The warehouse was a warzone. Flames licked the walls, casting eerie shadows as bullets tore through the air. Vedant Suryavanshi and Alessia Corleone moved as one—two shadows in sync, two killers fighting their way out of a deadly trap.

Vedant’s storm-gray eyes scanned the chaos, mind working fast. His men were outside, but so were the enemy’s reinforcements. Whoever set this up had planned it too well.

Alessia reloaded smoothly, her movements precise, unbothered by the firestorm around them. When another gunman tried to flank them, she didn’t hesitate. One shot—clean, effortless—straight through his skull.

Vedant smirked. Damn. She was efficient.

Another explosion rocked the warehouse. The metal beams groaned, debris falling from the ceiling. Vedant grabbed Alessia’s wrist on instinct, yanking her back as a burning crate crashed where she had been standing.

“Careful, princess. I would hate to see you crushed before I kill you myself.”

Alessia arched a brow, unfazed. “How sweet, Vedant. Didn’t know you cared.”

Before he could respond, a new wave of gunfire rained down from the exit.

Vedant cursed. They were being herded. The enemy wasn’t just trying to kill them; they wanted them out in the open. Alive.

His grip on his gun tightened. That meant one thing.

“This isn’t just a hit,” Alessia muttered, eyes sharp. “Someone wants us captured.”

Vedant’s jaw clenched. That wasn’t happening.

Not today. Not ever.

Vedant tapped his earpiece. “Jay, status?”

His second-in-command’s voice crackled through. “Two SUVs outside, loaded with men. Your car’s boxed in. Snipers on the rooftops. Whoever set this up isn’t playing around.”

Vedant’s lips curled. Neither was he.

Alessia sighed dramatically. “Well, I hope you have a backup plan, because walking out there sounds like suicide.”

Vedant exhaled, calculating. There was only one way out now.

“The river,” he said.

Alessia frowned. “The river?”

He tilted his head toward the back of the warehouse. “There’s an emergency hatch that leads to an underground tunnel. It exits near the docks.”

Alessia’s smirk returned. “Oh, I do love a good dramatic exit.”

“Then try to keep up, princess.”

They moved fast. Gunfire followed them, but Vedant’s men provided just enough cover. When they reached the hatch, Vedant yanked it open, revealing a dark, narrow passageway leading beneath the city.

Alessia eyed it. “If this leads to a sewer, I’m killing you myself.”

Vedant chuckled. “Trust me, it’s better than dying out there.”

With one last glance behind them, they jumped down—disappearing into the darkness.

The tunnel was damp, dimly lit by overhead bulbs that flickered with age. Their footsteps echoed as they moved quickly through the underground passage.

For the first time that night, the gunfire was distant, muffled by layers of concrete. A brief moment of calm in the middle of chaos.

Vedant stole a glance at Alessia as she walked beside him. She looked untouched by the night’s events—calm, collected, as if she hadn’t just escaped a death trap.

She caught him looking and smirked. “Enjoying the view?”

Vedant rolled his eyes. “I was just wondering how someone like you became the Mafia Queen of Italy.”

Alessia’s smile didn’t waver, but something flickered in her eyes. Something unreadable.

“I was born into it,” she said simply. “Just like you, I imagine.”

Vedant didn’t reply. She wasn’t wrong.

Silence stretched between them. Not uncomfortable, but charged. Like they both knew they should be enemies, yet here they were—alive, together.

After a few minutes, they reached the tunnel’s exit. Vedant pushed open the steel door, and the cold night air hit them. They were standing near the riverbank, the city skyline glowing in the distance.

Vedant tapped his earpiece. “Jay, we’re out. Send a car.”

Alessia exhaled, running a hand through her dark hair. For a moment, just a fleeting one, she looked tired. Human.

Then, as if flipping a switch, she turned to him with a knowing smirk. “Well, Vedant, as much fun as this has been, I believe this is where we part ways.”

Vedant leaned against the railing, watching her. “Is it?”

Alessia shrugged. “Unless you plan to stop me.”

Vedant considered it. She was dangerous, a loose end in his world. He should stop her. Should put a bullet in her skull before she became a problem.

But he didn’t.

Instead, he took a step closer, invading her space. Their rivalry had changed tonight. Shifted.

“Next time we meet,” he murmured, “I won’t be saving you.”

Alessia tilted her head, amusement dancing in her emerald eyes. “Who said I needed saving?”

Then, with one last smirk, she slipped into the darkness—disappearing into the night like she had never been there at all.

Vedant watched her go, something in his chest tightening.

This wasn’t over.

Not by a long shot.

And when their paths crossed again… there would be no mercy.