"There is this girl who stole my heart and she calls me, Daddy."

Did i update within four days only? Who am I xD?

And don't let the title deceive you, this is not a happy chapter..

******

Cara's POV

Softly, I clicked the door shut behind me, a complete contradiction to the violence that had rocked my inside minutes ago.

Silence swallowed me in, a deafening stillness that screamed of all my fears.

Ten excruciating seconds passed. Each of them was spent in contemplation, torn between the coward's way out of this or the path of brave. Torn between doing what's right and what's wrong.

The most terrifying part was I didn't know which direction was which.

Chills skidded across my flesh, and I breathed in, breathed out, found my strength and climbed up the stairs. My gaze immediately found Alex, standing by the window, his eyes focused outside, oblivious to what's about to happen.

A weird type of pain bore down my chest as I stared at him, it squeezed at my chest, almost suffocating me. I rubbed at it, hoping it'll just go away as I stepped closer to him. His eyes drifted from whatever was taking his attention, to me. I saw the bob in his throat, the hard swallow. I couldn't help but notice how this whole situation is beyond uncomfortable for him but still, he accepted it for me. He did it for me.

And now look what I am about to do to him.

"Did you get it?" He asked, his words measured; as if scared he may blurt something more.

I nodded my head, "I did." I carefully said, "Can we...can we leave?"

He nodded his head, his arm came around me from the side, his hand moved up and down the length of my arm, taking reassurance from my touch as he walked us both outside this house. The moment we crossed the main door, the cold air hit me, like a slap to the face, trying to shake me out of my haze. Chills raced through and prickled under the surface of my skin. I sucked into a deep breath, I almost choked on it and I halted in my steps.

Concern flared in Alex's voice, "Cara, are you okay?"

I lifted my head, my eyes met him and his words from before lingered in my head.

I couldn't afford to lose him twice.

I shook my head, "I can't do this." I can't do this to him.

"Nikolas has my gun," I started, "He is gonna, he is gonna hurt himself."

At my words, his arm around me tensed, his hand over my arm curled into a fist. His gaze left me for a second, he blinked, sucked into a deep breath before he settled them back on me, "Well, maybe...it's better this way." He said, surprising me at first before he continued walking toward the car, dragging me along with him.

I shook my head and stopped. I pulled myself away from him and faced him. I noticed how his whole body was out of control yet he still tried to pull a cool act about it. "It's okay, Alex." I assured him, "I understand." Just like he understood my motives behind this, I should be able to understand his.

I tiptoed, my hand went to his face, I inched closer and left a light kiss over his other cheek, my lips beside his ear, "I'll wait for you in the car." I said, "Just be careful."

********

Alex's POV

She walked away and climbed inside the car while I stayed still in my place. Her words raced through my mind, air heaved in and out of my lungs, jagged and coarse. A growl threatened to rumble from the base of my throat, I hated every fucking thing about this.

Despite the chilling air around me, I felt my skin on fire as the blood thundered through my veins. My pulse pounding so hard I couldn't see. Anxiety pushed me to my feet, all I felt was myself turning around and getting back inside into the house that harbored one of the most fucked up parts of my life.

I crossed the threshold and walked inside, my legs bounced with the nerves prodding my anxious feet and I found myself standing by the basement's door. My hand shot out, curled around the knob and slowly turned it open. I was first met by his back; he sat there, the gun in his hand, his eyes focused on the metallic weapon. His hand went to the side of his neck, scratching it, his nails leaving their mark over his skin. I heard his harsh breaths before he clicked the safety off, totally oblivious to my presence.

A part of me wanted to just stand there and watch, to witness something that would either solve everything or ruin it all. A sick part of me wanted to see him drown in his own blood, wanted to see life ever so slowly leave his body but as soon as the image flashed behind my eyes, I knew, I knew that I wouldn't enjoy it as much as I think I would.

God, I hate him, I hate him so much, for coming back into my life, for turning it upside down, for messing up with everything in it, and mostly...for becoming a big part of it again.

He pressed his eyes shut and he pulled his hand up, inched the gun to his head, pressed its barrel against his right temple, his finger hovering over the trigger, ready to end his miserable life. His action cut into the upheaval brewing up chaos in my mind and I warily moved forward, silencing my feet, keeping him unaware of my presence.

The moment I was close enough, my fingers wrapped around his wrist and within second, I moved the gun away. His body jerked in an alert, his shock made it easier to snatch the gun from his grip. His wide eyes flickered to me, "No, no, no.." panic flared in his voice as he shot forward to grab it again.

I moved backward, I didn't hesitate as I unloaded the bullets from the gun into the ground, the sound they made when they hit the floor echoed loud in the room before I tucked the gun into the back of my pants, depriving him of the chance of getting it again.

His bloodshot eyes flickered to the ground, where the bullets were scattered. The muscles of his jaw tightened, "You couldn't let me have this either, could you?" There was anger in his words, and there was pain. His gaze went back to me, his eyes telling a different story, "I was doing us both a favor."

I shook my head blankly, "Well, I don't wanna do you any favors."

Aggression spiked and rage brimmed in his eyes. He was beyond control at the moment. Everything flashed, a groan rumbled from his chest and he was in my face. He rushed me, shoving me in the chest till my back came in contact with the wall, his hand fisted around my shirt. A frenzy of madness lit in the green of his eyes, darkening them.

I didn't push him away or even try to stop him. I didn't even feel the constant rage that comes upon me by his presence. I could feel nothing at the moment, an excruciating numbness.

"If you're not gonna kill me, then what else are you going to do?!" He shifted on his feet, nerves rocked through him, but he still held his ground, glared at me while he spoke, "What do you want from me? What else you want to do to make me suffer more?"

I shook my head, "I don't know." I simply said, "Although the idea of you suffering more is so appealing, yet in fact, it's hilarious." Confusion drew his brows together, the rage that engulfed his features seemed to be slipping away, "I mean, what's...what's there left for you in this life?" I wasn't waiting for an answer.

I gave him a shrug, "Physical pain will move you to a hospital bed, and then what?"

