~Magnolia Knight~

My head is spinning. Grace can't die. Not here and not because of me. It's my fault. I shouldn't have ignored Jace messages, all of this could have been avoided.

Jace holds my hand tightly to give the comfort I need. Gun's are still fired and I flinch, because they seem to come closer to us. Jace is on the phone, yelling orders to his gang and waiting for updates on the situation. I look at Grace, her body barely looking alive at this point, the colour completely drained from her face.

When my eyes cross the path of my brother's, my heart breaks a little. His guilty expression painted on his face expressing that this situation is all his fault. But it's not.

I rip my eyes away when gun shots are fired one after the other, not leaving a single break between each trigger. Jace senses my fear and grabs me by my waist to bring me closer to him. The place where I feel the safest. We both hope that the people shooting right now are not coming our way, because we have no more bullets. We are out of weapons... we could fight with knives but that wouldn't compare to a sniper.

"WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE ?"

Seconds later more bullets are fired, but this time, I am no longer scared. Calm runs through my veins. I recognised the furious voice and I couldn't be happier to see him right now.

I slide out of Jace's grasp and attempt to go around the corner, but Jace's hand reaches my wrist, before I could make an other step. I send him a look that says trust me and he hesitates a little, but lets go.

I am quick to round the corner and that's when I see the rest of my brothers, along with a few other man I don't recognise.

Damon is the first to see me, or rather ready to shoot me down, but immediately lowers his gun, when he recognises me. I see his shoulders relax, before ordering the man to be aware of the surroundings to make sure it was safe.

Blake, the one who yelled out for me like he was about to destroy the entire mansion, quickly makes his way towards me. When I am in his reach, he pulls me into his embrace to hold me tightly against his body.

"You scared the shit out of me Lila !" He speaks and let's me go so I could breath again.

"I got her Blake." Jace's voice rings behind us and Damon is the first to thank him with a small nod. While Blake just stares at him blankly. "Leo you should have a look at Grace. It's bad. Damon I already have my men surrounding the mansion, killing every Italian they see. We should be out of here in less than a few minutes."

And he was right. The worried look on Leo's face, when he saw Grace only lasted a second, before it disappeared under an emotionless mask. But it was enough for me to understand that it was not looking good.

"I'm getting her out of here now." Leo states and gently grabs Grace in his arms, careful not to damage her even more. "Blake, Damon, Jace . Cover for me on case there are still Italians roaming around. Grey you know what to do."

Grey turns towards me and places himself in front of my body, as the others start to walk towards the exit of the mansion. Jace sends me a look that I know all too well.

He is worried and wants to stay close to me to make sure I am safe, but I manage to make him understand that I am in good hands with Grey. He nods and follows next to Damon, with a new loaded gun he handed him.

As we all move as one, we are out of the mansion in less than two minutes. Bodies are all over the floor, the blood is on our hands. Once we are out, Blake drives Leo, an unconscious Grace and a devastated Ethan to the Morgan hospital. It is the gang's hospital and the same I went to, when my brothers first saw my damaged and scared body.

I stand in the middle of the night, staring blankly at the beautiful mansion, where so much horror just happened. It is beautiful breath taking on the outside, but completely stained and dark on the inside.

And that's when I hear it. The scream of a woman, followed by her body falling on her knees. Her cries rip through the dark night, as if life had just been ripped away from her. And that's when I recognise her.

It's Mrs. Steel... Catherine...

I tare my gaze towards where she is looking at and see men carrying the body of her now dead husband. I let out a gasp at the view. They were just smiling and hosting the party, inviting us in their home a couple of hours ago and now... everything is destroyed for them.

A hand clasps around my shoulder, making me jump slightly and I turn to see Jace studying my face to understand what I am thinking.

"H-he was still f-fine before-"

"I know sweetheart." Jace comforts me and embraces me in his arms, leaving a kiss on the top of my head. I rest on his chest and inhale his scent that manages to calm my nerve wracking mind every time I do so.

