Serena POV

After the scene with the Collins being shot, conversations automatically begin and everyone continues as they were before like there weren't dead bodies at the top of the stairs.

Just reminding me that the people in this room were not normal.

They were cold-blooded killers.

Much like what I used to be.

I stood frozen for a few seconds trying to calm my breathing down before I remembered the reason we were there.

Ricardo would soon be bleeding as he begged for life.

And I'll be damned if I didn't take some of these others assholes down too.

Massimo released my waist and took a small step in front of me to analyze my face before turning to the person holding my hand beside me.

"Who the fuck are you?" He growls roughly while pulling me into his side, the person's hand dropping from mine.

Snapping out of my daze I look up at the person in front of me. They were in a nice suit with a perfectly bloomed red rose in the pocket to add a touch of color. His mask covered hardly any of his face besides the area around his eyes.

His hair is black, his skin a dark tan with chiseled facial bones. His eyes were focused on me and my body relaxed under his stare.

"Tomas," I say in nearly a whisper before I wrapped my arms tightly around him. He laughed into my shoulder before hugging me back tightly to the point it pushed the air from my lungs.

He snuggled his face into my shoulder and placed a light kiss as he rubbed my back lightly.

We stood holding each other for a few minutes before I felt a hand on my shoulder, causing me to release him. Massimo gave him a harsh glare before I joined his side again.

I gave Tomas and cheeky smile before gesturing to Massimo. "Tomas, this is Massimo, your half brother."

Tomas takes a second before he removes his eyes from me and turns to his brother. He puts a hand out with a smile on his face.

Instead of taking his hand, Massimo glares down at the extended hand until he drops it.

Tomas must realize the hard feelings Massimo has for him due to who his father is, so he drops the formalities and turns back to me.

"Look at you! You have tattoos now!" He says gesturing to me in a way that made me blush. He always did have that effect on me where he made me feel like the most beautiful person in the room. "You have changed so much."

"That better be in a good way," I say pointing at him and he laughs while shaking his head.

"Of course. You have never looked bad a day in your life," He says then turns to Massimo. "This girl could be woken up at any time of the night and she would still look like a supermodel. All the men were always drooling over her no matter where she went or what she looked like."

I slap his arm playfully and shake my head with a chuckle. "That is not true."

"Yes, it is! They were just too scared of you to let you notice."

Hearing that I stiffened a little. Maybe that's why nobody but Tomas talked to me, they were all scared of me.

"How did you find us?" Massimo suddenly asks while pulling me closer to his side possessively.

Tomas looks down at his hand on my waist before into my eyes. I smile at him and he looks over at Massimo.

"I can recognize her a thousand miles away," He says in a stern voice that I haven't heard in a long voice. He only pulled it out when he was serious or trying to show off something. I raise an eyebrow as I look between the two of them.

"Do you think he will recognize her?" Massimo asks through his teeth.

Tomas looks over at me before shaking his head. "Her distinguishable features are hidden by the mask and the tattoos definitely will throw him off. Especially because he's not expecting to see you here so he won't be looking."

I nod my head as I look to the top of the stairs. The bodies were already gone and so was Ricardo.

Looking at Massimo, I subtly point toward my ear and then look down at his pocket. He reaches into his suit pocket and grabs the earpiece before slipping it into my hand.

Going to hug Tomas again, I wrap my arms around his neck and carefully push the earpiece in trying to make it not obvious.

"Tomas is here," Massimo says through the earpiece.

"Okay. Everyone, Ricardo is moving through the crowd. He is talking with a group near the base of the stairs. Use code word 'fiesta' for updates on his position," Jason says while typing on his computer in the background.

"Tomas," I say and look over at him to see he was already looking at me. "You should leave."

He raises an eyebrow and I move closer to him.

"It's going to get messy in here soon and I don't want you to get stuck in the crossfire. Have our driver take you down the street. There is a van parked with..."

"No," He says with a head shake and I look at him in confusion. "I am not going to leave you here in potential danger."

"It is for your safety."

"What about your safety?" He snaps at me and I tense. This was just like every fight we used to have before I was forced to go on missions. He would always worry about my safety and tell me not to go, even though we both knew I had no choice.

Massimo steps forward when he hears his tone but Tomas ignores him.

"I don't care if I get hurt but you are not going to risk everything while I just hide somewhere. I will fight beside you," Tomas says grabbing my hand from my side and holding it tightly. "And so will they."

I follow his gaze and see a few familiar faces from the guards and computer room watching us subtly.

"They are spread around the room watching in case shit hits the fan. They are willing to help however we need," Tomas says and I nod my head with a warm heart.

I look up at the clock on the wall to see it was a little after nine already.

