Chapter 72
Chapter 72
Sofia's POV
The sound of the gunshot still echoed when the world went dark.
I couldn’t tell if I was falling or floating. The rain had turned cold, my hands numb. Then I felt it—strong arms around me, pulling me back from the edge.
“Sofia! Stay with me!” Luca’s voice broke through the noise.
I tried to open my eyes, but everything was blurred. “You… you shouldn’t be—”
“Quiet,” he said quickly. “You’re hit.”
I looked down and saw the blood. It didn’t look real. Just dark and spreading fast. My chest tightened as Luca pressed his hand over the wound.
“Don’t move,” he said. His voice shook, even though he tried to sound calm. “Alessandro! Help me!”
Alessandro knelt beside us, checking the trees. “We have to move. They’re close.”
Luca glared up at him. “She’s bleeding out!”
“I know,” Alessandro said, his jaw tight. “But if we stay, we all die.”
Diego’s voice cut through the chaos. “I’ll cover! Get her out!”
Luca lifted me into his arms. The movement made me gasp in pain. “I’ve got you,” he whispered, holding me against his chest as he stumbled toward the trees.
“You’re hurt,” I murmured, seeing the blood on his shirt.
“It’s nothing,” he said. “Don’t talk. Save your strength.”
“I told you not to get shot,” I tried to joke, but it came out as a weak laugh.
“Yeah, well, you didn’t exactly follow that rule either,” he said, breath uneven but still trying to sound like himself.
Branches whipped against us as he ran. Behind us, gunfire cracked through the night. Alessandro and Diego were still fighting. Every shot felt closer than the last.
“Luca, stop,” I said weakly. “You’ll get caught.”
“Not happening.” His grip tightened. “You think I’m letting you go now?”
I wanted to argue, but his voice—rough, desperate—made me stay quiet. The world around us faded to rain and pain and his heartbeat pounding against my ear.
Finally, Alessandro caught up, panting. “There’s an old cabin ahead. We can patch her up there.”
Luca didn’t hesitate. “Lead the way.”
The cabin was small, broken, and smelled like dust and rain. Luca kicked the door open, carried me inside, and laid me on an old wooden table. He was shaking, but his hands never stopped moving.
“Find something to stop the bleeding!” he ordered.
Alessandro tore through the drawers. “All I see are old rags.”
“Use them,” Luca said. His voice cracked. “Now.”
I grabbed his wrist. “Luca…”
He looked down at me, eyes dark with fear. “Don’t. Don’t talk like it’s goodbye.”
“I wasn’t,” I said softly. “I just—wanted to see your face.”
He let out a short, breathless laugh. “You always know how to scare the hell out of me.”
“Guess that makes us even,” I whispered.
He pressed the cloth hard against the wound. Pain shot through me, and I bit my lip. “Sorry,” he said quickly. “Just hold on.”
Alessandro handed him a flask of clear liquid. “Whiskey. For the pain—or to clean the wound.”
Luca didn’t hesitate. “Both.” He poured it over the wound. I gasped and grabbed his arm.
“Are you trying to kill me?” I hissed.
“That means it’s working,” he said with a small grin, though his eyes glistened. “Stay mad at me. It’ll keep you awake.”
“Don’t worry,” I said through my teeth. “I’m really mad.”
“Good,” he murmured, leaning closer. “That’s my girl.”
For a moment, the world outside didn’t exist. Just his face above mine—wet hair, rain on his lashes, hands shaking as he tried to save me. His thumb brushed my cheek, slow, gentle.
“Luca,” I whispered, “why are you doing this?”
His brow furrowed. “Because you mean everything to me.”
I shook my head weakly. “You don’t mean that.”
He leaned closer, voice low and rough. “If I didn’t, I would’ve left you back there. I would’ve let you go. But I can’t.”
“You’ll get yourself killed.”
“I already made peace with that,” he said. “But I’m not losing you again.”
Before I could answer, Alessandro returned from the door. “We’ve got company. They’re spreading out.”
Luca’s head snapped up. “How close?”
“Too close,” Alessandro said. “Diego’s drawing them away, but it won’t last.”
