werewolf /mafia romance

The devil claims what's His

# Chapter 9: The Devil Claims What's His - Part 1

The rain hit the windows of Blackthorn Mansion like bullets.

It was the third night since Damian came back from the war.

I stood in his room, watching him sleep.

Bandages covered his chest. His face was pale. But even in pain, he looked like a King.

Like the Devil himself.

"Stop staring at me like that," his rough voice broke the silence.

I jumped. "You're awake."

Damian Black. The most feared Mafia Don and Alpha King of New York.

My husband. My captor. My Fated Mate.

He opened his black eyes and looked at me. "Come here, Aria."

My name on his lips did things to me. Things I didn't want to feel.

I walked to the bed slowly. "The doctor said you need rest."

"I need you," he said and grabbed my wrist. Pulled me down until I was sitting beside him.

His grip was weak but it still burned. "The war is over. The treaty is signed. 2 million debt... cleared."

I nodded. "I know."

"Then why do you look at me like I'm still a monster?"

"Because you are," I whispered. "You bought me. You own me."

His jaw tightened. "I don't own you, Aria. The Moon Goddess does. She made you my Fated Mate."

"Fated doesn't mean chosen," I pulled my hand back. "It means trapped."

The room went silent. Only the sound of rain.

Damian sat up, wincing in pain. "You think I wanted this? You think I wanted to drag a human girl into my world of blood?"

"I think you didn't have a choice," I said. "Just like me."

He laughed, bitter. "Wrong. I had a choice. I could have killed your father and walked away. But I didn't. Because the moment I saw you... drowning in debt to save your sick mother... I saw my mate."

My heart hurt. "Don't say things like that."

"Why? Because it's true?" He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. His fingers were cold. "You belong to me, Aria. Say it."

"I belong to no one," I said, but my voice shook.

"Liar." His eyes darkened. "Your heart beats faster when I'm near. Your wolf... yes, I know you have one now. The mate bond awakened it. It calls for me every night."

I stepped back. "Stop."

"Make me," he challenged.

Before I could answer, the door burst open.

One of his men, Marco, ran in. "Boss! We have a problem."

Damian's face went from soft to stone in one second. "What?"

"It's Viktor. Silverfang. He's alive. And he's coming for her."

My blood froze. Viktor. The rival Alpha. The man who wanted me as a prize.

Damian looked at me. Then at Marco. "Get the guards. Lock down the mansion. No one gets in. No one gets out."

"Boss, you're injured—"

"I said LOCK IT DOWN!" he roared. The windows shook.

Marco ran out.

Damian turned to me. His eyes were full of something I had never seen before. Fear.

"They're coming for you because you're mine," he said quietly. "And I will kill anyone who tries to take you from me."

"Damian—"

"Don't," he cut me off. "Don't argue. Tonight, you stay with me. In this room. Where I can see you."

It wasn't a request. It was an order from an Alpha King.

Night fell. The mansion was silent. Too silent.

I lay on the couch in his room. He lay on the bed, gun in his hand, watching the door.

Around 3 AM, the lights went out.

Total darkness.

"Damian?"

"Stay down," his voice was low. Deadly.

Glass shattered.

Gunshots.

Screams.

The door flew open and 4 men in black rushed in.

Damian moved faster than I could see. Despite his wounds.

Bullets flew. Blood sprayed.

In 10 seconds, it was over. 4 bodies on the floor.

Damian was breathing hard, holding his side. Blood seeping through the bandages.

"Damian!" I ran to him.

"I'm fine," he lied, pulling me behind him. "They're not done."

And he was right.

From outside, a voice came through a speaker. Cold. Amused.

"Hello, Damian. Hello, little mate. Did you miss me?"

Viktor.

"I have 20 men around your house," Viktor said. "Give me the girl. And I might let you live."

Damian looked at me. Then he smiled. That dangerous, Alpha King smile.

"Tell him," Damian said to me, voice low, "tell him who you belong to."

I swallowed. Walked to the window. Looked into the darkness.

And shouted: "I belong to Damian Black!"

Silence.

Then Viktor laughed. "Wrong answer."

More gunfire.

Damian pulled me to the floor and covered me with his body as bullets hit the walls.

"Are you scared?" he whispered in my ear.

"Terrified," I admitted.

"Good," he kissed my forehead. "Because I'm about to show you why they call me the Devil."

He stood up. Injured. Bleeding. But unstoppable.

He picked up two guns. "Stay here."

