It was as if every fiber of my being disintegrated to ash. Just when I believed I had been given a second chance to love, hope, and dream, my newly lit paradise went up in smoke. I thought I had hit rock bottom before, but to be seen with such immense scorn from the man I cherished most in the world, over something that had me wallowing in self-hatred, brought me to an even lower level of burning desolation.
“Yes,” Lauren said grimly. Her confirmation felt like a heavy blade, splitting me down the middle. “It was a tragic incident, but luckily, nobody got hurt.”
“Nobody got hurt?” Tyler roughly repeated in disbelief. “An eighteen year old was run over by a train. Somebody did get hurt.”
“He did it to himself. At least he didn’t take it out on the entire senior class like he was planning to.”
“Yeah, thanks to that anonymous student,” he added cynically.
“That anonymous student was a hero!” she angrily shot back. “What’s with you? It’s like you wanted the shooter to succeed.”
He let out a sardonic half-laugh. “Hero. You mean coward. Why would someone remain anonymous for such a heroic act? For something worth awarding, she…or he, should have stepped up with pride. For all we know, it could have been the hero who was the mastermind behind the shooting and threw the other one into the train when their plan failed.”
Lauren jumped to her feet, prompting Mindy and Alaina to stop their conversation and stare at the three of us. “What do you have against a courageous student? She — or he — saved hundreds of lives that day. She was willing to take the bullet for everyone!”
Tyler scowled and narrowed his eyes at me. I could no longer sit still, enduring the condescension pouring from those very eyes that had been filled with admiration just moments ago. Desperation washed over me, and I reached out with a trembling hand, intent on imploring him to hear me out. Yet, as my fingertips brushed his knee, he leapt off the couch as if my touch seared him.
I flipped my gaze up in shock. His shoulders were tensed up to his ears, his face contorted in a cringe. It was a look of disgust. Like some sort of foul creature, I disgusted him. I swallowed hard, fighting back tears, my voice breaking as I anxiously pleaded, “Tyler, please… I’ve been meaning to — I-I told you I’d tell you after—”
“I need to check on something.”
With that said, he spun away. My eyes followed him as he hurried out of the game room as though fleeing a crime scene. As people asked one another what had happened, Lauren and I could only exchange solemn glances.
***
I sat at my desk, waiting. I wasn’t sure how long it had been since Tyler left me on the couch, but I was now among the few remainders in the building. Lauren had offered to take me home, but I insisted on staying behind, letting my thoughts spiral into darkness while clinging to the imaginary hope that Tyler would return.
Never had I hated myself quite like this. My wretched mistake in the past had caused me to lose everything once again. But even when I was not willing to forgive myself, couldn’t Tyler at least spare me the benefit of the doubt and offer me a chance to defend myself? But then, what would he do afterwards? Would he believe me? I had no evidence. Even James didn’t believe me.
I hunched my shoulders and sighed, checking my phone again to see if he had returned my countless missed calls and texts. There was nothing. My fingers automatically went to refresh the Friends app despite knowing he had his location turned off. It was all pointless. He had left me, and this time, it was not meant as a lesson. It was not an act of vengeance. This time, I knew in my bones that he had left me for good.
Another person slowly made his way across the workspace and out the door. I was now the only one left in the building, or so I thought until Jack passed by on his way out. He caught my vacant expression and arched a brow in surprise. “Last to leave yet again. You’re working harder than the CEO,” he said, smiling wryly.
I rotated my chair away, not allowing him the satisfaction of seeing me in a state of misery. “Leave me alone.”
He chuckled humorlessly under his breath. “Did Tyler leave you again?”
I offered no reply.
“Ah, he must have,” he answered himself surely. “You know, for such a responsible man, he certainly has a habit of abandoning you.”
“He didn’t abandon me,” I retorted with no conviction at all. It wasn’t like I had a defense for Tyler this time. I would abandon myself too if I could. With that thought in mind, the empty feeling of loneliness struck me, and I could no longer contain my tears; they burst forth, staggering out in gasps.
“You’re crying because he didn’t abandon you,” Jack droned on derisively.
I reached over Lauren’s desk, stealing some of her tissues. “Just go! Leave me alone.”
He said nothing while I wiped my tears. Soon, he let out a tired sigh. “All right, enough of this. Let me take you home.”
