For one horrifying second
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Because Rachel was staring down at blood spreading across her clothes.
Her blood.
---
Raziel's mind went completely blank.
Not angry.
Not emotional.
Blank.
The kind of silence that happens before something monstrous wakes up.
---
Rachel swayed slightly.
Pain burned through her side violently now.
Hot.
Sharp.
Confusing.
---
Then Raziel caught her instantly.
"Rachel."
His voice cracked.
Actually cracked.
---
Daniel's face lost all color.
"Oh my God"
Cassian fired another shot toward the intruders while Lucien dragged the remaining attackers backward.
The penthouse had become complete chaos.
Broken glass.
Gunfire.
Screaming.
But Raziel heard none of it.
---
Because Rachel was bleeding in his arms.
---
"Look at me."
His hands trembled slightly against her face.
Tiny tremble.
Still enough to terrify everyone watching.
Because Raziel Benedict did not shake.
Ever.
---
Rachel tried to breathe steadily.
"I'm okay"
"No."
The word came instantly.
Harsh.
Desperate.
"You're not."
---
Another attacker appeared near the hallway.
Raziel fired without even looking properly.
One shot.
Straight between the eyes.
The body dropped immediately.
Rachel physically flinched.
And suddenly
Raziel looked horrified at himself.
Not because he killed someone.
Because she saw it.
---
"Take her upstairs," Daniel shouted.
But Raziel already lifted Rachel into his arms before anyone finished speaking.
Careful.
Terrified.
Like she might break apart completely if he held her too tightly.
---
Rachel winced softly from the pain.
And Raziel nearly lost his mind hearing it.
---
The master bedroom transformed instantly into emergency chaos.
Doctors.
Medical kits.
Security everywhere.
Blood staining expensive sheets.
---
Rachel lay against the pillows breathing unevenly while the doctor worked quickly against the wound.
Not too deep.
Still dangerous enough.
Especially now.
Especially with the pregnancy.
---
Raziel stood directly beside the bed the entire time.
Not moving.
Not blinking enough.
Covered in Rachel's blood.
---
The doctor finally looked up.
"She lost blood but the bullet passed through cleanly."
Raziel's voice came dangerously low.
"And the baby?"
The entire room went silent instantly.
---
Rachel looked toward him softly.
Because despite everything
That question sounded genuinely terrified.
---
The doctor hesitated briefly.
Wrong move.
Very wrong move.
Because Raziel's expression immediately darkened.
---
"Answer me."
"She's stable for now."
For now.
Again those words.
Again that fear.
---
Rachel noticed something horrifying then.
Raziel looked seconds away from collapsing emotionally.
---
The doctor continued carefully.
"She needs complete rest." "No stress." "No movement." "And absolutely no more danger."
The irony of saying that inside Raziel Benedict's penthouse was almost laughable honestly.
---
Once the doctor left
Silence swallowed the room again.
---
Daniel lingered near the doorway.
Still furious.
Still protective.
But now
Conflicted too.
---
He looked at Raziel quietly.
And for once
Even Daniel could see it.
This man loved Rachel in a way that bordered on destruction.
---
"I'll stay outside," Daniel muttered finally.
Raziel nodded once.
Still not taking his eyes off Rachel.
---
Then everybody slowly disappeared.
Until finally
It became quiet again.
Just them.
---
Rain tapped softly against the massive windows.
The city lights glowed below them.
And somehow
The room no longer felt like a mafia empire.
It felt intimate.
Fragile.
---
Rachel looked exhausted now.
Emotionally drained.
Physically weak.
Yet still
Her eyes searched for him immediately.
---
Raziel sat beside the bed slowly.
Carefully.
Like he was afraid touching her might hurt her further.
---
For a long moment
Neither of them spoke.
---
Then quietly
Rachel broke the silence first.
"…you were crying."
Raziel went still instantly.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
---
Because Rachel realized something shocking.
There had been tears in his eyes downstairs.
Actual tears.
---
"I wasn't."
"You were."
His jaw tightened slightly.
Rachel stared at him softly.
"You looked terrified."
This time
He didn't deny it.
---
Raziel lowered his gaze briefly toward her bandaged side.
Then toward her stomach.
And suddenly
Rachel saw it clearly.
Guilt.
Fear.
Love.
All destroying him at once.
---
His voice came rough now.
"When you got shot…"
A pause.
Then quietly
"I thought God was punishing me."
Rachel's breath caught softly.
Because that didn't sound like Raziel Benedict.
That sounded like a broken man.
---
He leaned forward slowly.
Resting his forehead carefully against her hand.
And Rachel froze instantly.
Because powerful men like Raziel didn't bow for anyone.
Yet here he was.
Destroyed at her bedside.
---
"I'm sorry."
The words came barely above a whisper.
Raw.
Real.
---
Rachel closed her eyes briefly.
Because despite everything
That apology reached somewhere painful inside her chest.
---
Then suddenly
Raziel stood up sharply.
Rachel frowned slightly.
"What happened?"
He looked toward the security screen coldly.
Deadly calm again.
---
Cassian's voice came through the speaker:
"Boss."
"We found something."
Raziel's expression darkened instantly.
"What?"
A pause.
Then
"The attackers weren't here just for Rachel."
Silence.
---
Rachel slowly sat up slightly despite the pain.
"What do you mean?"
Cassian's next words changed everything again.
---
"They were searching for a file."