"Damian don't—"

"I claim what's mine," he said. "And you... you are mine, Aria."

And then he walked out into the war.

I sat there, heart pounding, listening to the sounds of death.

And for the first time... I prayed he would come back to me.

Not because I had to.

But because I wanted to.

10 minutes later, the door opened.

Damian walked in. Covered in blood. Not all of it his.

He looked at me and said: "It's done."

He collapsed.

"NO!" I screamed and ran to him.

As I held him in my arms, his blood on my hands, he whispered:

"See? The Devil... claims what's his."

And then his eyes closed.

[END OF PART 1]

# Chapter 9: The Enemy's Shadow - Part 2

I thought the war was over.

I thought we were free.

I was wrong.

"Damian" I held his hand. He was still burning with fever.

He opened his eyes slowly. "I'm fine, Luna. Just tired."

Liar.

I knew he was lying.

The bullet wound on his side was still fresh.

That night the announcement was everywhere.

**"Alpha King Damian Black and Luna Queen will marry in 7 days."**

But happiness had a crack in it.

**Viktor.**

That call. That night.

"Sleep, Luna. I will handle it."

He wasn't handling it. He was hiding it.

---

The next morning.

I was walking in the garden when Emma came running.

"Queen! You need to see this!"

In her hand was a black envelope. Sealed with blood.

The Silverfang seal.

My hands shook.

I opened it:

`"Congratulations on your wedding.

The bride belongs to me.

Come alone to the old warehouse at midnight.

Or your Alpha dies tonight.

- V"`

I couldn't breathe.

"How did this get here?" I whispered.

"A boy dropped it at the gate" Emma said. "And ran away."

My heart said: Tell Damian.

My mind said: If I tell him, he will go. And he is injured.

I hid the letter in my pocket.

"Don't tell anyone," I told Emma.

---

11:30 PM.

Damian was asleep. Drugged with painkillers.

I put on a black coat. Tied my hair. And left alone.

I was not weak.

I was the Luna Queen.

And no one touches my Alpha.

The old warehouse was outside the city. Dark. Empty.

And standing in the middle was him.

Viktor Silverfang.

Tall. Broad. Yellow eyes. A smile full of blood.

"Look who came," he clapped. "The famous Luna."

"What do you want?" I asked directly.

"You," he came closer. "It was a 2 million deal, right? Your father sold you.

Now I will pay a higher price."

"I am not for sale," I said.

"Everyone has a price," he laughed. "It just needs to be high enough."

Suddenly a voice came from behind.

"Stay away from her."

Damian.

Injured. Bleeding. But standing. Gun in his hand.

"I told you to come alone," Viktor grinned.

"And I told you to stay away from her," Damian fired.

The bullet hit Viktor's shoulder. He screamed.

But he laughed too. "The war is not over, King. It has just begun."

And then he disappeared in smoke.

Damian collapsed.

"Damian!" I ran to him.

He cupped my face. "You shouldn't have come alone. Stupid girl."

"And you shouldn't have come while injured," I cried.

He wiped my tears. "Sorry."

"Apologize after the wedding," I said. "Now let's go home."

We made it home.

But one thing was clear.

Viktor wasn't done.

And our war... had just started.

The next morning the headline was:

**"Alpha King Shot Again. Wedding Postponed?"**

Damian tore the newspaper.

"The wedding is in 7 days," he said. "And this time the world will see

how an Alpha King protects his Luna."

He pulled me into his arms.

"Don't be afraid," he said. "A New Dawn is coming.

And this time the light will be ours."

Far away, Viktor turned off the TV.

"Let them have their wedding," he smiled.

"I will come as the groom."

[END OF PART 2]

# Chapter 9: The Devil Claims What's His - Part 3

Blood.

Blood was everywhere.

I was holding Damian in my lap. His body was getting cold.

"Damian! Open your eyes!" I screamed. "You can't leave me!"

His lips moved. Very faintly.

"Aria..."

"I'm here" I was crying. "You promised. You said the Devil never gives up his claim."

"The Devil... is tired" he smiled weakly. "But for you... I will fight."

Outside we could still hear gunshots. Viktor's men.

Marco came to the door, out of breath. "Boss! The ambulance is here!"

"Take him!" I yelled. "Hurry!"

They picked Damian up. I ran with them.

The hospital was 10 minutes away. But it felt like 10 years.

Outside the Operation Theater I sat on the floor.

His blood was still on my hands.

"God" I looked up. "He asked you so many times before. Today I'm asking. Please save him."

