Lisa's POV
I didn't sleep that night.
Not because I couldn't. But because… I was changing.
The old Lisa—the girl who was always smiling, always sweet, who believed the world was black and white—she was gone.
Something had cracked inside me in that warehouse.
I still trembled at the memory of being tied, the smell of metal, the woman's nails on my skin, her laugh, her threats…
But more than fear—I felt anger.
No, not just anger.
Fire.
I watched Noha from the doorway of his study. He hadn't said a word in hours. He stood by the window, back straight, shoulders tense, staring out into the dark like he could command the night itself.
He didn't even hear me walk in.
"Noha."
He turned slightly, his eyes bloodshot from rage and sleeplessness.
His voice was hoarse. "You should be resting."
"I should be fighting."
He looked at me then. Really looked. His brows pulled in like he didn't understand.
"You almost died today."
"I know. And I'm not letting that happen again. Not to me. Not to us."
He shook his head, walking toward me slowly. "Lisa, this isn't your fight."
I lifted my chin. "It became mine the second they tied me up and said I'd die like your ex."
He froze.
I walked right up to him and placed a hand over his heart.
"I'm not her, Noha. And this time… we fight back together."
He caught my hand, gripping it tightly like I was the only thing anchoring him to this world.
"I don't want this life for you."
"I don't want it either. But it found me. I can't unsee it. I can't pretend I'm just your girlfriend who doesn't know what's going on. They made me part of this."
He pulled me into a fierce hug, one arm around my waist, one hand cradling the back of my head. His voice trembled.
"You scare the hell out of me."
I whispered back, "And you make me brave."
Noha's POV
The worst part of being a mafia boss?
Your enemies know your heart before your allies do.
They saw her in me. Saw what she meant.
I never wanted her to see this world.
But now that she had… I had no choice but to bring her inside it.
Protected.
Trained.
Feared.
Untouchable.
That night, I met with the core team—Matteo, Leo, Silas, and Dom.
"She was working for Lorenzo," Matteo reported, referring to the woman who orchestrated Lisa's kidnapping. "One of his informants from years ago. We thought she disappeared."
"She came back for revenge," Silas muttered. "Because of what happened with your ex."
I clenched my jaw.
Lisa sat beside me. No longer in the background. No longer silent.
Dom looked at her. "Are you sure you want to be here?"
She didn't hesitate. "Yes. I'm done being a victim."
There was a flicker of admiration in Matteo's eyes.
Dom just muttered, "She's braver than most of us."
Lisa's POV
They started planning that night.
I listened. I learned.
I watched the way maps were spread out, how they used code words, how they read signals and played chess with lives.
But I also noticed something else—Noha's darkness was growing again.
He was slipping.
Going back into the man who never smiled, never laughed, who drank until he forgot how to feel.
And I couldn't let him drown in it.
So I made a decision.
One that would change everything.
Three Days Later
"Noha, I want to go to the shooting range."
He blinked. "What?"
"I want to learn. I want you to teach me."
He stared at me like I'd lost my mind.
But I didn't back down.
"You said you'd protect me. I say—teach me to protect myself."
And just like that, the conversation changed.
Training Scene
The first time I held the gun, my hands shook.
Noha stood behind me, his hands steadying mine, his voice low in my ear.
"Breathe. Don't let fear control your body."
I took a breath.
His arms caged me—but I wasn't scared.
Because for the first time, I felt in control.
I aimed.
Pulled the trigger.
And missed.
Noha chuckled. "You're not supposed to close your eyes."
I pouted. "That was instinct!"
He turned me around, his lips brushing my forehead. "You did good."
And just like that… I smiled again.
Even he smiled—a small, fleeting one. But real.
Noha's POV
Every second I spent with her now felt like I was burning in reverse.
Instead of dying… I was living again.
Lisa was learning quickly. She asked questions. Took notes. Observed everything.
But most of all—she believed in me, even when I didn't.
One night, while she was asleep in my arms, I whispered something I never thought I'd say again:
"Thank you for saving me."
Lisa's POV
But peace didn't last.
Not in this world.
One of the enemies made a move. Shot at our car while we were on our way home from dinner.
Noha shielded me with his body.
We made it out alive.
Barely.
He was grazed on the shoulder.
I patched him up with shaking hands, crying silently as he winced.
"This is what it means," I whispered. "Loving you means facing death every day."
He cupped my face with his bloody hand.
"Loving you means I finally have something to live for."