They <b>all </b>exchanged nervous nces<b>, </b>confused looks spreading across their faces. It was clear they had no idea what was going <b>on</b>, or at least they weren’t sure how to process <b>the </b>situation. Their confusion shifted <b>to </b>unease when they realized what I was implying. I could see the horror begin to creep into their eyes, a realization dawning on them.


    <b>“</b>You’re all shaking like leaves in the wind,” I muttered under my breath. “You better tell the others what happens when you mess up, especially when ites to things rting to the Don’s grandson.” I looked <b>at </b>them one by one, making sure they heard every word I said. “Tha boy… he’s his grandfather’s copy, only worse.”


    I had no idea why I was saying it. Maybe it was the fear that had started to rise inside me, the realization that Nick, for all his potential<b>, </b>was slipping away from us. Or maybe I was just trying to project my own fear onto them, make them understand the gravity of the situation.


    They seemed to get the message. Horror filled their eyes. One of them, Carlos, visibly shook his head in disbelief.” No way… he’s too young, too… too…”


    “Too what? Too innocent?” I cut him off, my voice low and harsh. “He’s not innocent. Don’t you <b>see</b>? He’s been trained for this, just like we were. Just like we all have been.” I paused, the weight of my own words settling heavily on me. “You think he’s just a boy? No. He’s bing something far worse.”


    Iwasn’t sure if I was trying to convince them or if I was trying to convince myself. But the truth was undeniable now. Nick wasn’t the young boy I used to watch grow up. He wasn’t the kid who would smile andugh with the `rest of us. He was bing something darker, something more dangerous, and it terrified me.


    A sharp, blood–curdling cry echoed from the room again. I flinched, despite myself. It was a sound I had heard too many times before, one I had conditioned myself to ignore. But this time, it rattled me to my core. It was so raw, so full of agony, that even I couldn’t push it out of my mind


    I cursed under my breath. I should have thought ahead. I should have installed cameras in that room. The thought of what was happening in there, what Nick was doing to Xander, it made my stomach churn. But it was toote now. There was no stopping it.


    I nced at the men again, all of them standing like statues, their faces pale and frozen. “You think this is bad? Just wait. When he walks out of that room, nothing will be the same,” I said, my voice cold, like a prophecy. I didn’t know what exactly Nick was doing to Xander, but whatever it was, it was clear that Nick was enjoying it. He wasn’t bothered by the screams. He wasn’t flinching at the pain, at the blood.


    The realization sent a shiver down my spine. What would Nick be like when he finally emerged from that room? What would be left of him?


    I didn’t know. And that uncertainty, that fear, was something I hadn’t felt in a long time. It unsettled me. Nick was slipping away, and I wasn’t sure I could pull him back. He was bing something that even I might not be able to control.