The morning sun had painted the watchtower in shades of amber and gold, but Silvija Sablinova was not admiring the view. Just standing there. Thinking.
The past two days had been eventful. Too eventful. Every moment had been about one person. Her thoughts moved in circles, around and around him as the gravitational center, pulling her deeper and deeper.
She had to relax and process things. It was better to be composed and not to be caught up by desperate emotions.
Except she kept missing him terribly.
She was barely stopping herself from rushing to him, to see his face and feel the warmth of his presence beside her. After what he'd done last night, she wanted to hold him and make sure he didn't collapse again. And make sure he was still hers.
But she couldn't do that. Not yet.
Silvija knew herself well enough not to be caught up by desperate emotions. She'd built Wild Pack on discipline and hard decisions, not on impulse. If she went running after Dante now, she wouldn't be able to stop herself next time. She wasn't just Silvija, a woman who could indulge in her happiness. She was also Silver Sable, the owner of Silver Sable International, and the Queen of Symkaria. She had to fulfill those responsibilities alongside balancing her own affection.
So instead, she forced herself to stay here.
"You've been standing there like an idiot for an hour."
She turned to find Ava Ayala leaning against the railing, arms crossed, watching the mercs moving below with those sharp green eyes. Ava sneaking up on her only emphasized her growing carelessness.
Silvija smiled, amused. "You want another beating?"
Ava had yet to beat Silvija without using her White Tiger Amulet.
Truth be told, Ava had grown a lot in five years. From a scrawny girl to one packing muscles, abs, and more dexterity than Olympic gymnasts. Her black hair, once cut short in a practical bob, now fell in a thick ponytail past her hips. Naturally an inspiration from Silvija's own ponytail, one of the least distracting hairstyles to train with long hair.
The crying girl from five years ago had become Silver Sable International's most capable mercenary, Wild Pack's ace.
"A pretty woman lost in her world," Ava said, not looking away from the grounds. "Sis, you're a sniper's wet dream."
"I was thinking. Sometimes, I want time for myself… away from all these duties."
"What's really bothering you?" Ava asked as she finally turned to her with those eyes which had seen too much. The mercenary business had that effect on younger people. "Your hand's been tapping the railing for the past hour. You only do that when you're anxious."
This was always how it went with Ava. Silvija was older, was the commander, and was the one who'd pulled this grief-stricken girl out of the darkness five years ago. But somewhere along the way, the roles had shifted. Now Ava was the one reading Silvija's micro-expressions like an open book, the one calling her out when she was falling apart. The one stopping her from falling apart under the weight of her responsibilities.
It was both humbling and infuriating.
"It's a person," Silvija finally admitted. "Someone… I'm thinking too much about him."
"Who?" Ava's voice became ice-cold. "I'll rip his throat out."
"Thanks for adding more to my worry list," Silvija said with a wry smile. "I want you to meet someone important. My... my boyfriend. But you need to get rid of that attitude first."
"Since when? And why am I only hearing this now?"
"It just happened. Very recently." Silvija paused. "He's part of Wild Pack."
"You hooked up with Raul?" Ava's eyebrows shot up. "I actually respected him. It'll break my heart to kill him."
Ava didn't even try to hide her killing intent. She was protective and possessive in that way only people who'd lost everything could be.
"It's Dante. He's joined us as Vice-Commander."
"You elevated your boyfriend to Vice-Commander?" Ava asked with a look of surprise. "Why did no one bother to inform me? Am I not part of Wild Pack?"
"He's exceptional, Ava. And I need him."
"Exceptional at manipulating you emotionally?" Ava's hand curled into the claw. "Because if he's playing you, I'll make him wish he'd never met you."
"This is precisely why I didn't introduce you." Silvija reached out, gently lowering Ava's raised hand. "You can't test him the way you test others."
The young White Tiger had a knack for testing new members. Silvija knew those tests would go overboard if it involved becoming a family member. Ava wouldn't let anyone unworthy get between her and her older sister.
"Boyfriend or not, he's got to pay for your anxiety. And how is he worthy of a queen if he can't hold his own against a little girl like me?"
Silvija smirked. "Honestly, you're the one I'm worried about. You can't beat him even if you use your amulet. He'll spank you."
There was no world in which Dante, someone who caught a bullet with bare hands, would lose to Ava.
A competitive spirit blazed in Ava's eyes as she showed a serious expression. "When do I meet him?"
"I'm serious. Don't pick a fight with him."
Ava's chin lifted stubbornly. "White Tiger doesn't like me when I cower."
"This isn't about being afraid. This is about not being stupid." Silvija took a breath, choosing her words carefully. "Thirty Maggia members attacked the first site last night. Do you know who took care of them?"
