Chapter 14: Side Character x Mafia Boss (14)

Soon, dark night fell over the city once again, the sky in deep shades of navy and grey.

The Moonlight Café closed its doors as usual. Lyra and Elena locked up the front entrance and began walking down the quiet street together. Unlike before, Elena kept glancing nervously over her shoulder every few seconds, her hand clutching the strap of her bag tightly. She was clearly still deeply shaken by the terrifying encounter from a few nights ago.

Lyra noticed her extreme anxiety and let out an awkward, nervous laugh. "Ahem... hey, don’t be so ridiculously nervous, Elena. It’s not like we’re going to get violently kidnapped on a random Tuesday night or anything! Haha..."

Inside her panicked mind, she quickly added, Well... actually, YOU are going to get kidnapped. Just not me... hopefully!

Elena offered a faint, weak smile, her eyes still scanning the shadowy corners. "I know... I’m probably just being paranoid. I just have a really bad feeling tonight."

As they walked further, the bustling city noise faded, and the streets gradually became eerily quiet. Even the evening wind seemed to stop blowing completely, leaving the air heavy and suffocating.

Lyra looked ahead at the dimly lit road, her heart heavy. ...Here we go.

Just as they reached the end of the block-

SCREECH!

The sound of tire screeching through the empty street rang out. Both girls whipped their heads around as a sleek black van swerved around the corner, slamming its brakes and stopping merely a few meters away from them.

Elena instinctively grabbed Lyra’s wrist in a vise grip. "...This doesn’t look good at all. Lyra, we need to run right now!"

Without waiting for an answer, Elena yanked Lyra with all her strength, sprinting down a side alley.

"W-Wait!" Lyra stumbled forward, her sneakers sliding on the pavement as she was violently dragged along. "Why on earth are you dragging ME with you?!"

You’re the target who’s supposed to get captured for the romantic plot line! Lyra screamed hysterically in her head. Leave my innocent background-character self out of this!

Behind them, the side doors of the black van slammed open with a loud metallic bang.

Several imposing men dressed in full black tactical gear rushed out onto the street. "Catch them! Don’t let them escape!"

Panic surged through both girls as they ran as fast as their legs could carry them. Desperate to hide, they darted into the crumbling doorway of an abandoned, half-demolished concrete building nearby. Ducking low, they scrambled behind a large broken concrete wall and pressed themselves flat against the cold stone.

Both of them clamped their hands tightly over their mouths, struggling to muffle their frantic, gasping breaths.

Heavy footsteps echoed loudly through the hollow concrete building.

Step.

Step.

Step.

They were getting closer... closer... closer.

Lyra’s heartbeat pounded so hard in her ears it sounded like a war drum. Please don’t find us... please universe, just let them take Elena smoothly without any collateral damage... please...

Suddenly-

A large, rough hand shot out from beneath a pile of broken wood directly beside them. It clamped hard around Lyra’s ankle!

"WAAAH!"

Before she could even process what was happening, Lyra was violently yanked off her feet and dragged out from her hiding spot onto the dusty floor.

She screamed at the top of her lungs, clawing at the concrete.

"Lyra!"

Elena rushed out from behind the wall without taking a single second to think about her own safety. She grabbed Lyra’s arms, digging her heels in and frantically trying to pull her friend back. "Let her go! Get off of her!"

The men in black gathered around them, looking at each other in utter confusion.

"...Wait a second," one guard muttered, checking a photo on his phone. "Boss explicitly told us to bring back the girl with the light brown hair. So why is this other waitress here?"

"I don’t know!" another guard barked, clicking his tongue in annoyance. "Forget it. It’s too late. We’ll just take both of them!"

In a blind panic, Lyra desperately kicked her free leg, her shoe slamming hard against the wrist of the man holding her ankle.

"Let go of me, you big brute!"

"Ouch! Fuck!" The man cursed angrily, nursing his bruised wrist. "You little brat-"

In a flash of pure irritation, he whipped a black pistol from his holster and aimed the cold metal barrel directly at the center of Lyra’s forehead.

"Move one more inch..." he growled through his teeth, "...and I’ll blow your brains out."

Lyra’s entire body instantly froze solid. Her breath caught in her throat, her eyes widening in terror.

At the exact same time, two other guards grabbed Elena’s arms from behind, pinning her wrists together.

