Raiden Ferrara

The city faded behind us in muted silhouettes, blurred by speed and smoke. In the back of the SUV, all I could hear was the engine’s low growl and the quiet rhythm of her breathing.

Blake.

She had fallen asleep.

At first, she just leaned back in her seat, eyes fluttering like she was fighting it. Then her head dipped once… twice… and finally, it rested against my shoulder.

I should’ve moved, should’ve leaned away or put some distance between us but I didn’t.

She didn’t even stir. Just breathed, soft and shallow like her body had finally decided it was safe enough to stop.

I glanced down at her, keeping still, not wanting to wake her. Her hair was a mess of tangles and ash, falling across her cheeks and collarbone. Up close, I could see the dried trails of tears carved through the smudged remnants of makeup, the faint pink flush in her cheeks where she must’ve cried herself hoarse.

Her wrist still bore the metal cuff, the skin around it angry and bruised. The blood had dried around the edges but the wound was raw. She hadn’t even flinched when I touched it earlier. Hadn’t complained.

How much pain had she been in, sitting there like that?

I let my gaze linger longer than I should have. She was soft in sleep, too soft for the place she came from. That house, those men. The bruises. The cuff. The fear. None of it belonged on her.

She looked peaceful now. Too peaceful. And somehow, that made my chest tighten.

I shouldn’t have brought her with me.

I knew that.

Kidnapping someone who’d already been kidnapped by the very men we were targeting should’ve been a power move. A message. Your operations mean nothing, we can take what you take. 

But that was before she looked at me with those eyes. Wide, terrified, hollowed out by whatever hell they’d dragged her through. Before she said her name like it hurt to speak it aloud.

And now, I didn’t feel like I’d taken something from them.

I felt like I’d rescued something from them.

I shook my head, trying to clear the thoughts.

This wasn’t me. 

I didn’t get involved like this. 

I didn’t care.

The leather seat shifted beside me.

“You’re losing your mind.”

Billy’s voice was low, almost amused. He sat on the seat across from us, legs crossed, one arm thrown casually over the backrest. But his eyes flicked between me and Blake like he was already writing headlines.

I didn’t answer.

He leaned forward a little, keeping his voice down. “She’s asleep. Doesn’t mean she’s safe.”

“She’s not a threat,” I murmured, careful not to disturb her weight against my shoulder.

“That’s not the point.”

I glanced at him.

He continued, quieter this time. “You brought her to your place. You know what that means.”

“She needed help.”

Billy raised an eyebrow. “We’ve helped people before, Raiden. We’ve also never brought them to a location this close to our network. You sure this isn’t about her face?”

I didn’t answer right away.

Billy smirked like he already knew.

“She’s beautiful. I’ll give you that. But that’s not a reason to get stupid.”

“I’m not getting stupid,” I said flatly.

He tilted his head. “Then what are we doing with her?”

That was the question, wasn’t it?

I exhaled slowly, watching the streetlights pass across her face in blinks of gold and shadow.

“She’s connected to Dixon’s crew,” I said. “That much is obvious. They don’t just pick up girls for fun, not like that. There’s something more.”

Billy’s posture straightened slightly. “So, what… we interrogate her?”

“No,” I said, a little too fast. “We talk to her. Get what we can. Then we follow the threads.”

He glanced at her again then back at me.

“We don’t even know her last name.”

“I know.”

“So where do we start?”

I looked back down at her wrist, the cuff, the bruises, the dirt. None of this made sense. Girls like her didn’t end up in backwoods safehouses with armed smugglers unless someone made it personal.

“We start with Dixon’s circle,” I said. “G’s gone. That means someone higher let this happen. I want names. People close to him. Anyone who could’ve ordered this.”

Billy nodded slowly. “And if she’s lying?”

I looked at her again. Her brow twitched faintly in her sleep but she didn’t wake.

“Then we find out,” I said. “I don’t trust anyone. Especially not just because they’re beautiful.”

Billy gave a quiet laugh under his breath. “Good. Because you’d be the first.”

I didn’t smile back but something about the way he said it made me feel less... off balance.

“We killed Dixon’s men,” Billy added after a beat. “And burned down one of their drop points. You know what this means.”

“They’ll retaliate,” I said. “They’ll assume we’re escalating. And we are.”

Billy leaned back again. “Then we’d better be ready.”

A knock on the glass broke the lull.

One of my men opened the rear door and leaned in. “Doctor’s here. Just pulled in. She’s waiting inside.”

I nodded. “Get the room ready. Make sure it’s private.”

He closed the door quietly.

I glanced down at her one more time. She hadn’t moved since falling asleep. Not even an inch.

“We’ll wake her when it’s time,” I murmured.

Billy didn’t argue.

The car kept moving and I kept watching the girl who’d somehow made herself impossible to ignore.