3 hours.

3 hours later the doors opened.

The doctor came out. "Miss Carter?"

I stood up. My legs were shaking.

"He's stable," the doctor said. "The bullet was an inch away from his heart. But he's strong. He's an Alpha. He made it."

I fell to my knees. Cried. Laughed. Thanked God.

When they took me to his room, he was sleeping.

IV in his arm. Monitor beeping.

But he was alive.

I pulled a chair and held his hand.

"You won," I whispered. "The Devil won."

I didn't sleep all night.

In the morning when he woke up, the first thing he said was my name.

"Aria..."

"I'm here" I immediately held his hand. "You scared me to death."

He looked at me for a long time.

Then he said: "You shouted. I heard it. 'I belong to Damian Black'"

My face turned red. "I... I just said that to make Viktor angry."

"Liar" he squeezed my hand. "There was no fear in your eyes. There was belief."

I looked away. "What about Viktor?"

Damian's face hardened. "Dead. By my hands."

"So the war is over?"

"The war is over" he said. "Blood Treaty signed. Silverfang is finished. No one can take you from me now."

Silence filled the room.

Only the beeping of the monitor.

"So what now?" I asked.

"Now... wedding" he said simply. "In 7 days. Like we announced."

"Damian I—"

"No" he cut me off. "I won't force you. Your father is dead. The debt is cleared. You are free. If you want to leave... you can go."

My heart sank.

Free?

Isn't that what I wanted?

Then why were there tears in my eyes?

"I... let me think about it" I said and walked out.

I sat in the garden all day thinking.

The man who bought me.

The man who fought a war for me.

The man who almost died for me.

In the evening I went back to his room.

He was looking out the window.

"Decision?" he asked without turning.

"Yes" I said.

He turned. Hope and fear in his eyes.

I walked to him. Knelt down.

And placed his injured hand on my cheek.

"I'm not leaving" I said.

"Because I... I am yours too. Devil."

His breath caught.

Then he pulled me into his chest. Very carefully.

"Say it again" he whispered in my hair.

"I am yours" I cried. "Only yours."

That night was the first night I slept with him.

Not out of fear. Out of love.

The next 7 days went by in preparations.

The whole city was decorated.

Because it was the Alpha King's wedding.

On the wedding day I was in a white gown.

When I walked into the hall, everyone stood up.

And there he was.

Black suit. Bandage still on his chest. But fire in his eyes.

When the priest asked: "Do you take this man?"

I looked into Damian's eyes.

And said: "I do."

When it was his turn he kissed my hand and said:

"I take you, Aria. With all my darkness. With all my blood. You are my Queen. My Luna. My Everything."

His hands were shaking when he put the ring on.

"Finally" he whispered. "Mine."

The kiss.

The applause. The fireworks.

But the most beautiful thing was this.

When we came to the room at night he said:

"You are not free anymore, Aria. Now you are trapped. In my heart. Forever."

I smiled. "And I am happy in this prison."

He turned off the lights.

And our New Dawn... began.

[END OF PART 3]

# Chapter 9: The Devil Claims What's His - Part 4

## "Honeymoon in Hell"

The first morning as husband and wife felt like a dream.

Until the dream turned into a nightmare.

I woke up in Damian's arms. Sunlight on his face.

No bandages. No blood. Just peace.

For the first time in months, he looked... human.

"Good morning, Mrs. Black," he whispered, kissing my forehead.

"Good morning, Mr. Devil," I smiled.

We were supposed to leave for honeymoon today.

Private island. No guards. No war. Just us.

He promised me 7 days where the world didn't exist.

At breakfast, Marco came in. His face was pale.

"Boss... we have a problem."

Damian didn't even look up from my coffee. "Not today, Marco."

"It's Viktor's brother, Lucas Silverfang," Marco said. "He crossed the border last night. With 30 men."

My cup froze halfway to my lips.

Damian finally looked up. His eyes went from warm to ice in one second.

"Cancel the flight," he said quietly.

"No," I stood up. "You promised me."

"Aria—"

"I don't care!" I slammed the table. "For 7 days I want to forget I'm the Luna of a Mafia King. For 7 days I want to be just your wife. Please."

The room went silent.

Damian stared at me. Then he sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Fine," he said. "But we take guards. And we leave tonight."

I hugged him. "Thank you."

That night we flew to the Blackthorn Private Island.

White sand. Blue water. One villa.

Paradise.

For 3 days it was perfect.

No phones. No news. Just us.