“No.”
More silence, to the point where I thought he had left. But then he spoke again, whispering harshly, “What is it about you? I find myself hating you, yet pitying you at the same time. I find myself doubting you, then believing in you. I find myself unbelievably annoyed and frustrated every time I see your face, and yet,” he paused, and I could hear him taking a few steps closer, “I find myself wanting you to turn your eyes to me.”
He waited for me to react, perhaps to turn around and face him. When I continued to ignore him, he bent over, his breath falling over the curve of my neck, his lips nearly grazing my ear. “Why can’t you act, for one moment, like the other women? Where my command is obeyed, my eyes can make you tremble, my voice can send shivers down your spine, and my touch” — a finger lightly brushed down the back of my neck, causing my shoulders to rise — “can cause a woman to melt at my feet. I have everything a woman may want; I could get one with just a nod, but why not you?”
My chair suddenly spun, and I found myself staring up at him in shock, his nose barely an inch from mine. “What is it about Tyler that draws you?” he demanded with frustration. “I’m everything like him and more. I’m the fucking CEO! He’s nothing without me! He’s a basket case. He’s no one.”
I glared at him, gripping my seat to stop myself from adding more bruises to his face. “We’re all basket cases. That makes us someone.”
His face twisted in bewilderment. “How many times must he throw you away before you come running to me?” He slowly raised his hand and wiped away the angry tears that had welled and spilled from my eyes. “It’s just a matter of time, though,” he mused, his lips curling into a menacing grin. “They always come to me. Whenever he was done with them, they were always there, ready to receive me. And it seems like he's really done with you this time.”
A chill ran down my spine. I tightened my whole body, my legs winding around themselves. If he thought I would be open to their historical trade-off, he was more of a basket-case than anyone I knew.
His gaze ran over my tensed form, and he gritted his teeth viciously. “Relax,” he spat, apparently insulted. “I don’t do force. Otherwise, I would have already done it by now. This is the perfect place, after all — just the two of us. No witnesses.”
His eyes lazily drifted to the edge of my desk, as if he was already imagining it happening there in his head. I grimaced in disgust, prompting him to leer back at me. “I’d be a fool to take you non-consensually. I have too much at stake to risk it all on you.” He shook his head thoughtfully. “No. I’ll just have to be patient. And when you are ready for me,” he lowered his voice, smiling grotesquely again, “I will ensure you’ll have a good time.”
Rising to a stand, he studied my heated expression some more before forcefully exhaling a stream of air, his cheeks puffing out. “I’m taking you home. Don’t fight me on this.”
I inched away from him. After what he had just said, getting into his car would be a stupid thing to do. Who knew where he would take me. Plus, Tyler wouldn’t like it. Then again, maybe he wouldn’t even care. Perhaps he wouldn't mind it either, if Jack took his place next to me. The thought tore at my heart. Devastated, I responded with a shrug, my head shaking with uncertainty.
It was enough of an acceptance for Jack as he began picking up my backpack and purse. Taking my hand, he tugged me out to his car. “Where to?” he asked, opening Google Maps inside his Porsche.
“I actually don’t know the address, but I can show you how to get there.”
“You don’t know the address to your own place?”
I turned my gaze out the window. “It’s Tyler’s place.”
Offering no response, Jack started his car. We rode in tense silence. He apparently knew where Tyler lived because he never asked for directions. As he pulled us up to the gated entrance, I lingered back, suddenly feeling hesitant. The towering gates no longer felt welcoming, but rather ominous.
I breathed in some courage and unlatched the door, but Jack stopped me by taking hold of my wrist. “You don’t have to go.”
“I do,” I whispered. “I need to know what’s going on.”
“He left you,” he heavily reiterated. “Why are you walking back to him?”
Hearing the exasperation in his tone caused my courage to crumble, and I looked at him almost pleadingly. “At least let me have closure.”
His hard gaze turned rueful, and it made me feel even smaller and more pathetic. Slipping his fingers from my wrist, he clutched my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Tyler’s grudges run deep,” he warned, his voice grave. “He might have cautioned you against me, but you haven’t seen what he is capable of. If you feel unsafe at any time, get yourself out of there. Then call me. I don’t live too far from here.”
