Chapter 4 - ECHOES OF THE MARQUEZ NAME
The three men scrambled out of booth seven in a chaotic, stumbling rush, falling over one another to reach the door. They practically threw themselves into the night, their pickup truck roaring to life outside with a screech of burning rubber before vanishing down the highway. The diner let out a collective, trembling exhale. Jimmy lowered his spatula, wiping sweat from his forehead, while the old trucker nodded respectfully toward Matteo.
Lena looked down at her torn uniform sleeve, the adrenaline finally beginning to fade, leaving her limbs weak. Matteo unzipped his denim jacket, sliding it off his shoulders and wrapping it gently around her. The fabric was warm, smelling of rain and cedar, completely enveloping her and hiding the damage. “Let’s go home, Lena,” he murmured, his voice tender.
May you like
They closed the diner early that night. Jimmy insisted, telling Lena to take all the time she needed. As they drove back to their secluded house on the edge of the town—a modest, beautiful home hidden behind thick pine trees—silence filled the car, but it was a comfortable silence, filled with unspoken understanding.
Back inside the house, Matteo insisted on inspecting her wrist, applying a soothing ointment to the red mark left by Derek’s cruel grip. “I should have broken his arm,” Matteo muttered darkly as he massaged her skin. Lena placed her hand over his, stopping him. “No, Matteo. You handled it without violence. That’s why I left the old life behind, and that’s why I stayed with you. You’re more than just the Black Lion.” Matteo looked up, meeting her eyes, and for the first time that evening, the heavy burden of his past lifted just a fraction.
