“Nice work,” I announce, keeping my look of nonchalance in place. “Did you get the shot you were hoping for, Grayson?”When I reach the man in question, I peer around him to watch my songbird and that blue-haired bastard kiss once again. It made my blood boil, and I wanted to smash the fucking camera, but I had to keep it together.“Well,” Grayson murmurs, looking toward where my songbird and the bastard stand, locked in a heated conversation. “It wasn’t what I was after, but I think this will work.”As he speaks, he lets his gaze travel in the same direction as mine and then comes to rest on my songbird. I don’t miss the look of hunger that suddenly flashes in his eyes while they slowly travel up and down her body.“Don’t even think about it,” I warn, drawing his attention toward myself. “You know how easily I can ruin your career.”Why the hell were all these pests hanging around my songbird? Did I really make the right decision by letting her go out into the world? With each passin
[Thad’s POV]“Great first day! Cheers!”Grayson’s voice booms around us as everyone clinks their drinks together. It’s a fucking mess of voices and music invading each and every one of my senses, and the fact that I’ve barely gotten any sleep just makes things that much worse.Lifting my beer, I take a sip while I let my gaze travel around the table until it comes to rest on Brielle, who is sitting between Mr. Rogers and Grayson. Just from the look on her face, it is clear that she is uncomfortable with her position, but she politely smiles as each man speaks at her.Once again, I’m reminded of how innocent she is, and I can’t help but wonder why my father wants her dead.Dammit, I needed to stop obsessing over this whole situation, especially since I already decided that I was going to take care of her instead of going through with my father’s request. Speaking of that, I still needed to sneak away and give Darlene a call to let her know that our dad was back.With this thought in mi
[Thad’s POV]When I hang up my phone, I head back inside to find that Brielle looks more relaxed and even a little tipsy. She smiles politely as Grayson continues to feed her drinks.Frowning, I take a seat and reach out, taking the most recent drink given and downing it in one gulp.“If you wanted a drink, you could have said so,” Grayson points out in amusement. “There is plenty to go around.”“Sorry,” I chuckle, holding out my glass. “I was thirsty.”As he pours me another drink, I feel Mr. Rogers eyes on me, and to my surprise, I see appreciation in them.I didn’t do this for you. I grumble inwardly, downing another drink. Don’t look at me like that, especially when you could have done this yourself if you were worried.Downing my second drink, I lean forward, keeping my gaze fixed on Brielle while she sips at a glass of water. Good. At least she wasn’t going to continue downing the booze.“Since you’re back, there was something I wanted to discuss with the two of you,” Grayson be
[Thad’s POV]I watch with wide eyes as Mr. Rogers stares down at Grayson’s unmoving body. His face is blank, completely devoid of emotion, and I can’t help but wonder if I was wrong about him being the man that Brielle was so attached to. Honestly, how could she possibly love someone so deeply who wasn’t capable of feeling? It was impossible, or did she have some strange kink?“Thad,” Mr. Rogers announces, snapping me out of my daze. “Get her out of here.”As he speaks, he nods toward Brielle, who remains on the ground, whimpering and moaning. “Take her to a hospital.”Nodding, I don’t argue; I don’t need to. I want out of here myself, and if going along with what this psycho wanted was the only way, I was willing to do it. Moving forward, I avoid stepping in the blood that is pooling on the floor and scoop Brielle into my arms. Giving Mr. Rogers and Grayson one last look, I move away, making my way out onto the street where I hail a cab.“Closest hospital,” I announce once we are i
[Thad’s POV]I stare down at Brielle as relief rushes through me due to what she actually meant, but it is quickly replaced by worry. Was she so upset over the fact she kissed me? It wasn’t like it would change anything given the fact it was simply for work.“I’m sorry,” she repeats, lifting her watery gaze to mine. “I’m so sorry, please...” she hiccups, worry flashing in those beautiful eyes of hers. “Please don’t do anything to him.”At her words, I feel shock rush through me. I didn’t know exactly what I was expecting for her to say next, but to ask such a thing.“I don’t understand,” I say slowly, knowing that I was betraying her trust in pushing. “What do you mean, do something?”“Don’t kill him.” She begs, causing my shock to turn to panic as every cell in my body starts screaming alert. “Don’t kill him, please. And…” she whimpers, collapsing against me again. “Don’t punish me. I swear I’ll never let something like that happen again; please believe me.”Remaining silent, I let w
[Leo’s POV]I keep my gaze fixed on the blue-haired bastard’s as he carefully watches my hand until I pull out a slip of paper and hold it out to him.“What is that?” He asks, eyeing me.“It’s a transfer slip.” I explain.If I wanted to properly get rid of him, I couldn’t have him anywhere near or my songbird; otherwise, there was the slightest chance we could be involved. Of course, I already knew that I could be considered a suspect given the fact he watched me kill someone, but I would deal with that when the time came.“After what happened today, there is no way that we can continue filming the music video.” I explain. “And since I feel that you and Brielle have already recorded enough songs for your album, it is time that you went to work by yourself.”“You don’t say,” the blue-haired bastard chuckles. “Can’t say that I didn’t see something like this coming.”“I don’t know what you mean.” I say, keeping my expression neutral. “Why do I feel like your words have a double meaning?”
