Kidnapped By The Mafia

Hurt

"Well, well," Xander's voice was smooth, almost silky. He looked scary, despite of trying to be nonchalant he looked like he was at the verge of loosing it. "Isn't this a cozy little reunion?"

"Careful, Marcellus." Noah warned, his voice low and steady. "You're not thinking clearly."

Xander's lips curled into a sneer, a twisted parody of a smile. "Oh, I'm thinking perfectly clearly." His gaze shifted to me, his expression darkening. "I see you've dragged her into this mess. Again."

"You crossed a line, Verlice." Alex continued, walking around, examining the area, his voice dropping to a whisper. "And I've had enough of your bullshit."

Noah's jaw tightened, but he didn't move, didn't so much as blink. "You're so blinded by your own hate that you can't see what's right in front of you. You're pushing her away, Marcellus. Just like you did with Rhea."

The mention of her name was like a trigger for him. Xander's entire body tensed, and for a moment, I thought he might lunge at Noah and tear him apart with his bare hands, limb by limb.

But instead of attacking, he turned to me, his gaze pinning me in place. And for a second, I was terrified.

"Is that what you think?" He asked, his voice dangerously calm. "That I'm the one pushing you away?"

What?

I couldn't answer, my throat felt dry and my heart pounding so hard I thought it might burst out of my chest. I wanted to say something, anything, but the words were stuck in my throat.

"I asked you a question, Melena." He shouted, taking a step closer, his towering frame casting a shadow over me. "Do you think I'm the one driving you away?"

My mouth opened, but nothing came out. It felt like I was suffocating under the weight of his stare and the intensity of his presence. I had seen Xander angry before, but this? This was way different. This was the side of him I had always feared existed, the side that makes him the most dangerous man I had ever known.

Noah sensed my unease and took a step forward, positioning himself between me and Xander. It was a bold move, one that only served to escalate the tension.

"Back the fuck off." Noah spat the words at him, his voice hard. "You're scaring her."

Xander's eyes narrowed, his hand twitching as if resisting the urge to reach for the gun at his side. "She should be. She needs to understand what's at stake here."

"And what exactly is at stake?" Noah's tone was mocking, pushing every button Xander had. "Your fragile man ego?

Xander's face darkened and I could see the barely restrained fury now boiling over. "You have no idea who you're messing with." He hissed. "You're just a fucking parasite, feeding off the scraps of other people's lives because you don't have your own."

"And you're just a broken man trying to rewrite history because you couldn't handle the truth." He snapped. "You couldn't handle the fact that she chose me over you."

And, he snapped.

With a roar, he lunged at Noah. The force of the attack sending them both crashing to the ground, the gun from Noah's hand flew across and landed right in front me. The sound of their bodies colliding echoed through the warehouse. I backed away almost immediately, afraid to get in the middle of them.

Xander's strength was terrifying, his blows were fueled by uncontrollable anger. He was relentless, his fists pummeling into Noah with a brutality. But Noah wasn't defenseless. He fought back, his own punches landing with deadly precision, each one aimed to inflict maximum damage.

"Guys, stop it!" I screamed. I can't do this, not again. I wanted to kill myself in that moment.

Blood splattered across the concrete floor, the metallic scent filling the air as the two men tore into each other. Xander's knuckles were raw and bloody, his face twisted into a mask of pure hatred. Noah's lip was split, blood trickling down his chin, but he refused to back down, his eyes burning.

"She's not yours, Marcellus." He spat, his voice strained as he struggled against Xander's crushing weight. "She never was."

"Shut the fuck up." Xander roared, his fist connecting with Noah's jaw with a loud crack.

Noah's response was a sudden uppercut that sent Xander staggering back, blood spraying from his mouth. But Xander didn't go down either. He wiped the blood from his lips, his eyes blazing with a crazed intensity as he let out a small chuckle. He looked insane.

"You don't get it, do you?" Xander smiled, his voice dripping with venom. "I don't care what you think you had with Rhea. She's dead. Gone. And now, Melena is all that matters. I'll burn this whole fucking city to the ground before I let you take her from me."

The words hung in the air, heavy and final, a declaration of war. There was no reasoning with him, no calming the pent up anger inside him. He was a man consumed by his demons, driven by a need for control that bordered on madness.

Noah, despite the pain etched across his face managed a cold, defiant smile. "You'll never have her. Not the way you want. You can try to cage her, control her, but you'll never break her. She's stronger than you think. Unlike, you know who."

Xander's eyes flashed with a dangerous glint, his hand reaching for his gun. My breath caught in my throat, terror gripping me once again as I realized what he was about to do. This time, there would be no hesitation. No second thoughts. He was going to kill Noah, right here, right now.

"Xander, don't!" I screamed, my voice shrill with panic as I reached out to stop him. But, it was too late.

In those moments, the entire world seemed to have stopped.

Xander's finger tightened on the trigger, and time seemed to slow down as the shot rang out, the deafening sound reverberating through the entire building.

The bullet tore through him, right above where his heart was. The impact sent him crashing to the ground with a grunt of pain. Blood soaked through his white shirt, a dark stain spread on his whole chest that made my stomach turn. But, by some miracle, he was still alive, still conscious, his breathing ragged but steady.

Xander stood over him, the gun still smoking in his hand, his chest heaving as he placed his foot on his chest, preventing him to get back up. He looked down at Noah, his expression unreadable, the rage that had consumed him moments ago now replaced with nonchalance.

"Xander, please..." I fought back my tears. "You're hurting him."

"Next time," Xander didn't break eye contact with him and ignored me. His was voice low and deadly as he pressed his foot down and applied more pressure on his chest, where the bullet had made its way. "I won't fucking miss."