Chapter 193 We Watch
Chapter 193 We Watch
Draco’s POV
I didn’t move right away after Bella read that last message.
I let it sit.
Not because I believed him, but because I wanted to understand exactly what kind of man thought he could walk into this, throw weight around, and then end it with a threat like that.
“I’m calling bluff,” I said finally, my voice calm, controlled, but edged just enough to make it clear I meant it.
Nico let out a short breath. “Yeah,” he said, leaning back slightly. “I don’t buy that either.”
Gino didn’t look up from his screen. “Timing’s too convenient,” he added. “He pushes, doesn’t get what he wants, then suddenly he’s ‘already inside.’ That’s not confidence. That’s pressure.”
“That’s desperation,” I corrected.
Bella shifted slightly on my lap, her focus still locked on the screen in front of her, but I could feel the way she was processing it, breaking it apart the same way I was.
“He’s trying to make us react,” she said.
“Exactly,” I replied. “And if we react the wrong way, we give him control.”
Nico smirked faintly. “So we don’t react.”
“No,” I said. “We do. Just not how he expects.”
That was the difference. You don’t ignore someone like him. You outplay him.
Gino finally leaned back, folding his arms as he looked over at me. “So what’s the move?”
“We find him,” I said simply.
Bella’s fingers were already moving again, faster now, sharper, her focus narrowing as she pushed past the noise and dug deeper into the data. Gino matched her pace beside her, both of them working in sync without needing to coordinate it out loud.
“He buried it better this time,” Gino muttered.
“He had time to adjust,” Bella replied.
“That doesn’t make him invisible,” I said.
“No,” she agreed. “It doesn’t.”
The room quieted again, the only sound coming from the steady rhythm of keys and the occasional shift of movement as Nico leaned forward slightly, watching like he was waiting for the moment everything snapped into place.
It didn’t take long. Bella’s hands slowed. Then stopped.
She looked up. “Got it.”
At the exact same time Gino said the same. “Got it,” Gino said.
They both glanced at each other for half a second, then back at me.
That was all I needed.
“Let’s see it,” I said.
Bella turned the screen slightly, pulling the location up clean and precise now that the false trails had been stripped away. Gino mirrored it on his own screen, confirming it from a separate angle.
“Single source,” Gino said. “No bouncing around.”
“Real location,” Bella added.
I leaned forward, studying it carefully, committing it to memory in seconds.
“There you are,” I murmured.
Nico let out a low whistle. “That didn’t take long.”
“It took exactly as long as it needed to,” I said.
Because now we weren’t guessing. We knew where he was and exactly where to find him.
Nico straightened slightly, his energy shifting immediately. “You want a team?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said without hesitation.
He nodded once, already halfway to standing.
“But not to hit,” I added.
That stopped him.
“Not to hit?” he repeated.
“No,” I said, leaning back slightly as I looked between them. “We observe first.”
Gino raised a brow. “You think it’s a setup.”
“I think it’s him,” I said. “Which means I think he’s expecting something. He don’t know it's us though.”
Bella nodded slightly. “If he’s baiting us, he’ll be watching for movement.”
“Exactly,” I said.
Nico huffed a quiet breath. “So we go in quiet.”
“We go in smart,” I corrected.
There’s a difference.
I looked between them, already piecing it together. “We’ll need Renzo’s team,” I said. “And Giovanni’s.”
Nico smirked. “Ghosts and muscle.”
“Precision and pressure,” I corrected again.
Gino nodded once. “That’s a strong combination.”
“It needs to be,” I said.
Because this wasn’t just another target. This was someone who had already proven he knew how to move, how to hide, how to manipulate the board before we even realized we were playing.
Bella shifted slightly, her hand resting against my chest as she looked up at me. “You’re expecting resistance,” she said.
“I’m expecting something,” I replied. “And I’d rather be overprepared than surprised.”
Nico stood fully now, rolling his shoulders once like he was already gearing up. “I’ll start pulling them in,” he said.
“Quietly,” I added.
He paused, glancing back at me. “You think he’s watching us already?”
“I think he wants us to think that,” I said.
Nico smirked slightly. “So we make sure he doesn’t get what he wants.”
“Exactly.”
Gino closed his laptop halfway, his attention fully on me now. “What’s the objective?”
I didn’t hesitate. “We confirm,” I said. “We observe. We learn everything we can before we make a move.”
“And if he’s there?” Nico asked.
I held his gaze. “Then we don’t miss.”
That settled it. No more questions. No more discussion.
The room shifted again, the energy tightening, focusing, every piece falling into place exactly where it needed to be.Bella closed her laptop slowly, her expression calm but sharp, her mind already ten steps ahead like it always was.
“You’re right,” she said quietly. “He thinks he’s in control.”
I looked at her. A slow smirk pulled at my mouth.
“Not anymore.”