I know Mafia was not something to joke about, but seeing it like this in the open... with my own eyes, was something I would have never imagined.

"Angel ! Let's get you to the hospital and check that cut on your arm. I don't want to get it infected." Damon says to me once he talked with his man about the attack. I nod and hold unto Jace's hand, indicating that I don't won't let him go. I want him by my side. At every moment, he could just be ripped away from me and I am not sure I could survive his loss a second time.

When we arrive at the hospital, I am soon lead towards a room to check my arm. Jace and Damon make sure to wait outside the room, while I get checked upon and I overhear a glimpse of their conversation. Elijah's name is mentioned and I can bet for my life that I pick up a groan coming from Jace, when his name is brought up. He hates him and I have no doubt about that. It makes me wonder if he is okay after tonight. I had no news from him, but I am pretty sure he got out of there safely. I hope so.

Once the exam is finished and that I am all bandaged up, I leave the room to join Damon and Jace. The latest is on his phone making, what seems like an important call, which makes me approach my brother. He explains how Grace is currently in surgery and that we should wait with the twins, Leo and Greyson in the waiting room to get some news.

It looks like Ethan will need support on this, because Grace seems like a big part in his life, so I'd rather help him get through this.

I mention to Jace the waiting room, to which he makes an approval movement, before coming face to face with an emotionally destroyed Ethan. It looks like he has been crying since the last time I saw him at the mansion, his puffy eyes injected with a deep shade of red.

We wait, until Damon orders someone to bring us clothes to change into, because we all are still in our ball clothes, that are ripped and covered in blood. Well only Damon's suit is somehow in perfect condition. As if he went through a night like this already a thousand times. Jace was able to talk to Gab and Thunder and luckily they are all right. One thing less to worry about.

As I am laying in Jace's arms, I get a message from someone and I don't make the mistake to ignore it again. Someone could be at stake. It can't happen again. What happened tonight could have been avoided, Grace would have never been hurt and we wouldn't be waiting here.

As I read the name of the sender I throw a quick glance to Jace to make sure he hasn't seen it who it was, and luckily he was having a conversation with Greyson over some complexe computer chip. Hackers things.

"Are you hurt after tonight ? Can we meet ? I want to make sure you don't have a single scratch on your body."

I read the message a second time.

Fucking Hell Elijah which game are you playing ? Planning your death sentence maybe ? He knows damn well I am with Jace, so he shouldn't be asking me to do something like this.

"Are you okay Princess ?" Jace's voice rings behind me and I carefully turn my phone down, so he wouldn't see the message. He probably sensed my body tense, as I was reading the message, because he is now softly rubbing my shoulders to make me relax in his touch again. I don't hesitate to melt into his embrace, as I lay in his lap, forgetting the message I just read. In a few seconds he has me all to him again, his thumbs rubbing calm circles on my lower back, while his hands rest on my waist.

The calmness leaves the second the surgeon of Grace comes into the room. Ethan stands up, slightly shaking and we all copy his mouvement. The blank face of the surgeon gives us no indication of the situation, which makes it suddenly hard to breath in the room. I feel Jace's presence next to me, as if he was trying to give me the energy I need to hear the following news.

And with simple words. The surgeon makes Ethan's Wold shatter in million pieces, as the following words leave his lips.

"We couldn't save her."

No. No. No. This can't be right. She is fine. She just has to be.

My vision blurs and the sound around me blocks, leaving me in a panicked state.

I manage to see the figure of Ethan crumbling to the floor, his twin trying to hold on to him. What's going on ? This can't be right...

heheh I am evil with the cliffhangers. I love it so much. Leaving you on the edge of your seats is my way of saying thank you.

Question. Do you guys use the audiobook version ? I was wondering...

Either way I am glade you read my book and be prepared, because I still have some heartbreaking chapter on the way...

Anyone ready for Valentines Day ?

Not me. I am not excited to spend an other Valentines Day alone. It's getting heavy on my heart not to have someone by my side at all times.