I hesitated a moment longer before nodding, though I didn’t intend on reaching out to him. Ever. He and Tyler shared the same history. If I must run from one seemingly dangerous man, I wouldn’t seek shelter with another.
I stepped out of the car with my purse and backpack. My hands shook as I punched in my given code on the keypad in front of the gates. The thought that Tyler had already restricted my access crossed my mind, but fortunately, the gates slid open. I stepped in and looked back to Jack, waving him off. He stared at me like I was making the wrong decision. Perhaps I was.
As I made my way up the long driveway, the magnificent contemporary home, perched atop the high hill, stood proudly against the backdrop of the twilight sky. Its serene beauty contrasted with the turmoil I felt brewing inside me. Upon reaching my car parked in front of Tyler’s garage, I could sense that the house was empty. Aware that I wouldn’t be spending the night, I threw my stuff into the car before taking the steps up to the front door. Despite my instincts telling me there was no point in entering the house, with or without the owner present, I punched in my code on the door’s keypad. It beeped, letting me in.
I called out to Tyler and was greeted by eerie silence. My eyes scanned every corner of the house as I cautiously made my way to the lower level and entered the garage. The vacant spot where his Tesla should have been confirmed he was still out. My face scrunched with worry, wondering what could be keeping him this whole time. What, exactly, was he checking on?
Gnawing on my lip, I hurried back upstairs. The overwhelming emptiness of the home seemed to carry a trace of resentment, leaving the house hauntingly chilly. It could have been mere paranoia, but in that moment, I was engulfed by the sensation of being severely unwanted. Jack’s warning echoed loudly in my head, telling me that if I didn’t leave immediately, I would be putting myself at risk.
Risk of what?
I shuddered at the thought of what he and Jack could have possibly done in the past that caused both of them to fear one another when it came to the potential harm their retribution may inflict.
I was out of the house and into my car in a flash. As I drove away, I looked back in the rearview mirror, regrettably knowing it may be the very last time I would ever see that house.
As I turned onto my street, my eyes scanned the area for any sign of Tyler’s car, but no Teslas were in sight. With a heavy heart, I parked by the driveway and entered through the side gate. Though I had only been away for a few days, it felt like a century had passed. There was something noticeably different about the place. The cottage-like unit now felt oddly small and lacked the sense of sanctuary it once provided. It wasn’t until I went to insert my key that I realized the reason for the sudden change. My small safe haven had been breached; the door, already unlocked, was slightly ajar.
Remembering Tyler’s habit of surprising me, my heart rate skyrocketed. I burst in, expecting him to be inside, waiting just like before.
Except he wasn’t there.
Instead, I found my place ransacked. The doors to the kitchen cabinets were ripped off their hinges. Plates, bowls, and glassware lay shattered. The door to my armoire hung from its bottom hinge, as if someone had yanked it open with such force that it bent beyond its limit. Drawers were thrown across the space, some of them chipped; another was stomped on and smashed. All the contents were dumped and strewn carelessly from the bedroom all the way to the front step where I stood.
“Hello?” I called out timidly, listening for any sounds of movement. But I knew the culprit was no longer here. I quietly closed the door and carefully navigated through clothes, makeup, broken glass, and jewelry that had clashed against the walls. Beyond the wall divider, there was even more damage. My bed had been shifted and pulled out of its corner spot, the mattress upturned with the sheets ripped off. There was a hole in the wall divider from where the bathroom door knob had punched through. Even in the bathroom, the mirror cabinet above the sink had been shattered, its components scattered onto the shower floor.
As I stood there trembling, taking in the destruction, a gentle knock came at my door. I quickly composed myself, wiping my face clean of tears before walking back to the front. I knew it wasn’t Tyler at the door, because it was Tyler who had created this mess. There were no signs of breaking and entering; the door had simply been unlocked with a key. He was the only other person who had a copy. If he wanted to make another appearance, he would have stormed in by now.
I took a deep, calming breath before cautiously cracking the door open, using my body to block the view. “Aunt Helen, hello,” I greeted, mustering a forced smile.
“Hi, Lan. I heard you coming in and wanted to check on you. You’ve been gone all week.”
“Yes, sorry, I’ve been at Tyler’s place. I sent you texts. Did you not get them?”
“Yes, I did, but I wanted to see you,” she said, smiling. Her gaze lingered on my face. It was most likely red from all the crying. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine. Allergies,” I casually explained with a flick of my wrist.
