Chapter 2 Collateral

**Stefano's POV**

"Shit," I hissed, pulling the collar of my coat up tight as the cold air hit my face the moment I stepped outside my house. Winter was officially here.

I took a drag from my cigarette, inhaling deeply and letting the smoke fill my lungs, but it didn't ease the tension in my chest.

Just as headlights flashed through the darkness, a car with a smashed windshield skidded to a halt in front of me. Two of my guys jumped out, their faces pale and eyes darting around as if they were searching for an escape.

John hit the ground hard, landing on his knees, as he trembled so intensely I thought he might faint. "Boss... please... we messed up. We didn't mean to. It just..." His words rushed out.

I didn't move. I just let the cigarette burn down between my fingers while I took in their panic.

"Spit it out! What are you actually talking about?"

Enzo stepped forward, breathless and anxious. "It... It was the job with the girl. Everything was going as planned until she..." He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. "She pulled a gun and started shooting at us."

My jaw clenched so tightly it hurt, and I could feel anger bubbling up inside me. "Go on," I said, not trusting myself to say more.

"We panicked," he stammered, his voice cracking. "So we shot back, just to scare her, I swear. She swerved, and then..." He swallowed, his eyes wide. "We hit her tire, and the car went out of control. We didn't mean it, boss, we didn't." His face twisted, as if he were about to cry.

I took a step closer, locking eyes with him. "Is she alive?"

Nobody said a word. They just looked at each other, their eyes wide, as if the other one had the answer.

Reaching for my gun, I cocked it, the sound echoing into the night. "I'll ask again. Is she alive?"

John's voice trembled, filled with fear and regret. "Boss, I... I don't know! We panicked. We left her there and rushed here..."

I didn't wait. Before he could finish, I pulled the trigger. John's head jerked back as he fell, blood pooling on the cold ground.

"No! Please, boss! Please..." Enzo screamed. He knelt on the ground, trembling so hard that his knees bled.

I stepped over John's body without even looking down and crouched in front of Enzo until we were eye to eye. He was shaking so violently that his teeth chattered, and I saw the terror in his eyes.

​I looked him over slowly, letting him see the total failure he was.

"I trusted you with this job. You were supposed to shoot her car, just the car, enough to scare her and make her father sweat." I took another step closer. "Did I ask you to kill her?" My jaw trembled with silent fury.

"No, boss," Enzo cried out, desperation evident in his voice. "Please, I swear it was an accident, a mistake. We didn't intend for things to get this bad. Please, I'm begging you... show mercy."

"Mercy?" I chuckled, revealing my gun, still warm in my hand. "Mercy is for those who think before they act."

He whimpered, tears streaming down his face, his knees scraping the rough asphalt, trembling so badly I thought he might collapse right there.

I turned toward Luca, my right-hand man, who was watching. "Take him to the dungeon," I ordered. "Let him pray for her survival. And if she dies..." I turned back to Enzo, letting the gravity of my words sink in. "You'll face the consequences."

"Yes, boss," Luca said quietly.

My men grabbed Enzo by the arms, dragging him back toward the house. His voice grew faint as he kept begging.

​I turned to him before he disappeared inside. "Where did you leave her?"

"Via Pontaccio in the Brera district," he cried. "Near Spazio Pontaccio. We left her there."

I fumbled for another cigarette, my hands trembling so much I nearly dropped it. This was supposed to be a simple job, just a warning for Armando Castellano. Nobody was supposed to get hurt.

Now it was all screwed up.

"Luca, call emergency services. Report an accident on Via Pontaccio, where the girl was abandoned. Do it now."

Luca remained silent and followed my instructions without a word. After he finished the call, I stomped out my cigarette.

"Let's go."

We got into the car, and Luca hit the gas so hard that the tires squealed. I stayed silent, gazing out the window with my jaw clenched and my hand gripping the gun in my lap.

We parked on a side road with a clear view, staying out of sight, as I watched to see where the ambulance would go so I could determine which hospital they'd take her to.

The girl was merely leverage, a tool to shake Armando Castellano, the man responsible for my father's death. My goal was to instill fear, not grief.

Her car looked as if it had been chewed up and spat out. The car's body was crumpled, glass was everywhere, and one tire was missing.

And there she was, Elena Castellano, being gently pulled from the wreckage. They lifted her onto the stretcher, and even from here I could see how pale she was, with blood smeared all over.

She looked like she was already gone.

"Oh hell," I muttered as I watched them load her into the ambulance. My pulse pounded, and my chest tightened with anxiety.

This wasn't the plan. I didn't team up with Raffaele Lorusso just to watch everything fall apart. My fist clenched so hard that my knuckles ached.

"You can't die tonight," I whispered, tightening my grip on the gun.

If she dies, everything changes; it won't be a warning anymore. Armando will come for blood, and I'm not ready for that. Not yet.

Luca stood beside me, his face a mask of calm, but I could feel the tension radiating from him. "What do we do now?"

I kept my eyes on the ambulance as its doors slammed shut. "Follow them."

We jumped back into the car. The tires screeched as we pulled onto the road behind the ambulance. I stared straight ahead, my jaw hurting, as my thoughts raced so fast I couldn't catch any of them.

"You're not supposed to die," the thought screamed inside my head. I clenched my hands into tight fists until the sharp pain of my nails digging into my palms was all I could feel.

I have a plan for you, Elena.

If you die, my plan fails.