DAMNED

Chapter7: Breaking The Circle

Eugenio’s fury boiled after the failed abduction. He paced his study, wine glass trembling in his hand.

“She’s stronger than I thought,” he muttered. “Her friends protect her. Then I’ll break the circle. One by one.”

He ordered Santos: “Target the friends. Isolate her. Fear will consume her when she realizes no one can save her.”

Santos hesitated, but obeyed.

After their class presentation, Robina sat with her friends, her voice steady despite the tremor in her hands. “If they come again… what if this time they’ll try to separate us?”

Amanda whispered, her tone fragile. “What if they hurt us?”

Raell’s eyes hardened. “We need to survive. Together.”

Eyrah burst out, frustration breaking through her fear. “What if we can’t survive?! What makes you think we can fight those thugs? We’re just students here!”

Alice and Amanda’s eyes glistened, fighting back tears that threatened to fall.

Robina lowered her gaze. “Maybe… it’s better if you don’t walk with me for the next few days… weeks… until I figure out their intention.”

Silence fell over the group, heavy and suffocating.

Eyrah finally broke it. “It’ll be on our conscience if something bad happens to you. I don’t want that. You guys… do you think you can bear it? Huh?”

Krystina added, voice trembling. “And those thugs already know our faces. Wh-What if they hunt us too, even if we’re not with Robina?”

Alice shook her head, determination flickering through her fear. “I guess… we better try first.”

Again, silence filled the room. Robina’s conscience grew heavier, pressing against her chest.

Raell sat in thought, his mind racing. He noticed the shift immediately — the men weren’t just watching Robina anymore. They were watching the group. Cris told him he had been followed near his home. Joshua reported a man lingering outside his workplace.

Raell leaned forward. “Cris, Josh — last night you told me you were followed, that someone was observing you, right?”

Both nodded, fear etched in their eyes.

Alice’s voice shook. “I… I just thought… this morning, when I was in the jeep on the way to school, I saw someone across from me. Sharp eyes, staring. He looked familiar. That… that man… he’s one of those thugs!”

Krystina added quickly, “Two men followed me inside the mall while I was with my sister.”

Amanda and Eyrah exchanged uneasy glances. “We noticed it too,” Amanda admitted. “During practice outside school… someone was watching us.”

The realization settled over them like a storm cloud — they were no longer just witnesses. They were targets.

“They’re isolating us,” Raell said grimly. “Trying to weaken her support.”

He tightened his grip on his knife.

Rose Cardinal’s POV

Rose met Attorney Delgado again, sliding more evidence across the table. “He’s escalating. He’s targeting her friends now.”

Delgado frowned. “We need to act fast. If we can connect these men to Eugenio, we can expose him.”

But Rose didn’t know Eugenio had already discovered her betrayal.

That night, Eugenio confronted Rose. His voice was low, dangerous. “You think I don’t know? You met Delgado. You gave him my files.”

Rose’s breath caught. “Eugenio, stop this madness. She’s just a girl.”

His smile was chilling. “If you reveal me, you’ll regret it. Delgado will be the first lesson.”

Attorney Delgado’s POV

Delgado left his office late, the glow of his desk lamp still lingering in his tired eyes. His briefcase felt heavier than usual, not from papers but from the weight of secrets he carried. The street outside was quiet — too quiet. The usual hum of traffic had faded, leaving only the echo of his footsteps against the pavement.

He adjusted his tie, scanning the shadows. A flicker of unease crawled up his spine.

Then, the low rumble of an engine broke the silence. A van slowed beside him, its headlights cutting through the dark. Before Delgado could react, the doors burst open. Men surged forward, faces hidden, movements sharp and deliberate.

Delgado swung his briefcase instinctively, striking one attacker.

“Help!” he shouted, voice cracking against the empty street. But fists slammed into him, blades flashing in the dim light. He staggered, fighting with desperate strength, but the odds were merciless.

Blood splattered onto the pavement, staining the alley where they dragged him. His cries faded into silence.

Moments later, the van pulled away, leaving Delgado’s body crumpled in the shadows — not hidden, but displayed. A warning carved in flesh and fear, meant for anyone who dared to challenge Eugenio Cardinal.

The news reached Rose at dawn. Delgado was gone — murdered. Her heart shattered, guilt clawing at her chest until she could barely breathe. Eugenio’s threat was no longer just words; it was real, bloody, and final.

She sat alone in the kitchen, staring at the untouched cup of coffee before her. The silence of the house pressed down like a coffin lid.

"If I speak, he’ll kill me too", she whispered, voice trembling.

Fear chained her, wrapping around her throat. Yet beneath the terror, a flicker of resolve burned. She would find another way — a quieter rebellion, a hidden path to expose him.

Remore noticed his mother’s grief. She moved through the house like a ghost, her eyes red, her silence heavy. He didn’t understand why Delgado’s death mattered so much, but he felt the darkness pressing against their family.

At night, he lay awake, listening to the muffled sobs behind his mother’s door. He stayed quiet, too young to grasp the full horror, but old enough to sense that something was terribly, irreversibly wrong.

Santos stood before Eugenio, the weight of his report crushing him. “It’s done,” he said, his voice low, hollow.

Eugenio’s smile was cold, predatory. “Good. My wife will stay quiet now. And the girl… she’ll be mine.”

The words sliced through Santos like a blade. His soul crumbled, shame gnawing at him. He had obeyed, but at what cost? Each order dragged him deeper into darkness, until he no longer recognized the man he once was.

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Robina and her friends gathered together in the classroom, their voices hushed, their eyes wide with fear. The air felt heavy, as if the walls themselves were closing in. Each of them knew the attacks were escalating — shadows following them, eyes watching from corners, footsteps echoing too close behind.

Robina’s hands trembled as she clutched her bag tighter. Amanda sat beside her, biting her lip until it nearly bled. Alice’s tears brimmed, but she forced them back, refusing to let them fall. Eyrah’s restless fingers tapped against the desk, betraying her unease, while Cris stared at the floor, jaw clenched, replaying every moment he’d been followed.

They leaned into one another, a fragile circle of trust, whispering fragments of courage they barely believed. Yet beneath their fear, none of them knew the full truth — that Eugenio had already silenced Attorney Delgado, erasing their only hope of protection.

And somewhere far away, Rose Cardinal lived under a deadly threat, her silence forced by terror.

The group’s fear was real, but their danger was deeper than they imagined. They weren’t just being watched. They were being hunted.