His grip slowly loosened from over my shirt, my eyebrow raised and I questioned, "Mental pain?" I cocked my head forward, pointing at him, "I mean look at you, you've been tortured to the point that now you can't balance your mind without medications anymore." His hands totally left me, every other emotion slipped away leaving his eyes naked, vulnerable. "And lastly, emotional pain?" I carried on, "You felt that and more when your mother supposedly died in front of you-" Something pressed against my chest, squeezing my lungs, "You felt it when I left you and never came back."

His hand trembled at his side, he curled into a fist, and something that looks so much like hurt simmered in his eyes, "Who was there for you? Who helped you?" I questioned, "Who shared your pain?" A rush of air left me on a heavy exhale as I muttered, "Who fought for you?"

I shook my head, "No one." I edged forward, he only staggered backward, trying to run from the truth that is his life, "Your sins are unforgivable, Nikolas-" I said, "But...but what more can I do to you? What can I take from you when you literally have nothing?"

"You're fucked up, beyond messed up, and you're sick." My heart seized before it took off at a sprint, "But by the end of the day, there is a human in you, who still feels pain." Dread knotted my stomach, "There is a little kid in you who never had the chance to grow up."

His chest heaved with each breath he took; he shook his head, as if telling me to stop but I wasn't done yet. "I wish I came back for you," I said, the truth easily tumbled out, "I really do...I wish I didn't believe his words and still tried to find you." I added, "I wish I was there for you."

A lone tear escaped the corner of his eye, "Don't do this.." He mumbled, words couldn't normally part his lips.

I shook my head, "I am not doing anything."

His fingers harshly scratched the side of his neck as he nodded his head, "Yes, you're doing it again." Emotions tightened his voice, "You're giving me hope just so you can snatch it away later."

"I never did that," I stated.

"Yes, yes, you did and now-"He pointed his finger at me, "Now, you're faking this caring brother role just so I fall for it again, and when I do, you...you'll take it away, just...just like before, that's what you're trying to do, isn't it?"

I scoffed and my eyebrow raised, "You really do have issues, don't you?" I shook my head, "I am not like you, I am not trying to do anything. I just realized that they all were right, I need to let go of this before it reaches the point where it can't be fixed anymore." Where I can't be fixed anymore.

You need to give up on this revenge. You need to let it go. She was right, I need to do that. There are way more important things than this that deserves my attention. I've got people who I need to keep safe, I've got a daughter and another one on the way. I got this amazing girl who always puts me first; she could've left him to kill himself but she placed my comfort first and told me to stop him. I've got Ashton and Katherine, I've got my own family...so why am I focusing on those who ruined me instead of those who gave me everything?

I started to back away, "I am gonna keep the door opened," I said, "You want to leave, then leave, no one is going to stop you." With that said, I turned around and left this place, keeping the door opened as I walked away.

All I ever needed was to look past the anger, to admit the fucked up truth, to put my priorities in order, and to face the fact that darkness is not for me. It only suffocated me, it took a big chunk of me and that scared me.

You see, fearing the darkness can be good sometimes, the real tragedy is when you fear the light.

And that's, that's what's keeping Nikolas from returning from the abyss he threw himself into long ago.

********

The rest of the day went in a blur. Cara and I didn't mention what happened again and to that I was grateful. I just want to put all of this behind me and move on.

As I was passing by Linda's room, I heard what sounded like someone crying. I paused in my steps, confusion drew my brows together as her low sniffs echoed from behind the slightly-opened door. I lightly knocked on it before I carefully pushed it open. My gaze fell on her, sitting by the bed's edge, her hand wiping the mess from over her cheeks when she noticed my presence.

Not wasting a second, I stepped inside before I crouched in front of her, "Hey, what's wrong?" I asked. She kept her head hanging low, not meeting my eyes on purpose. My chest tightened and I gently placed my hand under her chin and lifted her head up, "What happened?" I asked, concern filled my tone as her teary eyes fell on mine.

She shook her head and wiped her cheeks again, "Uh- nothing." She tried to smile but miserably failed.

"Did Liam tell you anything?" I said when I remembered their earlier encounter, "Because believe me, even though he is huge, I'll go and kick his ass." I'll probably just get my ass kicked in return but that's okay.

She sniffled and a small smile tugged at her lips, "He didn't." She placed her hand over mine, "Just...it's just seeing him reminded me of everything I was trying to forget."

My eyebrows pulled together, "So you and Liam, huh?" I still winced at the thought, "I think I was too innocent to notice that back then." She nodded her head, only making my curiosity grow more. I moved and sat by her side, "So, what happened?" I asked, "If you only want to take about it, I mean."

Her hand curled into a fist over her thigh, a low sigh parted her lips, "You probably know about when Nikolas's father attacked us, after he got his son back;" She started to explain, "He declared war on Frank and he planned it so carefully and that day, a lot of people died."

"We were in our room and Liam heard the noises outside, he strictly told me not to get out of the room and he left, I told him not to but he said it's his job and he has to." She said and shook her head helplessly, as if hoping she can turn back the past and change it all, "There were so many gunshots, I got..I got so scared, I couldn't just stay inside, I had to do something. So, I took one of Liam's guns and did the one thing he told me not to...I left the room, one of the men has already shot him and he was going to do it again so I did the only logical thing...I, I killed that man." Her voice shook a little, "I immediately ran toward Liam, he was bleeding on the floor, but...but--"

When she left her words hanging, I asked the thought running through my head, "Did...did you get hurt?"

She nodded, "The only thing I remember after was waking up in the hospital, to know that I survived but...but my baby didn't." My eyes widened and my head shot to her direction, "Wha..what?"

She turned to me and a couple of tears slipped through, "I was nine months pregnant then, it was a boy, it was only a matter of days before I was supposed to give birth. He was a baby, a little baby and they...they killed him."

Her words pulled at my heart, "I am...I am so sorry." I didn't know what to even say so I placed my arm around her back and pulled her closer, she placed her head over my shoulder and silently cried. I can only imagine how hard that was on her, on them, "I didn't know...god, I am so sorry," I said as I gently stroked her back.

