Page 56 of Felix

“Waiting for us at the warehouse,” Spike says. “He’s shitting bricks… thinks we’re gonna kill him or something.”

“Good. Let him sweat,” I growl out, stalking towards the door.

As we pull up to the warehouse, I see him—skinny, twitchy bastard, eyes darting around like he’s expecting a bullet any second. Good.

“Who’s your new friend?” I sneer, slamming the car door behind me.

“Name’s Ratty,” he replies, his voice shaking. “H-heard you were lookin’ for the Costa brothers?”

“Cut the shit,” I snap, grabbing him by his filthy shirt. “What do you know?”

“Man with a snake tattoo…” Ratty stammers, “… a-asked me for supplies. Strange stuff. Told your guy, Spike, about it. Thought it might help.”

“Where did he want to meet you for the supplies?” Matteo asks, his voice icy calm compared to my rage.

“Abandoned building in Campbelltown,” Ratty mutters, sweat beading on his brow. “W-wants me to meet him tonight.”

“Looks like we’ve got a date,” I say, shoving Ratty back and turning to Matteo. “Let’s find this fucker.”

“Wait,” Matteo cautions, his eyes darkening. “We need to be careful. This could be a trap.”

“Doesn’t matter.” My voice is low and lethal. “If it gets us closer to Aurora, I don’t care if it’s a fucking minefield.

“Alright,” Matteo sighs, knowing there’s no stopping me now.

I climb back into the car, every muscle in my body coiled with rage that won’t be sated until I find her.

The setting sun casts long,dark shadows around the overgrown bush where I’m crouching. Sweat trickles down my face as I wait, my heart pounding like a damn jackhammer.Ratty is on the rotting porch, holding the supplies, looking nervous as fuck. We plan to follow that cunt back to wherever he’s hiding out. And God, I hope Aurora is stashed there.

“Patience,” I mutter under my breath. We’ve been here for hours, and my legs ache from staying so still. But I can’t risk blowing this. Not when it means getting Aurora back.

I hear the low rumble of an engine approaching, and my grip tightens on the knife in my hand. An Audi A5 pulls up, sleek as a predator. Antonio Costa steps out, smirking like he owns the goddamn world. He’s wearing a tailored suit, the sleeves rolled up to his elbow, showing off that snake tattoo coiling around his arm. I want to run from my hiding spot and gut him right now, but no, that won’t get me Aurora.

Play it cool, Felix, I tell myself as Ratty hands over the supplies to Antonio.Just a little longer.

“Here’s your shit,” Ratty says, voice trembling. Antonio nods, barely glancing at the goods before tossing a stack of cash Ratty’s way. It’s like he doesn’t even care about the supplies.

“Thanks for the prompt delivery,” Antonio sneers, climbing back into his car. “Now fuck off.”

“Y-yeah, sure thing,” Ratty stammers, clutching the money.

My jaw clenches as the Audi drives away. “Now, we follow,” I whisper, feeling the rage building in my chest. We’ll find Aurora, and I’ll make that bastard pay for what he’s done to her.

Aurora, hold on. I’m coming for you.

Chapter Forty

Aurora Henry

I’m not even sure I know how long I’ve been here. I can’t count the sun or moon as I don’t have a view, I’m just stuck in this goddamn room with cement walls and no windows. The air is stale and thick with the stench of sweat and blood.

“Time to eat,” one of them sneers, dragging me back to reality. I clench my teeth, refusing to open my mouth. They can hold me captive, they can torture me, but I’ll be damned if I give them the satisfaction of feeding me like some animal.

“Stubborn bitch,” he mumbles, his hands gripping my face hard enough to bruise. “Fine, we’ll do it the hard way.”

“Fuck you,” I spit at him. It’s not much, but it’s a small act of defiance that makes me feel slightly more alive.

“Your choice, darling,” he says mockingly before shoving a feeding tube down my throat, forcing me to choke on it. My eyes water, and I gag, trying to breathe around the intrusion. They think they’ve won, but I refuse to cave in. As soon asthey turn their backs, I tear the tube out, feeling satisfaction as bile rises in my throat.

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