The phone rang just as Melissa stepped into the parking lot, the courthouse looming in the distance like a promise she refused to break.
She didn't even need to look at the screen to know who it was.
Only one person called at moments like this—right when everything mattered.
Melissa answered anyway.
"What do you want, Audrey?"
"Straight to the point as usual," Audrey replied coolly. "Good. I need you to escort a delivery."
Melissa stopped walking.
"Not gonna happen"
Silence. Then—
"Excuse me?" Audrey asked, her voice dangerously calm.
"I can't do it," Melissa said firmly. "Ariana's court hearing is in a few hours. I need to be here."
"That's why Sunny is there," Audrey replied.
"I know," Melissa said, pressing her fingers against her forehead. "But I also need to be there."
A short laugh came through the line, cold and humorless.
"Listen to me, Melissa, and listen carefully. I want you to escort that merchandise safely to the buyer, and I want my carrier to be unharmed."
Melissa leaned against the car and closed her eyes for a second.
She looked up at the courthouse. Then she smiled faintly.
"What's in it for me?" Melissa asked.
The silence on the other end stretched longer this time.
"What do you want?" Audrey finally said.
Melissa smiled slowly.
"What I want is simple. I want the files you took from the Castello."
A sharp inhale cut through the line.
"No fucking way," Audrey snapped.
Melissa straightened. "Then you can come escort the merchandise yourself."
A long exhale crackled through the line.
"…Fine. We have a deal."
Melissa pushed off the car, energy shifting instantly.
Melissa smirked. "Good choice."
"Don't get comfortable," Audrey said coldly.
"Where is the carrier?"
"You'll meet the carrier at a café. I'm sending you the location now. From there, you'll escort her to my client. And Melissa…"
"Yeah?"
"No one should get their hands on that briefcase."
Melissa rolled her eyes slightly. "Yes, captain."
"I mean it," Audrey said. "If anything happens to that package—"
"It won't," Melissa cut in. "Just send the location."
The call ended.
A message appeared almost instantly.
Melissa opened it.
Coordinates. Time. And a name: Lena.
She exhaled slowly and looked up at the sky.
"This better be quick," she muttered—and slammed her foot on the accelerator.
The café was crowded enough to make her uncomfortable, but not crowded enough to hide someone who didn't belong.
Melissa stepped inside and scanned the room carefully.
Then she saw her.
A girl sitting near the window, clutching a black briefcase like it was the only thing keeping her alive.
Her shoulders were tense, her eyes constantly shifting toward the door.
Melissa walked over and pulled out the chair across from her.
"Lena?"
The girl looked up instantly. "Y-yes. You're Melissa?"
"Yeah."
Lena swallowed and pushed the briefcase slightly toward the center of the table.
"She said you'd take me to the buyer."
Melissa nodded once. "That's the plan."
"Is it dangerous?" Lena asked quietly.
Melissa didn't answer immediately. Instead, she picked up the menu beside her and pretended to study it while her eyes scanned the reflection in the glass behind Lena.
Two men stood outside the café. One pretending to talk on the phone.
Another leaning against a car, watching the door.
Wrong energy. Wrong posture. Wrong timing.
Melissa set the menu down.
"Finish your coffee," she said calmly. "We're leaving in two minutes."
Lena's fingers tightened around the cup. "Why?"
"Because," Melissa said quietly, leaning closer, "we're already being watched."
Lena froze.
"Don't panic," Melissa continued. "Just act normal. When we leave, stay right behind me. Don't stop. Don't look back."
"Too late," Melissa murmured.
The front door burst open. Gunfire exploded. Glass shattered.
People screamed.
"DOWN!" Melissa grabbed the girl and yanked her under the table as bullets tore through chairs and walls, splinters flying like shrapnel.
"Hold onto that case!" Melissa snapped.
She reached behind her back—gun out in one smooth motion.
Calculated. Controlled.
She popped up— BANG!
One attacker dropped instantly, blood spraying across the café window.
BANG! BANG!
