Chapter 186 Poison

Chapter 186 Poison
Dante stood over Luca’s broken body.

His men were all quiet, weapons lowered, waiting for his command, but Dante heard none of it.

All he saw was his brother.

Luca was slumped against a concrete pillar, one arm hanging uselessly at his side, blood soaking through his sleeve from where Dante had shot him. His face was pale, too pale, yet his lips curved into something dangerously close to a smile.

Matteo stepped closer, placing a firm hand on Dante’s back.

“It’s over,” Matteo said quietly. “You did what you had to do.”

Dante didn’t answer, his gaze never left Luca.

For a long moment, silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating.

Then Luca let out a low, broken laugh that ended in a cough.

“You know,” Luca rasped, lifting his head with effort, “I don’t regret it.”

Dante’s jaw tightened.

“I don’t regret any of it,” Luca continued, blood gathering at the corner of his mouth. “Not De Luca, not the Marino, not Lucia.”

Luca's eyes flicked up to Dante’s, despite the pain. “I would do it all again.”

Matteo stiffened beside Dante, his hand tightening instinctively, but Dante raised a hand slightly, stopping him.

Still, Dante said nothing.

Luca watched him closely, almost desperately now. “Nothing to say?” he mocked weakly. “After everything? After all the years we bled together?”

Dante finally moved. He took a slow step back, then another.

“There’s nothing left to say,” he said in disappointment and turned.

That was when it happened.

A violent sound tore from Luca’s throat.

His body jerked forward suddenly, fingers clawing at his chest.

He began coughing uncontrollably, thick, dark blood spilling from his mouth and splattering onto the concrete floor.

Matteo spun around. “Dante—”

Dante who was already moving rushed back to Luca, dropping to his knees beside him, gripping his shoulders. “Luca!”

Dante's composure cracked. “What did you do?”

Luca’s eyes were wide now, panic flashing through them as his body convulsed again.

Blood poured freely from his lips, staining his chin, his shirt, his hands as he tried and failed to stop it.

“I didn’t want to beg,” Luca choked out. “Didn’t want… your mercy.”

Dante shook him, just once. “You idiot,” he hissed, fury and anguish colliding in his chest. “What did you take?”

Luca’s breathing turned ragged and shallow. His fingers twitched weakly against Dante’s sleeve.

“Insurance,” he whispered. “I always planned… my own ending.”

Matteo knelt on Luca’s other side, checking his pulse, his face darkening with every passing second. “Poison,” he said grimly. “Fast-acting.”

Dante felt something rip open inside his chest.

“No,” he muttered. “No, no—” He pressed his hand harder against Luca’s chest as if sheer will could keep his heart beating. “Stay with me. Don’t you dare die like this.”

Luca’s gaze softened then, just for a moment.

The arrogance faded, replaced by something achingly familiar, the younger brother Dante had once protected with his life.

“I was always… in your shadow,” Luca whispered. “This way… I choose.”

His body jerked one last time.

A final breath rattled out of his lungs and then there was nothing.

Dante froze.

He stared down at his brother’s lifeless face, his hands still gripping him, waiting for something, anything to change.

The warehouse felt unbearably silent now, like the world itself had stopped breathing with him.

Matteo slowly reached out and placed two fingers against Luca’s neck. After a few seconds, he shook his head.

“He’s gone.”

Dante didn’t move.

He remained there on his knees, blood soaking into his clothes, staring at the face of his brother.

“My own blood,” Dante whispered hoarsely.

Matteo rested a hand on his shoulder again, gentler this time. “You tried, he made his choice.”

Dante finally let go of Luca and stood up unsteadily. He looked down at the body one last time.

“Cover him,” Dante said quietly.

Before Dante could even process, a flurry of movement came from the side.

Isabella’s figure cut through the chaos, her eyes wide.

She didn’t hesitate, she ran straight to him.

“Dante!” she cried, her voice cracking.

He barely registered her presence before her arms wrapped around him, soft and gentle, pulling him back.

She clutched him tightly, pressing her forehead against his chest.

“Dante,” she whispered. “I’m sorry about Luca…”

Dante’s hands trembled as they rested on her shoulders, unsure whether to push her away or let her in.

“He… he’s… gone,” Dante murmured hoarsely, his voice breaking despite himself. “Luca… my own brother…”

“I know,” Isabella said, tightening her hold. “I know it hurts, Dante. I can’t imagine… but you’re not alone. Not now.”

Her words, soft but insistent, wrapped around him like a lifeline. Dante’s body shook with suppressed sobs.

“I… I failed him,” he choked out. “I failed him, and I didn’t even see it coming, he—he did all those things, and I…”

“You couldn’t have known,” Isabella said firmly, stroking his back. “You did everything you could. You’re still here. You’re alive. That matters.”

Dante’s head dropped against hers.

“I… I don’t know what to do without him,” Dante admitted, his voice low, almost a whisper. “How… how could he do this? I was going to give him a second chance, send him somewhere far away, or anything except hurting him badly.”

“I don’t know,” she whispered back, “but right now… just let me be here. Let me be here for you.”

Dante exhaled slowly, wiping the tears that gathered at the corner of his eyes.

“Let's go.” Matteo whispered to them. “The car is ready.”

Dante look around, then held Isabella close to him as they all walked out.