Chapter 282

Marvin “Drop the gun,” I repeated. The man pushed the gun to the back of Anya’s head as a dark chuckle escaped from his lips. “If you make one wrong move, if you call for back up or if one of you leaves this room-it’ll be the end for this one.”

My gaze moved to the man’s sloppy grip around the gun, and I could tell that this was not someone experienced.

“M-Marvin, just give him what he wants-okay?” Tiago trembled. “W-well give you anything, m-

money, i- information j-j-just please, let her go!” He looked at Anya.

Anya pushed her hands on the floor as she trembled in fear. This wasn’t supposed to be like this.

She wasn’t supposed to get involved. I could hear the sound of Elena’s breathing near my ear and stepped back so I could cover her with my body.

From all the moments she could’ve picked to follow me around, she just had to do it now. “Stay behind me, and stay quiet,” I instructed. The situation was looking bad, and I could already tell that it would be near impossible to save three people. I had to come up with something, and I had to do it quickly.

“What do you want?” I asked the man. He seemed startled by my question and grabbed Anya by her hair to pull her from the floor as she yelped out in pain. As scared as he looked, Tiago got up from the floor and looked at his wife. “Anya!”

“I-I never told you to get up!” The man muttered. I squinted my eyes as I observed his stance and quickly realized that this was a young individual who was not even in his mid-twenties. Something wasn’t right.

The Hernandez men were known to be fearless and ruthless, including their rookies. Freddie Hernandez was an impatient man who had the drive to kill-so if the Hernandez were really behind this, we would’ve been dead already.

This were not Freddie’s orders.

“Who send you?” I asked the boy. My eyes moved to the lump in his throat, and I could tell that his nerves were getting the best out of him. “T-the Hernandez.”

Right at that moment I knew that this guy was not being honest. Anyone with a pair of brains would’ve refrained from answering the question as a confession could only make things worse.

“Listen, how about you let the three of them go and handle your business with me?” I suggested.

“This is not a fair fight.”

The boy shook his head with his gun still pressed to Anya’s head. I could only hope that Tiago wasn’t planning on doing anything stupid.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“Very well then,” I spoke calmly. “I’m giving you options because this is not going to end well for you.” I sighed. It had been years since I held a gun, but I could not deny the thrill and excitement.

Perhaps this boy would be my first target.

The boy scoffed. “I will blow their heads off, and I have nothing to lose.”

1 could still hear the fear in his voice and realized this could either be a disaster or an advantage.

As long as no one did anything out of the ordinary, we could all walk out unharmed. I was in control of the situation.

“Please let her go, t-take me!” Tiago was suddenly pleased. “Just kill me, p-please, I-I’m begging y-

y-you. P-please!”

I took a breath as Tiago, who could not analyze the situation, had unawarely sabotaged my plan.

The boy seemed uneasy by his sudden plead and looked around his surroundings with a stressed look in his eyes, “Please leave her alone. Just kill me, please.” Tiago yelled. “This is all my fault, just take me please —I’m begging you—”

“Tiago, shut up!”

Tiago’s eyes turned big as he took in my cold words. Even Elena could follow my orders, so why couldn’t he?

“I can pay you ten times more than whoever send you. All you need to do is give me a name…a real one.”

This just couldn’t be the Hernandez is doing. It couldn’t be. His criteria didn’t match the profile.

“I’ll spare your life, just give me a name.” I lied on the spot. Letting this boy walk out unharmed was not an option, but before killing him, I could at least try to get some information. Impressed, I stared at the hesitant look in his eyes and felt as if I was finally getting somewhere.

“If you give me your word.” The boy barely whispered. I smirked and shrugged my shoulders. “I’m a man of my word.”

That was a title I had lost a long time ago, but that was not necessary for him to know. “Come on, bring them to me.” I stuck out my free hand to Anya and Tiago. “N-no!” The boy shouted. “The girl remains, but I can give you back your brother-

“Give me the girl,” I demanded. Tiago was a person who could not think under pressure, and at the moment, he was way too vulnerable to think with his head. “I’m not leaving without Anya, 1-I’m not!”

Tiago managed to get out.

There was a moment of silence as we heard the sound of distant footsteps. “Not a single sound.”

The boy spoke. I could feel Elena’s hands in my flanks and couldn’t even imagine how scared she must’ve been. She wasn’t supposed to see all of this.

“Hey, people are all waiting for you!” I heard the sound of Victor’s voice. I looked into the boy’s eyes and noticed the uncomfortable look on his face as he realized the situation was not looking too good for him.

“Tiago? Anya?”

Victor slowly opened the door, while all I could focus on was the boy in front of me. His eyes turned big, and he stepped back, frightened-but before he could do anything else, Tiago had pushed him aside.

“Anya, go!” He yelled. Anya took a run for it, but she did not get that far as the boy fired his gun, and a bullet punched its way through her back. She stumbled backward and hit her head against a closet while Tiago struggled with the gunman.

Bullets were flying across the room as Victor pulled out his gun and fired back. Without giving it a second. thought, I wrapped my arms around Elena, who was frozen in her spot and covered her body.

“Victor, shoot!” I heard Tiago’s voice. “Come on!”

I turned around, so I could see what was going on, and watched as Tiago pulled the mask from the boy’s face. The boy widened his eyes as he looked at Victor, who didn’t hesitate and pressed the gun to the boy’s head before he fired it and stood above his lifeless body.

He was safe. Tiago was safe.

For a second it felt as if the time had stopped ticking, as the room went quiet.

“A-Anya?” Tiago whispered before his whisper turned into a loud shriek. “Anya!”

I felt myself getting lightheaded as Elena released herself from my grip and ran towards Anya’s while Tiago did the same.

My vision turned blurry as I felt a burning sensation in my lower abdomen and fell to my knees.

“Shit.” Victor spoke, startled. I looked down to my stomach and could only watch as my white shirt had been painted red with blood before everything turned black.

Was this it? Was I really going to die, because I decided to protect some woman I had just met?

“You can’t die on me, Marvin, “Victor whispered. It almost felt as if my soul was slowly leaving my body, and there was nothing I could do. “Dad will kill me.”

Was Victor’s heartless comment the last thing I would hear? Dad will kill me?