Another stumbled back, clutching his shoulder, screaming.
"Move!" Melissa dragged the girl up, kicking over a table to block incoming fire.
Bullets ripped through wood.
Too close. Way too close. They ran.
Outside chaos waited.
More men. More guns.
Melissa didn't slow. She fired while moving— BANG!
A man spun and collapsed.
BANG!
Another went down, blood pooling beneath him.
"Car!" Melissa shouted.
They sprinted.
A bullet grazed Melissa's arm.
She didn't flinch. Didn't slow. Didn't even look.
Pain could wait. Survival couldn't.
They dove into the car. Doors slammed. Engine screamed.
Lena gasped, gripping the briefcase tightly. "Oh my God, oh my God—"
"Relax," Melissa said, already turning sharply into the next street.
"If they wanted it badly enough, they would've brought more people."
"THAT is supposed to make me feel better?" Lena cried.
Melissa smirked slightly. "No. But it should make you trust me."
Tires burned rubber as Melissa launched them into the street just as bullets shattered the rear windshield.
Glass rained everywhere.
"Are they—" the girl started.
"Yes," Melissa said, already checking the mirror.
Three cars. Closing in fast.
Melissa grinned.
"Good."
"What do you mean GOOD?!"
Melissa yanked the wheel hard, cutting into a narrow street.
"Means I get to have fun."
The chase turned savage.
Cars weaved through traffic, horns blaring, pedestrians diving out of the way.
A black SUV rammed them from behind.
The car lurched. The girl screamed.
Melissa steadied the wheel instantly.
"Seatbelt," she ordered.
Another hit. Harder.
Melissa's eyes sharpened.
"Alright," she muttered. "You asked for it."
She swerved suddenly, slamming the brakes—
The SUV behind them overshot.
Melissa spun the wheel—
CRASH!
The SUV slammed into a divider.
Explosion of metal. Fire blooming.
One down. Two to go.
Gunfire erupted again from the side.
Bullets ripped into the car door.
Melissa ducked slightly, driving one-handed while firing back with the other.
BANG! BANG!
The pursuing car swerved wildly, losing control before flipping into a parked truck.
Silence—brief, fragile silence.
The last car hesitated. Melissa didn't.
She accelerated straight toward it.
"What are you doing?!" the girl screamed.
Melissa's voice was cold steel. "Ending it."
At the last second, she swerved—
The enemy driver panicked— CRASH!
They slammed into a pole, metal folding like paper.
Melissa sped past without looking back.
Minutes later, the city quieted.
No more gunfire. No more pursuit.
Just the sound of the engine and the girl's shaky breathing.
The drop-off point came into view—a tall, glass building standing like it had nothing to do with the chaos surrounding it.
Melissa slowed the car, pulling into the underground parking.
The air grew still. Too still.
"Stay close," Melissa said, stepping out.
Lena nodded quickly, grabbing the briefcase again.
Their footsteps echoed as they moved toward the elevator.
Every sound felt louder. Every shadow felt alive.
Lena leaned closer. "What if they're waiting for us inside?"
Melissa's expression didn't change.
"Then we deal with it."
The elevator doors slid open.
Top floor. A single hallway. A single door.
Melissa walked ahead, knocking once.
The door opened almost instantly.
A man in a tailored suit stood there, calm, composed—like none of this was unusual.
"You're late," he said.
"Traffic," Melissa replied flatly.
His eyes dropped to the briefcase.
"Is that it?"
Melissa glanced at Lena.
Lena stepped forward, her hands trembling slightly as she handed it over.
The man took it, inspecting the locks with practiced ease. Then he nodded.
"Good."
Transaction complete.
Melissa didn't wait.
"Let's go."
They turned immediately, walking back toward the elevator.
Lena looked at her, something like awe in her eyes.
"You didn't even check what was inside…"
Melissa pressed the button.
"Not my job."
The doors slid open. They stepped in.
Only when they were descending did Melissa finally allow herself to breathe.
She checked the time again. Still close. Still possible.
