The Fellow Sister

Followed by Dominic, Darcy strolled into the shooting range, renowned within the secretive circles of the mafia world. 

Her hands nonchalantly rested in the pockets of her green trousers, and she wore vibrant red sunglasses—bold and unyielding, mirroring her usual personality. 

"Why are you helping him again?" Dominic's question cut through the air, carrying the weight of his irritation. 

He struggled to contain his emotions, not wanting to confront Darcy directly about the source of his misery. Despite the years of concealing his feelings, Cayden seemed to bring out the insecurities to the surface that he couldn't ignore. 

"I told you not to ask useless questions," Darcy retorted, her sternness slicing through the tension. 

Dominic took a deep breath, wrestling with the inner turmoil because of that Cayden guy. Once again, he chose silence, a familiar response after being reprimanded by Darcy—a pattern repeated countless times. 

Darcy's lips curled into a subtle smile as she laid eyes on her target in the shooting range. A figure with black eyes, brown hair pulled into a ponytail, and a prominent scar slashed across her beautiful face, marking her left cheek. 

Stella Mervin stood before Darcy—a relatively new face in the cut-throat world of mafia leadership with her parents meeting a mysterious demise in a car accident three years ago. Stella had since taken the harnesses of their gang, Bull's Eye. 

Darcy silently joined Stella, donning her earmuffs and goggles as she retrieved her personal gun, a weapon devoid of any focusing machinery. 

Both women shot a storm of bullets, the rhythmic bangings of gunfire echoing in the enclosed space. 

Their target sheets were eventually brought forward after the intense shooting session. Darcy had hit the bull's eye every single time. In stark contrast, Stella had missed most of her targets. 

"I guess you don't live up to your title after all. Bull-shit, was it?" Darcy mocked, discarding her earmuffs. 

Stella, offended and simmering with frustration, scoffed at the taunt. "It's Bull's Eye—" Stella began to retort but halted abruptly, recognizing Darcy. Her eyes widened, and her subordinates swiftly assumed defensive stances, anticipating danger in the presence of Darcy Raven. 

Darcy chuckled at the sudden tension in the air. Handing her earmuffs and gun to Dominic, she pushed the goggles up to her forehead. 

"Long time no see, Stella," Darcy greeted with the most faked smile she could muster. 

Stella struggled to calm herself, acutely aware that a Raven, no matter the deception, was not to be fully trusted. "Why are you here?" She demanded, cutting straight to the point. 

Darcy nodded approvingly, appreciating the directness. "To find your reason," she responded casually. 

Stella looked at her in confusion, her eyebrows furrowing. She maintained a cautious grip on her rifle, fully aware of the imminent threat posed by the infamous Darcy Raven who would not flinch leaving her enemies bleeding to death with a single hand. 

"Reason for what?" Stella barked, feigning courage. However, both she and Darcy knew that beneath the mask, Stella trembled. Darcy was a name that struck fear into the hearts of her opponents. 

"Why would you go after an orphanage, to the extent of evacuating it and threatening to endanger the children?" Darcy's casual tone morphed into something more menacing, prompting Stella's subordinates to tighten their grips on their weapons. 

On the sidelines, Dominic felt a surge of infuriation. It wasn't the first time Darcy had placed herself in front of an array of guns without any apparent concern for her safety. She frustrated him to the brim. 

"How-- How do you know about it?" Stella stammered, swallowing the lump in her throat. 

She had taken meticulous precautions to keep her plans hidden even from her closest associates. How had Darcy uncovered her plan? 

"I've answered your question already; now you better answer mine first," Darcy warned, her tone leaving no room for games. The matter at hand held great significance for her. 

"What is it to you? Can't you mind your own business?" Stella barked once again. 

In response, Darcy calmly walked closer, prompting Stella to point her rifle at her, a mixture of fear and defiance in Stella's eyes. 

"Have you heard about how I don't go for those who have done me no wrong? So you should relax; I have no intention of harming you," Darcy reassured, her approach gentle, as if coaxing an injured cat. 

Stella, wounded and vulnerable, yearned for healing but resisted, knowing that things had never gone her way. "And you want me to believe you?" she asked incredulously, her eyes betraying the emotional turmoil within her. 

