Omerta ||ʙᴏᴏᴋ 1||

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴛᴡᴇɴᴛʏ-ᴏɴᴇ

I sat there in the pitch-black living room of Cole's house, drowning in the silence, vodka in one hand and a hole in my heart that no amount of liquor could fill. The only light came from my laptop's screen, open on the coffee table in front of me, casting a cold, blue glow on our tired faces. I was supposed to be reviewing a weapons shipment arriving tomorrow, but the screen blurred in and out of focus, the words meaningless.

My phone lit up beside me.

4:03 a.m.
December 20th.
Max's birthday.

Fifteen. He would've been fifteen today.

A single tear slid down my cheek. Then another. I wiped it away with the back of my hand, but more followed—relentless, like a storm I couldn't hold back. My throat ached from holding in the sobs. I took another long pull from the vodka bottle, the burn doing little to numb the agony.

Cole sat beside me on the couch, silent, a beer loosely cradled in his hand. His presence was grounding but distant—like a lighthouse in the fog I couldn't reach.

"Happy birthday, little brother," I whispered, my voice breaking as I lifted the vodka in a shaky toast. "Would you look at me now... I'm so much like Dad."

I laughed, bitter and broken.

"Why can't it always be this quiet?" I slurred, the tears now streaming freely.

Cole leaned back on the couch, his eyes shadowed, tired. "Get some sleep, Skylar. You're drunk, and this... this isn't healthy."

He kissed my forehead gently. "Goodnight."

And just like that, he left, the sound of his footsteps fading down the hallway.

And once again, I was alone with my thoughts—the most dangerous place I could be.

No one will ever understand the guilt I carry.

I wanted something so simple—holidays at home, brothers laughing in the snow, school, a future... normalcy.
But what I got?
Blood. Guns. Dead siblings and shattered promises.

I slammed the laptop shut, leaving it on the couch as I stumbled to my room.

When I opened the door, I saw Jack curled up in the corner of the bed, a small lump under the covers. He looked so peaceful, so untouched by the nightmare we lived in. A small smile tugged at my lips despite the ache in my chest.

He has a heart so pure. He couldn't hurt a fly.

But me? I've hurt more than that. I've taken lives—some deserved, some not.
I'd rather the blood stain my hands than his.

I slid open the drawer beside the bed and placed the Glock inside, shutting it quietly before crawling under the covers beside Jack.

But sleep never came.

By the time the sun rolled in, painting the room in pale gold, I hadn't caught even a second of rest. I sat up, pulled my hair into a messy bun, swapped my shirt for a sports bra, and tucked the Glock back into the waistband of my leggings.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Jack stir. I walked over and gently pulled the blankets over him again.

"Stay asleep, little man," I whispered, brushing a hand through his messy hair.

I closed the door behind me and made my way into the kitchen.

Cole was already up—shirtless, of course—loading a magazine into a gun like it was his morning coffee. I rolled my eyes and walked over.

"Morning, sunshine," he said with that cocky smirk. "Sleep well?"

"Not even close." I eyed the gun. "What's with the firepower? Is something happening I wasn't told about?"

He grinned as he tucked the weapon into the waistband of his boxers. "Actually... yeah. Who's up for a little mischief?"

I smiled despite myself and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Of course, Cole. Just let me throw on a shirt and find someone to watch Jack."

We tore down the street in a bright red Ferrari, the engine roaring like a beast. Cole gripped the steering wheel with one hand, weaving between cars with terrifying ease. Horns blared behind us.

His phone lit up. Unknown number.

"Answer it," he barked. "Tell them I'm busy."

I hesitated, but picked it up and pressed it to my ear. A voice—deep, familiar, venomous—growled through the speaker. I put it on speaker so Cole could hear.

"You killed my entire family, you son of a bitch! I'm not sparing your little whore this time, Cole. She dies too."

My blood ran cold.
The voice... it was him. The Cobra leader.

I looked at Cole and smirked, lifting my chin. "You know... I'm glad Cole killed Phoenix. And the rest of your sorry family. Eye for an eye, asshole. You don't mess with the Italian mafia."

There was a beat of silence. My heart thundered.

"Stay out of a man's business, darling," the Cobra leader finally said, voice low and deadly. "Go clean up the blood. You have no idea how easy it is to breach your so-called safe house."

I turned to Cole, fear tightening in my chest.

His hand left my thigh. He grabbed the phone from my hand with a growl.

"I'll fucking kill you too," Cole snarled. "You should've seen your wife's face when I slit your kid's throat right in front of her."

I yanked the phone back and hurled it out the window.
A second later, I felt pain explode in my skull. My head slammed against the window. Stars danced in my vision.

"Shit," I whispered, touching my scalp—my hand came away warm and red.

Behind us, headlights blazed. A black SUV was closing in—fast.

Cole turned the wheel hard, swerving us out of reach. "Hang on!"

I leaned out the window, the wind howling around me. I lifted the gun, aimed, and fired.
Once. Twice.
Then again—until finally, I struck the driver. The SUV veered violently into the divider, metal shrieking. The police were already pulling up as we sped off, disappearing into the chaos.

Back at Cole's house, everything was quiet.
Too quiet.

I stepped inside first—and that's when it happened.

An arm snapped around my neck, yanking me back. I let out a scream—cut off as a cloth was shoved over my mouth. The chemical scent hit me fast.

My eyes blurred. Limbs weak.

The last thing I saw was Cole struggling against a masked man, locked in a chokehold.
His voice rang out, desperate, furious—

"Skylar!"

Then—

Black.

What happened after that?
That's still a mystery.

But it wouldn't stay one forever.

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Authors note

Ahh please don't kill me for the cliffhanger. Everything will be explaine in the next chapter I wrote the overview for the next chapter so I know what the focus and oh my I have a lot planned so stay tuned

-Liz