By the time Evelyn Hart reached her car, the rain had become even heavier, washing the blood from her hands and turning the muddy road beneath her feet into a slippery mess, yet she barely noticed the cold anymore because her mind was still trapped beneath the wreckage with the stranger who had walked away as though being shot, hunted and surrounded by armed men were nothing more than an inconvenience.

She stood beside her little blue sedan, staring at the black card in her hand:

ADRIAN MORETTI.

The name meant nothing to her, at least, that was what she told herself.

She turned the card over, expecting to find a telephone number, an address or perhaps some explanation for the bizarre encounter she had just survived, but there was nothing on the back except a small silver emblem embossed into the black surface; a crown surrounded by thorns.

Evelyn frowned.."Who are you?" The storm swallowed the question. She looked towards the trees again, but Adrian was gone. There was no sign of him, no movement between the branches and no sound except the relentless rain beating against the leaves.

For a man who had been bleeding badly enough to die only minutes earlier, he had disappeared remarkably well.

Evelyn climbed back into her car and shut the door. For several seconds, she simply sat there, staring through the windscreen. Her hands were trembling. She placed them flat against the steering wheel, trying to steady herself, but the memory of the gunshots came rushing back with such force that her stomach tightened; the bullets, the men, the blood, Adrian's hand around hers, the way he had looked at her when he told her to forget him, and then those two bodies lying behind him.

Evelyn swallowed, she had seen death before, working in emergency medicine had made her familiar with it in a way most people never became, but there was something different about the two men in the mud because they had not died calmly in a hospital bed surrounded by machines and grieving relatives, they had been killed, and the man who had killed them had looked directly into her eyes afterwards without a trace of remorse.

She should call the police, the thought came immediately. She reached for her phone, still no signal.

"Of course."

Evelyn exhaled sharply and started the engine. She needed to get somewhere with reception, report the crash and tell the authorities everything she had seen. Everything... Even the part about Adrian, especially the part about Adrian.

She shifted into drive and pulled onto the road. For the first few minutes, she drove slowly, her eyes constantly moving between the road ahead and the rear-view mirror. Nothing followed her, the road remained empty. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her.

When she finally reached the main road, her phone vibrated, Evelyn nearly dropped it.

Three missed calls, all from Lucas. Her heart softened immediately, she had totally forgotten about him.

She tapped his name and called back. He answered before the first ring had finished.

"Evelyn?" His voice was tense.

"I'm here." She said softly.

"Where the hell are you?" He asked frantically.

She glanced at the clock on her dashboard. "It's almost midnight."

"I know what time it is." He said with a frown that couldn't be missed even from the other end of the phone.

"I had an accident." Evelyn said calmly after a very brief pause. There was silence afterwards.

"What?" Lucas's heart skipped.

"Not me," she quickly clarified. "I'm fine. There was a car off the mountain road, and I stopped to help."

Lucas exhaled heavily with relief, but the relief was instantly replaced... The fright he felt was obvious as he spoke. "You stopped?"

"Someone was trapped inside." Evelyn explained.

"Evelyn, you can't keep doing this." Lucas softly scolded.

"What was I supposed to do, leave him there?" Evelyn retorted.

"You could have called the police." Lucas said.

"There was no signal." Evelyn said. Another silence followed, this time, Evelyn noticed something strange in his breathing.

"What is it?" She asked, worried.

"Nothing." Lucas said.

"Lucas." Evelyn called, she didn't believe him.

"I'm just glad you're alive." Lucas replied.

She smiled faintly. "I'm fine."

"Where are you now?" He asked.

"About twenty minutes away." She replied.

"Come straight home." Lucas said, more like an instruction.

"I will." Evelyn conceded.

"And Evelyn?"

"Yes?"

"Don't stop anywhere else." Something about his tone made her sit straighter.

"Why?" She asked, with a mix of confusion and concern.

"Just promise me."

She hesitated. "Fine, I promise."

The call ended. Evelyn stared at the phone, Lucas had sounded frightened, not irritated, not worried in the ordinary way... he was clearly frightened.

She started driving again, her eyes moved towards the black card resting on the passenger seat, the silver emblem caught the passing light from the street lamps, she picked it up. There was something about it that bothered her, she didn't know what. Perhaps it was simply the fact that Adrian had handed it to her as though she were supposed to recognise it, or it was the way he had said his name. When he said his name, he had not said it proudly, not apologetically either, she could swear it had sounded almost like a warning.