"You know," She pulled away and faced me. She wiped her cheek and a somber smile came to her lips, "I was gonna name him Alex."

Her words stole the air from my lungs and I only tightened my hold over her. I apologized again, I don't why, it's just I hated how my dear father and uncle ruined everyone's life in the name of their vengeance. That's why I did what I did, I really don't want us to turn into them. I hope it's not too late for that at least.

After talking with Linda a bit more, I tried to divert her attention away from the subject before I left her to rest. I walked down the stairs, searching for Cara and my little bug. Cara wasn't anywhere in sight, but Lilly was sitting on the couch in the living room, looking at the iPad in her hands. When I stepped closer is when I noticed that she is crying.

What the fuck?

"Hey, little bug, what's wrong?" I asked as I sat by her side. Why is everyone crying today?

She lifted her eyes from the iPad and looked at me, the tears streaming down her cheeks broke my heart into a million piece. My gaze drifted to the iPad's screen to see what made her cry but the moment my eyes fell on it, she muttered that word again, crashing any little hope I had left in me, "Daddy." She said as she cried more.

My eyes stayed focused there, staring at the picture of them; Lilly's eyes were on the camera, probably the one who is taking the picture, smiling wide, while he had his face buried in her cheek, kissing her with all he had in him. For other people, in different circumstances, the picture would be perfect, it reflected something so pure but at this moment it only tightened the muscle beating against my ribcage.

Lilly inched the iPad closer to her chest and hugged it as her cries increased, "Daddy," She muttered again between her sobs, "I want daddy."

The fact that she didn't mention him for so long made me almost think that she forgot about him, but no, it's never that easy. To her, he is her dad, forgetting him is going to take much more than a couple of months.

I roughed a hand over my face trying to kick away the bit of anger that started to rise within me. I sucked into a deep breath and my gaze went back to her when she tugged on the sleeves of my shirt. "Alis," She muttered my name with so pain, she hiccupped a sob, "Daddy," She rubbed at her teary eyes, "I want daddy."

I shook those overwhelming feelings away, I took the iPad from her hands and placed aside before I took her into my arms and placed her over my lap, my hand went to her face and wiped the tears from over her cheeks away. I held her face in my hands, "When will you open your eyes and see that he is right here in front of you." I muttered, my voice low, I knew she won't understand so I only placed my arms around her, pulled her to my chest and hugged her little body, I kissed her head before I buried my nose in her hair, taking into her scent.

She sniffled and her arms went around my waist, hugging me back. I know that she got more than used to me in the couple past months but I can't deny that it still breaks my heart whenever she calls me Alex and not dad.

"What's wrong?" Cara's worried voice pulled me out of my thoughts. I lifted my head to see her standing by our side, her eyes on Lilly, concern drew her brows together before she sat down, her hand came to Lilly's cheek, "Oh baby, why you are crying?"

Lilly pulled away from my chest and rubbed her eyes, "Mommy-" She said making Cara inch closer and wipe the tears from over her cheeks, "I want daddy...go daddy." She mumbled, her words not so clear, overcovered with her tears, "Please."

I felt Cara's body tense, her eyelids dropped down for a second before she opened them again. She took Lilly's fisted hand and inched it to her lips, she left a kiss over it and tried to say, "Sweetie, didn't we talk about this, he..he is not here anymore." She said, "Please, understand that."

Lilly shook her head and still mumbled incoherent words. Cara sucked into a breath, her hands went around her, "Come here, let me take you to bed, it's getting late." Lilly pushed herself away from Cara and stayed in my lap, she placed her head over my chest and wrapped her arms around my waist. I gave Cara a reassuring look, "It's okay, I'll take care of this."

With my hands wrapped around this little girl, I stood up and went to her room. I carefully placed her over the bed and stayed by her side, I took her favorite teddy bear from beside the bed and handed it to her. She took it and hugged it so tight, her teary eyes looking at me with so much heartbreak, as if she just lost something...and deep inside, I wished I can give her what she wants.

I know she is young and with time she'll forget and get over it, but now she thinks she lost her dad and that only makes me want to show her otherwise because none of this is her fault. That's what this little girl has done to me, she stole my heart and apparently I haven't stolen hers yet.

I stroked her hair, she still asked for him but after all the crying, exhaustion weighted her body down and she fell asleep after. I thought this would be like any other time, she'll ask for him, she'll fall asleep and in the morning she'll just forget.

Oh, but how wrong I was.

This had affected her more than I thought. When I left her side, she woke up and again started crying, even worse than before, her hysterical cries brought Cara into the room but even her mother couldn't get her to stop crying this time. She still asked for him, she refused to sleep, and she still cried. Midnight came and she was still giving us both a hard time.

After hours, she started to fall asleep again but her tears never stopped as her body spiraled into exhaustion. Cara stayed by her side to make sure she is fully asleep while I left the room, I couldn't stay more. This was getting out of hand. I went down to the kitchen and poured myself a cup of water but before I even drank it, the rage and the anger that took over my inside made me throw it into the sink, breaking it into pieces.

Letting go isn't as easy as it sounds, how can I do it when everything around me still reminds of what has passed?

A hand over my shoulder almost made me flinch but I calmed myself when I realized whose hand it is and turned around to face her, "Are you okay?" she asked. I took in the air around me and nodded my head, "Yeah," I rubbed at my eyes before I settled them on her, "But what if this keeps happening?" I asked, unsure of how to handle it. If only she can hate him as everyone else does, how great would that be?

Cara gave me a helpless shrug, she didn't seem okay with this fact either, "I don't know, I don't know how I can make her understand.."

"Tomorrow she may wake up and not ask about him but after some time, she is gonna remember and gonna do all of this again.. god did you see how she was crying, it's like she's in pain, I don't want her to feel like this." Frustration seeped between my words and the question that parted my lips after surprised us both, "Would it be too bad if I took her to see him one last time?" If he's still in there, which most probably he isn't...

I don't know what am I even saying, I think I need some sleep, my mind is going out of control. Told you, this little girl stole my heart and the little bit of sense left in me.

