I didn't even know what was right or wrong anymore. In that moment when I held her by the collar, her big blue innocent teary eyes looking at me, I wanted to hug her and never let her go. But on the other hand, I remembered the events, and the pain surged back. Her blood fell on my hand, and I had to pull myself together. I gave her that final warning never to show her face to me again. It was better for both of us. I loved her, but I also hated her at the same time. I couldn't prove her innocence, and she couldn't prove hers. As I got back into the car, drenched, broken, emotionally shattered, I couldn't bring myself to do it; I was so close to taking her with me. I pressed against the steering wheel and drove back. 

I shook my head, "No, Dante, she must face her rightful punishment." 

I grabbed my phone and dialed the police number. 

"This is the precinct, how can I help you?" they answered. 

I said dryly, "There's been a serious accident. Someone is injured. The car crashed, and the guardrail is destroyed on the A2 direction," and hung up. 

I continued driving, glancing one last time in the direction before turning the car around, and soon the police and ambulances arrived. I bit my fingers to suppress the tears that rose up. I couldn't show any weakness, I told myself, and pressed harder on the gas pedal, hoping to escape the present. As I approached the estate and got out lifelessly, Claus was there with a few men. They were completely soaked as well. I couldn't even smoke in this weather. I didn't dare to look towards the villa. My body started trembling on its own. 

My voice was cold, "Claus, follow Sofia- I mean Rose. She must have been taken to a hospital." 

He hesitated briefly before nodding and leaving. 

Frederick approached me, "According to the assessment, Nicolas and the recruits we were planning to hire were killed with precise weapons that aren't available on the market."

 I looked at him as a drop fell from my strand of hair, "What do you mean?"

 "It means they were weapons that could only be handed over by the government to a special forces unit," he explained.

 I thought for a moment. Government and special forces unit? Does this have something to do with Rose? I took a deep breath and rubbed my face desperately. The lightning flashed fiercely. 

"Remove the bodies and keep them until they can be buried with honor," I ordered. 

Frederick and the others nodded and slowly moved away. I stood there alone, looking out into the dark night. My phone rang, and I looked at it.

 A message from Claus: "Drive towards the bridge, urgently." 

I looked confused at my phone; if Claus said something was important, it was. I quickly got back into the car and drove off. As I got closer to the destination, I saw roadblocks. Policemen in yellow rain jackets, firefighters, and ambulances. I slowed down as I got closer and stopped the car, getting out. Claus was at the front.

 I hurried to him, "What are you doing here? You were supposed to watch Rose!"

 He turned to me with wide eyes and then pointed to the broken guardrail. I looked confused there, went through the barricade, and overheard a policeman saying to another, "The car was rented... hmm, let me see under what name... ah, here it is, R-o-s-e A-y-d-i-n." 

The moment he mentioned her name everything went around me in slowmotion    

 I looked in the direction of the policemen and muttered, "What did they say?"

 They looked at me, "Hey, normal passersby aren't allowed here!" 

I rushed to him and grabbed him by the collar, shouting at him, "DID YOU SAY ROSE AYDIN?" 

Claus came running to me, trying to separate me from the policeman, but I didn't let go. 

The other policeman yelled, "Yeah damn it, and now you let go of my colleague, or you leave me no choice..."

 I didn't hear the rest; it was as if I got a very loud tinnitus. I moved away from him and shook Claus' arm off me, walking towards the broken cliff and looked down, seeing a crane pulling the wrecked car out of the water. I fell to my knees. The whole ground was spinning around me. I felt sick. Only now did I realize how much I loved her. 

I pounded the ground and screamed, "no no no no no no NOOOOOOO!" Tears welled up and fell to the ground. I was completely broken inside.

Another policeman came running to the other, "Sir, we haven't found his body." 

"What do you mean you haven't found it?!"

 I straightened up and shouted at them all, "WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR DAMN JOB FIND IT OR I SWEAR I'LL KILL EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!" 

They looked at me with wide eyes, "Sir, we're doing everything in our power." 

I walked over to him and punched him in the face, and he fell down. 

Claus grabbed me from behind, "I'm sorry, she's his girlfriend." 

They stared at each other. I broke free from Claus's grip and aggressively pushed him away, then ran down the street. 

The policemen chased after me, "Sir, no, you can't do this!" 

I reached the bottom and saw the car with open doors, filled with water, shattered glass, the entire left side crushed. 

I frantically searched the car and screamed, "Rose, where are you?" 

