> "He's not dead.
Because if he was...
I wouldn't still be breathing."
—Boss
---
The night was thick with fog and the taste of vengeance.
Boss hadn't slept. Hadn't blinked. Hadn't felt anything except Sea's name echoing in his skull like a broken prayer.
He was close.
His men had found an abandoned chapel on the outskirts of the city—the kind used by old gangs for "silent business." Blood had stained its pews once. Now it was being used again.
"Move in," Boss ordered.
Nick hesitated. "You think he's there?"
Boss didn't answer.
Because he knew.
---
Inside the Chapel…
Sea's body trembled violently. He hadn't eaten. His vision was blurry, wrists swollen from trying to fight the rope. The men who took him had stopped beating him days ago. They were waiting.
For something.
Someone.
"You're lucky, kid," one of the guards sneered. "He's not letting us touch you. Guess he wants you fresh for himself."
Sea stared at him. Eyes empty. No longer shaking from fear.
But hate.
And something deeper… darker.
He heard the whispers.
The ones he thought he'd made up.
"He's coming."
"He'll burn you for every breath you stole from me."
Sea didn't smile. He just exhaled softly and rested his head against the wall.
---
Outside...
Boss walked in alone.
No backup. No mask. No mercy.
The guards at the entrance didn't even get a chance to scream. One bullet each, straight to the head.
He didn't break into a run. He stalked. Like a predator who'd already won and was only here to collect the remains.
Inside the chapel, the lights flickered.
One of the men grabbed Sea and held a knife to his throat. "One more step and I'll slice him open!"
Boss didn't blink.
"I dare you," he growled, voice low, cold—like something dead that learned how to speak.
Then he fired.
The bullet hit the man's shoulder—not fatal, but violent enough to drop him. Sea collapsed, weak, barely able to lift his head.
Boss dropped the gun.
Ran to him.
Sea whispered, "...you found me."
Boss cupped his cheeks, voice shaking. "I told you. You belong to me."
Sea passed out in his arms, but not before whispering:
"Took you long enough, Devil…"
---
To be continued