Cara's eyes widened and she gulped as she assessed my words. After a short while of silence, "What if it made things worse?" She asked.

"I don't know." I mumbled, "I just can't see her like this." I really can't, she is my everything, if she got hurt in any way, what will I do?

I mean if he is the one who told her that he can't see her anymore, maybe she'll get it from him, maybe it's better than him just disappearing from her life with no explanation. I don't know how to think about this or how her little mind is adjusting to the idea but she's too young to encounter the loss of someone.

"Let's just go to sleep," I rubbed at my eyes tiredly, "We'll see what'll happen in the morning."

Before going to sleep, I texted Ronald to go and check on Nikolas in the morning, to see if he's still there or left, and depending on that, I'll see what will I do.

*********

The morning came faster than it should, I woke up to the ringing of my phone. I squinted when my eyes tried to read the name flashing through the bright screen. A yawn escaped past my lips, I closed my eyes again before I brought the phone to my ear and answered, "Hello."

"Hey," Ronald's voice echoed from the other side, "He's still here." He said making me snap my eyes open. What the actual fuck?

I got up from my sleeping position, I looked beside me to see Cara's side empty. I ignored that, "He is? Are you sure?" I asked, still trying to understand. I mean is he stupid or something?

"Yup, it's either that or there is another person who looks awfully a lot like him sitting here." He sarcastically said making me roll my eyes. "Okay...I want you to pick up a few things before you meet me there again." I said and filled him in before I hung up.

An hour later, Ronald and I met at the same place, he gave me what I asked him to get before I went down to see why this bitch didn't leave.

My eyes fell on him when I got inside, sitting on the ground, his back against the wall, sweat drenched his forehead and his eyes pressed shut. I moved closer, his harsh breaths enveloping the silence of the room.

When I got closer I noticed how his face contoured in pain, he pressed his eyes harder, his hand pressed to his temple and he was practically panting. He pressed his head harder against the wall before he edged it forward a fraction and hit it against the wall. He did it again.

I crouched by his side, my hand went to the back of his head, rested against the wall so when he tried to hit it again, the back of his head pressed against my palm. His eyelids slowly glided open, the white of his eyes now is red as he looked back at me, "Alex," He whispered.

My brows drew together, "What are you still doing here?"

He didn't answer, I sighed before I said, "Well, look what I got you." I said as I held the pill's bottle, showing it to him. Air pushed from his lungs before he marched forward, his fingers wrapped around it, almost snatching it away from me.

His shaky fingers opened the cap, he winced at something before he pressed his palm against his temple again, as if trying to contain some inner-pain. He turned the bottle to drop some of the pills into his palm but his shaking hand made them fall and most of them scattered on the ground. He groaned and tried to reach for them, "Okay, hold on," I said as I took two of them, I took his hand and placed them over his palm before I inched his shaking hand to his mouth.

I took the water bottle from beside me and handed it to him, he placed it to his mouth and gulped the water, swallowing down the pills. His breathing started to even before he pressed his back against the wall and tried to calm his nerves.

"Get back to yourself," I said making his eyes fall back on me, "And get the hell out of here."

With that, I stood up and left the basement. On my way up, my phone rang, I took it out to see Cara's name flash through the screen. I pressed answer and held it to my ear, "I just left, you already missed me." I teasingly said.

I heard her low laugh, "No, I am gonna go to Katherine's, I am gonna help her pack, do you want to come?" She asked.

"I can't, I got something to do." There are few people Ronald knows about that may be able to help in this whole situation of me being trapped in this world. I am gonna go and check, maybe there is a way out of this, "But I can pass by when I finish."

"Okay great." she said, "Lilly fell asleep again so I am gonna leave her with Linda and also Kathrine told me that Chase is sick so I don't want her to catch it too." She added, one thing I am thankful for is that she didn't ask for Nikolas this morning.

"Okay, but don't go alone, I'll send you Ronald," I said, not liking the idea of her going on her own, "He'll drive you there."

********

Cara's POV

"So, how did you and Alex meet?" I couldn't help but ask Ronald as I leaned forward in my seat, trying to let time pass as he drove me to Katherine's, "Did you use to work for his father?"

His eyes met mine for a second from the rearview mirror and he shook his head, "Not exactly, but you can say we met through his father." He said before his eyes went to the side mirror for the umpteenth time since we took off.

I kept my investigation going on, "So, how old are you?" He kind of looks young, probably Roman's age. He took another look at the side mirror before he answered, confirming my theory, "Twenty three." He said. "Oh, you're so young," I commented, in return, he gave me a boyish smile. He is so cute.

Silence enveloped us after for a couple of minutes as I couldn't find any more questions to ask. My eyebrows pulled together when he suddenly took a different turn, "Why did you come from this way?" I asked as my eyes drifted around before they went back to him. He didn't seem to listen to me, his eyes were on the side mirror, his brows drew together and his jaw tightened before he cursed something under his breath.

I felt him speed the car more as he took his phone and dialed someone. My heart raced in my chest, something just didn't feel right. He placed the phone to his ear, his eyes drifting from the road to the side mirror within each passing second.

"We're being followed," Ronald said through his phone. My eyes widened and I immediately turned around, there were few cars behind us and I didn't get which one was following us and why.

"I don't know," Ronald said, "I noticed it a few minutes ago but they were keeping their distance at the beginning-" His eyes were on the side mirror, "Shit! They're not keeping their distance anymore which can only mean they're not just following us, Alex, they're here to attack."

Oh my god, what's happening?

"Yeah, wait-" He said before he looked at me through the rearview mirror and said, "Send Alex your live location now." I didn't question and immediately did as I was asked.

"Okay be fast though, I can see the car is full, I won't be able to take them on my own," Ronald said, his words only making me panic even more.

"Of course I will," He said, his eyes on me from the mirror, probably talking about me, "Don't worry."

He moved the phone away from his ear and handed it to me, "He wants to talk to you."

I immediately took it from him, my fingers shaking over the phone as I placed it to my ear, "Alex," I said, breathing in his name, trying to calm myself.