I went to the lake and approached the chief, "Please, I'll do anything in my power, just find her." 

He looked at me with a sad look and pulled out a plastic bag, "The only thing we found was this ring and the jacket she was wearing, covered in blood. Sir, I'll tell you straight and honest, the chance of finding her in this vast sea is very slim." 

My heart sank to the floor. I walked slowly forward and sat on the tree stump, staring out at the dark sea, seeing professionals dive in and others resurface. I looked at the ring and the jacket, pressing them against my forehead. I closed my eyes as tears fell down.

 Claus said my name pityingly, "Dante...".

 I had lost everything that was important to me, and most importantly, her. I shouldn't have left her alone! It was clear that if we were attacked, it would happen to her too. I desperately hit my forehead, and more tears flowed. I had lost something precious in life and would never have the chance to get her back.

I didn't know how much time had passed, but eventually the sun rose again, and I stared lifelessly at the sea. 

The policeman came back to me, "Sir, we found nothing." 

I looked at him lifelessly, "Then keep searching." 

"Sir, even if she's still in the water, she may have been washed away, or-"

 I stood up and pushed him, "Didn't I say to keep searching?" 

"Sir, please-" 

I pushed him harder this time, "I don't like to repeat myself."

 "SIR!" he said firmly. 

I grabbed him by the collar and shook him, tears welling up in my eyes, "Find her, damn it, find her!" 

Claus pulled me away from him, "Dante, we should go, this makes no sense."

 I punched him in the face, "Say that again, and I'll shoot you."

 He straightened up and grabbed my shoulder, "Damn it, Dante, get a grip!" 

I knocked his hand away, "I'm perfectly fine."

 This time he punched me in the face, and I had to take a few steps back. 

He shouted at me desperately, "DANTE, SHE'S GONE, CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT? SHE'S DEAD, IT'S OBVIOUS, AND YOU KNOW THAT BETTER THAN I DO. AND BESIDES, IT WOULD BE BETTER TO START LOOKING FOR THE REAL GUILTY PARTY INSTEAD OF DOING NOTHING."

 I clenched my teeth in anger and threw myself at him, punching him repeatedly.

 Policemen came running and separated us, "That's enough, you two are being removed from here." 

They grabbed us, and I tried to resist, but three people held me down and forced me up.

 "LET ME GO!" 

They forced me into the police car with handcuffs next to Claus. We didn't speak. 

The policeman drove to the intersection, turned to me, "I'll contact you if we find anything."

 I didn't look at him. He got out, opened our door, unlocked my handcuffs, and then Claus's. We both got out. He got back in and drove away.

The rain had stopped by now. We walked back towards the villa.

 He sighed, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you with Sofia - I mean, Rose. It just seemed like you lost yourself for a moment." 

I stared at the ground, my hands in my pockets, and muttered tiredly, "You don't have to apologize, Claus. You were right."

 I then gazed towards the sea and continued walking, feeling hopeless.

The rest of the way was quiet, and we returned to the villa. 

Claus nodded towards the entrance, "I've got James tied up in there."

 I nodded, "Get me a hammer and four large needles."

 He nodded and hurried off. Shortly after, he returned with a hammer and a needle. We went inside. James was lying tied up on the floor. He looked like a rat. I untied his hands and signaled for four men to hold down his arms and legs. Claus handed me the hammer and a needle. 

I looked at him, and he flinched in fear, "I was planning to cut off your body parts, but I've changed my mind." 

He whimpered, "NO. PLEASE."

 I placed the large needle on the palm of his hand and swung the hammer down. He let out a pained scream and tried to break free. 

"For Elena," I said. 

The next needle went into his other hand, eliciting another scream, "For my mother."

 Then his leg. I placed my foot on his shin and broke it, causing him to scream so loudly that someone stuffed something into his mouth. 

I swung the hammer, "For Rose."

 I broke his other shin and swung again, "For society."

 I dropped the hammer to the side. He had dark circles under his eyes. His mouth was wide open, emitting sounds. Saliva and tears were mixed, and he was shaking. 

Claus handed me the gasoline, "You know, James, I'm going to let you burn alive here without the chance to run away, fair enough?"

 He screamed with his mouth full, "No... PLEASE..."

 I poured the gasoline aggressively into his mouth. He shook his head like a madman, his eyes squeezed shut. I then walked towards the exit, and the others followed me. Once we were outside, I dropped a match, and it started to burn.