After Dark (Mature) *Completed*

Forty Six

Serenity let out a groan as she finally began making her towards the bedroom. It was well past 2am and she'd been up helping on their new case. The murderer had been methodical and calculated- to the point where there was virtually no evidence.

Checking in Luciano's room, she found him peacefully sleeping- his body tucked under the Spider-Man blanket he'd suckered Angelo into buying him. Watching his chest rise eased her heart.

The case was working on a child murderer. They would sneak into the homes of single mothers, kidnap and torture the children before cutting their heads off- their heads always found at the mothers door. Each child's time of death placed exactly at midnight.

Every department in the country was working tirelessly to find at least a suspect but to no avail. It seemed as if the crimes were committed by a ghost. Not a hair or fingerprint in sight.

Tears gathered in her eyes at the thought of losing Luciano right under her nose. She couldn't imagine what those mothers were going through- waking up to find the head of your child at your door.

The case had been the deciding factor on sending Luciano to Italy for the summer. She'd lost too much in her life: losing him would kill her.

"Bella?" Angelo whispered behind her. She quickly wiped away her fallen tears.

"Yeah, sorry." His eyes held great concern as he approached her shaking figure in the dark hallway.

"Are you alright?" Angelo wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest. The embrace was reassuring and she closed her eyes- the photos of severed heads appearing behind her eyelids- and she quickly opened her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She stepped from the embrace to rub her stinging eyes. Turning back to Luciano, she felt helpless. While a part of her knew he was safe here another could only picture his little head placed in her doorway. Her heart broke for the women without this out- the women who could only pray they weren't next.

"Are you sure? You're shaking, Serenity. Come here. What's going on?" Angelo pulled her from Luciano's doorway and closer to the steps. His eyes searched hers for the answer, begging her to let him in.

"It's just this case. It's...tough." She spoke without giving too much away. Placing a tight lipped smile on her face she tried to pretend she was okay now but the trembling of her hands gave her away.

"Serenity, I know when you're upset. You can talk to me about anything. I'll always be here for you." He once more pulled her into his arms, not pushing the topic anymore. Serenity nodded into his chest unable to close her eyes for fear of seeing those photos again.
...
Angelo's POV

Angelo winced as he watched Serenity make breakfast. Her skin was dull, bags developed under her eyes, and she almost never smiled outside of seeing Luciano.

It had been 6 days since he'd seen her shaken up in the hallway. Each night he'd find her standing in Luciano's doorway almost as if she was guarding it.

When she finally did come to bed, she'd lay staring blankly at the ceiling. It creeped him out to see her so lifeless but it took a turn for the worse once the nightmares started. She'd wake up in a cold sweat, run to Luciano's room and cradle him for the rest of the night.

At one point, he'd tried to carry her back to bed but she woke up and nearly killed him. It had been the first time he'd truly feared for his life at the hands of Serenity- her eyes held such a primitive look. Not an ounce of hesitation.

She snapped out of it and patched him up, apologies spewing from her mouth every 3 seconds, but Angelo didn't care. He wanted to get to the bottom of what had her so fearful.

"Kenny and Greg, follow me." Angelo instructed after he'd went over the weekly reports with his men. Kenny and Greg were his go to men for anything technology related.

"I need you to hack into the FBI database. There should be some new case they're working on. Search for anything connected to Serenity Jones and bring me everything you find. If you find any outside sources use those as well. I want everything." The men silently nodded, exiting the room as they began making calls to their associates.

"Dada?" Called Luciano from the doorway. Angelo couldn't keep the smile off his face as he scooped up his son.

"Yes, figlio?" Luciano smiled at the term. Angelo had began teaching the boy Italian- slowly but surely.

"What's wrong with mama?" The smile on his face fell and his little face held concern. It pained Angelo that his son could see his mother deteriorating just as he did.

"I'm not sure but I'm gonna fix it." Angelo spoke honestly. Tears welled up in Luciano's eyes.

"Promise?" He whimpered. A pain unlike any Angelo had ever felt seared through his chest- burning through his lungs and across his back. Seeing his son showing such concern and sadness pained him but knowing it was due to the issues plaguing his mother hurt worse.

"I promise, figlio."
...

"L-luc...no, no." Angelo began rubbing Serenity's back as she once more whimpered in her sleep. Her eyes moved rapidly behind her eyelids and her chest rose harshly- her skin covered in sweat.

"Shhh, he's alright. He's fine, bella." He tried to whisper reassurance to her. More whimpers escaped her and Angelo truly felt helpless.

Anger bubbled up at the feeling- he'd never felt like this especially with someone he loved. His phone chimed and looking at the clock, he knew it could only mean one thing.

"Be down in a sec." he replied to Kenny's message. Getting from the bed, he made his way to Luciano's room before scooping the boy into his arms. He returned to the room just as Serenity popped up from the bed- her eyes scanning the room methodically.

"My baby." She whimpered out as Angelo placed Luciano into her arms. Immediately she curled around him, her body shielding his eyes from Luciano. Brushing the hair from Luciano's face, Serenity whispered words Angelo couldn't quite hear before she laid back in bed.

"I'll be right back." He whispered as she tried to tug him into bed. Placing a kiss to her forehead, he closed the door and made his way to his office.

Once inside, he didn't miss the somber aura that settled amongst the men. They'd placed all the information he requested on his desk in their staple black folders.

"How bad?" He questioned before he even looked inside. Kenny and Greg shared a look and chills ran down Angelo's spine. If his men considered something bad then it was worse than anything he'd imagined.

Opening a folder, he found crime scene photos of what looked to be the heads of children placed in doorways. Although gruesome it didn't shake him in the way the next photos did.

Pictures of Serenity and Luciano sat before him. They were clearly taken when they were still in America and all looked to be taken from a distance. From shopping, to eating in a restaurant, or playing at the park.

Panic filled him as they seemed to get closer. Them driving, them playing the garden in front of the house, them sitting on the couch reading a book.

The final picture made his chest cave in. They laid in her bed, asleep. It seemed as if the person taking the picture stood over them- a red circle drawn around Luciano and an X placed on Serenity.
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