"We need to get this show on the road," I tell him and he nods. I look over his shoulder and see Ricardo talking to another group a few feet away.

"What's the plan?" Tomas asks getting closer to us.

I look up at Massimo but he is already looking at me for the plan. I knew this place better than him and he knew that.

"Upstairs, do you remember when we went through the front door and turned down the right hall to get here?" He nods. "If you turn to the left there is a hallway. The third door on the left is Ricardo's office. It is fingerprint locked just like your door. I am the only one who can get in beside him."

"What do you mean?" Massimo asks.

"I would often have to be in the office with him before missions to plan locations and get information on people. He added my fingerprint to the door," I say and look over at Ricardo with hate in my gaze, letting it course through me as he smiled and laughed. "I will lure him to the office away from the crowd."

"No. We are not using you as bait," Massimo snaps.

"Unless you have another idea."

Massimo and Tomas look at each other trying to rake their brains but they come up empty.

"How will you get him up there?" Tomas questions.

"I will figure that out," I say then hit the hidden button on my dress to speak through the earpiece. "In thirty minutes, team one find Massimo and Tomas. They will lead you upstairs to an office where I will lure Ricardo. Team two be prepared in case backup is needed."

A few confirms come through the earpiece as Massimo stares me down.

"When I am about to approach Ricardo, I will keep this line open so you know if I am in danger. If anything happens just remember, finish the mission," I say sternly while eyeing Massimo. He waits a few seconds while thinking before nodding his head. "Massimo I need you to go find Spencer and Chester and wait with them."

"I don't think..." He starts but I stop him.

"Please don't fight me on this and just trust me," I say and move closer to him before kissing him on the lips. When I move to pull away, he puts his hand on my back and pulls me more into him, deepening the kiss. I knew he was trying to show Tomas that I was his but I let him so he would go with the plan.

After a few seconds, he lets me pull away and rests his forehead against mine while caressing my cheek.

"Please be careful," He mutters so only I can hear. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"I will, I promise we will see each other soon," I mutter softly. He presses a hard kiss against my forehead before walking away.

When he was far enough away, I turn to Tomas to see him glaring at Massimo with a raised eyebrow.

When he turns to me I shake my head. "Long story. I'll tell you after this is done."

Turning to look around the room, I see some people on the dancefloor gliding around. There was only a small crowd so there was plenty of room for us to catch attention.

"Care for a dance?" Tomas asks as if he was reading my mind. I gladly accept his hand and he leads us towards the dancefloor. The crowd seems to split for us.

Placing one hand on his shoulder and the other in his hand, I feel his hand hover over my waist cautiously.

"Come on, we have done this before. Don't be shy on me now," I say with a chuckle. He shakes his head before placing his firm hand on my waist.

We start to move around in circles with the music along with the others.

He suddenly twirls me in a circle by my hand, causing my dress to span out around me dramatically before he dips me backward. I can feel eyes on us as he pulls me back up and tight to his chest.

We glide around the dance floor for maybe ten minutes before Tomas looks around.

"He's watching," He says just above a whisper before spinning me so I could see.

Sure enough, he was standing a few feet away with his eyes focused on me as my dress moved rhythmically.

Being pulled back into Tomas, I slowly pull away and step back.

"Find Massimo and wait with them," I tell him and he nods.

I kiss his cheek and take his hand as we exit the dancefloor.

"Good luck," He says in my ear before disappearing.

I don't look over my shoulder as I begin to climb the stairs. It was as if my sixth sense was kicking in and I could feel his every move behind me. He was following far enough behind he thought I didn't notice.

The bathrooms are right across from his office so I could use that as my excuse to be out here if I am stopped.

"Ricardo is following behind you Serena, roughly fifteen feet away," Jason says in my ear.

When I reach the left hallway, I walk gracefully across the floor, slow enough that he would be close behind. I could hear his footsteps behind me coming closer.

I click the button on my dress and continued to move towards the bathrooms.

"Ma'am," He spoke to me when I was close to reaching the bathroom. I stopped in my tracks but didn't turn around.

His footsteps stop behind me and I slowly look over my shoulder at him.

"Do I know you?" He asks while trying to see my face under the mask.

"I don't know," I say and turn to face him. "Maybe you have seen me around before."

His eyes scan me for a few minutes before he steps closer. I don't move and let him, although my skin is screaming to pull my knife out and gut him.

He brings a hand up and runs a finger over my cheek slowly while looking into my eyes.

His head leans in slowly as my heart stops in my chest.

"Hmm," He says then lightly wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me the short distance to his office. He reaches down and grabs my hand without me stopping him before putting my finger on the scanner.

When it flashes green and the door unlocks he looks at me with a smile.

"I knew you would come back."