Chapter 28: The past

*Four years ago...*

"Are you sure, Ethan?" Ella asked while putting their son to sleep.

"Yeah, don't worry, nothing's going to happen. I know we were not on good terms back then, but Shadow said he realised his mistakes." He said holding Ella's hands in his while staring into her eyes.

"For a mafia you trust people easily. Just come back before I wake up, okay? Take care." Ella gave him a small smile.

"Will do. You too take care bye." V said kissing her goodbye. And who knew that it would be the last goodbye for them. 

Although V said Shadow realised his mistakes, he did not. 

Making a deal was just a disguise for the actual plan to eliminate V. That night a bomb explosion was reported on the same venue where the deal was to be done. 

Ella sure felt restless that night but she never imagined she could see her nightmare even without sleeping.

She tried calling him so many times just to make sure everything went OK until she heard the main door open.

She immediately ran down with a smile hoping it was V but the person standing there was a girl she had never seen before. 

"Excuse me but who may you be?" Ella asked the lady while the voice behind her answered it.

"Ella, she is Shell...the one who helped V in his back-door businesses." 

Hiyori, V's older sister informed her. Both Shell and Hiyori were looking devastated which made Ella confused. "What happened? Why are both of you looking...umm...sad?" Ella asked unsure.

"What happened?! Seriously you are asking that to us?! For god sake you are his wife and you don't know what happened?!" The girl who Hiyori called Shell yelled at top of lungs towards Ella. She looked lost for a while until Hiyori spoke.

"V is in the hospital. It seems...that he was betrayed and got caught up in a bomb attack." Hiyori said looking at the ground, tears forming on her eyes.

Then it hit her, the reason she was feeling restless, the reason his phone was out of reach. Ella broke down. She fell on her knees becoming a crying mess. "Please, Hiyo please...tell me it's a joke." 

She breathed out looking at Hiyori's eyes begging for her to say it. But Ella got her answers when Hiyori ran towards her kneeling down and hugged her, crying on her shoulders.

"I want to see him." Ella said, wiping her tears. 

*At the hospital...*

No matter how much Ella had convinced herself that Ethan is going to be okay. 

It's nothing serious, when she reaches there, he will be giving her a sheepish smile and welcome her in his hug. But all of those fantasies broke down into pieces when she saw him. His body was all covered in wounds and it seems like not even a single place was left for another needle to be pierced.

She felt helpless but she was not weak. She was not going to let the culprit just run away with what he had done to V. Her face looked sad but at the same time her eyes showed anger and determination which did not go unnoticed by Shell.

Although Shell was not related to Miller's family with blood but they treated her like their own. 

She was an orphan starving but struggling to survive. It was her fate and Mrs. Miller’s kindness that they took her in. Not only that she was chosen as Second in command of V by himself. She was given her own territory and V treated her like his own sister, just like Hiyori.

Even Shell loved Ethan and was as much fond of him as he was of her. She used to handle his business when he was out of the country. And she too was not fond of Shadow. The way he looked and spoke always gave her a glint of irritation. 

When Shell heard the news, she felt betrayed by her own brother as she warned him not to keep any business with Shadow but it seems he had another plan.

And when she saw some hint of anger and determination in Ella's eye, her intuition told her that V had chosen the right girl. 

Although she did not attend their wedding because she was not thrilled about her brother finding a girl so early, at this moment, she knew she had been wrong about Ella.

Shell walked towards where Ella was sitting, staring at nothingness.

When Ella noticed the cushion beside her dipping, she immediately turned her heads towards it. Shell was staring deep into Ella's eyes, making sure she saw that spark, and when she saw it, she smiled.

"Why are you smiling? You know this is not funn—"

"Geez, I know how critical the condition is but I also am aware of the fact that my brother's not so weak to go down without a fight." Shell said, cutting off Ella's words.

"But—"

"I was just thinking how surprised he will be, if he finds that his beloved wife and sister avenged him when he wakes up." Shell said again, cutting Ella's words.

"You know that I know nothing about this kind of thing, right?" Ella said to Shell.

"That means you are not going to help me to avenge him. You will just sit and do nothing when his potential murderer is roaming around freely? That's some love you got there." Shell sighed while trying to stand up.

"I never said that."

"That means you in?" Shell asked, perking up her ears.

"You bet I am." Ella said now with a small smile.