The hospital walls had begun to feel like a cage. Serena sat propped up against the pillows, her hands clasped together in her lap. Her mother had finally left to rest, Jade had shuffled out complaining of swollen ankles, and Chloe had dragged Maya to the cafeteria. For once, the room was quiet.
Too quiet.
Leo sat beside her bed, his hand locked around hers. His grip was warm, but it was tight — almost too tight, as if he feared she'd vanish if he let go.
"You should eat," she said softly, offering him a small smile.
"I'm not hungry." His voice was clipped, his gaze locked on her face.
Serena shifted uncomfortably. "Leo, you've barely slept. You've been here every hour—"
"Because I need to be," he cut in, his eyes flashing with an intensity that made her chest tighten. "What if something happens when I'm not around? What if…" His jaw tightened, the words strangled in his throat.
Serena squeezed his hand gently. "Nothing's going to happen. I'm safe now. You've done enough."
But instead of relief, her words only seemed to harden him. His grip tightened. "I haven't done enough. Not until I know you'll never be hurt again. Not until I know he—" He stopped abruptly, his gaze flicking toward the door where Dante had just entered.
Dante's presence sucked the air from the room. He leaned against the wall, silent, his sharp gaze flicking between them. His eyes lingered on Leo's hand around Serena's, and for the briefest moment, something dark and dangerous glinted there.
Serena felt it — the tension building like a storm, the silence pressing down on her chest. She wanted to ask, What aren't you telling me? But she swallowed the words, afraid of what the answer might be.
Leo's Memory – The Meeting
It had been raining that night. The city streets glistened under neon lights, puddles rippling as tires splashed through them. Leo pulled his hood low, his hands shoved into his jacket pockets as he slipped into the alley.
The man was already waiting, leaning casually against a rusted dumpster. His face was shadowed, the dim light never quite touching his features. But his voice — smooth, deliberate — cut through the air.
"You've done well, Leo. You're closer to her now. To both of them."
Leo's chest tightened. "You said you'd tell me everything about my father."
A pause. Then a chuckle that had no warmth in it. "Your father was betrayed. Vale and his loyal dog, Dante, spilled his blood. And now they walk free, while he rots in the ground."
Leo's fists clenched. His heart hammered painfully. "You're lying."
"Am I?" The man stepped closer, his shadow stretching across the wet pavement. "Why do you think Dante circles Serena like a vulture? Why do you think Vale's name has been scrubbed clean, like a saint? They rewrote history, boy. And you're the only one who can correct it."
Leo's breath came shallow, his anger boiling into something dangerous. "So what do you want me to do?"
"Stay close," the man whispered, his words curling like smoke. "Stay close until the moment comes. And when it does, you'll know what to do."
Leo hadn't answered then. He'd only nodded, blind to the fact that the man's truth was poison, dripping slowly into his veins.
Dante's Suspicion
From the shadows of the hospital corridor, Dante watched Leo leave Serena's room later that night. He didn't miss the way Leo glanced over his shoulder, the way his steps quickened as if heading to a rendezvous he didn't want anyone to know about.
Andres appeared beside Dante, leaning casually against the wall with his hands shoved in his pockets. "You were right again. He's slipping out."
Dante's jaw tightened. "Follow him. Don't lose him this time."
Andres tilted his head. "And if I catch him meeting that same shadow again?"
Dante's eyes darkened, his voice low and lethal. "Then I'll know this isn't just about Serena. It's about something bigger." He paused, his gaze flicking toward Serena's door. "And I'll know whose head to put a bullet in first."
The night outside was heavy with secrets. Leo was being drawn deeper into a web he didn't understand, Serena was trapped between love and danger, and Dante was ready to tear down the world to uncover the truth.
But in the shadows, the true puppet master smiled. His game had only just begun.