Chapter 47 #3
"You don't know what it feels like to wake up every single morning wondering if you're still alive. You don't know how many times I've called your dead line, or how many nights I've stayed awake staring at the wall, terrified that something happened to you."
Victor grips the phone tighter, his knuckles turning stark white.
"I'm sorry." "I don't want your sorry, Victor," her voice cracks, rising in desperation.
"I want you." Victor looks out at the dark, rain-streaked window.
For the first time in weeks, the roaring noise of the upcoming war feels miles away.
The weapons, the strategy, the maps—all of it vanishes.
Only her voice remains. "I'm here." "You always say that."
"I mean it, Emily." "Then come back to me. Please."
Victor looks down at the heavy black handgun lying on the desk, then back at the city lights glowing in the distance.
"I will." Emily goes quiet, her breathing shallow.
"When?" Victor doesn't answer right away.
He knows the grim reality; he cannot give her a date, a tomorrow, or even a guarantee that he will survive the bloodbath Alessio is bringing to New York.
So, he gives her the only absolute promise he has left in him.
"After this fight." Emily sniffles, her voice small and confused.
"What?" Victor's voice becomes suddenly firm, unyielding and completely certain.
"After this is over, Emily... I marry you."
A stunned silence blankets the line. Emily stops crying, the weight of his words echoing in her mind.
"Victor..." "I'm entirely serious," he says softly.
"You don't have to say that just because I'm crying on the phone."
"I'm not saying it because you're crying," he says, leaning back in his chair, rare, genuine warmth settling on his face.
"I'm saying it because I should have said it a long time ago."
Emily’s breathing trembles over the speaker.
"You promise me, Victor?" Victor looks at his own sharp reflection in the dark glass of the window.
"I promise." She lets out a wet, breathless laugh through her remaining tears.
"You better keep that promise, Blackwood."
"I will." "Come back first," she whispers.
Victor's expression changes, hardening once more as his eyes fix on the weapon on his desk. "I will. Goodbye, Emily."
The call ends, the screen going black. He sits motionless for several seconds, holding the phone against his palm.
Then, a sharp, precise knock rattles the wood of his door.
Victor looks up. "Enter." Kai steps into the room, his tactical vest already strapped tight.
"Lucius wants everyone in the meeting room right now. Kael just intercepted the final transit data."
Victor nods flatly, slipping the phone into his inner pocket.
Before standing up, he looks once more at the black screen, remembering her voice.
After this fight, I marry you. He locks the device, buries the emotion deep inside his chest, and walks out into the corridor.
The main meeting room is already completely full, thick with the smell of stale coffee and gunpowder.
Lucius stands at the absolute head of the long table, his bandaged hand resting heavily on the maps.
Teajun, Alex, Kai, Kael, and now Victor take their designated places around him in total silence.
No women are present in the room; no family members who are not directly pulling a trigger in this war are allowed inside the threshold.
A massive, detailed map of New York covers the entire surface of the table.
Several strategic locations are marked with aggressive red ink.
Lucius looks at every single man in the room, his gaze locking them in place. "We finally know Alessio's next move."
Kai steps forward, placing a thick, decrypted intelligence file on the centre of the map.
"He is moving his heavy hitters into three major locations simultaneously."
Alex adds another file, pointing his finger at the markers.
"The Port, the main warehouse district, and the underground casino network. He's concentrating his supply lines."
Teajun looks down at the layout, his eyes narrowing.
"He's building a route to trap us." Victor shakes his head slowly, stepping closer to the table.
"Not a route." Everyone in the room shifts their eyes to him, waiting.
"A battlefield," Victor says, his voice cutting through the room.
Lucius's dark eyes meet Victor's across the table.
For a few seconds, neither man speaks, the silent understanding between the two leaders locking into place.
Then, Lucius closes the file with a sharp, final snap.
"How long do we have?" Kai checks the live, encrypted data on his tablet.
"Not long. Their transport vehicles are already crossing the state line."
Victor stands up to his full height, adjusting the leather holster under his arm.
He looks around the room, making eye contact with every soldier present.
Every single man understands what comes next.
There is no more hiding in the shadows. There is no more waiting for a tip.
There is no more running from the fallout of their past.
Alessio has crossed the final line in the sand, and the debt must be paid in full.
Victor slowly reaches down, his fingers wrapping around the grip of his gun, checking the chamber.
His voice is calm—almost frighteningly calm. "Tonight... one family ends."