"No! Let me go! Help!" Elena struggled desperately, kicking and twisting in their grip.

The armed guard glared down at Lyra before turning to his companions. "Load this brat into the van too. We’ll let the Boss decide what to do with an extra witness."

The men nodded grimly. "Got it."

Before Lyra could utter another word, one of the guards stepped up behind her and brought his fist down hard against the back of her neck.

THUD!

A white-hot flash of agony shot through Lyra’s body. Her vision immediately blurred into swirling dark spots as the world began to spin out of control around her.

The very last sound she registered before slipping into darkness was Elena frantically shouting her name through heavy sobs.

"LYRA!!"

Then... everything went pitch black.

Deep within the secluded Voss estate, inside a dimly lit, high-security office, Alastair sat behind his mahogany desk. The only light in the room came from a single banker’s lamp, casting shadows across his striking features.

A knock echoed at the heavy wooden door before his man stepped inside, bowing his head deeply.

"Boss..."

Alastair didn’t look up from the financial ledger he was reviewing. "Report."

"The job has been completed," the man reported, his voice shaking slightly. "The target is secured inside the lower compound. But..."

Alastair slowly looked up from the documents on his desk. His piercing, icy grey eyes locked onto the man, the silence in the room stretching until it felt completely suffocating.

"What did you do?" Alastair asked softly, his voice low and devoid of emotion.

The subordinate felt a violent chill run straight down his spine, cold sweat breaking out across his forehead. "W-We accidentally brought another girl too... She was with the target, and she put up a fight. One of the breach teams panicked and took them both..."

Without uttering another single word, Alastair closed the ledger with a quiet snap and stood up, his tall, imposing silhouette looming over the desk.

"Take me there."

"Y-Yes, Boss!"

A few moments later...

The metal door leading into the underground basement swung open with a metallic groan.

The entire room instantly fell dead silent. The dozen heavily armed guards standing along the concrete walls immediately snapped to attention, every single subordinate lowering their heads in complete, terrified reverence.

"Boss."

Alastair ignored them completely.

His eyes swept across the cold concrete room, immediately landing on the two girls tied tightly to wooden chairs in the center.

He didn’t even glance at Elena. Instead, he walked straight toward Lyra, his boots clicking against the hard stone floor.

Step.

Step.

Step.

He stopped directly in front of her unconscious form.

His gaze slowly traveled across her soft, sleeping face, taking in her messy dark hair... before drifting down to her pale wrists.

Because of how tightly the guards had bound her, a deep red bruise had already formed where the rough hemp ropes had dug ruthlessly into her delicate skin.

The temperature inside the concrete basement seemed to drop below freezing in an instant.

Alastair’s handsome expression darkened, a stormy shadow sweeping across his gloomy eyes as his jaw clenched

"Who did this?"

His voice was terrifyingly quiet, yet it sent a shiver down his men’s spines, cold enough to drain the color from their faces.

That low tone frightened his men far more than if he had shouted. One of the senior guards stepped forward, his knees visibly trembling.

"...It was Ezia, Boss," the guard swallowed hard. "He was the one who tied her up and struck her."

Alastair didn’t break his stare from Lyra’s bruised wrists. "...Bring him here."

"Yes, Boss! Right away!" Several men practically sprinted out of the basement to execute the order.

Alastair slowly crouched down in front of Lyra’s chair, his long dark coat pooling on the dusty floor. Without a second’s hesitation, he reached out his gloved hands and swiftly untied the thick knot securing her wrists.

The rough rope fell silently to the floor.

He removed one of his black gloves, his bare fingers lightly brushing against her injured skin.

Soft.

Warm.

His eyes lingered on the red marks left behind on her flesh. A dangerous dark look flashed across his pale face. He gently rubbed the bruised skin with the pad of his thumb, feeling the faint, steady pulse beneath her skin before finally withdrawing his hand.

He slowly stood up to his full, towering height, his cold gaze shifting toward another subordinate.

"The other girl."

He gave a casual, dismissive glance toward Elena, who was still unconscious in her own chair.

"Take her upstairs to one of the servant’s room" Alastair commanded calmly. "Ensure she is doesnt wake up anytime soon and definately doesnt try to run away"

"Yes, Boss." The men quickly rushed forward, carefully untying Elena and carrying her out of the basement with the utmost caution.