Midnight Reckoning

The docks smelled of salt, rust, and old regrets. A thick fog clung to the water, swirling like ghosts around the abandoned shipping containers. Luca stepped onto the worn planks, his footsteps eerily loud in the silence.

Dante was already there, leaning against a stack of crates. His cigarette burned low between his fingers, casting a faint glow in the darkness.

"You came," Dante muttered, exhaling smoke.

Luca shoved his hands into his pockets, his muscles coiled tight. "Tell me everything."

Dante dropped the cigarette and crushed it beneath his boot. "He never died."

Luca's stomach clenched.

Dante continued, voice low. "After the fire, after everything we thought we knew—Valerio disappeared. I assumed he was dead like the rest of them. But a few months ago, I started hearing whispers. Then last week, I got proof."

He pulled out a folder and tossed it onto a crate. Luca hesitated before flipping it open. Inside were grainy photographs—security footage. A man with cold eyes, familiar despite the years.

Valerio.

Alive.

Luca's fingers tightened around the edge of the folder. "Where is he?"

Dante sighed. "That's the problem. He's looking for you, Luca. And he's not coming for a reunion."

Luca's mind raced. If Valerio was back, it wasn't for peace. It was for revenge.

A sharp sound echoed through the night—a metallic clink.

Luca turned just in time to see a red dot land on Dante's chest.

His heart stopped.

Gunshot.

Dante's body jerked before he crumpled to the ground.

Luca barely had time to react before another shot rang out—this one aimed at him.

He ducked behind a crate, his mind in overdrive. A sniper. Professional. Planned.

His phone buzzed. A message flashed on the screen.

RUN. BEFORE I FINISH WHAT I STARTED. – V.

Luca's blood turned to ice.

Valerio wasn't just looking for him.

He was hunting him.