"Hey cupcakes, I am gonna be there as fast as I can, okay." His words tried to assure me but I sensed the underlying panic behind them. I nodded my head even though he couldn't see me, "Don't worry, nothing is gonna happen to you, I promise." He added, I heard the sound of the engine roaring to life from his side as he probably took off.

"I know." My voice was low as my hand involuntary went to my belly, almost in a protective way. My eyes lifted up when I felt Ronald speeding even faster, with one hand over the steering wheel, he used the other to pull his gun from the back of his pants.

Alex said something but I didn't quite hear it, his words weren't clear so I removed the phone from over my ear and looked at the screen, it showed a poor signal before the light slowly disappeared from around us as we entered a tunnel. The call ended immediately and I tossed the phone to the front seat.

My eyes went to the back, few cars here and there but the black SUV following us couldn't be missed, they were closer now and the faster Ronald sped, the faster they took off, trying to leave no space between us.

Nerves jackhammered my heart into a frenzy when my eyes noticed the guy in the passenger seat moving his upper body outside of the window, a gun in his hand. My eyes widened, I ducked down and probably screamed, "Ronald, be careful!"

It all happened in fast motion, the car jerked, light rushed in as we exited the tunnel, gunshots echoed in the air. I hesitantly lifted my eyes to the window to see a different car coming to our direction, the driver and Ronald noticed each other at the same time, both took a hard turn in an attempt to escape the crash.

My mind spun as the car moved in ways I couldn't make sense of. Ronald swore as the '69 Chevy who was coming at us slammed back down to the pavement. "Slow the hell-!" The man tried to scream but his voice disappeared when Ronald picked up the pace and drove faster.

The sudden sound of a bullet sounded deafening before the rear windshield exploded, shards like bullets peppering the interior leather. I swerved away, screaming as I felt some of the glass penetrate into the skin of my arm.

The car spun, wheels trailing smoke around the corner and the car kept moving faster.

"Are you okay?!" Ronald panicked words penetrated through the frenzy that lit up in my brain. I tried to find my voice, "Yeah," I said, I needed him to concentrate on the road, not on me.

The SUV became closer now, almost driving by our side, "Stay down!" Ronald ordered me, his words came out loud, before he aimed his gun and fired back at them.

Swearing filled the air from their side. I ignored it and stayed down.

More gunshots sounded out, Ronald returning fire on those giving us the chase.

Harsh breaths panted from my mouth before I carefully lifted my head up. My heart slammed against my chest as I noticed we are about to crash, "Ronald!" I chant-screamed at him to notice the road before I marched forward and yanked the steering wheel. I turned it to the furthest right. Tires screamed in agony, smoke and burnt rubber filling the air inside the car.

Ronald caught on what's about to happen and tried to control the car. My body slammed back against the seat as a reflex before I felt us hit into something, but it wasn't as harsh as I expected. The car stopped, the noises from before became faint, all I could hear is the loud thumping of my heart, the sound of my harsh breaths as they tried to make it in and out of my tightened chest.

Ronald looked over his shoulder, his wild eyes inspecting me, I immediately nodded my head, silently assuring him that I am fine, but...am I? I can feel a bile rise up to my throat and dizziness swarm over my vision. I swallowed past the lump in my throat and rubbed at my eyes, trying to kick that overwhelming feeling away.

His eyes traveled behind me and he swore under his breaths. I turned to notice what he saw. The SUV had crashed into another car, meters away from us, but three of the men in it were making their way out of it, some of them hurt, some of them not.

They're still more than ready to attack.

Ronald opened the glove box and took a gun from it, he handed it to me and said, "Just in case," before he loaded his own gun, "I am gonna have to go and distract them," his eyes drifted to me, "You have to run, as fast as you can, run away from here, I'll try to keep them away the longest I can-" I saw the bob in his throat, "Keep your phone with you so Alex can find you."

Struggling for a breath, I said, "They're gonna hurt you."

He threw me a look, that showed he didn't care about that fact. He nodded his head, "The important thing that you don't get hurt." With that, he opened the door and left the car after adding, "Do as I said."

I slammed my eyes shut for a mere second and tried to kick all the negative thoughts away, my fingers tightened over the gun he gave me and sucked into a deep breath. I can fight my way out of this one. I assured myself.

A knock on the window by my side made my whole body go out of control. My chest jerked and my wide eyes lifted up to meet my intruder. "Open the door," He mouthed to me.

Air rushed fast into my lungs and confusion drew my brows together. I knew him. He is...He is one of Nikolas's men.

He looked around him before he turned to me, "Come on, open the door." He urgently said.

I didn't understand but my body acted on its own and unlocked the door, making him open it right away, he extended his hand, "Come with me." He said before his eyes went to his left, "Come on, we don't have much time."

I stared at his extended hand, "Wha..who..you, you are one of Nikolas's men?" It was more of a statement than a question. He nodded his head, "Yes, I am gonna get you out of here, I'll get you somewhere safe."

The sound of gunshots broke into my haze and I knew I had no choice but to accept his help. I stepped outside and he immediately took a grip of my arm and pulled me away from there, his steps hurried as we walked to the side of the road, going into the line of the trees that led to the forest.

"What about Ronald?" I tried to ask as I looked back but he tugged at my arm, pulling me faster, "Don't worry, the others are helping him." He said, "We need to be fast, there are more of them around here."

I had too many questions to ask, like how did Nikolas's men know that I am being followed? Or how did they get here that fast? but I had to suck it up for now and swallow them down.

The guy abruptly stopped making me crash into his back. My eyes took a look to the side and noticed the man standing a few meters away, his hand at the back of his pant, pulling his gun out.

"Once I get to him, you run to the right, keep going right and she'll get you there." The guy said, his voice low, only for me to hear before he let go of my arm and marched forward toward our attacker.

I didn't waste a second and I did as I was told, I took off and ran to my right. Something in me told me that I can trust him and I have no idea why.

But wait... who is she?

I ignored that thought and kept running, the adrenaline rushing through my veins was enough to keep me moving. I gasped when a hand circled around my arm from the back and spun me around. I screamed when I came face to face with one of them.

