Gut Feeling
Adriano’s eyes scanned the room.
The silence was razor-thin.
Gabriele and Alessandro locked up, both standing like deer caught in the headlights. Neither moved. Neither spoke.
Adriano took a few slow steps into the room, letting the door shut behind him with a soft but echoing click.
“I asked you a question,” he said, his voice calm but with that ever-present undertone of threat. “Tell me what?”
Gabriele was the first to recover. He plastered on a half-convincing smirk, arms folding casually across his chest.
“Relax,” he said. “We were just talking about how badly you’re going to flip when you find out who snores the loudest in this crew.”
Alessandro coughed—not from amusement, but from the sheer desperation of trying to play along. “It’s Luca by the way.”
Adriano didn’t laugh. His eyes narrowed. “You two sounded serious.”
“Yeah, well,” Gabriele said, stepping forward, still casual, “we were also talking about the customs bullshit. How long you guys were held up. We were talking about if it was planned or if we're just being paranoid.”
Adriano’s brow twitched. His suspicion deepened, but he said nothing.
Alessandro added quickly, “And we were talking about Diamond too. She looked shaken after all that mess at customs. Gabriele told me he checked in on her earlier… just to make sure she was alright.”
Adriano’s head turned slowly toward Alessandro now. His expression didn’t change, but the tension in the air tripled.
“You seem really... interested in how Diamond’s doing.”
Alessandro shrugged. “She’s your girl. If something’s off with her, you’d want to know, right?”
The words were smooth, but Gabriele could hear the slight edge of panic beneath them. Still, he nodded in agreement. “Exactly. It’s just concern.”
Adriano stared between them. His gaze lingered on Alessandro, longer than necessary.
The silence was starting to suffocate.
Then Adriano clicked his tongue, turned away, and walked toward the window. He looked out at the early morning London skyline, then spoke without looking back.
“You two are shit liars.”
Gabriele froze. Alessandro’s heart skipped.
“But…” Adriano continued, his voice lower now, “if whatever it is you two are hiding doesn’t screw up this mission… I don’t give a fuck.”
Neither brother moved.
Adriano turned back to them.
“If it does… you both better pray you die before I find out what it is.”
He walked toward the door again, hand on the knob, then paused.
“Oh, and Gabriele?”
Gabriele straightened.
“I don’t snore.”
He opened the door and left without another word. Only after the door shut did Alessandro exhale, shoulders sagging.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he muttered, hands on his knees.
Gabriele stared at the closed door. “He doesn’t believe us.”
“I know,” Alessandro said.
“Then why didn’t he press?”
“Because that’s not how Adriano works,” Alessandro murmured. “He lets you hang yourself with your own rope.”
Gabriele looked at him. “So what do we do?”
Alessandro looked back, eyes dark.
“We stick to the lie.”
—
Adriano walked down the hallway, his boots heavy on the expensive carpeting. His jaw clenched, muscles flexing beneath his shirt with every step.
He wasn’t sure what he was more annoyed about—The fact that they lied… Or the fact that they were trying so damn hard not to make it look like they were lying.
“You two are shit liars.”
He said that out loud, and it was true. Especially Alessandro.
"Alessandro's usually better at it." Adriano thought to himself, “But tonight… his body language was off. His words sounded too rehearsed. And Gabriele? The way his eyes darted, the defensive sarcasm—he was protecting something…
From me.”
Adriano reached the end of the hallway and stopped in front of his room. His hand hovered over the keycard slot, but he didn’t swipe it yet.
"They’re definitely hiding something."
He didn’t have proof—just instinct. But instinct was all you needed in this life. And his gut had never lied to him before.
He let out a breath through his nose and muttered under his breath.
“Fuck.”
Is it about Diamond?
He hated the thought, but it wouldn’t leave him alone. Not since the second Alessandro mentioned her name.
“She looked shaken after all that mess at customs…”
“Gabriele said he checked in on her earlier…”
Adriano’s gut twisted.
His knuckles whitened around the card in his hand. He wasn’t the jealous type—not really. But this wasn’t just about possessiveness. It was about respect. About loyalty.
He didn’t want to believe Alessandro would cross that line.
But something had shifted. He’d felt it ever since they landed.
He finally swiped the keycard, the lock clicked and he stepped inside.
—
Diamond was sitting on the edge of the bed, already in a soft robe, towel-drying her hair. When she heard the door open, she looked up and froze for a second before forcing a smile.
“Hey,” she said, her voice a little too casual.
“Hey,” Adriano returned, closing the door behind him.
He didn’t move immediately. He just stood there. Watching her.
Her fingers slowed against the towel. “You okay?”
Adriano gave a half-shrug. “Long day.”
Diamond nodded. “Yeah. Same here.”
The silence between them was uncomfortable. Not hostile. But… different. Heavy.
Adriano finally crossed the room and dropped onto the armchair. He didn’t take his eyes off her.
“I asked Gabriele to check on you,” he said. “You alright?”
Diamond stiffened ever so slightly. “Yeah. I was just tired after everything. He didn’t stay long.”
Adriano watched her closely. “And Alessandro?”
Her hands paused. “What about him?”
“You two got back here together. Did you talk at all?”
She swallowed hard. “Not really. Just...small talk in the car.”
Lie.
Adriano could tell. She was good—better than most. But her eyes told the truth, even if her mouth didn’t.
He nodded slowly, running his hand down his face.
“Something feels off.”
Diamond looked at him then. “Off how?”
“With this mission. With all of us. It’s like…” he trailed off, searching for the words. “We’re all walking around with ticking time-bombs in our chests. And when they go off… it’s gonna be bad.”
Diamond said nothing. She stared down at her towel.
Adriano leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “You’d tell me if something was wrong, right?”
She looked up, her hazel eyes meeting his. “Of course.”
His stare held hers a second longer than it should’ve. Then he stood.
“Get some rest,” he said quietly.
He walked toward the bathroom but paused at the door.
“I really care about you, Diamond,” he said over his shoulder, voice soft.
Diamond’s lips parted—like she wanted to say it back. But no words came out.
Adriano gave her a small nod and disappeared into the bathroom.
The sound of running water filled the silence.
Diamond turned away, curling up on the bed, guilt pressing on her chest like a weight she couldn’t shake.