Wait For You - 'Look After You' Sequel - A Michael Jackson Fanfiction

Chapter 14

"I like to think I trained you better than that."

He chuckled low. "Guess some lessons don't stick."

That was enough. I let the quiet settle again, then said, "Pull my men off her floor by morning. I've seen enough."

"Understood."

"Luca," I added.

"Yeah?"

"You did right by her. I won't forget that."

He didn't say thank you. Just, "I know."

"Good," I said, and ended the call.

The room fell back into silence. I sat there for a long minute, staring at the black screen of the phone, the faint reflection of my own face looking back at me.

Even thinking her name felt dangerous. Like lighting a match in a room full of gasoline.

I dragged my hand over my jaw, exhaling slowly.

I didn't plan for this, I didn't prepare for her to exist again.

I'd spent years building a world that didn't include her. A world of order and control.

Now every piece of it felt off balance.

I told myself I could handle it...that I was past her, past all of it. But I knew better.

There was no past tense with Evelyn.

There never had been.

I leaned back, staring at the city outside the window. The lights flickered like a heartbeat I didn't recognize anymore.

She's alive.

And she'd changed.

And I need to decide what the hell I'm going to do about it.

The cigarette burned low between my fingers.

Whatever came next, it wouldn't be clean. It never was with her. But this time, I wasn't the man she left behind.

The phone buzzed across my desk, slicing through the silence.
Ramon's name lit up the screen.

I didn't hesitate. "Talk."

"Boss," he said, voice rough around the edges. "We've got something on that woman from Club 30s."

I leaned back in my chair. "Her name is Evelyn. Stop saying 'that woman'."

"Yeah," he said, a note of surprise in his tone. "We ran her background, and... well, something came up."

I waited. "I'm listening."

Nico's voice cut in, eager and nervous. "She's connected to a name that hasn't been spoken in years. Elias Moreau."

The name burned its way into the room.

I didn't move. Didn't speak. Just stared at the faint curl of smoke from the ashtray.

Inside, I could feel my pulse slow. Of course I know that name. I lived under it once.

But I hadn't thought of his name in years. And I wouldn't let it show.

Elias had been more than a mentor. He was the reason I ever made it out alive, the man who taught me everything about power, loyalty, and the cost of keeping both.

And Evelyn... she'd been his reason. His daughter.

His one soft spot.

Mine too..

But that was three years and a grave ago.

I flicked ash off the end of the cigarette. "And this is supposed to mean what to me?"

Ramon cleared his throat. "Boss, we just figured anyone tied to Elias could be dangerous. The guy had enemies all over this city. If she's connected to him—"

"You think she's working for somebody?" I asked.

"Could be," He said. "We've already seen people sniffing around Club 30s. If she's holding any of his old cards, that could make her a liability."

I nodded slowly, pretending to think it over. "Alright."

They waited for more.

I let the silence drag. "Then here's what you do...nothing. You keep her name out of your mouth, out of your files, and out of your crosshairs. Am I clear?"

"Boss, with all due respect—"

"You don't have my respect yet, Ramon. Earn it."

He went quiet.

"You let me worry about what's dangerous," I said finally. "Elias is gone. Let him stay that way."

"Yes, sir," Ramon said quickly.

I was ready to hang up when his voice came back, lower now. "There's something else."

Of course there was.

"Go ahead."

"We pulled security footage from last night. Alley behind Club 30s. Someone showed up."

My pulse ticked once. "Who?"

"Dom Castelli."

Everything in me froze.

"You're sure?"

Ramon's tone shifted. "Same scar under the jaw. Same limp. It's him, boss. He's alive."

I felt the air thin.

"I put him down myself," I said quietly.

"Guess you didn't," Ramon said. "He's back, and he's watching that club. Which means he's probably watching the girl."

The chair scraped hard against the floor as I stood. "Send me the footage."

"It's already on your line."

I opened it, and there he was...Dom Castelli, cigarette in hand, half-hidden by shadows.
The same smirk. The same look in his eyes.
I'd watched that look fade once before, right before the light left him.

Not well enough, apparently.

Ramon's voice returned, cautious. "Boss, what's the call?"

I stared at the screen. "You don't touch him."

"Sir, if he's after her—"

"You don't touch her either."

My tone was low, sharp enough to cut through the static.

"Do your jobs. Keep your eyes open, and your mouths shut. I'll handle this myself."

"Yes, sir."

The line went dead.

I sat there for a moment, staring at the frozen image of Dom Castelli's face on the monitor. The ghost I thought I buried.

And behind that, another ghost, Elias.

The man who taught me how to kill, and the girl he made me promise to protect.

Now both their worlds were circling back into mine.

I poured a drink, but didn't taste it.
Three years of silence, of order, of pretending the past stayed buried, all gone in one phone call.

I grabbed my coat from the rack, flicked the ash from my sleeve, and headed for the door.

If Dom Castelli wanted to crawl out of his grave,

I'd be waiting to send him back down.