She's My Sleeping Pill

Chapter 965: IN ONE PIECE

Stefan contacted Rey the moment the negotiation was finalized, but as the line connected, a piercing, visceral scream tore through the speaker, momentarily numbing his senses.

"Enough with the twisted theatrics, Rey," Stefan remarked, his voice tight as he fought to maintain focus despite the ringing in his ears. "What exactly is the appeal of those screams? Actually, don’t answer that. I don’t want to know."

"So," Rey drawled, rolling the word across his tongue with a dark, melodic mirth as he watched his captives cower. "Are you calling to offer them your absolution?" He pried, secretly wondering if Stefan’s legendary resolve had finally fractured—not that any mercy could undo the damage already inflicted.

"Have you killed anyone yet?" Stefan asked bluntly.

"Not yet," Rey answered, his tone practically gleaming with delight. "I was just getting into the rhythm of things when you interrupted."

"Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but you’ll be sending them to Italy in one piece."

"Alive?" Rey’s voice dropped, the disappointment palpable.

"Yes, alive," Stefan confirmed. When silence met his answer, he let out a weary sigh. "Stop overthinking it. Do not—and I mean this—continue with your original plan. You’ve done enough."

"Does that include Elliot and Celestine?"

"All four of them," Stefan responded, his expression unreadable. Though the deal had only been struck for Julia and her husband, he had decided to cut the ties for his aunt and the butler as well. It wasn’t an act of mercy; it was a strategic move to keep Rey from spiraling too deep into his own bloodlust. "It’s such a headache, keeping you."

"Boss? Did you say something?" Rey probed, the last part muffled.

"I said," Stefan repeated, his voice dropping an octave, "it is a massive headache keeping you sane."

"Oh."

"Don’t ’oh’ me. Execute my orders and get back here immediately."

"On it," Rey chirped, though the compliance in his voice didn’t reach his eyes as he turned a predatory glare toward the three broken figures before him.

"Celestine has been saved," he announced to Elliot the moment the line went dead, the words sounding more like a threat than a relief. "Your wish has been granted. Consider yourselves lucky—all three of you are free. But make no mistake," he leaned in, leveling his gaze until he was inches from their faces, his eyes burning with a terrifying, promises-filled intensity. "I’ll be keeping a very close watch on every single one of you. The moment you dare to set foot in this country again, I will hunt you down, no matter which pathetic rathole you try to hide in."

Julia flinched, the sheer ferocity radiating from him making her blood run cold. She knew with absolute certainty that he wasn’t exaggerating. Had Stefan’s call arrived even a minute later, she shuddered to think what would have remained of them to be sent away.

"Boys, untie their feet so they can actually walk," Rey barked at his subordinates, casually wiping the fresh blood from his knuckles with a silk handkerchief. "The Chairman is sending his private plane to shuttle these people to Italy. And tell the other team to call off the search for Celestine. Wherever she’s crawled off to, she’s no longer our concern."

Half an hour later, the rhythmic, guttural thrum of rotor engines began to vibrate through the stagnant air, signaling the end of their nightmare—and the beginning of their exile. Rey’s men showed no sudden surge of compassion; they handled the three captives like discarded rag dolls, dragging their limp, battered forms across the uneven ground toward the makeshift runway.

Once shoved inside the cabin, the captives huddled against the cold leather of the seats, their eyes fixed on the window. Outside, the scene took on a hellish glow. One of the men moved with a terrifying, practiced nonchalance, dousing the perimeter of the dilapidated cabin with gasoline. With a single, flickered spark, the structure vanished into a roaring inferno, the orange flames licking at the darkening sky and erasing every trace of their presence.

Julia collapsed against her husband, her body racking with silent, jagged sobs. The heat of the fire felt miles away compared to the ice in her veins. For the first time in her sheltered, entitled life, she wasn’t just losing a game; she was tasting the bitter, metallic tang of absolute fear and the crushing weight of utter defeat.

After several hours of navigating a heavy, suffocating silence, the plane descended into the rolling landscapes of Tuscany. Within minutes, the wheels touched down on the private airstrip of the family estate, where a tense reception committee of Daryl’s parents and stone-faced security guards awaited their arrival.

The cabin door hissed open, and Rey stepped out first. His aura was an almost physical force—a chilling, predatory confidence that caused the waiting guards to stiffen and Daryl’s father to hold his breath. Following in his shadow, Elliot emerged, looking hollowed out and ghostly. Then came Julia; the sight of her was a shock to the senses. The polished, elegant woman they knew was gone, replaced by a trembling figure whose once-pretty face was a map of jagged wounds and deep, purplish bruises. Finally, Daryl was shoved unceremoniously from the threshold, stumbling onto the tarmac.

"I’ve delivered them in one piece," Rey announced, his voice flat and devoid of any hospitable warmth. Without waiting for a response or acknowledging the horror on the parents’ faces, he turned on his heel and vanished back into the belly of the plane, leaving the wreckage of a family to face the cost of their survival.

Daryl’s love for Julia had been the cornerstone of his ambition, a blind devotion that his family initially mistook for a strategic masterstroke. They had welcomed the union with open arms, convinced that sanctioning their marriage would act as a catalyst for prosperity, ushering in a new era of influence and immense blessings for their family name.

They never imagined that the woman they viewed as a crowning jewel was actually a catalyst for ruin. Instead of the grace and fortune they had envisioned, Julia brought a slow-burning disaster that incinerated their reputation and stripped them of their autonomy. The marriage hadn’t been an ascent to power; it was the anchor that eventually dragged the entire family into Stefan’s icy wrath.