Evelyn placed the card inside her handbag, she would forget him, that was what she intended to do. By the time she reached home, she had almost convinced herself that the entire night had been some terrible dream. Almost...

Lucas was waiting outside their apartment. The moment Evelyn stepped out of her car, he crossed the pavement towards her, he looked exhausted. His dark hair was damp from the rain, his jacket was unbuttoned and there were dark circles beneath his eyes.

"You scared me." He said. Evelyn barely had time to close the car door before he pulled her into his arms.

She relaxed against him. "I'm sorry."

"You should be." He playfully punched her lightly.

She smiled against his chest. "I said I was sorry."

Lucas pulled back and examined her face, his expression changed when he noticed the small cut near her cheek. "What happened?"

"It's nothing." She replied, trying to dodge his eyes. She knew how easily Lucas freaked out when it came to her safety.

"That's blood." Lucas pointed out.

"I got a little cut from the glass." She finally managed to find a suitable reply.

His eyes narrowed. "What glass?"

Evelyn hesitated. "The crash."

"You said the crash wasn't yours." Lucas narrowed his eyes, he knew Evelyn was hiding the truth.

"It wasn't." She insisted.

Lucas stared at her. "Then whose was it?"

"A stranger's." She said.

His expression became unreadable. "What stranger?"

"I don't know." She replied.

"You don't know his name?" Lucas frowned.

Evelyn almost laughed. "I do, actually."

Lucas didn't smile. "What is it?"

She remembered the black card. "Adrian Moretti."

The effect was immediate, Lucas went completely still.

Evelyn noticed. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Where did you hear that name?" Lucas managed to find his voice.

"I met him." She replied like this shouldn't be a big deal.

Lucas's face had lost its colour. "Where?"

"At the crash." Evelyn reminded him.

"Evelyn, tell me exactly what happened." Lucas said.

She frowned. "I already told you."

"No, you didn't." His voice was different now, it was urgent.

She stared at him. "Lucas, what is going on?"

He glanced towards the road behind her, then towards the windows of their apartment building. Finally, he lowered his voice. "Come inside."

"Why?" Evelyn was confused.

"Just come inside." Lucas repeated, hurried pulling her left arm. Evelyn followed him upstairs.

The moment they entered the apartment, Lucas locked the door, then he locked the second lock, then he checked the windows.

Evelyn watched him in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Making sure we're alone." He replied, still looking around to ensure everything that had a lock had been perfectly locked.

"We are alone." She pointed out.

"I know." He responded.

"Then why are you acting like someone is going to break in?" Evelyn questioned.

Lucas didn't answer, he walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water, but his hand was shaking so badly that some of it spilled over the rim.

Evelyn's concern deepened. "Lucas."

He looked at her. "How much do you know about Adrian Moretti?"

"Nothing." She frowned.

"Good." He said.

She folded her arms. "That's not an answer."

"It is the only answer you need." Lucas said, his hands still visibly shaking.

"Apparently not, because you recognised his name." Evelyn fired back.

Lucas looked away. "He's dangerous."

"So are the men who were chasing him." She responded.

His eyes snapped back to hers. "You saw them?"

Evelyn nodded. "Several of them."

Lucas placed the glass on the counter. "What happened?"

She told him, this time she revealed everything. From the wreckage to the gunshot wound, the men, the hiding place beneath the SUV, the gunfire, the two bodies, and Adrian. She left nothing out.

When she finished, Lucas looked as though he had just heard something that confirmed his worst fear.

"Evelyn..." He slowly called.

"What?"

"You should never have gone near that car."

"I couldn't leave him." She argued.

"You don't understand." He said.

"Then explain it to me." She replied, obviously getting frustrated.

Lucas rubbed his forehead. "Adrian Moretti isn't some random businessman."

"I figured that out." She replied as a matter of fact.

"He owns half the city." Lucas continued.

"That's not illegal." Evelyn retorted, failing to see the point.

"No." Lucas looked at her. "But the other half isn't owned legally."

Evelyn stared at him. "What does that mean?"

"It means people disappear around him." He said bluntly.

Her stomach tightened. "Disappear?"

"People who cross him." He said.

She remembered the bodies in the mud. "And the police?"

"Don't touch him." Lucas replied.

