CHAPTER 59: THE BEGINNING OF THE END

Vincent closed his eyes, bracing for the pain that should have ended everything.

The gunshot exploded through the alley, sharp enough to make his ears ring, but nothing struck him.

No heat. No agony. Only the cold rush of confusion.

He opened his eyes just enough to see Lucien’s arm lowered, the bullet buried in the ground beside his head.

His breath caught. "What? Why?"

"Get up and get the hell out of here."

Lucien stepped back, lifting his foot from Vincent’s chest.

Vincent didn’t move at first. He couldn’t. His mind scrambled to understand why the man who had every reason to kill him chose not to.

This wasn’t the Silver Serpent he knew. The feared underboss who removed obstacles without the slightest hesitation. The serpent that never forgave, never spared, always struck to kill.

But the man standing above him didn’t look like a ruthless killer. He looked worn, hollow, shaken in a way Vincent had never seen.

He looked like someone who had been betrayed by the last person he trusted with his life.

The realization hit him hard enough to steal his breath. Lucien had cared. Lucien had always considered him family.

And it was Vincent’s own hatred for the Lucero bloodline that blinded him to the one person in that family who actually loved him.

His arrogance, his jealousy, his festering resentment had rotted everything between them.

He had betrayed the only person who ever loved him without conditions.

"Lucien... let’s run. I’ll take you back to Cisili."

The words slipped out, desperate and foolish even to his own ears.

A second gunshot cracked through the air. The bullet struck the ground again, close enough to make him flinch.

"Don’t you hear me?" Lucien’s voice shook with fury. "Get out of here before I change my mind."

His jaw tightened as he forced the words out. "You are not my brother anymore. This is the end of us."

Vincent stayed frozen, but there was no denying it. Lucien was right. After everything he had done, even daring to reach out now was shame at its lowest form.

He had no right to ask for forgiveness while the hatred in his own heart still lived.

He pushed himself upright, movements slow and unsteady. When he finally stood, he looked at Lucien, carved his brother figure into his mind so as not to forget his debt of life.

Golden hair caught the wind, brushing across a face that looked dimmer than ever, as if something precious had been torn out from inside him.

Vincent wanted to apologize, but the truth stopped him. The hatred he carried for Lucero had not died.

It never would. Sooner or later he would return to fight them again, this time fair and square.

Not with any scheme, but with dominating the territory. He would prove Lucero was wrong, that he could become Don and be respected for his skill and not only his blood.

And if fate was cruel, Lucien would be there waiting for him.

And that made the goodbye sharper than any blade.

His voice cracked as he spoke it. "Fratello... ti avrei seguito ovunque."

Lucien flinched at the words as if they were another bullet.

Vincent turned away before he could see the full reaction. He ran, not because he wanted to escape, but because staying another second would break whatever pieces of him were left.

Lucien raised his pistol again, arm trembling as he aimed at Vincent’s back.

The man was running without looking back, running like a coward, and Lucien knew he had every right to pull the trigger.

He knew he should. It would be cleaner. Easier. Final.

But his finger never moved.

The hesitation snapped something inside him.

"FUCK!" The shout tore out of him as he hurled the gun at the ground.

Metal clattered against the alley floor. He stomped on it hard, again and again, until the frustration buzzing under his skin had nowhere else to go.

His fingers clawed through his hair, leaving it wild and disheveled as he cursed in every language he knew.

He felt like a fool. Betrayed not by Vincent, but by himself. Every emotion he had buried clawed its way back up, choking him until he wanted to tear it out with his bare hands.

He should have killed him. He should have ended it right there and erased the last loose thread.

He should have shown Vincent what happened to rats that dared to betray him.

But he couldn’t do it. And that made him angrier than anything else.

Because deep down, he knew he would regret killing Vincent for the rest of his life.

His love had been bigger than his rage, and now that same love was eating him alive. It disgusted him.

The fact that he could still feel something so painfully human felt like a humiliation he didn’t deserve.

Lucien bit down on his lip, breathing hard, until the curses died in his throat. His vision blurred for a moment as he steadied himself.

After all, Vincent had been his brother.

After all, they had sworn an oath to protect each other, a childish promise made with blood and loyalty long before either of them understood the price.

That oath was broken now, torn apart by betrayal from both sides.

He felt hollow. Memories of Vincent rose uninvited, clearer than they had been in years.

Moments of laughter, moments of trust, moments where Vincent had been the only person who stood by him.

But every memory was stained now, sweet and bitter at the same time.

Lucien forced himself to breathe, even as something inside him crumbled.

Vincent was no longer on his side. That truth settled deep in his bones.

And in the narrow silence of the alley, Lucien finally understood that he was truly, completely alone.

***

Lucien’s boots echoed down the hallway, each step steady but hollow. Up ahead, the Twins were laughing at something idiotic, and the Giant was cursing loudly as their teasing pushed him to the edge.

"Oh, Lucien, you’re done?" Adrian called out, waving casually.

Lucien only nodded. No explanation. No expression.

"What? That fool died? Пиздец! I wasted my damn time!" Victor groaned, slamming the back of his head against the wall in dramatic misery.

Silas caught the emptiness in Lucien’s eyes first. His own expression shifted, and without a word he nudged Adrian, who immediately pinned the Giant back down just in case he tried something stupid. Silas approached quietly.

"You good?" he asked softly. "Gelato? Maybe pistachio?"

Lucien frowned. "Do I look twelve to you?" He sighed and walked past him toward Victor. "Let’s just go back to the island and throw him in the cell. Dominus still finds him useful."

Victor burst into laughter at that.

Their prisoner snarled from the floor. "Do whatever you want. I won’t say a single thing to you. Not even one curse!"

Lucien shrugged, a lazy grin forming. "Oh well. I’ll let the Twins handle you instead."

Silas and Adrian turned toward him in perfect sync, their eyes bright and predatory.

"And honestly," Lucien added, voice dropping into a quiet threat, "I think they’d enjoy it."