Lena hesitated. "What happens now?"
Melissa's gaze hardened with determination.
"Now?"
The elevator dinged. Doors opened. Melissa stepped out, already moving.
"Now i get you home"
The warehouse stood like a forgotten corpse on the edge of nowhere—rusted metal, shattered windows, and silence thick enough to suffocate.
Melissa's car rolled to a stop. Engine off.
Stillness.
"We're here," she said.
Lena looked out the window, confusion and unease written all over her face.
"This… doesn't look like a drop-off point."
Melissa stepped out, scanning the perimeter with trained precision. "That's because it's not."
Lena grabbed the briefcase and hurried after her.
"Then what is it?"
Melissa didn't slow. "Extraction."
Inside, the warehouse smelled like dust and old secrets.
Their footsteps echoed as they moved through the empty space, heading toward a narrow staircase tucked in the corner.
"Up," Melissa said.
Lena hesitated only for a second before following.
Each step creaked under their weight.
The higher they climbed, the louder the wind became.
Then—
They reached the rooftop and there it was.
A helicopter, blades already spinning, cutting through the air with a deafening roar.
Lena froze. "Oh…"
"Yeah," Melissa said. "Your ride's here."
A man in a suit stepped forward, his expression unreadable despite the chaos of the wind whipping around them.
He gestured toward Lena.
"She's the carrier?"
Melissa nodded. "Delivered. Alive."
The man gave a small nod of approval before extending his hand—not to Lena.
To Melissa. A file. Thick. Familiar.
Melissa took it, her grip tightening the moment she saw the insignia. Castello. Finally.
"Pleasure doing business," the man said.
Melissa didn't reply. Because this wasn't business. This was leverage.
The man handed her a phone.
Melissa took it, already knowing who was on the other end.
"Yes."
"The customer called," Audrey's voice came through, cool and sharp as ever.
"He said it was delivered—but you were late."
Melissa lets out a dry, humorless laugh.
"Fuck your client. I had more important things to deal with."
She paused, eyes narrowing at the city lights below.
"Does he actually think he's the center of the fucking universe?"
A brief silence. Then—
"That's enough," Audrey snapped. "Don't you have to be in court?"
Melissa glanced down at her watch. Her expression hardened.
Then she sighed.
"What's the point? I'm late already. I wasn't expecting the warehouse to be on the other side of Mexico."
"Nice doing business, love," Audrey said smoothly.
Melissa shook her head slightly. "It's not like I had a choice."
The line went dead.
The wind howled louder as the helicopter idled, waiting.
Lena suddenly rushed forward.
Before Melissa could react— She hugged her.
Tightly. Melissa froze.
Completely caught off guard.
Her hands hovered awkwardly for a second before she slowly, uncertainly, patted Lena's back.
"You're… welcome?" she said, unsure.
Lena pulled back, her eyes soft but sincere. "I wish I could meet you again."
Melissa gave a small, rare smile.
"But not under this circumstance."
Lena laughed lightly, nodding.
Then she turned and ran toward the helicopter.
The suited man helped her inside. The door shut.
The blades roared louder and within seconds, the helicopter lifted off—rising into the sky, carrying Lena away until she was nothing more than a fading silhouette against the horizon.
Melissa stood there, watching until it disappeared completely.
Then she exhaled. Long. Heavy.
Silence returned. She looked down at the file in her hand.
The Castello files. What she fought for. What she bled for. What she traded everything for.
Her grip tightened.
"Worth it," she muttered.
Then her shoulder throbbed sharply.
She winced, finally acknowledging the pain she had been ignoring.
"Yeah… maybe not entirely."
Melissa turned, heading back toward the stairs.
"Now I go home," she said to herself, her voice echoing in the emptiness, "and explain why I was absent…"
She paused briefly, pressing her hand against her injured shoulder.
"…but first, I've got to treat this."
With that, she disappeared back into the shadows of the abandoned warehouse—file in hand, blood on her sleeve, and unfinished battles waiting ahead.