The Blood Oath
1009 Words
Darkness.
That was the first thing Amelia felt.
Then came the pounding in her head.
She forced her eyes open.
The room was dimly lit by a single flickering bulb hanging from the ceiling. Her wrists were tied behind a metal chair, and the smell of damp concrete filled the air.
An abandoned warehouse.
She tested the ropes.
Too tight.
"Damn it..."
A slow clap echoed through the room.
One.
Two.
Three.
A figure stepped out of the shadows.
Dressed in a long white coat.
A flawless white mask hid his face.
"So..."
His voice was smooth.
"The famous Attorney Hayes."
Amelia lifted her chin.
"If you're planning to kill me, stop wasting my time."
A soft chuckle escaped him.
"You're braver than I expected."
"I'm not brave."
"No?"
"I'm angry."
The White Mask tilted his head.
"Good."
He slowly circled her.
"Angry people make mistakes."
"They also ask questions."
"Then ask."
"My aunt..."
"Where is she?"
The White Mask stopped walking.
"You haven't asked about yourself."
"I asked about my aunt."
"Is she alive?"
Silence.
Amelia's heart pounded.
"Answer me!"
He stepped closer until the white mask was only inches from her face.
"She's alive."
Relief washed over Amelia, but only for a second.
"For now."
Her eyes narrowed.
"If you touch her—"
He cut her off with a raised hand.
"You really are your father's daughter."
"What does that mean?"
"It means..."
"...even tied to a chair..."
"...you're still trying to protect everyone except yourself."
Amelia clenched her fists.
"If you've hurt her, I swear I'll make you pay."
The White Mask chuckled.
"Oh, Attorney..."
"I'm not the one your aunt should be afraid of."
Before Amelia could demand another answer, hurried footsteps echoed through the warehouse.
One of the masked men burst through the door.
"Sir..."
"They're here."
The White Mask smiled beneath his mask.
"Right on time."
"Dante Romano never disappoints
The White Mask didn't move.
His head tilted slightly, as though he were listening to something only he could hear.
Then...
A smile spread beneath the mask.
"He's early."
Amelia frowned.
"Who?"
The warehouse doors burst open with a deafening crash.
BOOM!
Splinters of wood flew across the room.
Gunfire erupted.
"Move! Move!"
The kidnappers scattered, taking cover behind crates and rusted machinery.
Bullets ricocheted off the concrete walls.
Amelia instinctively ducked, her chair scraping across the floor.
She couldn't move.
She couldn't even cover her head.
Outside the warehouse...
Dante Romano walked through the smoke.
Not running.
Walking.
Rain soaked his black suit, but his expression never changed.
His men spread out behind him with military precision.
One kidnapper fired.
Dante stepped aside.
The bullet missed.
Before the man could fire again—
Bang!
He dropped to the floor.
Another rushed Dante with a knife.
The Mafia King caught the man's wrist, twisted it sharply, and the knife clattered onto the concrete.
With one swift strike, the attacker collapsed.
Everything happened so quickly that Amelia barely had time to process it.
This wasn't the cold businessman she'd met.
This was the man everyone feared.
The real Dante Romano.
"Protect the exits!" one of Dante's captains shouted.
"Don't let the White Mask escape!"
Chaos consumed the warehouse.
Amelia struggled against the ropes.
"Hey!"
"No one hears you over gunfire," the White Mask said calmly.
He hadn't moved an inch.
Almost as though he wasn't worried.
He looked at Dante.
Then back at Amelia.
"Watch carefully."
"What?"
"The difference between a king..."
"...and a man."
Before Amelia could understand what he meant, another explosion rocked the warehouse.
The lights went out.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Only flashes from gunfire lit the room.
Amelia's breathing became shallow.
Someone was moving toward her.
Heavy footsteps.
Closer.
Closer...
A hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder.
She gasped.
"It's me."
Dante.
His voice was low but steady.
"I'm getting you out."
He pulled a knife from his belt and quickly cut through the ropes binding her wrists.
The moment her hands were free, her knees nearly gave out.
Dante caught her before she hit the floor.
"You came..." she whispered, surprised by the emotion in her own voice.
His eyes searched hers.
"Of course I did."
A bullet slammed into the steel beam beside them.
Sparks exploded into the darkness.
Dante immediately pulled Amelia behind him.
More gunfire followed.
He didn't hesitate.
He shielded her with his own body.
Amelia grabbed his arm.
"Dante, don't!"
He didn't answer.
His attention never left the enemy.
Somewhere in the darkness, the White Mask laughed.
A calm, chilling laugh.
"You've already lost, Romano."
Dante's jaw tightened.
"Have I?"
The White Mask's laughter faded.
"You still think this was about k********g the attorney."
Silence.
"It wasn't."
Amelia felt a chill crawl down her spine.
"If not me..." she whispered.
The White Mask took one slow step backward into the darkness.
"It was never about taking you."
Another step.
"It was about getting him..."
"...to come here."
The warehouse fell silent for a heartbeat.
Then Dante's eyes widened.
"Everyone down!"
The floor beneath them shook.
Somewhere deep inside the warehouse...
A timer began to beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
- Writer
