Chapter 44

Elias's gaze, already stripped of warmth, sank into an even harder, colder edge.

Word on the street was out-Inferno's leader,Lord Inferno, had finally emerged from the dark after years spent underground.

Throughout the long silence, Elias never gave up hunting the elusive Lord Inferno.

Fragments from the car crash years before had pointed straight toward Inferno, then the trail had vanished. The evidence still pointed to him.

A thin slit narrowed Elias's eyes as murderous intent radiated off him, so fierce it seemed to press against the car's cramped space.

"Where is he?" His voice was icy, echoing like a cursefrom the abyss.

"His movements were traced to Ceesall,"Wilbur answered, his tone flat.

"Prepare to move on Ceesall," Elias said, each word edged with lethal purpose. "Bring Lord Inferno in alive." "I'll get right on it," Wilbur replied, already preparing the orders to locate the exact whereabouts of the Lord Inferno.

Fingers tightened around the wheel as Wilbur's jaw tensed. At last, they had a real chance to get even for everything Elias had suffered.

In Wilbur's mind, revenge would be served one lash at a time. He pictured patching Lord Inferno up between sessions, just to start over.

He swore he would break Lord Inferno's legs to crush his pride as thoroughly as his body.

The pain Elias endured had left him unable to walk, and Wilbur wanted nothing less than to cripple Lord Inferno the same way, stripping away every shred of arrogance.

The thought of capturing and torturing Lord Inferno filled Wilbur with a fierce energy, his blood boiling with excitement. He believed their trap this time could not be escaped.

...

By the following morning, Sebastian shook off the hangover and switched on his phone, only to be met with a message that sent him racing to the hospital.

Halfway there, his day took another sharp downturn. Word reached him that Tyrone-the man he'd hired to deal with Emilia-had gotten caught up in a violent turf war. Apparently,Tyrone was gone for good.

With no call from Tyrone, Sebastian had no way of knowing whether the man had reached Emilia or if he had been gunned down before ever meeting her.

"Damn it!" Sebastian exploded, smacking his palm against the steering wheel as anger welled up inside him. It felt like everything in his life was unraveling.

It started with his brother, who was attacked out of nowhere and left stuck in a hospital bed,nursing a busted hand.

Now this-news of Tyrone's death felt like fate was piling on every bit of bad luck it could find.

Bursting through the hospital doors, Sebastian stepped into Rodger's room and was met by the sound of Violet's tearful voice.

"I'm sorry, Rodger. I keep messing things up,even the easy ones..." Violet had been tending to Rodger as best as she could, but her inexperience showed every time she jostled his broken hand. She'd never needed to look after anyone before, and the awkwardness of it weighed heavy on her.

"Don't cry. You're doing fine," Rodger told her gently, his chest tightening at the sight of her red,swollen eyes.

For a moment, memories of Emilia tending to him flashed through his mind.

She never claimed to be an expert in the kitchen, but when it came to nursing him back to health, Emilia managed everything with confidence.

Through all that time, she had never once faltered or caused him pain. Emilia had handled his recovery with the competence of someone who had done it a hundred times before.