THE KILLER THAT CLAIMED (A dark, mafia romance)

The sunlight streaming through the windows of my suite felt offensive.

It was too bright, too cheerful for the way my skin crawled. I hadn't slept all night.

 Every time I closed my eyes, I felt the phantom pressure of rough fingers of that guard digging into my shoulder.

 Regina had told me that all would be well and I suppose it would.

I just needed time to get over it. Besides, it all happened the previous evening.

It was a new day and I had to be strong and push through.

 I was staring at my breakfast; a plate of fruit that and pancakes when a knock sounded at the door.

It wasn't the soft, rhythmic tap of Maria or Sofia or Elena that I had become accustomed to over the past few weeks.

 It was a sharp, military strike.

 "Miss Vancouver," the strong voice came from behind the door, "The Boss is requesting your presence in the courtyard."

My heart plummeted. Bane was the last person I ever wanted to see.

 "Now?"

I asked hoping I would have time to mentally prepare myself to face him.

 "Immediately."

I didn't even have time to change.

I was still in a cotton robe, my hair falling in loose, unbrushed waves.

I followed the guard down the stairs, my mind was screaming.

 Did Regina tell him? She said she wouldn't...... at least, not yet.

As we neared the heavy oak doors that led to the central courtyard, I felt it.

Silence.

A thick, suffocating silence that felt heavy enough to drown any scream.

The doors opened, and I went cold.

"Oh, God," I whispered, my hand flying to my mouth.

The courtyard was lined with men.

At least forty guards.

 The entirety of them were on their knees on the stone pavement. Their heads were bowed, their hands clasped behind their necks.

 It looked like an execution.

Bane was seated in a high-backed iron chair at the head of the formation, looking like a dark god presiding over a sacrifice.

He was dressed in a black suit, his legs crossed, a glass of water on the small table beside him.

Regina was seated to his left, her face a mask of cold, regal indifference.

It was not the look that I had come to associate her with.

But it was Nathaniel who held my gaze.

He was pacing behind the kneeling men, a silver handgun glinting in the morning sun.

He looked like he was waiting for a movie to start.

 "Princess. Come here," Bane said.

His voice wasn't loud, but it commanded immediate obedience.

I walked forward, my legs feeling like they were made of water.

 I stopped a few feet from his chair, my gaze darting between the row of kneeling men. I recognized some of them.

Bane didn't look at the men.

He only looked at me.

 "My sister tells me a member of my staff forgot his place yesterday. She tells me a man here thought he could lay hands on what is mine."

"I... I told her it was fine. I don't want this,"

 I begged, looking at Regina.

 She didn't blink. She just stared straight ahead.

"It is not fine," Bane snapped, his eyes flashing with a sudden, sharp heat. "Identify him."

 I looked at the row of men. I saw him. Third from the left.

The man with the rumpled collar and the cruel eyes.

He was shaking now, sweat dripping off his chin onto the stone.

Our eyes met for a split second, and the sheer, pathetic terror in his gaze made me sick.

"I... I can't," I whispered, shaking my head. "Please, just let them go."

"That isn't how we do things here," Nathaniel's voice cut in.

He stopped pacing directly behind a guard near the end of the row a man I knew had done nothing but nod to me respectfully.

"Amaya," Bane said, his tone dropping to a warning low. "Identify the man. Now."

"No," I sobbed, clutching my robe shut. "It was a mist......"

BANG!!!

 A gunshot rang out and the sound was deafening.

 I screamed, throwing my hands over my ears as the smell of gunpowder filled the air.

The guard Nathaniel had been standing behind collapsed, clutching his thigh as blood began to bloom through his trousers.

He didn't scream.

He just let out a low, wet groan, his face going white with shock.

 "No! NO! PLEASE STOP" I shrieked.

Nathaniel looked at me with those cold, hollow eyes.

He calmly, adjusted his grip on the gun.

 "If you don't point him out in the next ten seconds, I move to the next man. And I won't aim for the leg this time. I'll keep going until the courtyard is painted red, or until you find your voice."

Nathaniel pointed his gun at another guard and began to count.

"Bane, stop him!" I begged.

"He's innocent! That man didn't do anything!"

Bane didn't move.

"Then point out the one who did. Save the others, Amaya. The clock is ticking."

 "Nine," Nathaniel counted.

 "Eight. Seven..."

"Stop!" I cried. My vision was blurring with tears.

 I looked at the man third from the left.

He was weeping silently now, his shoulders heaving.

If I didn't say it, Nathaniel was going to kill everyone.

I could see it in his face. He was itching to do it.

"Six. Five..."

"Him!" I pointed a shaking finger at the man who was guilty. "It was him! The one in the middle!"

The silence returned, sharper than before.

Nathaniel stopped counting.

He walked over to the man I had pointed at and grabbed him by the hair, hauling his head back.

"Is this the one, Princess?" Bane asked, standing up slowly.

 "Yes," I choked out, the word feeling like a betrayal.

 "Yes, just... please don't hurt anyone else. Please."

 Bane walked over to the guard and looked down at the man with a disgust so profound it was visceral.

 "You were given a simple task," Bane said, his voice a low vibration of pure rage.

"Guard the perimeter. Protect the assets. Instead, you thought you were a king because I gave you a badge and a paycheck."

"Boss, please!" the man blubbered, snot and tears covering his face.

 "I was just joking around! I didn't hurt her! I swear!"

 Bane looked up at the Captain, who was standing by the door.

 "Take him. I will come pay him a visit myself later tonight. And captain?"

"Yes, Boss?"

 "Make sure he is kept busy before I arrive"

 Two large men stepped forward and grabbed the guard under his arms.

 He began to scream.

 "No! Please! Amaya, help me! Boss, forgive me! Please! I'm sorry!!!"

 I watched, frozen in horror, as they dragged him across the stone, his heels kicking uselessly against the pavement.

 His screams grew fainter as they pulled him through the heavy iron gates.

 I knew then that this was going to be last time I ever saw that man alive.