"Because if I wanted, I would have already done that," Darcy smirked, and she swiftly kicked the rifle out of Stella's hands. It soared through the air, landing in Darcy's grasp before anyone else could react. The gun was now pointed directly at Stella's head. 

"See, I told you. It is that easy for me," Darcy shrugged, radiating nonchalance. 

Stella stood there, fists clenched, a mix of anger and frustration evident in her stance. She yearned to have Darcy's strength, but she was too weak and could not do anything other than get angry with herself. 

Stella's subordinates instinctively closed in, positioning themselves to protect their leader. 

"Now tell me, why are you after that orphanage? I bet your father would be disappointed when he clearly always stood on the decision that he would never harm children in his business. You're quite contradicting his statement here," Darcy inquired, tossing the rifle aside in a dismissive manner. 

"Yeah, the rule he made that your father mocked him for," Stella retorted with disdain. 

Darcy sighed, shaking her head. "Keep this one thing in mind, Marvin. You might have been the lovey daughter of your father who would like to continue his legacy, but I am the complete opposite. I'd rather destroy my father's legacy," Darcy declared, wearing a satisfied smirk that spoke of immense pride in her quirky stance. 

Stella blinked twice, uncertain of where the conversation was heading. However, one thing became clear to her—Darcy was not pursuing the same goals as her; she was after something else. 

"I respected your father, and I still do. I am not the same person as my father. So here I am standing in front of you, asking you why have you done something you were not supposed to do," Darcy stated calmly, taking a seat on the demarcating railings between the shooting line and the downrange. 

"I can't give up on the only hope I have found because of you, Darcy. Please, turn a blind eye to this matter," Stella pleaded with a sense of desperation. 

Although Darcy possessed the power to forcibly end the situation, she understood that there might be a greater underlying reason for Bull's Eye gang's actions. 

If not for them, another gang could target the orphanage for the same reason, and Darcy wanted to uproot the problem from its core. 

Alongside her mission concerning the orphanage, Darcy harbored another goal she had long been planning. She thought that it might be the perfect opportunity to kill 2 birds with a single stone. 

"Then how about I help you with what you've been planning? Not only that, I will uncover the truth behind your parents' accident because both of us know it was fishy as hell," Darcy offered, crossing her arms and fixing a serious gaze on Stella. 

Stella folded right then and there; she couldn't ask for anything more. 

Not only was her parents' accident suspicious, but her father had utilized all his resources to shovel the identity of the man who had sexually harassed her sister, ultimately leading to her tragic demise. 

The scar on her left cheek was the last thing she had of her sister, earned while trying to save her from getting abducted. 

After her parents passed away, Stella assumed the role of the leader herself. 

Following the clues left by her father, including her independent investigations, she concluded that her elder sister was being pursued by a corporate heir whose family was backed by the dangerous mafia group, 'Vipers'. 

Aware that he desired nothing more than her sister's body, she bravely rejected him in a crowd. 

Being the pampered, spoiled brat that he was, he was greatly offended. 

He kidnapped her, venting his anger through sexual and physical assault, ultimately killing her and callously tossing her lifeless body out of her parents' mansion. 

Stella loathed herself, consumed by the guilt of her weakness, unable to exact the revenge her sister deserved. The scar on her cheek served as a constant reminder of why she was alive – solely for the purpose of avenging her dear sister. 

"Can I really trust you?" Stella asked in a hushed tone, and at that, her subordinates exchanged glances as they holstered their guns. 

"You can. I can't let a fellow sister suffer. Besides," Darcy tossed a memory card towards Stella, who caught it skillfully. "You would believe me if you saw what was inside of it." 

Stella swallowed the lump in her throat; she was on the verge of achieving what she had been working for. She could not believe the truth, neither could she apprehend what to feel. Should she be happy? Exhilarated? Angry? 

"Now, will you tell me why you are after the orphanage? Because just as this matter with your sister is important to you, those children are important to me," Darcy asked in all seriousness and Stella nodded slowly, her heart clenching in anticipation of what was about to come.