He taught me to swim. I taught him to laugh.

At night he held me like I was the only thing in the world.

On the 4th night, everything changed.

I woke up to the sound of glass breaking.

Damian was already out of bed, gun in hand.

"Stay down," he said.

Then the power went out.

Darkness.

Footsteps.

"Lucas is here," Damian whispered. "He found us."

Before I could answer, the door exploded.

Men in black rushed in.

Damian shot the first two. But there were too many.

"Run, Aria!" he yelled and pushed me toward the back door.

I ran. Barefoot. In my nightdress.

Behind me I heard fighting. Screaming.

Gunshots.

"Damian!"

"Aria, run!"

I didn't.

I grabbed a knife from the kitchen and turned back.

Lucas was standing over Damian. Knife to his throat.

"Look at the great Alpha King now," Lucas sneered. "Begging."

"Let him go," I said, my voice shaking but loud.

Lucas looked at me and smiled. "The little mate. Come here."

"NO!" Damian roared and elbowed Lucas. They fought.

In the chaos, I ran forward and stabbed Lucas in the leg.

He howled and turned on me.

Damian tackled him.

Two Alphas. Blood. Rage.

I couldn't watch.

I picked up Damian's fallen gun. My hands were shaking.

"Damian, down!"

He dropped.

I fired.

The bullet hit Lucas right between the eyes.

He fell.

Silence.

Only the sound of waves and my heartbeat.

Damian stood up slowly. Looked at me. Looked at the gun in my hand.

Then at me.

"You... you shot him."

I dropped the gun and started shaking. "I... I had to..."

He came to me and pulled me into his arms. Tight.

"You saved me," he whispered into my hair. "My little human saved an Alpha."

"I don't want to be strong," I cried. "I just want you alive."

"We're leaving," he said. "Now."

We didn't get our 7 days.

We got 4.

But in those 4 days, something changed.

On the flight back, he held my hand the entire time.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I promised you peace."

"You gave me more than peace," I said. "You gave me a reason to fight."

Back in the mansion, the war council was waiting.

Lucas was dead. But Silverfang had 10 more cousins.

"This won't end," one of the elders said. "Not until your line is gone."

Damian stood up. Still injured. Still my King.

"Then let them come," he said. "Because they will have to go through me.

And through her."

He pointed at me.

Everyone looked at me.

The human girl.

The Luna.

The one who shot an Alpha to save her mate.

"From today," Damian announced, "Aria Black trains with the guards.

She is not just my wife. She is my weapon."

My eyes widened. "Damian—"

"Trust me," he whispered only to me. "I won't let them hurt you again."

That night, in our room, he bandaged my hands. They were cut from the gun.

"You were amazing today," he said.

"I was terrified," I admitted.

"Me too," he said. "Terrified of losing you."

He kissed each of my knuckles.

"Aria, I need to tell you something."

"What?"

"If anything happens to me... the pack is yours. The business is yours.

You are the Alpha now. Not in name. In blood."

"Don't talk like that," I said.

"I have to," he said. "Because loving you made me weak.

And in our world, weakness gets you killed."

I cupped his face. "Then we won't be weak. We'll be ruthless. Together."

He smiled. That rare, real smile.

"Deal," he said. "Together."

Outside, the moon was full.

And somewhere in the shadows, another Silverfang was watching.

Whispering: "For Lucas."

The war wasn't over.

But neither was us.

[END OF PART 4]

# Chapter 9: The Devil Claims What's His - Part 5

## "Blood on the Wedding Ring"

One month after the island.

One month of hell.

I was no longer the girl who cried in corners.

Damian was right. In our world, you fight or you die.

Every morning at 5 AM.

Training.

Guns. Knives. Hand to hand.

By the end of week 2, I could disarm 2 guards at once.

"You are a natural," Damian said one night, watching me spar.

"I had a good teacher," I replied, wiping sweat. "The Devil himself."

He smiled. Pulled me to him. "My wife. My weapon."

But peace never lasted long in the Blackthorn house.

---

The letter came on a Tuesday.

Black envelope. Silverfang seal. Again.

Damian read it once and crumpled it.

"What does it say?" I asked.

"Nothing you need to worry about," he said.

"Damian."

He sighed. "They want a meeting. Neutral ground. To 'discuss peace'."

"Do you believe them?"

"No," he said. "But we go anyway. Because if we don't, they will say we are scared."

The meeting was set for Friday.

Abandoned church. Midnight.

Just 2 people from each side.

Damian. Me.

