Ryan laughed, a dark, dismissive sound that sent a chill down my spine. “Take? Roman, I created her. You think being wealthy and throwing money at lawyers makes you the better man?”
“No,” I replied, my voice low and lethal. “But it’ll make you back the hell off.”
For a fleeting moment, neither of us moved. Then Ryan leaned in, his voice dropping to a whisper. “You always did love cleaning up my messes. Let’s see how well you handle this one.”
I stepped back, steel replacing the softness in my spine. “This isn’t over.”
Ryan gave a two-finger salute, his smirk widening. “Oh, it’s just getting started.”
He began to walk away, but I couldn’t let him go that easily.
“If you don’t back off, I’ll make sure you never see the sky again.”
That stopped him in his tracks.
“Are you threatening your own brother over a child you didn’t even know existed a month ago?”
I tilted my head, challenging him. “Wanna bet?”
“Is this you playing knight in shining armor, or just sampling what I left behind? You’ve always had a taste for my leftovers.”
My jaw tightened, fury bubbling beneath the surface. “Keep talking, and we’ll find out how quickly that neck snaps under pressure.”
Ryan’s gaze flickered with something unreadable-almost a flinch-but he masked it quickly. “You still have a penchant for violence, I see.”
I stepped closer, lowering my voice to a lethal whisper. “Watch your mouth.”
Ryan leaned in, his eyes sharp and calculating. “Or what? You’ll go to the police? It’s not that simple, bro.”
He jabbed a finger into my chest, a gesture filled with menace.
“If I go down, we both go down together. It does take two to cover a crime, Rome.” His smirk deepened, taunting me.
“True. But it only takes one to keep a secret, Ryan.”
His smirk faltered for the briefest of moments.
“If you come near Alyssa or Emily again, I won’t threaten you. I won’t scream. I won’t even call the cops. You know I don’t bluff, brother.”
His nostrils flared, and I could see the tension in his clenched fists.
I kept my voice calm and cold, each word like ice. “I’ll bury you with the name Gerald Potter. And no one will remember Ryan Blackwood ever existed.”
Savannah
The windshield wipers squeaked rhythmically against the glass, a futile attempt to drown out the relentless throb echoing in my head. The town, cloaked in darkness, appeared transformed-neon signs flickered like distant stars, storefronts yawned with sleep, and familiar streets lay silent, taunting us with their stillness.
“Dean,” I urged, my voice strained from fatigue, “this is the fourth time I’m asking. We’ve been driving in circles for hours. Do you know anyone she might be with?”
My eyes darted across the dimly lit streets of New Hope, as if searching for a phantom in the shadows. The car’s heater hummed softly, providing the only warmth in this suffocating atmosphere.
We had scoured every possible place: bars filled with laughter, diners where the coffee was perpetually warm, the bowling alley echoing with distant cheers, that one grimy nightclub with its obnoxious blinking sign, even the eerie church on Grove Street that had terrified Chloe as a child.
Yet, we found nothing.
Dean remained silent, his grip on the steering wheel tightening as he made another left turn.
“She’s out there somewhere, Sav,” he finally said, his jaw clenched with determination. “She’s emotional, vulnerable. We can’t just abandon her. I refuse to let her fall into the wrong hands.”
I crossed my arms defiantly. “She fell into yours, didn’t she?”
His gaze flickered to me, a moment too long, before he returned his focus to the road, as if avoiding the weight of my words.
“She’s incredibly fragile,” he insisted. “She never meant any harm. Alyssa had no right to treat her like that.”
“She’s not a lost puppy, Dean. She’s a grown woman with a mouth that can stir up chaos. And maybe, just maybe, she’s pulling this stunt for attention.”
He shifted gears, his frustration palpable. “Chloe isn’t like that. She’s a genuinely good person, okay? Alyssa had no business coming at her like that.”
“She used Emily to get the attention of a bridal magazine. What’s good about that?”
“Chloe is emotionally fragile. She was just trying to cope in her own way. Don’t we all handle pain differently?”
Yeah, Dean. We sure do.
I guess I’ll go live with a couple of fake tears on your wedding day too.
I turned to him, incredulous. “Cope? You’re unbelievable. She nearly shattered our family, and now she’s vanished into thin air, and you’re defending her?”
“She didn’t intend any harm. Look, Emily’s awake now. She’ll be discharged in the morning. Lizzie mentioned your fiancé managed the situation with her father.”
That caught me off guard. “He did?”
How on earth did Roman convince Gerald to back off so quickly? That lawyer of his, Penny, must be exceptional.
Dean nodded, a hint of pride in his voice. “He’s your mighty fiancé, right? He fixed it. So everything Chloe was accused of? It’s all gone. Now you all should let her breathe in peace.”
“That still doesn’t explain her vanishing act and how she has everyone in a chokehold.”
Dean’s tone sharpened. “Exactly. Which should tell you something. Maybe she was pushed too far.”
I stared at him, disgust swirling in my gut. She truly has him wrapped around her manipulative fingers.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.