His head tilted, "Look what we got here." He commented amusedly.

This isn't a time where I can allow myself to be weak, so I went with my instincts. Everything Roman ever taught me rushed back and the adrenaline made my heart pump harder and I went for it. With my hand I grabbed his arm and twisted it around, hard enough for him to let go of me. The moment I was free, I aimed my gun and shot him in the leg. He groaned in agony before his leg went down, failing him. "You bitch!" he said through gritted teeth.

I smiled in satisfaction before I turned around and ran off. I felt him follow me, staggering forward as he tried to keep up with my pace. Even with his injured leg, he was good enough to almost catch me but I tried to not give him that chance.

I did the stupidest thing someone in my situation would do, I turned around for a mere second to check if he's still behind me but in that same moment, I tripped over something and I almost fell.

Just an advice, never look back when you're running away from someone...NEVER!

My hand shot out to save my body and I went down on my elbow. I winced as the pain radiated from my arm through every cell in my body but I was thankful for the fact that I didn't fall on my back or front. I'd rather have my arm broken than something bad happens to my baby.

The man stopped a meter away from me as I tried to get myself up, he laughed...he freaking laughed at my helpless position, "Looks like-" His words were interrupted by the sound of a gunshot. My brows pulled together when I noticed it didn't come from him. My eyes widened when he dropped to the ground in front of me, his eyes still opened as blood seeped from his head.

I edged my body backward from his dead one before my gaze lifted up to see who just saved me. She was holding her gun out with one hand, in her other hand, there was a...cookie. She placed it in her mouth and lowered her gun down, "Next time, aim for the head, not the leg." She said as she chewed on her cookie as if it's the most important thing to do. She extended her hand, in an attempt to help me get up, "You're welcome by the way." She said as a smile made its way to her lips.

My jaw tightened and I tried to get myself up on my own. "And the bitch of the millennium is here," I mumbled annoyed as I steadied myself on shaky feet. I winced when pain shot out of my ankle and I grabbed onto the tree beside me to balance myself.

Great, my arm and my ankle. I bet I won't make it out of this one alive.

Emma chuckled, "Suck it up, I just saved your ass."

I shot her a glare, "Why would you save my ass anyway?" I said, "Last time I checked we hated each other."

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over chest, "We still do." She mumbled, "I am just doing my job over here, you're my brother's wife and-"

"I am not anymore," I said, interrupting her. It felt good to say it out loud. I am not his wife, not anymore.

Her eyebrows pulled together before she shrugged, as if she could care less, "Whatever, I am only following his orders, he said to keep an eye on you and we did." She said, explaining how fast they got here...they were already here.

"Although, I'd much rather you dead than alive-" Her lips curled up, "At least, Alex would be free again and I can swoop in and-" She couldn't finish her words as I staggered forward and grabbed her jacket's neck in my hand, "Continue that sentence and I'll take your advice and go for the head this time!" I harshly spat out. I meant it.

A laugh rumbled from her chest before she threw her head back, "Thank god, I was just trying to trigger that fighter in you!" She said, confusing me at first. Her brow raised, "Oh come on, seriously now, Alex is hot but still, he is my cousin, that's just...ewww." She fake-flinched at the idea.

My hand loosened from around her and I backed away a fraction, "But that didn't stop you before."

She rolled her eyes, "Because I didn't know he was my cousin!" She sighed, "Why no one believes me when I say that Nikolas never told me anything. Everything I knew I just discovered it on my own...I knew Nikolas was after Alex and I knew there was an uncle in the story but I didn't know the details, I didn't know that Alex and I are related, not till he knew himself."

"Now keep that fighter in you awake and let's go kick some ass." She said as she clicked the safety of the gun on and started to walk away, "We are not gonna wait for some lousy men to save us, are we?"

I picked up my gun from the floor and tried to ignore the pain in my ankle as I followed her. Her other hand went into her pocket and fished out another cookie, she took the wrapping off, and extended it to my direction, "A cookie?" She asked, in a cheery voice. She is weird.

Does she keep those in her pants?

For real though...

"Killing makes me hungry." She explained ever so innocently when she noticed the weirded out looks I was giving her. She took the first bite and continued walking. Seriously, what kind of people I got myself stuck with?

"There is something that doesn't quite feel right." She mumbled, more to herself, out of the blue, as if she was thinking the whole thing through.

"What?" I asked, confused.

She turned to me, concentration edged her brow, her green eyes drawn into a deep furrow, "That man over there, he could've killed you right away, but he didn't. I mean you were practically running in front of him, he could've shot you and got rid of you in seconds, so why didn't he?"

I didn't understand where she was going with this, "What do you mean?"

She bit at her lower lip, deep in her thoughts, "I mean, if these people aren't here to kill you, then what are they here for?"

If my panic could take a higher level, it just did. Her words hit a place in my brain and I tried to think it through but that was interrupted when we heard noises from somewhere near us. Our eyes searched around before they fell over at a distance at people fighting, "Is that.. is that Roman?" My eyes widened as I saw him push one of the guys to the ground.

My instincts pushed me to run and go help him but Emma grabbed my arm and stopped me, "You stay here, I'll take care of this," She said as her eyes drifted to my stomach before they went back to my face, "If they're here to kill you then I wouldn't want my nephew or niece over there to get hurt." She gave me a wink before she took off.

I stood in my place and eyed them but one of the guys almost shot Roman and I was about to run off and help him in any way I can but all of a sudden, I felt a hand come to my mouth from the back and an arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me away. I was about to scream or even bite this person's hand but when his scent engulfed my senses, I relaxed into his arms. Thankfulness thudded my heart and my eyelids dropped for a second. I suddenly felt safe.

His hand loosened from over my mouth, I tipped my head back to take a look at him. He looked down at me, his back pressed against the tree, holding me, his fingers feathered over my lips, "Shush," Left his lips in a mere whisper before he tipped his head to the left and looked at something or more like someone.

