Chapter 76: In No Time

Chapter 76: In No Time
Isla
Everything broke.
It started with a shove. Someone bumped into Rosa hard enough to spill her drink.

"Watch it!" Rosa snapped. The man didn't apologize; instead, he laughed. Low and mocking.

"You are in the wrong place." He said. His midtone voice was gruff, loud enough to hear him.

Rosa stepped forward. "And you are in our way."

I grabbed her arm. "Rosa..." but it was too late. Another man stepped in, and another. Carmen moved fast, too fast. She shoved me behind her, her entire body shifting into something else. Alert and ready.

"Stay back," Carmen said under her breath.

"I can defend myself. You don't have to worry." I gave a small smile. I gripped my glass really hard. "Do you know them now?"

"I haven't seen them before," Carmen admitted, I saw the shock in her eyes. The first punch came from nowhere, from the man. It hit Rosa hard but that didn't stop the music. It just became background noise to chaos.

Rosa lunged forward, swinging back without hesitation. I tried to pull her away, but someone grabbed my arm, yanking her sideways. I gasped, twisting, trying to break free.

“Let go of me!” I tightened my fist, struggling out of his grip. Rosa punched her nose. He grunted, holding out his bleeding nose. I broke free. Carmen stepped in, striking the man holding me with brutal precision. He dropped instantly.

I froze. That wasn’t normal. It wasn’t just self-defense, it was training.

More men pushed in. Too many. The club turned into a feast of chaos as everyone bumped into each other, picking more fights than the last.

Carmen fought like she had done this her whole life, quick, efficient, dangerous. Rosa wasn’t far behind, fueled by anger more than skill. I stumbled back, heart racing, trying to catch my breath. It was situations like this that Dante had trained me for. Yet all the fire entangled me in fear, but I threw my fist when necessary. A glass shattered near my feet.

Someone screamed. Sirens replaced them. Blaring into my ears, till I was tone deaf.
Cops.

“Shit,” Rosa breathed. Carmen’s expression went cold. “We need to move.”

But it was too late. The doors burst open. Lights flooded in.

“Everyone down!” The music cut instantly.

Hands grabbed us before I could even react.

I struggled. “Wait, we didn’t..."

“Save it till you are detained." one of the officers snapped, pulling my arms behind my back. Rosa was shouting.
"Do you know who I am?" Carmen said nothing and that was what scared me the most.
The holding cell was cold, too bright, and too real. Certainly my first time. I sat on the bench, my head spinning, trying to piece together what just happened. Rosa paced back and forth. Her eyes wandered to mine. I was furious.

"I told you this night would be interesting." She muttered.

"This isn't interesting, Rosa." I gritted. "This is a disaster!" I wondered what Dante would have to say about this if he found out about it. Carmen leaned against the wall, arms crossed, silent. Too silent. If you didn't know her story, you'd think she was behind it.

"Carmen, do you think Costa found you? Maybe he sent those guys?"
"I doubt it. If he did, he would be here." She sighed, running her fingers through her hair. " I have been involved with some messed-up people while trying to stay hidden. I guess it is one of them or just the club assholes." Carmen's eyes flickered into something sharp. The silence fell between us, heavily deafening. Like there were no real answers.

I blinked, my eyes tearing into the distance. Rosa slipped her fingers into her inner pockets to bring out a burner phone. "How did you sneak that in here?"
"The cops are not thorough when they have too many people to process. I always stay prepared." She dialed quickly, trying different numbers at once.

"Who are you calling?"

"Trying to reach the security at the house. Why is anyone picking their calls?"

"Try Giovanni. Tell him it's discreet. If he can't come then he should send Cesare without Dante knowing." I said in one breath. "If Dante finds out, we are all screwed."

I was more concerned about Carmen, Dante coming here would ruin her chances of escaping full-time. Rosa dialed again, turning away slightly so no one could see her.
"Giovanni? Yeah, it's me. We have a small problem..." I watched Carmen, and slowly took notice of how her fingers were pressed against her thighs, till she bruised. Then it travelled towards her arms tapping lightly as her eyes kept flickering towards the door. Like she was waiting or expecting something worse.

"I will try to protect you if things go south," I said to her. Her attention flew to mine in a second. "If Giovanni comes, he'd let you go. You don't have to worry."

She smiled trying to hide her nervousness. "I guess attending a party while being on the run was a pretty bad idea."

"The worst." We both chuckled.

"Look who we have here." His voice made my heart skip a beat. I gulped, holding my hands together.

"You are not supposed to be here." I gritted, trying to find the words at the same time.

"Really, enlighten me tesoro." He began. "Were you going to tell me you snuck her out of the house to attend a party outside of Palermo?" His gaze pressed on Rosa now, who rolled her eyes at his anger.

"Where's Giovanni?"

"Oh, he was with me when you called. He wasn't really discreet trying to ditch me to save the love of my life and her reckless friends."

"Hey!" Rosa protested. "Are you going to get us out of here? Or do you want to gloat first?" Dante didn't try to hide his disappointment and anger. It was clear that I was either going to meet his silent punishment or an earful of his protest. His cologne filled my senses and after the day I had had, I just wanted to hug him without all of this drama.

His eyes moved to Carmen, who avoided his gaze. "Hello Carmen, fancy seeing you here." He forced a smile. "Marcelli is going to be delighted knowing I have found you."