[Brielle’s POV]For the next few days, I’m kept in the hospital under strict observation just to make sure that none of whatever drug I was fed remained in my system or did any permanent damage to my organs. Although I insist that I’m fine, neither the doctors nor Mr. Rogers allow me to leave, and in the end I do as I’m told.However, when the third day comes and I’m finally released, I’m more than willing to go since it meant getting back to L and home. This thought alone gives me a pep in my step, but also leaves me with a feeling of unease since he never once appeared to visit me.Was he never contacted in regards to my hospitalization? Or was he too busy? Or… No. I couldn’t let my thoughts venture to the other possibility because that alone would kill me.“Brielle.”Gasping, I snap out of my head and look around until I find Thad coming to join me with my discharge papers in hand. Since Mr. Rogers had to arrange for our flight back home, he was the one who was with me.“Are you su
[Brielle’s POV]B: I’m on my way home.I send the message and then turn off my phone, shoving it in my pocket while I turn my gaze out the window of the plane that I’m currently sitting in. Across from me, Thad dozes, completely at ease despite everything that happened in our short time on this island.“Buckle your seatbelts.” The intercoms announce, causing Thad to stir and then stretch, showing a bit of his midriff in the process. “We will be departing soon.”“Guess our vacation is over.” Thad mutters, doing as we were instructed. “It’s too bad.”Opening my mouth, I prepare to agree with him, but was it really? The longer I was here, the longer I was away from L, and I was beginning to worry since he hadn’t contacted me. But I guess it was kind of bittersweet since I knew when we returned mine and Thad’s time recording together would be limited.Are you crazy? I think inwardly as this thought hits. Why would you care about what happens with another man when you have the love of your
[Thad’s POV]I don’t speak as Trudy buries her face in my chest, breathing me in while she does a damn good job of pretending that she was actually happy to see me. However, I know better than to fall for her tricks this time. And because of that, I reach down, grabbing her arms and pulling them off of me, then stepping back and wrapping an arm around Brielle. As I do so, Trudy’s gaze drifts to my arm and then back up to my face while a look of questioning crosses it.“Oh,” she gasps, putting on a fake look of shock. “I’m sorry!”“Sure you are.” I say, causing Brielle to give me a look of questioning. “I’m certain that you knew exactly what you were doing.”“Thad,” Brielle says softly, clearly confused about what is happening. “Should I…”“No,” I say much too strongly while tightening my hold on her. “No,” I repeat, trying to calm down. “There’s no reason for you to do that. Let’s go.”“But…” She continues as I start to pull her. “What about…”“Don’t worry about her.”As I speak, Brie
[Thad’s POV]For the next few days, Brielle stays locked in her room, and although I want to barge in there and drag her out, Darlene doesn’t allow me. From the way she and Steven glare at me, you would think I was some villain trying to get to a beauty. It was frustrating, especially when I knew that Brielle was suffering, but deep down I knew that my sister and her boyfriend’s intentions were pure.However, by the third day of Brielle’s self-isolation, I can’t take it anymore. That’s why I creep around the house that we share, making my way to the window that will allow me into Brielle’s bedroom.When I reach, I chance a peek inside to find Brielle sitting in bed with her knees pulled against her body. In the moment, she looks so tiny, and I can’t help but want to pull her against me.“That bastard.” I growl, lifting a hand and gently rapping on the glass in front of me while hoping that I don’t startle Brielle too much. “If only you could see the state you’ve left her.”Growing qui
[Brielle’s POV]I stare at Thad, my emotions racing as he considers what it is that I’ve just asked of him. Even from my point of view, I can tell that he thinks I’m being a bit too rash, and honestly, deep down in my rational mind and heart, I knew I was, but I was so desperate to forget even for a little bit the pain and sorrow that I was feeling.“Please,” I repeat, reaching out and trying to touch his cheek only to be stopped by his hand. “You won’t?” I ask as he leads my hand back to the bed. “Are you rejecting me?”“I am,” he confirms, though it is clear that he doesn’t want to.“Is it because I’m dirty?” I ask quietly, pain shooting through me. “Is it because I’m tainted by L and now carrying his baby?”God, what the hell was I saying? Was I really trying to guilt Thad into feeling sorry for me and helping me ignore all the emotions I so desperately wanted to escape? Didn’t that make me no better than the bastard that had broken me so completely?“You think that I’m a whore tha
