Chapter 84: Chapter 84 Bella friend
Behind her, two burly guards were panting, trying to catch up.
"Ma’am! Please! You can’t just—"
"Watch me," she said without even turning back, raising one hand to shut them up.
Leonardo spun around, his instincts snapping in. His arm lifted and aimed the gun until his sharp eyes met hers.
The woman froze, eyes locked with his.
Her brows slowly arched upward, lips parted just a bit. "Damn," she muttered under her breath, eyeing the tall man in front of her.
"Who the hell are you?" Leonardo asked, his tone still guarded.
But the woman didn’t answer immediately.
Because standing there looking straight at a real mafia boss with a gun in hand—was SyntaxQueen herself. The legendary ghost in the hackerverse. The one who never showed her face, never made public appearances, and never lost a trace.
Until now.
"Bell didn’t tell me they have guns!" she thought, lips twitching as her eyes scanned the room.
There were four tall handsome men standing around.
She gulped.
Still, she raised her chin and barked, "Who is Leuu?!"
Alan blinked.
Zion blinked.
Casper squinted, and then—
"HAHAHAHAHA!" Casper burst out laughing. "Are you looking for Leo?! You seriously just called him Leuu?!"
SyntaxQueen glared at him, not in the mood. "Don’t test me, bleach-brain. Where is Isabella?"
"Ma’am," one of the villa guards spoke. "you can’t—"
"Shut up." she said sharply, raising a hand.
And that’s when it happened.
The guard raised his gun.
"SHIT—" SyntaxQueen flinched and took a step back, instantly regretting her loud mouth. Okay. Okay. Breathe.
You’ve survived worse. she told herself. You once hacked into a black market auction while eating ramen with your feet up.
But that was the internet.
This was real life.
And they had real guns.
Alexa crossed her arms with a scoff, tossing her hair back as she gave SyntaxQueen a slow once-over. "And who are you supposed to be? Some friend of Isabella’s? You look like an aunty from a cheap street market."
SyntaxQueen raised an eyebrow. She blinked once. Then she laughed—a short, sharp sound of disbelief.
"Excuse me? Did you just call me aunty?" she said, stepping forward with a cold smile. "Girl, this isn’t a beauty contest, but if it were—those fake lashes and overdrawn lips wouldn’t even make it past the parking lot."
Alexa’s face turned red with offense. "You—how dare you?! You don’t even know what happened here!"
"No, I don’t," SyntaxQueen said firmly. "But I do know Bella called me last night crying. She could barely speak. She was scared, confused, and hurt. And I don’t care who you are—anyone who makes her cry is going to deal with me."
Alexa rolled her eyes and laughed sarcastically. "So what now? You don’t even know us."
"No, I don’t," SyntaxQueen agreed. "But I know my friend. I’ve known her for six years. And I’ve never heard her voice sound like that."
Leonardo, who had been quietly watching, stepped forward slowly. His face was hard to read–cold and unreadable, but his jaw was clenched.
"Who are you?" he asked again in a low voice.
SyntaxQueen turned her gaze to him without flinching. "Scarlett. I’m Bella’s only real friend. She called me last night and told me someone here bullied her. She cried until she passed out."
"I didn’t bully her," Alexa cut in quickly, her tone sharp and defensive. "She just misunderstood things! People were just joking around and she got too sensitive—"
"You call that joking?" SyntaxQueen snapped. "You don’t even look sorry. You sound like someone who got caught, not someone who made a mistake."
Casper stepped forward with a nervous chuckle. "Hey, let’s all just calm down, alright? We were just partying a bit. Things might’ve gone a little too far but—"
"Too far?" SyntaxQueen stepped forward, her eyes burning with anger. "You made a young girl cry—are you not ashamed of yourself?" Her voice was sharp and fearless. "You all stood around and laughed while she suffered. What kind of people are you?"
Alexa’s lips curled in annoyance. "She’s not a child. Maybe if she acted less pitiful, she wouldn’t—"
BANG!
A deafening gunshot echoed through the villa as Leonardo raised his pistol and fired directly at the ceiling. Dust fell from above. The sharp smell of smoke filled the air. Screams rang out. Glasses clinked. Everyone froze in place.
Even SyntaxQueen stopped mid-breath, eyes wide, while Alexa stumbled back, pale as a sheet.
Leonardo lowered his gun slowly. His hand was steady. His voice, cold as ice.
"Shut up."
The room went dead silent. No one dared to breathe.
He walked forward slowly, his dark eyes sweeping across everyone, especially Alexa and Casper. "I warned you before. I hate liars. And I hate people who hurt what’s mine."
Alexa’s lips trembled.
SyntaxQueen didn’t flinch. She was still standing her ground, chest rising with every furious breath but she knew this wasn’t the time to interrupt.
Leonardo turned to her. "You’re Bella’s friend?"
SyntaxQueen nodded. "Yeah. I’m her friend. And I’m not going anywhere until I know she’s safe."
Leonardo looked at her for a long moment, then gave a slow, deliberate nod. "Good." and he left.
"Hey you!" SyntaxQueen—real name Scarlett—pointed at Zion with confidence as the room slowly calmed down after Leonardo left. Zion raised his brows, a little surprised by her sudden command.
"Lead the way," she said, flipping her hair and walking toward him like a queen.
Zion blinked once, then chuckled under his breath. "Alright then," he said, turning to walk ahead.
Scarlett followed, her heart starting to race now.
She was about to meet Bella.
Not Bellatrix_019, the mysterious hacker who helped her break into impossible firewalls and stayed up late laughing in code but the real Bella. The girl who had called her in tears last night.
Zion glanced sideways as they walked through the hallway. "So... you’re Bella’s friend?" he asked casually, though there was a soft interest in his voice.
Scarlett nodded quickly, her fingers curled into fists to hide how anxious she was. "Yeah." Then she looked up at him properly and blinked. "...You’re really handsome, by the way," she added before she could stop herself.
Zion almost tripped on the carpet.
He cleared his throat and looked away, flustered. "Thanks," he said. "Uh... we’re here."