And them.

---

Friday. 11:55 PM.

The church smelled like old blood and rain.

They were already there.

3 people. Not 2.

A woman in her 40s. Cold eyes.

And two men behind her. Young. Angry.

"Where is the peace treaty?" Damian asked, voice deadly calm.

The woman smiled. "There is no treaty, Alpha King.

I am Elena Silverfang. Lucas and Viktor's mother.

And I am here for blood."

Damian stepped in front of me. "Then you will have to go through me."

"Oh, we plan to," Elena said. "But first..."

She snapped her fingers.

The doors behind us opened.

10 men. Guns pointed at us.

"Checkmate," Elena said.

My heart stopped.

Damian didn't move. "You want me. Take me. Leave her."

"No," Elena laughed. "I want her.

You killed my sons. Now I will kill what you love most.

Slowly. So you can watch."

One of the men grabbed my arm.

I twisted. Elbow to his throat. Knee to his groin. Gun from his holster.

All in 3 seconds. Training.

I shot the man next to me.

Chaos.

Damian moved like lightning.

But there were too many.

"Run, Aria!" he yelled.

"Never!" I yelled back and fired again.

A bullet grazed my arm.

I screamed.

Damian saw it. His eyes went black. Alpha rage.

He roared and tore through them.

Bones broke. Blood sprayed.

In 2 minutes, 8 men were down.

But Elena was gone.

And so were her 2 sons.

Damian ran to me. "Aria! Aria look at me!"

"I'm okay," I lied. My arm was burning.

"You are not okay," he picked me up. "We are leaving."

Back home, the doctor stitched me up.

8 stitches.

Damian didn't leave my side once.

"I'm sorry," he said at 3 AM. "I promised to protect you."

"And you did," I said. "We protected each other."

He kissed my bandaged arm. "The wedding ring. It's got blood on it now."

I looked at my hand. He was right.

My white gold ring had a smear of red.

"Then we clean it," I said. "Together."

---

The next morning, the news broke.

**"Silverfang Matriarch Declares War on Blackthorn."**

War. Officially.

Damian called a meeting.

All Alphas. All Captains.

I sat beside him. At the head of the table.

"From today," Damian announced, "my wife speaks with my voice.

Disrespect her, you disrespect me."

Silence.

Then one by one, they nodded.

After the meeting, I went to the armory.

I picked a gun. A knife. And a new bulletproof vest.

With "LUNA" written on the back.

Damian found me there.

"Going somewhere?"

"To war," I said. "You don't fight this alone anymore."

He looked at me for a long time.

Then he nodded. "Together."

That night we didn't sleep.

We planned.

Maps. Names. Locations.

At dawn, he pulled me to the balcony.

The city was waking up.

"Look at it," he said. "All of this. It's ours to protect."

"Or destroy," I added.

He laughed. "That's my girl."

He turned me to face him.

"Aria, I need to say this before we go in."

"What?"

"If I die—"

"Don't."

"If I die," he continued, "you burn them all.

Every Silverfang. Every ally. Burn it to the ground.

For me."

Tears in my eyes. "Don't die."

"Then don't let me," he said and kissed me.

Hard. Desperate. Like it was the last time.

When we pulled apart, both of us were breathing hard.

"Ready?" he asked.

I loaded my gun. "Born ready, Mr. Black."

The car ride was silent.

20 cars. 100 men.

And us. In the front.

The target: Silverfang Mansion.

The plan: Hit hard. Hit fast. End it.

As we pulled up, Elena was waiting on the steps.

With 50 men.

She looked at me. "You."

I stepped out of the car. Gun in hand.

"Me," I said. "The girl you should have killed when you had the chance."

Elena smiled. "Let's see who dies today."

And then all hell broke loose.

Gunfire.

Screams.

Blood on marble.

I shot 3 men before I even realized it.

Damian was a storm beside me.

We moved like one person. Back to back.

Elena ran inside.

"After her!" Damian yelled.

We chased her to the top floor.

To her office.

She was waiting. With a gun to her own head.

"If I can't have my sons, no one gets the empire," she said.

"Don't," I said. "It's over."

"It's never over," she pulled the trigger.

The shot echoed.

She fell.

Silence.

Then sirens.

Damian pulled me to him. "It's done."

I nodded, shaking. "It's done."

As police and our men flooded in, I looked at my hands.

Blood. Not mine.

And on my finger, the wedding ring.

Still there. Still bloody.

Damian saw it too.

He took my hand and kissed the ring.