His arms slowly left me and he gently pushed me to the side; One of the men passed just beside us, he didn't get a chance to notice us as Alex marched forward and grabbed him, he kicked him hard in the stomach, taking him off guard before he grabbed the back of his hair and harshly slammed his head against the tree. The guys' eyes rolled back and his body limply fell to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Alex's soft words grabbed my attention back to him, he stepped forward, his eyes inspecting my face and body, they fell on my bruised arm and they widened, "Shit, what happened?!" Worry seeped out of his words before he gently took my arm, I winced when his fingers ran over where the glass once penetrated.

I shook my head and pulled my arm out of his grip, "I am fine." I said and stepped even closer, I needed him to be close. My hand went to his face, turning his gaze from my injury to my eyes. The muscles of his jaw were tight underneath my touch, his rage-filled eyes met mine and when I looked at him this time, is when I noticed that he isn't okay either. His hair a mess and there was blood at his right temple, it dripped down making me gasp, my hand went there, "What happened?"

He shook his head and wiped it away, there was blood on his hand too, "Nothing important." His blood-free hand came to my face and held it, "I am never letting you leave my sight again, you get that?" He inched my face closer to his, our foreheads met, harsh breaths punched out of his nose, "I was so scared," He mumbled before one of his hands went to the back of my head, pulling me closer before his lips took mine, his other hand holding the side of my neck as he took me with so much need.

I kissed him back, letting the closeness relief some of my spiked up nerves.

Our lips broke their contact, but our bodies didn't. His eyes left me for a second only, he looked over my shoulder, his body tensed and all I felt was his hand over my arm, pushing me away. I staggered to the right, my hand shot out and held onto the tree. I turned to make sense of what just happened to see a bullet being fired from Alex's gun, it hit the man standing at a distance. It went right through his head, knocking the gun from his hand before his dead body collapsed to the ground.

My eyes widened as they stayed focused on the man's dead body, inches away from us, I eyed the dark-red liquid that steadily left his head. Alex standing just by my side, I felt his eyes on me but I didn't dare to look at him yet. My heart thumped harder, I felt the oxygen leave my lungs as a certain sentence echoed in my head.

I saw your father kill a man. My mother's words rang in my ear. He killed him, with no remorse, no guilt or whatsoever. I didn't see your dad, I didn't see the man I fell in love with. I saw a monster. 

My eyes went back to Alex and...I didn't see that. No, I didn't see a monster as she saw.

I saw a man who is ready to do anything for me.

"Did I hurt you when I pushed you?" Concern drew his eyebrows as he inched closer to me. A smile tugged at my lips and I shook my head, "No, you didn't, you can never hurt me."

I saw my Alex.

He sighed in relief, "Let me get you out of here, it's not safe." He placed his arm around me and walked us both away.

"Alex," I stopped and faced him. I needed to clear one thing out. I shook my head, "I am never leaving again, I want you to be sure of that," I said, referring to his words from the night before. My hand went to his side, my fingers intertwined with his, with the hand that had blood on it, not his blood. I looked him in the eye, the red crimson blood tainting both of our hands now, "We're in this together."

********

Roman's POV

The bitch took me down. We crashed to the ground, he scrambled to pin me down as I fought back, trying to take control again. He cocked his elbow back, ready to attack. I lifted my upper body, trying to break free. Pain split my consciousness as he rammed his fist so hard to the side of my head making me fall back again.

"You son of a bitch," I mumbled with a low groan. I am so going to kill Alex later for leaving me alone with these fuckers.

I didn't understand what happened, I no longer felt his body above mine. I blinked rapidly trying to clear my vision as she pulled him away from me, she took him way off-guard, she used her whole arm to lift up his head, pushing down on his shoulders and up on the chin and the back of his skull. Within a swift motion, she pulled his neck up and twisted it at a certain angle. My eyes widened as the man dropped down to the ground, his neck positioned at a very uncomfortable angle. She freaking snapped his neck. SHE FREAKING SNAPPED HIS NECK. I have never done that...What the hell?

Her eyes fell on me, she smiled, "Don't worry, if there is anyone who is gonna kill you, it's gonna be me." She extended her hand to help me. I ignored her and pulled myself up on my own. Dizziness took over me, holy shit, that bitch knocked the life out of me with that punch. I felt her inch closer, her hand came to the side of my head, her fingers wiped the blood away.

My jaw tightened, "What are you doing here again?"

She shrugged, "Saving your sister," She said with a smile, "And apparently, saving you too," she placed her hand over my shoulder and she sighed dreamily, "Looks like fate keeps bringing us together."

I shot her a glare, "Believe me, whatever this is, it's definitely not fate." My eyes went over her shoulder and noticed the four other men on their way toward us. I sighed loudly, how many more of these are out here?

"I'll take two, you take two." She said as she turned around, "Or should I take three, since our little princess got herself knocked to the ground." She mocked me with a low chuckle. Air harshly pushed out of my lungs, "I got your back, Romy." She said seriously, her back pressed against mine as each of us handled two of them.

One tried to distract me and the other tried to knock the life out of me again but now that I am standing, I am the one in control. My arms shot out when the other almost punched me while I kneed the other in the guts, giving myself time to fight one at a time.

"So, I thought you-" A punch to the guys face, "You stopped working with Nikolas." Another punch.

She sighed, my peripheral vision showed me as she knocked one of the guys down, "Yeah, I wasn't." She said, her breaths short as she shot him.

My focus was on the guy whose leg kicked to catch me off guard, but I backed away, my hand shot to his leg and I twisted it making him drop down before I took my gun off the ground, aimed and shot.

One by one. Still even.

"I actually bought a flat in the city," She said, fighting the left guy from her side, she grabbed the back of his hair and pulled his head down before she elbowed him the neck, a sensitive spot that pulled him down to his knees, "You should pass by sometimes."

I pushed my guy away, shoving him as I slammed his body against the nearest tree, "Yeah, maybe I will." I said, hoping she'd get the sarcasm in my tone as I rammed my fist into the guy's face.

"Oh, I even did as you said," She said and I swear I heard the sound of another neck snap from behind me, I ignored that and kept my fight with this guy, feeling his bones crack underneath my hits, "I joined acting classes."

