Sebastian entered the room. The door swung open and slammed against the wall, making Scar and I both flinch. There was something unnatural about the way Sebastian was standing. His hand wasn't even on the doorknob. He didn't make a sound or move. I could feel Scar straighten his back.

Sebastian's eyes were glassy, like he wasn't even real. I tried stepping forward, but Scar instantly shot his arm out as a barrier. I looked at Sebastian again. Worry creased into my stomach, and I could feel the nervous heat from Scar's back. Something was definitely off.

Sebastian's mouth was open and the grimace looked permanent on his face. I opened my mouth to ask if he was okay, but Sebastian suddenly titled over. His body hit the ground with a disgusting thud. It was then that we both noticed the blood seeping from his back in thick, clotted globs.

A scream filled the room. I clamped a hand over my mouth, realizing it had been my own. Tears filled my eyes, making it hard to see but I could still make out the lifeless form of Sebastian behind Scar's back. Ragged, uncontrollable sobs escaped my mouth. Scar remained silent, and I knew that the worst hadn't even begun yet.

"Guess I was wrong." Scar whispered. He didn't even sound the least bit upset. I shrunk behind his body, hating myself for being such a coward. This had been a useless trip, one that cost Sebastian's life. We should have known Scar didn't need saving. But it was too late to go back.

A man appeared behind Sebastian's unmoved body. A sneer twisted his lips up. He was heavily built with a thick mustache and turtleneck. I didn't miss the black gun in his hands. Scar muttered something under his breath, but I was too scared to ask what he had said.

The pitter patter footsteps of more Bratva men sounded from above the ceiling. Scar didn't wait for them to find us. He leaped forward and grabbed the man with both hands, kicking Sebastian accidentally. I wiped my useless tears away and tried to make sense of the situation.

There came a sickening crack from where Sebastian and the man fought. I saw Scar pause and look down in anger at his hand. It was bent in a strange angle, but he didn't stop. The man kicked at Scar's shins, which he skillfully dodged. The gun had been thrown to the floor in their hassle. 

Scar noticed it the same moment the Bratva did. There was a frigid pause...and then they both leaped for the gun. All the while, I had been standing uselessly in the corner, watching it with tear-filled eyes. Something in my mind screamed for me to get out.

Scar grabbed the gun before the man could. It was like it happened in slow motion. I couldn't hear anything but a watery sound in my ears, a slow roaring of shock-induced bliss. Even though I had guessed it was inevitable, the fact didn't stop me from losing my sense of humanity.

"Scar, don't-"

I had spoken too late. The blast rang through the room. A shrill, ringing noise filled my ears. I saw the man drop to the floor, still flailing his arms wildly in an attempt to reach for Scar. Thick, red blood oozed from his head, right above the ear. He bled onto the floor, twitching uncontrollably before coming to a stop.

"What the fuck did you do?" I had never cursed before, but this seemed like the perfect moment to break the rules. I had already lost enough of my innocence, and it just wasn't worth keeping anymore. 

Scar gripped the gun tightly, staring at the man he had just shot. Then he shook his head, as if coming out of a trance. When he looked at me, I could clearly see the will to survive. It scared me to see that he would go as far as killing to get out alive. If he was capable of doing that, what else would Scar do?

"Come on." he muttered darkly. The others must have heard the gun shot, and I could hear them making their way down the hall. When I didn't move, he walked over and forcefully pulled me towards the open door. I could feel the tears fall down as we passed Sebastian. Scar didn't give him another glance.

He pulled me towards the end of the hallway. We ran through twisting halls. For once in my life, I hadn't fallen flat on my face yet. Scar tightened his grip on my hand once we passed a security camera. He flipped them off as we passed. The Bratva must have already guessed what had happened, and I figured Scar knew that it would be useless to cover our tracks anymore.

"Why?" The question tasted as bitter as it sounded.

"I had to." He spoke through clenched teeth. We slipped into a dirt tunnel, much like the one Sebastian and I snuck in with. We left the electric lights behind and entered darkness once more. Scar seemed to know just as much as Sebastian about the tunnels, and walked with a grace that I knew I could never match. The air smelled of old bread and mold. Since we didn't have any source of lighting, Scar was forced to slow down and feel his way around. On more than one occasion, I face-smacked into him.

"You didn't have to." I spat. The words echoed in the underground tunnels. "I would rather have died than to kill a person. He was a human, Scar, just like you and I! It doesn't matter if he was the enemy, you don't take someone's life. Period."

"Oh, get over yourself!" Scar snapped. There came a sound like a fist hitting dirt, and I guessed that Scar had punched the wall. "Everything I did, I did to protect you. At least be a little grateful. Come off that innocent little bubble of yours. This world is shit. That man would have raped you, Genevieve. Was killing him worth it now?"

His words silenced the insults I had on my tongue.

I could feel Scar stop walking and turn to face me. The tears were half-dried on my face. I took a step back, willing to stay behind in the darkness than to follow the bastard any further. He snatched my chin and forced my face up so that I could feel the little exhale that followed every word.

"I'll kill anyone that would even try to lay a finger on you. You are mine, and only mine, understand? I will fight for you till the end, and all I ask is that you try to stay alive. For fuck's sake, I'm not losing you like I lost Christina." he growled.

"Do not compare me to her." I snapped. "You don't own me, Scar. You don't have the right to control what I do, say, wear...my body isn't yours to touch. My life isn't yours to decide if it's worth keeping. Stop being such a controlling bastard."

Silence followed my revelation. I breathed through my mouth, waiting for a response. Then he laughed, but it was as dark as the blackness that surrounded us. Suddenly, I found myself pressed against the wall with something warm and wet on my neck.

"Is that so?" he growled. I flinched down, realizing it was his lips on my neck. My knees buckled with nervousness. I had awakened the lion and it wanted to play. Unfortunately for me, I was the only toy in sight.

"Not mine, huh?" he continued. I gasped as I felt Scar's fingers roughly trace themselves up my leg. My heartbeat tattooed a rhythm against his chest. His lips brushed gently against my jawline. The fact that we couldn't see each other made this all the more terrifying.

"S-Stop..."

"Can you repeat that last part?" his lips were dangerously close to mine, and it was the only thing I could focus on. I tried turning my head in a pathetic attempt to give us some space, but Scar grabbed my chin and forced me to feel the small kisses along my jawline. "I'm not sure I caught that."

Without waiting for a reply, I could feel his lips softly press against mine. A warm feeling filled the pit of my stomach. Suddenly, I couldn't think about anything else but Scar. I grabbed his jaw and pushed harder. No matter how many times he pressed his lips against mine, it wasn't enough.

Then came the little flicks of his tongue, and I all but melted into the floor. If Scar hadn't such a tight grip on my waist, I surely would have fallen. His teeth nicked against mine, and we fought for dominance. Scar quickly overpowered me, and kissed my mouth so hard I lost all the feeling in them.

He moved back when we needed oxygen. I needed lots of it. Even though I couldn't see Scar, I could feel his smile directed towards me. I cleared my throat awkwardly. It sounded way too loud. A moment of silence passed before I felt his fingers wrap around my own.

"We should....probably go home." His voice sounded thick.

"Oh yes." I said too quickly. "We should do that. We should most definitely do that."

He chuckled, and it was a pleasant sound. "Come on then."

We started walking again, but slower this time. The Bratva were probably looking for us, and no doubt we would still be in danger if we remained in Chicago. I was terrified of facing Marie and my father, but it was inevitable. Even though Sebastian was dead, Scar had just killed someone, I was surely grounded til college, and the Bratva still after us, something told me that as long as I was with Scar, everything would be okay.

At least I hoped so.