"Something hidden inside the penthouse."
Raziel went completely still.
And Rachel noticed immediately.
He knew exactly what file they meant.
---
Then Cassian added quietly:
"Boss…"
"It has Rachel's real name on it.
Rachel stared at Raziel.
And suddenly
The atmosphere inside the room changed again.
Because that stillness?
That dangerous silence?
It meant one thing now.
Secrets.
Again.
---
Cassian's voice continued through the speaker:
"The intruders went straight for the lower archive vault."
"Like they knew exactly where to look."
Rachel frowned weakly.
"…archive vault?"
Of course this man had a secret vault in his penthouse.
Rich psychopath behavior honestly.
---
Raziel's expression remained unreadable now.
Which somehow made Rachel more nervous.
---
Cassian hesitated briefly.
Then quietly
"Boss… should I move the file?"
Silence.
---
Rachel slowly looked toward Raziel.
"What file?"
No answer.
Again.
Always silence first.
---
Rachel exhaled sharply.
"I'm getting really tired of people hiding things from me."
That visibly hit him.
Good.
---
Raziel finally turned toward her fully.
And for the first time tonight
He looked exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally exhausted.
---
Then quietly
"There are things about your family you don't know yet."
Rachel laughed softly.
Broken.
Disbelieving.
"Apparently."
---
The rain outside grew heavier now.
Soft thunder rumbling faintly across the city while tension swallowed the room whole.
---
Raziel walked back toward the bed slowly.
No sharp movements now.
No dominance.
Just carefulness.
Like he understood how fragile things between them had become.
---
Rachel's voice lowered.
"What's my real name?"
That question visibly affected him.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
---
Because for one terrifying second
Raziel looked genuinely afraid to answer.
---
"Rachel…"
"No."
Her eyes burned slightly now.
"No more half truths."
Silence.
Then finally
Raziel sat beside her slowly.
Close enough for warmth.
Not close enough to touch her.
Almost like he didn't think he deserved to anymore.
---
"Your father changed your identity when you were young."
Rachel froze.
"…what?"
Raziel's gaze held hers carefully.
"You weren't supposed to be found."
The room suddenly felt colder.
---
Rachel's heartbeat slowed painfully.
"Found by who?"
This time
Raziel hesitated.
Huge mistake.
Because now Rachel knew: whatever answer came next was worse.
---
Then quietly
"People connected to my world."
Oh.
Oh that was bad.
---
Rachel stared at him.
"So my father died because of YOU people."
Pain crossed his face instantly.
"Yes."
No excuses.
No denial.
Just guilt.
---
Rachel looked away immediately.
Because hearing him admit it so easily hurt more somehow.
---
Raziel's voice softened.
"He spent years protecting you."
Rachel swallowed hard.
"My father barely trusted anyone."
"He had reasons."
---
Another silence settled between them.
Heavy.
Emotional.
---
Then suddenly
Rachel remembered something.
The old necklace her father never allowed her to remove.
The one she still kept hidden inside her drawer.
---
Her eyes slowly lifted toward Raziel.
"…the necklace."
Raziel went still immediately.
And that alone answered her.
---
Rachel's stomach twisted.
"What is it?"
His jaw tightened.
"Where is it?"
Rachel blinked slowly.
"You know about it?"
"Rachel."
His tone changed instantly.
Urgent now.
"Where is the necklace?"
---
Fear crawled down her spine immediately.
Because this was the first time tonight Raziel looked genuinely alarmed again.
---
"In my apartment."
Wrong answer.
Very wrong answer.
Because suddenly
Raziel stood up so fast the chair behind him nearly crashed over.
---
Cassian's voice exploded through the speaker again:
"Boss."
"We have another problem."
Raziel grabbed the speaker immediately.
"What."
---
Silence.
Then
"Rachel's apartment was cleared out."
"Somebody got there before our men."
Rachel's blood turned ice cold.
---
"No."
Her voice barely came out.
"No no no"
---
Raziel's entire demeanor darkened instantly.
Deadly calm again.
The kind that came before violence.
---
Cassian continued:
"There's signs of forced entry."
"And… the necklace is gone."
Silence crushed the room.
---
Rachel physically stopped breathing for a second.
Because suddenly
This wasn't random anymore.
Whatever that necklace was
People were killing for it.
---
Raziel closed his eyes briefly.
And Rachel noticed something terrifying.
He looked angry at himself.
Again.
---
Rachel whispered weakly,
"…what was on that necklace?"
Raziel opened his eyes slowly.
And the answer came so quietly it almost didn't sound real.
---
"A bank account."
Rachel frowned in confusion.
"What?"
His gaze locked onto hers.
---
"Not money." "A key."
Another pause.
Then
"To everything your father stole before he died."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
---
Rachel stared at him like the world had suddenly become unfamiliar.
Because her father was just
Her father.
Quiet.
Protective.
Kind.
---
Not someone stealing dangerous secrets from mafia empires.
---
Then suddenly
The penthouse security screen flickered violently again.
Static.
Red warning symbols flashing everywhere.
---
And slowly
A video appeared on the screen.
Live.
---
Rachel's apartment.
Destroyed.
Furniture overturned.
Glass shattered.
Blood on the floor.
---
Then the camera moved slightly.
And Rachel's heart stopped instantly.
Because tied to a chair in the middle of the room
Bruised and unconscious
Was Daniel.