The silence in the car was thick, tense, filled with unspoken promises and fears piling up between us. The video of Leo still burned in my mind, every second of that broadcast replaying like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.
Clara sat beside me, jaw clenched, her breathing uneven. Her hand rested on my thigh, fingers curled tightly—a subconscious reflex of her frustration.
“He’s provoking us,” Marcelo said, his voice heavy. “He wants us to run straight to him.”
“We don’t have a choice,” I retorted. “We’re not leaving Leo to die.”
Evelyn scoffed from the back seat, laptop open on her lap. “We need to be smart about this. If we go in without a plan, we’ll end up just like him.”
I knew she was right. But every fiber of my being screamed to do something.
My leg bounced anxiously, my mind racing with possibilities. I felt Clara’s hand slide from my thigh to my fingers, squeezing gently. It was subtle, almost imperceptible, but it grounded me.
She was here.
I was here.
And we needed time to think.
“We’re going back to the apartment,” I murmured. “Just for a few hours. We need to regroup.”
Marcelo exhaled sharply but nodded. “If that’s what you want, fine. But don’t let the guilt eat you alive, Bela. Leo is still breathing.”
That was what terrified me. Because I knew Richard wanted me to know that.
For now.
The city lights flickered outside the window, casting soft shadows on the wooden floor. As soon as we stepped inside, Evelyn collapsed onto the couch, already typing furiously on her laptop. Marcelo disappeared into the bathroom to tend to his wound, as usual.
And Clara…
She hadn’t said a word.
She walked straight to the kitchen table, grabbed a bottle of whiskey, and poured herself a drink.
She took a long sip, then, without looking at me, said,
“You can’t keep doing this.”
My brows furrowed. “Doing what?”
She turned, dark eyes burning with conflicting emotions. “Throwing yourself into the fire like your life doesn’t matter.”
I clenched my fists. “You think I want this?”
“You never think about yourself,” she continued, arms crossing over her chest. “You only think about saving everyone, but you never stop to realize that I am here. That we are here.”
The pain in her voice hit me harder than any punch Richard could have thrown.
I ran a hand through my hair, exhausted. “Clara, I don’t know how to do things differently.”
“Then learn,” she murmured.
My heart pounded.
Clara stepped closer, stopping right in front of me, her eyes scanning my face like she was searching for something.
“If something happens to you, I don’t know what I’ll do,” she confessed, her voice breaking.
My chest tightened.
“I’m scared too,” I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Then stop pushing me away,” she whispered.
And in that moment, I knew.
There were no more walls between us.
No more excuses. No more denial.
There was only Clara and me, and a desire we had been suppressing for too long.
Before I could say anything, Clara moved.
Her body pressed against mine, warm and resolute. Her hands cupped my face, dark eyes blazing with something I couldn’t tell if it was anger, frustration, or pure need.
And then, her lips were on mine.
The kiss wasn’t soft.
It was a storm.
A clash of intense emotions, filled with fear, passion, and desperation.
My hands slid to her waist, gripping tightly as if that could ensure she’d never slip away.
She sighed against my lips, her body melting against mine, as if she was as exhausted from fighting this as I was.
I didn’t know how long we stayed like that, lost in each other, in lips, in hands, in the heat consuming us.
All I knew was that when we finally broke apart, we were both breathless, and Clara leaned her forehead against mine.
“This doesn’t change the fact that you’re stubborn as hell,” she muttered.
I chuckled, brushing my fingers against her cheek. “And you’re impossible.”
“That’s why we work.”
My throat tightened at the weight of the moment. “I can’t promise I’ll never put myself in danger.”
Clara closed her eyes for a second, taking a deep breath before looking at me again. “Then promise me you’ll always come back to me.”
I held her face between my hands.
And whispered the only truth that mattered.
“Always.”
Our moment was cut short by Evelyn’s phone vibrating.
She frowned, picking it up.
“Shit,” she muttered.
Clara and I turned to her at the same time.
“What is it?” I asked, my stomach twisting.
Evelyn looked at me, her face paler than ever.
“Richard sent another message.”
I stepped closer, taking the phone from her hands.
It was a photo.
Of Leo.
But this time, he wasn’t just tied up.
There was a countdown in the background.
And it was ticking down.
My heart nearly stopped.
“He’s giving us a deadline,” Marcelo said, appearing beside us. “If we don’t get to him before it ends, Leo dies.”
Clara squeezed my hand, her skin cold against mine.
“Then we don’t have a choice,” I murmured.
I looked at the clock.
We had six hours.
Six hours to save Leo.
Six hours before Richard won.
And I swore I wouldn’t let that happen.