"Your boyfriend?"
Silvija nodded, and this time she didn't try to hide the pride in her expression. "He killed five of them. They died without injuries like they just... stopped existing. The rest of them ran. Raul's scouts reported that people were fleeing like they'd seen some demon."
"They also called me a demon when I ripped a man in half."
"It's different, Ava. He caught a bullet with his bare hands." Silvija watched Ava's expression shift to genuinely interested, somehow her words had the opposite effect on the stubborn little girl. "He has the power to kill anyone with a word. Can you fight that?"
Silvija was still amazed at the shift in him. The moment he'd activated whatever power he held, the entire room's atmosphere had changed. Night and day.
"Okay, so when do I meet him?" Ava showed a smirk that made her look like a cat that'd just discovered a room full of mice. Her hand was still curled in a claw shape, and her fingers were twitching. This time it wasn't from aggression but pure excitement. "Don't say no. I have the right to meet my sister's boyfriend. Who knows if he becomes my brother-in-law in the future?"
"That's too fast." Silvija cleared her throat, though a rare blush could be seen on her cheeks, which made Ava narrow her eyes. "I'm briefing Raul first. We need to discuss Roxxon's involvement in all of this. Then I'll get some rest."
She'd allow herself to spend some time with Dante after the briefing.
"Take me along. I also need a nap."
Ava stubbornly kept finding excuses to tag along, and Silvija kept making excuses to not bring her along.
"Stop lying!" Ava finally had enough and called Silvija out. "I can see that muscle under your left eye twitching; it happens when you lie in Silvija mode."
"I have different modes now? Am I a mecha now?"
Ava raised three fingers. "Silvija mode for your family, Commander mode for your mercenary work, and Queen Sablinova for Symkaria business."
Silvija wanted to argue, but she couldn't. She herself knew how differently she acted, especially her warm side, which was only for a few people.
"You won't give up on meeting him, will you?"
She grinned. "Sis told me to keep going no matter how hard it is. Just living up to your expectations."
Ava grabbed her hand, and she found herself being dragged down the stairs.
"Try to behave," Silvija said with a sigh. "No using your claws."
"What do you mean? That's White Tiger's way of saying hello."
***
"Hahaha." Ava was holding her stomach, laughing nonstop. "Oh. My. God. You said he'll kick my ass. I'm shivering. He's so terrifying."
Silvija felt heat creep up her neck. She hadn't gone to Raul and came here because of excited Ava, only to find Dante lay sprawled across a tactical chair surrounded by a mountain of takeout containers. Everything was meat because he just loved it.
For a moment, she wondered how Maggia survivors from last night would react to the current sight.
"Ava—"
"No, no, wait." Ava crouched beside Dante's sleeping form, studying him with exaggerated seriousness. "He's got a decent face and body, I'll give you that. But zero awareness. Such a professional merc you fell in love with."
"He was an intel broker. He can't even shoot."
"And you brought him into the Wild Pack and gave him the Vice-Commander position."
Silvija became even more embarrassed. It seemed like she made him Vice-Commander out of favoritism, not for his competence.
"He was hungry," Silvija said weakly, already knowing how pathetic that sounded. "Let's stop it at that."
"I'm sure no delivery driver comes to Oscorp Island." Ava picked up a still-warm pizza box, checking the seal. "This was meant to be eaten in the house. How did he get them here?"
"I don't know," Silvija said, a bit distracted watching Dante's peaceful expression. "Maybe he teleported them here?"
Even though he looked like an utter dork at the moment, she really couldn't count any miracle out when this man was involved. He was the same man who made Emma Frost back down, caught bullets mid-air, and terrified a Maggia family.
She couldn't help the small smile tugging at her lips. The contrast was almost endearing.
Ava's eyes widened to comical proportions. "Did he teleport food?"
"I... don't know." Silvija's gaze softened despite her embarrassment. "He is a god or something greater."
"You're smiling at him like he pulled down the moon for you," Ava looked annoyed. "It's creepy, like you got brainwashed or something."
"Help me carry him to the car," Silvija said, ignoring the comment. "He can't sleep here properly."
She would do it herself, but the lack of any sleep in the past forty hours dropped her strength below an ordinary woman. Dante wasn't exactly someone she could handle in her current state.
"Why? He looks comfortable." Ava grabbed Dante's shoulders anyway, effortlessly lifting him despite his muscular frame. "Wow, he is heavy."
The man was completely oblivious to his undignified appearance as they carried him down the watchtower.
"You're doing it again," Ava said, noticing Silvija's soft expression. "The smiling thing. It's truly nauseating when you do it for him."
"Shut up and keep moving."
"No promises about the shutting up part," Ava replied cheerfully. "But I'll help. That's what family does."