"Why?" Evelyn asked with a hint of confusion.

Lucas hesitated. "Because nobody does."

Evelyn shook her head. "That makes no sense."

"It doesn't have to make sense." He stepped closer. "The Morettis have been around for decades, Evelyn. They're involved in businesses you can see and businesses you can't."

"Organised crime?" Evelyn asked.

Lucas said nothing.

That was answer enough. Evelyn's eyes widened. "You knew?"

"I knew enough to stay away from them just like everyone else in town." Lucas replied.

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Evelyn was panicking now.

"Because I didn't think you'd ever meet one." Lucas said, taking her hands in his and softly rubbing them to calm her down.

She stared at him. "Neither did I."

Lucas stopped rubbing her hands, but still softly held them. "Listen to me carefully, Evelyn. Whatever happened tonight, whatever Adrian Moretti told you, whatever he gave you, you forget about it."

Evelyn's gaze shifted towards her handbag.

Lucas noticed. "What did he give you?"

She hesitated. "A card."

"Where is it?" Lucas asked.

"Why?" Evelyn questioned.

"Where is it?" Lucas repeated. Something in his voice made her stop resisting.

"It's in my handbag."

Lucas crossed the room. Evelyn reached for the bag first, she opened it and pulled out the card.

The moment Lucas saw the silver emblem, his face changed. "Where did you get that?"

"Adrian gave it to me."

Lucas stared at the card as though it were a loaded gun, then he looked at Evelyn. "Throw it away."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because if anyone finds that in your possession, you're dead." Lucas said flatly.

Evelyn's fingers tightened around it. "What is it?"

"Nothing." Lucas dodged her question.

"You just told me it could get me killed." She said, her voice shaking.

"Exactly." Lucas confirmed.

"Then tell me what it is." She demanded.

Lucas didn't answer, instead, he walked to the window and pulled the curtain aside by less than an inch.

Evelyn watched him. "What are you looking for?"

"Nothing." He replied.

She moved towards him. "Lucas."

He released the curtain. "We need to sleep."

"We?" She asked bewildered.

"Yes." He replied.

"You're not going to work tomorrow?" Evelyn asked.

"No." Lucas said.

"Why?" She questioned.

He looked at her. "Because I think you should stay home."

Evelyn frowned. "You're frightening me."

"I'm trying to protect you."

"From what?"

He didn't answer. That night, Evelyn barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Adrian standing beneath the trees, blood running down his face while two dead men lay behind him. Eventually, exhaustion dragged her under.

She woke sometime after three in the morning, the room was dark. Lucas was asleep beside her, at least, she thought he was.

Evelyn reached for the glass of water on her bedside table, then she heard something, a faint sound from the living room. She froze... It came again; a soft metallic click. Evelyn slowly turned towards Lucas. His eyes were open, he was staring at the bedroom door. Neither of them moved.

Another sound came from outside, this time, it was unmistakable, someone was trying to unlock the front door.

Lucas immediately sat up. "Evelyn."

"What?" She managed to say, trying to keep her voice low.

"Don't make a sound." He instructed.

Her heart began pounding. The lock turned; once, twice, then stopped. Lucas climbed out of bed and reached beneath the mattress.

Evelyn's eyes widened when she saw the gun in his hand. "You have a gun?"

He didn't answer.

The handle of the bedroom door began to move, Evelyn pressed a hand over her mouth. Lucas positioned himself between her and the door.

The handle turned slowly, then stopped. Silence followed. Several seconds passed, then someone knocked. There were three slow knocks.

Evelyn's blood ran cold. Lucas looked at her, there was terror in his eyes now, not concern or worry... pure terror.

A voice came through the door. "Lucas Bennett?"

Lucas didn't move.

The voice came again. "Open the door."

Evelyn looked at her fiancé. "Who is that?" she mouthed.

Lucas raised one finger to his lips.

The person outside waited. Then came the words that made Evelyn's entire body go cold. "We know your fiancée met Adrian Moretti tonight."

Lucas closed his eyes, Evelyn stared at him.

The voice continued. "Open the door, Lucas, or we'll come inside ourselves."

The knocking stopped. For a moment, there was only silence, then Evelyn heard the sound of a key entering the lock, and she realised, with a terror that made her blood run cold, that whoever was standing outside hadn't come to warn them, they had come to collect her.