Chapter 294: Finale

Reyna POV

The message is still sitting in my phone when Dante reads it. His jaw tightens, but his voice stays calm.

Final strike. Target: Reyna.

For once, I don't panic. I just meet his eyes. "So let's use it."

Dante studies me, the way only he can, like he's weighing if I'm brave or just stupid. Luca immediately shakes his head. "No. Absolutely not."

"Think about it," I argue. "Romano already made it clear he wants me. He won't be able to resist showing up if I'm out in the open. And if we control the ground, if we know he's coming, then we end this on our terms."

"Reyna-" Luca snaps, but Dante raises a hand.

"She's right." His tone is sharp, final. "Romano broke the code, but he thinks he can hide behind the board. He won't show his hand unless he's sure he's winning. And Reyna... she's the piece he thinks he can take."

Luca curses under his breath, pacing. "You're both insane."

I step closer to him, lowering my voice. "You think I want this? That I like being a target? I don't. But I'm done being the weak link. If Romano wants me, then fine, let him come."

His eyes flash with anger, but beneath it I see fear. Real fear. "If anything happens to you-"

I press a hand to his chest, steady. "Then you stop it from happening."

For a long moment, it's a silent war between us. Finally, Luca mutters, "You'll be the death of me."

"Maybe," I whisper, "but at least we'll take him down first."

The docks smell like oil and salt, the water black under the moonlight. Dante's men line the shadows, weapons ready, every angle is covered. My laptop is open on a crate, feeds from hidden cameras already lighting up the screen.

It's quiet, too quiet, until footsteps echo across the pier.

And then he's there.

Alessandro Romano, dressed in a sharp suit and a sharp smile to boot, his eyes are colder than the water behind him. He looks at Dante first, then at me.

"So it's true," he says smoothly. "The little hacker thinks she belongs in our world."

I don't flinch. "I don't think. I know."

Romano's smirk widens. "Brave words. Shame they'll be your last."

He lifts a hand, his signal. Men pour out from behind containers, gunfire breaking the silence in an instant.

Dante's soldiers answer back. The pier explodes in chaos.

"Stay down!" Luca yells, dragging me behind cover as bullets tear through wood. I'm already typing, my fingers flying across the keys, intercepting Romano's comms. His men don't even realize I've hijacked their channel until I redirect half of them into a crossfire with Dante's soldiers.

"Right side!" I shout. Luca pivots and fires, dropping the threat before they can flank us. He glances back at me, eyes blazing. "You're insane."

"You love it," I throw back, adrenaline spiking.

Romano steps forward, firing into the smoke, his voice carrying across the chaos. "Luca! You think this girl is worth war?"

His aim shifts so fast and his gun is pointed straight at me.

"Reyna!" Luca yells.

Luca doesn't hesitate. He lunges forward, firing before Romano can pull the trigger. The bullet slams into Romano's chest. His eyes go wide, shock flickering before his body drops against the crates.

Silence spreads across the dock. Dante's men finish clearing the stragglers, their screams fading into nothing.

I finally breathe a sigh of relief, Romano is dead.

Hours later, the mansion feels different. It feels quiet and safe for once. Ana leans against Dante in the corner, whispering to him as the soldiers disperse. The war is finally over.

I step out onto the balcony, the city lights stretching far below. My hands are still trembling, but I don't want to be alone.

Luca finds me anyway. He slides behind me, arms circling my waist, his voice low against my ear. "I thought I lost you tonight."

"You almost did," I whisper, turning in his arms.

He studies me, like he's searching for any crack in my resolve. "This is my life, Reyna,I'm the violence in Dante world, the bullet proof ready to take a bullet for him.. And for you, this is what I signed up for, there's no walking out of it once you're in."

"Good," I breathe, shaking my head with a slight smile. "Because I'm not walking out."

His chest rises sharp, like he wasn't expecting that.

"I want you to be my partner Reyna, my lover, my the one I sow my heart to, my everything," he says roughly.

I nod, my eyes piercing into his, my heart steady. "Everything."

When he kisses me, it isn't as desperate as before. It's certain and final, completely ours.

For the first time, there are no enemies in the shadows. No betrayals waiting to be uncovered, it's just us.

The war is over and we won.

The End