[Thad’s POV]I stare at Darlene as she takes me in with a look that screams she doesn’t quite believe me. It’s annoying as hell, and part of me just wants to tell her to fuck off, but I don’t bother doing it; instead, I turn and knock on the door and then wait as I hear someone moving around inside, and when it opens and Brielle’s puffy gaze meets mine, I’m moving.“Delivery,” I announce, ignoring the gaze that is burning into my back. “I’m sure that you’re probably starving, so I’ve brought you some food out of the kindness of my heart.”As I speak, I can hear Darlene’s laughter from the hall beyond, but I don’t turn around. I simply place the tray I’m holding on the bedside table, then straighten myself out.“Come on,” I say, peeking over my shoulder at Brielle. “Shut that door and come eat.”“Oh, okay.” She says quietly while doing exactly what it is that I’ve said. “Sorry, I’m just a...”“What have I told you about apologizing all the time?” I ask, narrowing my gaze on her. “Stop
[Brielle’s POV]I sit on the edge of the toilet, my head in hands, as the soft tick, tick, tick, of a timer fills the area around me. How long have I been waiting now with my heart in my throat? Was it minutes? Maybe hours? It felt like eternity, but when the alarm that I’ve been waiting for goes off, I know that only five minutes have passed.Swallowing, I sit up and take a few deep breaths before grabbing the test beside me and then taking in the two pink lines that sit on it while my ears begin to ring and my head spins.“No,” I whisper, unable to believe that this was happening. “How can…”Don’t be stupid. The small voice in the back of my head snaps. You know good and well how it happened, and now that it has progressed to this, you need to figure out what to do.Figure out what to do. Of course, there was only one option. I was going to keep it since it wasn’t the fetus’ fault that its parents were in such a fucked-up relationship. But to find myself pregnant at this point in ti
[Brielle’s POV]I walk down a busy street that is surrounded by stands filled with all types of things. There is the woman who runs a bakery just down the street selling her latest creations. A fisherman offering the freshest of catches. A woman and her small child are selling stained glass ornaments for your home. And even a butcher selling sizzling fresh meat.It’s a peaceful sight that blends in with the buildings sitting on either side of the street and the sparkling ocean just in the distance.This is the place that I’m slowly getting used to, the people that I’m slowly becoming acquainted with, and the life that I’m now leading after running away from the one I had in the past. And although I know that I should be at ease, that I shouldn’t hold the slightest bit of fear over being found since I changed my name and our tracks were hidden perfectly, there are still moments that I feel like the one I ran from is here watching me, following me, and just waiting to attack and drag me
[Leo’s POV]“This the place?” Jackson asks me as we pull up in the place where the blue-haired bastard’s phone was pinging. “But isn’t it…”“Beneath,” I growl, parking and hopping out of the car. “They’re using the city’s underground tunnel system.”For a moment, Jackson doesn’t respond as he considers what I have told him, and when shock flashes in his eyes, I almost want to kill him.“So that’s how they’ve evaded you for an entire day.”“Yes,” I respond, starting to head toward some rubble that should be covering one of the tunnel’s entrances. “But they’ve run out of time.”Kicking aside the wood in my way, I eye the trap door that is almost unnoticable, and as I kneel, I pull my gun from side and position it.“Ready?” I ask Jackson, pulling the door open.“Lead the way, boss.”Nodding, I open the door completely and let the air within hit me in the face, filling my nose with the scent of mold and rot.“How dare he bring my songbird somewhere like this?” I growl, feeling my anger sp
[Thad’s POV]I hang up my phone and know right then and there that it's time to go, but hopefully this would keep the crazy bastard distracted while we escaped. Throwing it on the ground and stomping it, I turn and head out of the kitchen to find Darlene and Steven waiting with their luggage.“Is it that time?” Darlene asks, eyeing me.“Yep,” I announce, making my way to the room where Brielle is waiting. “I can only hope that she’s able to do it.”Darlene doesn’t respond to what I’ve said, but she doesn’t need to. We both knew how hard this was going to be, but I could only hope that Brielle cared about her own well-being.“Thad,” she gasps when I step into the room and find her in a pair of pants and bra, her back turned to me as she works to put on a sweater. “Why are you…”“What is that?” I hiss, taking in a long scar on her back. “What the hell happened?”Before I can stop myself, I’m moving, rushing forward, and grabbing her shoulders so that I can get a good look.“How did you
[Leo’s POV]I stand on my balcony, staring out at the city while my phone rings. Of course, I knew that this was pushing things, but if there was a chance that blue-haired bastard would answer, I was willing to take the chance.Answer. I think inwardly knowing that was the only way I could get his location. Answer the phone, you thieving bastard, so I can bring my songbird back to my side.“Hello.”A wave of satisfaction rushes through me as the blue-haired bastard’s smug voice speaks from the other end of the line.“You answered,” I chuckle, taking a deep drag of my cigarette. “I don’t know if you are brave or stupid.”“Maybe a little bit of both.” He chuckles, completely unbothered, which just pisses me off even more. “However, I should say the same for you.”“Never stupid.” I admit, hoping Jackson was quickly working to get the location I needed. “But I must admit, I wasn’t expecting you to answer.”“And yet you called.”“Touche,” I chuckle, fighting to not break my phone over the