That was enough to take my attention off the guy I am trying to kill and turn back to look at her, "What?" I asked, unable to make sense of what she just told me.

Pain pulsed through my skull and I staggered backward as that son of a bitch sucker-punched me. I literally gave him the chance. A shot fired and I looked to see him drop to the ground, "I killed three of them, so I win, right?" She said, a mischievous look in his eyes as she lowered her arm, "And yeah, I joined acting classes, don't be so shocked, you knew I was born with a talent."

This girl is beyond crazy, "You're unbelievable."

She giggled and stepped closer, "Actually, I have a class after this," She mumbled before she ran her hands from my chest up to my shoulders, "We're re-doing fifty shades of grey...Wanna help me practice?" She gave me a wink and pulled her lower lip between her teeth, "You can be the Christian to my Anna."

I don't know what made me do what I did next, was it the fact that I was just punched twice to the head, or the fact we just killed four people while having a normal conversation, or the fact that she killed three of them without even blinking or just the fact that she just looked so fucking irresistible at the moment...My hand shot out and grabbed the back of her head, fisting a chunk of her hair, I pulled her face and possessively took her lips in mine. She didn't hesitate as she kissed me back, my tongue grazed her lower lip before I pushed in, demanding access. Her hands left my shoulder and tangled around my neck, his fingers dove into my hair. She grabbed harder when I tugged at her lower lip and let go.

It didn't even take her a second before she was the one claiming my lips again, I felt her pushing me backward, trying to take control as my back came in contact with the tree, she sucked at my tongue, teased and nipped driving my body crazy.

It was never like this between us, this kiss was so much different than before.

It wasn't romantic. No, there were no emotions in this.

It was only pure lust.

********

Alex's POV

"Oh my fucking god!" I cringed at the scene ahead of me. They broke their kiss and faced us. I shivered and looked away, "I need to forget this, god, I really need to forget this." I am so going to throw up. I need to erase this image from my head, forever.

Alex, think of something else, think of something else.

"I am so going to kill him later," Cara mumbled from beside me as she shot Roman a hard glare. Oh thank god, it is not just me finding a trouble digesting this.

Roman scratched the back of his head, looking guilty as fuck, I gave him an are-you-serious look, his jaw tightened and looked away. Liam showed up from behind the trees and made his way toward us, his presence easing some of the awkwardness of the situation.

When we first got here, each went in different directions, trying to find Cara. Much to my surprise, I found a lot of my dear brother's men here, and now his dear sister is here as well, making out with Roman.

I cringed again. I really need to forget this.

"Okay, let's just get out of here," I said, they all nodded and we made our way out of the forest and back to the main road where our cars are.

The ringing of my phone made me stop dead in my tracks. It wasn't the usual ringing tone when someone calls me, no, it was something else. Roman's wide eyes shot to mine, he understood that too.

I pulled the phone out of my pocket, eyeing the alarm blaring across the screen, confirming my theory, "No, no, no-" I mumbled, out of breath, my heart skipped a panicked beat, the anxious breath I was holding, blew from my lungs.

"What?" Cara asked, confused and worried by our reaction.

"That's.. that's the security system in the house," I said. Oh please no this, anything but this, "Someone broke into the house."

It took her only seconds before her eyes widened in horror, "Lilly!" She gasped.

Realization dawned on me, the whole fucking point of this attack finally made sense, "This all was just a distraction." The moment the words parted my lips, I was running toward my car.

Cara followed me, ready to get into the car. I stopped her, "No. Cara, all they want is you. You can't go." I turned to Roman, "Take her out of here, somewhere safe."

"But Alex," A tear slipped from her eye as she assessed the whole situation.

"I'll go get her." I wanted to promise her but I couldn't. My father's plan already making sense in my head. He wants to use my weakness, the one girl who can bring me down to my knees, he is gonna use her against me. The girl who stole my heart...he is gonna hurt her, my heart felt like it would ram a hole right through my chest, he is gonna hurt my little girl.

I was already driving when Liam climbed in, shutting the door behind him, I sped off.  I passed the traffic lights, I almost crashed into two cars, I didn't care, I just wanna be there before it's too late. What if it was too late? I rubbed at my chest as the thought knocked the breath from my lungs.

Minutes felt like hours and we finally arrived. Tires screeched as I halted into a sudden stop and left the car, running as fast as I could into the house. I always kept few of the guys around, to always be here and guard it...but I have a feeling they weren't enough.

The main door was opened as I rushed inside, my heart pumped harder when I noticed that the house is a complete mess. Glass shattered on the floor, windows broken with bullet-sized holes rammed right through them, but it was silent, a deafening stillness that screamed of all my fears.

I ran up the stairs searching for her, I screamed her name, my mind playing the worst scenarios there is, her room's door was wide opened, my legs took me inside to find it empty, I searched all the room, all...empty.

I was panting when I went back into the hallway, one of the guys on the ground, blood seeping through the material of his shirt. I crouched in front of him and harshly shook his body, snapping him back to consciousness, "Where is she?!" I bellowed when his eyes slowly opened, he opened his mouth but no words came out, I shook his body again, a frenzy of madness lit up in my brain, "Where is she I said?!"

I felt hands on my arm, pulling me back, "Alex!" Liam said, shaking me out.

"They were...more than us." The guy tried to say. His breath snapped, "We..tried to..to stop them."

His sweat-drenched face looked at me, "I am sorry," He said and lightly shook his head, "They took her. They took Linda too."

"They took them both."

*****************************

The end is so near *drumrolls*

Kidnapping Lilly will lead us to the last battle and who knows what will happen then.. oh wait, I do xD

You better prepare yourself for the next two chapters. Buckle your seatbelt because when there is a battle, not everyone come out alive, am I right?

Anyway, since Christmas is almost here, I wanna do a Christmas-special chapter, talking about these characters but not in this storyline, so what would you like to see:

1. Frank, Isaac, Leya and Cara's father in their past?
2. Alex and Nikolas's childhood?
3. Alex and Cara before they got married?
4. Name whatever else you may wanna see.

For now, me is gonna go study, I hope i also update fast next time!

Love ya all♥️