow me to continue backing down. Out of nowhere, my eyes began to fill with tears. A few seconds later, I had trouble seeing Leo's massive figure clearly.

"Yes, I killed him, he won't hurt you anymore," he repeated, unaware that it was making the situation worse. I gasped; my lower lip quivered. Out of the corner of my eye, I looked at the dead body lying in the middle of the room. I stood without words and movement, accompanied by an uncontrollable shiver. "Ria, I know you're in shock, but we have to go. We don't have much time. Mercado's men will follow us in a moment," Leo said, placing a hand in front of me.

I nodded, but I didn't take the offered hand. I sobbed, feeling growing resistance in myself. And anger. Great anger. "Say something, please," Leo whimpered. His soft voice caressed my soul, but I still remained silent. "Did that bastard do something to you?" I was amazed at how quickly Leo was able to change from an adorable kitten to a protective beast.

I finally gained the courage to look directly at Patrick's shot skull. I was again surprised by the corners of his mouth, lifted up. Why was he smiling?!

"He... didn't want to kill me," I blurted out. Leo sighed aloud. It was clear that he was annoyed by this situation.

"Of course, he wanted to kill you, Ria, what are you talking about? If I hadn't come, then-"

"Yes, he wanted to do it," I agreed. "At first. He aimed at me at first, but then... he wanted to kill himself. Because he was sick of the life he lived. How we all live. And now we've got Otto involved."

"I still don't understand why you're making it such a big deal," Leo muttered, giving me an annoyed look.

"I'm making a big deal, BECAUSE... because you just took someone's choice. Life in the mafia forced this boy to do things he never wanted. Someone always made a decision for him. And now... he could decide for himself. But you stepped into it," I pointed out what was bothering me.

Leo laughed mockingly. His ironic undertone filled the room.

"Yes, you're right, he could have decided whether to kill you or kill himself. Is that the answer I must settle for? Do you think that it will somehow move my conscience? He could have hurt you. I don't care that this guy decided to save your life in the end. You were still his second chance. What if he changed his mind just before he pulled the trigger, and I would lose you forever?" With each new word, the mimic muscles on Leo's face formed a protective stoic mask. I've never seen him so serious before. „I don't give a damn about others, Ria," he said coldly, „no matter what happens, you will always be the only option for me."

I looked at Leo with great shock and refused to believe what I had just heard. I studied him carefully, replaying his words over and over. Leo seemed to be done with this, pulling me by the elbow.

"Let's go," he ordered. "And I don't want to hear no objections."

I didn't protest this time and obediently followed him. We came out the door, leaving human life behind. Once again, I realized that we were in enemy territory. The long corridors turned into a battlefield, and I had to do something to stay present and not think about what Leo had confessed to me a few minutes ago. Does that mean... that I'm more than just a task to him? Did he start to see me as his friend? Or did his feelings grow deeper, and they are more than friendly ones?

I became more and more worried. We were almost at the end of our plan, but what if something goes wrong and something happens to Otto? Even the part with Patrick was supposed to be simple, but when I think about how things developed in the end...

Without any complications, we got to the room where Otto and Tom were supposed to be. Leo knocked twice at first, paused for a second, then knocked twice more. I raised my eyebrows.

"A secret signal?"

"Just in case," Leo muttered, looking uneasy. The door has been opened. Tom aimed his weapon at us.