"Blood on the wedding ring," he whispered.

"Means our marriage was sealed in war.

And no one can break it."

I leaned into him. Exhausted.

"We won?"

"We won," he said. "The war is over."

Outside, the sun was rising.

A new dawn.

Bloody. But ours.

[END OF PART 5]

# Chapter 9: The Devil Claims What's His - Part 6

## "The Ghosts Don't Sleep"

The war was over.

But the ghosts didn't sleep.

3 days after the Silverfang mansion.

3 days since Elena pulled the trigger.

And I still woke up screaming.

Damian would hold me. Every time.

"You're safe," he would whisper. "I'm here. No one can touch you."

But safe didn't feel like safe anymore.

Safe felt like the calm before the next storm.

---

The funeral was on Thursday.

Not for us. For them.

City Hall gave us a medal. "For ending the gang war."

Hypocrites. They were scared of us, not proud.

I wore black. Damian wore black.

The entire pack wore black.

And we stood in the rain while cameras flashed.

"Mrs. Black," a reporter shouted. "How does it feel to be the Luna who killed?"

Damian stepped in front of me. "No questions."

In the car back, I finally broke.

"I killed 3 people, Damian."

"I know," he said.

"And I don't regret it," I whispered. "Does that make me a monster?"

He took my hand and kissed the ring. The blood was gone, but the memory wasn't.

"No," he said. "That makes you mine."

---

A week later.

The house was finally quiet.

No guards running. No phones ringing. No war meetings.

Just us.

And it was terrifying.

"What do we do now?" I asked one morning at breakfast.

Damian looked up from his coffee. "Now we live."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that," he smiled. "We take that honeymoon. The real one this time."

I laughed. First real laugh in weeks.

"Where to?"

"Anywhere you want," he said. "No guards. No phones. Just you and me."

I thought about it. "The mountains. A cabin. Snow."

"Done," he said. "We leave tomorrow."

---

The cabin was perfect.

Wooden. Fireplace. Snow falling outside.

No signal. No people. Just us.

For 4 days we did nothing.

Cooked. Fought with snowballs. Made love in front of the fire.

He called me Luna. I called him Devil.

And for the first time, both names felt like home.

On the 5th night, I couldn't sleep.

I went to the window. Snow. Silence.

And a shadow moving between the trees.

My blood froze.

"Damian," I whispered.

He was awake instantly. Gun in hand.

"What is it?"

"Someone's out there."

He went to the door. Opened it.

Nothing.

Just footprints in the snow. Leading away from the cabin.

"Silverfang had cousins," Damian said quietly. "I thought we got them all."

"Thought?"

He looked at me. "I was wrong."

We packed that night.

No more honeymoon.

Back to war.

---

Back in the city, the news hit us like a punch.

**"3 Blackthorn warehouses burned last night."**

**"2 Captains missing."**

It wasn't over.

It would never be over.

Damian slammed his fist on the table. "Find them."

Marco nodded. "We're on it, Boss."

That night, I couldn't take it.

I went to the training room. Alone.

And I broke everything. Bags. Dummies. Walls.

Damian found me at 2 AM. Punching a bag until my knuckles bled.

He didn't say anything. Just came behind me and held me.

"Let it out," he whispered.

"I hate this," I cried. "I hate that we can't have peace.

I hate that every time we get close, someone dies."

"I know," he said. "But we don't stop. Because if we stop, they win."

He turned me around.

"Look at me, Aria. We are the storm now.

And storms don't ask for permission to end."

He kissed me. Hard. Angry. Desperate.

And I kissed him back.

Because if the world was going to burn,

I wanted to burn with him.

---

The next morning we got a lead.

Old dock. Warehouse 17.

"That's where they're hiding," Marco said. "The last Silverfang cousins."

Damian looked at me. "You stay here."

"No," I said. "I am going."

"Aria—"

"I am not the girl you bought anymore," I said. "I am the woman who stood beside you.

And I am going to finish this."

He stared at me. Then nodded. "Together."

---

Warehouse 17. Midnight.

Rain again. Of course.

8 men. Young. Scared. Angry.

The last of Silverfang.

"Come out!" Damian yelled. "This ends tonight!"

They came out shooting.

And we shot back.

It was over in 4 minutes.

8 bodies.

No survivors.

I stood there, gun smoking, rain on my face.

And I felt... nothing.

No guilt. No fear. Just empty.

Damian came to me. Took the gun from my hand.

"Hey," he said softly. "Look at me."

I