“Then we move,” Luca said. He looked down at me. “Can you walk?”
I tried to sit up, pain flaring sharp through my side. “If you help me.”
He slid an arm under me, helping me to my feet. My legs shook, but I forced them to hold. “I’m fine,” I lied.
He gave me a look. “You’re a terrible liar.”
“Guess you’re stuck with me anyway,” I said.
“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” he replied.
Alessandro checked the window. “We’ll take the back path to the river. It’s risky, but it’s cover.”
Luca nodded. “Let’s move.”
We slipped out the back, moving through thick fog. Every sound made my heart race. My wound throbbed with every step, but I held on to Luca’s arm, refusing to slow him down.
“Almost there,” he whispered. “You’re doing great.”
“Liar,” I said, breathing hard.
“Only when it helps,” he said with a faint smile.
A rustle in the dark made us freeze. Alessandro raised his gun. “They’re here.”
Luca pushed me behind him. “Stay down.”
Gunfire exploded through the mist. Alessandro fired back. I ducked, clutching my side, trying not to scream. Luca moved fast, returning fire, his jaw set.
“Go!” Alessandro shouted. “Run, I’ll hold them!”
“No,” Luca snapped. “We stay together!”
“Luca—” I started, but he cut me off.
“Not without you, Sofia,” he said. “Never again.”
The air filled with smoke. Alessandro covered our retreat as we ran toward the riverbank. My legs felt like they might give out at any second, but Luca didn’t let go of my hand.
We reached the edge of the water. It moved fast, dark and endless. I hesitated. “We can’t survive another jump.”
Luca looked at me, rain dripping from his chin. “Do you trust me?”
“After all this?” I breathed. “Yeah. I do.”
He smiled, small but real. “Then hold on.”
Before I could answer, a voice rang out behind us. “Drop your weapons!”
The man stood at the treeline again, calm, untouched, gun aimed straight at Luca.
“Step away from her,” he said coldly. “Or I’ll shoot.”
Luca shifted, keeping me behind him. “You’ll have to go through me first.”
“That was always the plan,” the man said, lowering his aim toward Luca’s chest.
“Stop!” I shouted, stepping forward. “You want me, right? Let him go!”
Luca’s hand gripped mine tight. “Don’t. Don’t you dare.”
“Please,” I whispered. “He’ll kill you.”
His eyes locked on mine. “Then we die together.”
The man’s finger twitched on the trigger. “Touching,” he said. “But useless.”
Time froze. I could hear the rain, the river, my heartbeat. Luca pulled me close, his body shielding mine. “Close your eyes,” he whispered.
“No—”
A shot cracked through the air. For a second, I thought it was over.
But the man staggered back, dropping his gun. Alessandro stepped out of the shadows behind him, smoke rising from his barrel.
“Didn’t see me, did you?” Alessandro said coldly.
Luca turned to me, cupping my face. “You okay?”
I nodded, trembling. “You?”
He smiled faintly. “Better now.”
Behind us, Alessandro kicked the man’s weapon away. “We need to move before his men find him.”
Luca nodded. “Then let’s finish this.”
He turned back to me. “Can you still walk?”
“Barely.”
“That’s enough,” he said, and his arm slid around my waist. “You’re not leaving my side again.”
I wanted to argue, but his voice—low, certain—stopped me. I leaned into him, the warmth of his touch stronger than the pain.
We started toward the river path, but before we could reach it, a new explosion lit up the sky. The ground shook under us. Luca pulled me close, covering me from the blast.
“Luca!” I shouted.
He held me tighter. “I’ve got you! I’m not letting go!”
But when the smoke cleared, the sight ahead froze my blood.
Dozens of armed men stood waiting across the riverbank—more than before, their guns aimed straight at us.
Luca’s hand tightened on mine. “Stay behind me,” he whispered.
The man we thought was dead laughed weakly from the ground. “You should’ve aimed higher.”
I looked at Luca, heart racing. “What do we do now?”
He met my eyes, calm but fierce. “We fight. Together.”
And just as the next volley of gunfire erupted, Luca stepped forward, shielding me again—his last words barely a whisper against the storm.
“I’d rather die than lose you.”