Episode 1

("Sometimes, paths cross by fate's design")

It's already dawn when Sean Parker runs desperately from four men who are chasing him after an argument at a nightclub. While crossing the street without paying attention, a car brakes unexpectedly to avoid hitting him. After stopping, a handsome and elegant man gets out of the car and stares at him.

14 hours earlier...

Sean was sitting on the couch, running his hands through his hair and nervous face. He and his sister Kate had argued over her boyfriend.

Sean never liked Brian from the day his sister introduced him. He always suspected that Brian was not a good guy, he had a bad reputation for being rude to his girlfriends. Sean, who had not said anything to his sister, knew him from college.

Kate is Sean's twin sister, being two minutes younger, her brother always tried to prevent his sister from suffering. Their parents died in a robbery when the two were still teenagers. Their grandfather, Gerard, took care of them until they came of age. Their grandfather died of a heart attack while they were still in college, leaving Sean and Kate to look after each other.

After the argument, Kate left the apartment leaving Sean alone.

"Ahh! It's no use, he never listens to me." - He said slapping his hands on the table.

Ding dong... The doorbell rang causing Sean to get up and go to the door. When he opened it, he came face to face with his best friends Annie and Zack.

*Annie*

*Zack*

"What are you guys doing here?" - Sean asked opening the door and nodding his head for them to enter.

"Geez, is that how you greet your best friends?" - Zack said dramatically.

Sean- "Sorry guys, I had another fight with my sister and I'm a little nervous." - He said sitting on the couch.

Annie sat down next to him and asked: "Let me guess, it was because of Brian again?"

Sean: *Yes, she doesn't listen to me, she thinks the rumors about Brian are false.

I heard he's even hit his exes*.

Sean spoke with concern.

Zack saw how worried his friend was, put his hand on his shoulder and said speaking.

"Dude, she'll soon realize what kind of man he is. Let time sort it all out."

Sean sighed standing up, walked to the kitchen, grabbed a can of soda from the refrigerator, whenever he gets nervous, he drinks soda to calm down. It was a habit he had. He offered it to his friends and they shook their heads refusing.

"Changing the subject, did you talk to Troy yesterday?" Annie said confronting her friend.

A month ago, Sean discovered that his then-boyfriend, Troy, had stolen his opportunity to exhibit his drawings at the Lane Art Gallery. Sean majored in Fine Arts and as an additional course he also studied music. But the career he chose to pursue was fine arts. Troy not only stole Sean's opportunity to exhibit his work, but also cheated on him with the gallery curator to get the contract. After the double betrayal, Sean broke up their relationship.

"I did talk to him, but just to make it clear once and for all that there is no forgiveness for what he did, betrayed my trust by stealing my dream and having an affair with another guy." - Sean said with an angry expression.

Zack approached and said - "Why don't we leave that jerk aside and go to our favorite nightclub to unwind and dance tonight? We all need some fun."

Sean and Annie looked at Zack and thought about it. Although he always made an excuse to go out and party, he was right.

"That's a good idea" - Sean and Zack responded at the same time.

Alex...

*THUD*... - one more punch is given to a man who is sitting tied up in a chair.

"I'll ask again. Who sent you to sabotage my crew's gun shipment?" - Alex Carter asked in an altered voice.

"Boss! I found something interesting." - James said handing an iPad to Alex, it contained information about the person who hired the captured man.

James is one of Alex's trusted men, he is an expert investigator and a hacker.

Alex said, "Of course this had to be Dan Novak's doing."

Alex is the head of the Mafia, chosen by the partners and his father who indicated him before he died of cancer. Dan is from the Novak family who have always had a feud with the Carter family.

Alex looked at Nick, another of his trusted men, and spoke as he walked toward the exit: "You know what to do."

As he left the place, there was the sound of a gunshot indicating that Nick had killed the man who was tied up.

A few hours later...

It was already night, Sean, Annie and Zack were at the club dancing. Sean looks at his friends and says - "I'm gonna get a drink, I'm very thirsty." - His friends accompanied him and went to the bartender to order drinks.

While they waited, Annie and Zack were distracted on their cell phones. Sean was observing the environment and noticed that a man was staring at him. He approached and introduced himself: "Hello, nice to meet you! You are by far the most interesting person here. My name is Dan Novak, what's your name?"

*Dan Novak*.

Sean recognized the name, he knew he was a member of the Mafia.

Mafia members are recognized by name as both the Novak and Carter families are quite popular in society.

Sean had a strange feeling of dread upon meeting Dan, even against his better judgment replied, "My name is Sean. I'm sorry, but I have to get back to the dance floor."

Sean didn't give Dan a chance to respond and walked away hurriedly.

"I love guys who play hard to get. It makes things more interesting." - Dan said with a sly smile.

After reaching the dance floor, Sean looked to his side and sighed with relief to see that Dan was no longer where he had left him. He was about to go back to his friends until something caught his attention. Brian was in the club with three friends and his sister. He noticed that Kate was arguing with Brian. Finding it strange, he decided to go over to them as he had a bad feeling. As he got closer, Brian, who hadn't noticed Sean's arrival, was cursing at Kate and assaulting her.

"You vag*bund*\, you don't own me." - He said squeezing Kate's arm violently. When he raised his other hand to slap the younger girl in the face, Sean quickly grabbed his arm and said pushing him away: "You lost the love of your life. Do you really think I'm going to let you hit my sister?" - Sean was red with anger. Brian became enraged and approached him punching him. Sean's mouth started to bleed. He retaliated with another punch and then suddenly, Brian's friends stepped into the fight, realizing that one of them had a knife, Sean ran out of the club and Brian and his friends followed him. - "Don't let him get away. He's gonna pay for that punch." - Brian said breathlessly as he ran.

Sean had turned the corner and hearing that the others were almost within reach, he started running faster, he didn't pay attention to a black car coming and as he crossed the street, he realized he was going to be hit. The car braked and Sean stood motionless with a startled look on his face. He came to his senses when he realized that a handsome man had gotten out and was staring at him.

Current Time...

Alex gave him an indescribable look and frowned. He walked over to Sean who stood there like a deer in headlights. When he got close, Alex said - "You should look both ways before crossing the street. If my driver hadn't braked, you might not even be alive right now." - He said arrogantly.

"I'm s-sorry, I w-was in a hurry." - Sean stammered. Alex's way of speaking left him apprehensive and intimidated. He found this feeling strange. Alex turned and started walking back to the car and before getting in said - "Don't let this happen again". - He got into the car and told the driver to get out of there. Sean found his manner arrogant, but had no time to think about anything because Brian and his friends were still trying to catch up with him. He started running again and soon spotted the building where he lived. He entered the building quickly and soon entered his apartment.

***This work has been signed with NovelToon, and piracy such as reprinting without permission is strictly prohibited.***

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***