A love like ours ✔️

♛7.Tardigrades are hard to kill

Soraya

Dante and Andrei reached the exit. It's just Rafael and I now. Well, the two of us, dozens of scared civilians, lots of bulets and if I'm correct, somewhere around 25 fuckers who have a death wish.

A mafia heiress, a don and a russian vor sitting in a club. No, it's not a joke. This attack could be aimed at any of us, though by the looks of it it's either against me or Sokolov. It's our men that were gunned down first. They knew he'd be here, and of course there was always a chance for me to show up.

I've got two bullets left in the desert eagle and three in the Ruger 57 Dante gave me .

"Five." I inform him.

"Six." he replies.

Fucking awesome. Eleven bullets against 25 men armed to the teeth.

I've got the feeling that Alvarez being here was a decoy, and like the fool I am I let him walk out of this alive. But I can't afford a war. Not right now when a shift in power is about to happen. Although if he insists on it, Cortez is gonna fucking pay for his sins sooner than I thought... one more thing that puts him higher up on my kill list.

I look at Rafael and he gives me a silent nod. No words are needed. They don't know what they're up against. It pains me, but the two of us make the perfect team. We've completed many missions together in the past, and almost all of them were successful.

As one, we raise from the safety of our cover. He guns down 2 men and I 3, emptying the Ruger's mag and tossing it away. We reach a collumn. He's glued to me so that ot can offer protection to both of us.

6 bullets.

I look at the exit hallway, it's still clear. Stalling will only bring us closer to death so we run for it. I make another kill, and so does he.

4 bullets.

We reach the hallway, Rafael empties his magazine in those who are following us.

1 bullet.

As we get nearer to the back door two men cut our way I pull the trigger, neutralising one target.

No bullets.

I reach for my last dagger and throw it, he raises his gun and fires.

Everything happens too fast, yet it's as if we're moving in slow motion. Rafael pulls me to his chest and spins us. I close my eyes. I can hear flesh being thorn and the thud of a body falling. My heart stills.

Then the time starts moving normally. He's fine he has to be fine. Rafael Matteo Morreli is an apex predator. He's harder to kill than a tardigrade, and those fuckers can survive everything.

My mind doesn't register the fact that he's still holding me before I open my eyes. I see him looking and me and the panic subsides.

I pull from his embrace and we get to the door. Outside Dante and Andrei are waiting, and it seems like backup is here. The Russo soldiers enter the building. It's over. We're safe.

The rush of adrenaline is wearing down, and I remeber the enemy's bullet never reached me. I look at Raf. His right shoulder is bleeding. He took a bullet for me. One that was aiming for my heart. I move before thinking and gently grab his arm.

"Never do that again, do you understand me!?" I yell at him, my gaze not leaving the pool of red.

"Never save your life? It's not gonna happen. Besides, you've saved mine no longer that 10 minutes ago." He gently says, his left hand caressing my cheek.