She appeared to not fully believe me, but she bobbed her head nonetheless. “Have you had dinner?”
“Yes, I did,” I lied. “We had the unveiling today, and there was a ton of food.”
“Oh, that’s right. How did that go?”
“Wonderful!” I answered with a little extra enthusiasm.
“Really? That’s very good!” she said, not hiding her relief. “Lan did a good job! Come over. I want to hear more.”
“Um, actually, I was just going to turn in. We’ve been staying up late putting the presentation together at the last minute, so I’m rather exhausted.”
“Oh.” She pouted, but then nodded sympathetically. “That’s right, it must have been stressful. You look stress. Tyler look stress too.”
I had to control my expression to not seem surprised. Though I knew he was here, having Aunt Helen confirm it still made my heart skip a beat. “Oh, you saw him earlier,” I stated as if it was expected.
“Yes. I only saw him leaving, maybe ten minutes before you came home. I tried saying hi but he seemed to be in a hurry. Where were you? How come you two weren’t together?”
“Uh, I asked him to come get something for me,” I spawned up quickly. “Anyway, he must have thought I’d be meeting him at his place. I’ll call him now to clear things up. Thank you, Auntie.”
“Why did you ask him to get something when you were coming home anyway?”
“Uh, he just took a while, so I thought I’d get it myself. He must have had trouble looking for it.”
She frowned and peeked curiously over my shoulder. I moved along with her, blocking her sight. It was a good thing she was shorter than me.
“How messy is your place that he can’t find something in there?” she asked in an admonishing tone.
She had a point; there weren’t a lot of places to look. “Very messy,” I answered flatly, though this time it was not a complete lie. “Actually, I’m going to clean up right now before going to bed. Can I borrow your broom and dustpan? And vacuum too.”
Her frown lines deepened some more. “Lana, you’re a girl. You need to be clean and organized, especially if you’re going to have a boy over. Don’t embarrass yourself.”
“Right…” I would usually argue such a statement, but I didn’t want to risk her staying any longer and discovering the damage.
As she went back into her house, I waited outside by the patio door. She soon returned with everything I asked for. “Do you need trash bags?”
“Yes, please.”
She went back in then handed me an entire roll. “Take what you need.”
“Thank you, Auntie.”
She smiled and opened her arms. “Let me hug my niece. I haven’t seen you in so long. It’s like you don’t live here anymore.”
Dropping all the cleaning supplies, I bent and accepted her hug with an honest, gracious smile. “I’m sorry, Auntie. I’ll be sure to be home more often now,” I said, squeezing her tightly. I hadn’t realized how much I needed her motherly love until now. It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. She patted my back when she heard me sniff, probably confused by my emotional reaction to receiving cleaning supplies. “Thank you,” I repeated, discreetly wiping away a tear before quickly heading back inside.
I spent the rest of the night cleaning and crying. All the effort my aunt and uncle had poured into building this tiny home now lay in ruins. Tyler single-handedly destroyed everything. When Zoey discovered that I was the anonymous student, she was ecstatic. She admired me and had only good things to say. Tyler, on the other hand, took away what little I had, without offering a single word of explanation.
I piled the cabinet doors that could be salvaged into a corner, then collected the remaining pieces into a trash bag. The broken cabinet frames appeared to have been kicked through, providing no possibility of an easy fix. I had no clue how I was going to restore everything without a complete renovation. Putting this place back together would likely cost me at least an entire year’s salary.
Since most of the items had to be discarded, it didn’t take a whole lot of time for me to finish cleaning. After gathering the unbroken items into another corner, it was then that I noticed a couple of things missing: my scrapbook and my ten-year-old iPod.
What would Tyler want with an old iPod? Did he think I had secretly stored something on there relating to the incident from ten years ago? Was that also the reason why he took my scrapbook? If he was searching for information about what happened ten years ago, he wouldn't find it in either of those two things.
Frustrated, I yanked the drawstrings of the fourth trash bag, fiercely tying it up. I needed answers. I needed to know why he had abruptly left, why he felt the need to tear apart my safety net, and most importantly, why he took the scrapbook and James's iPod? He could do whatever he wanted with the scrapbook if it pleased him; he had already destroyed plenty. But James’s iPod was something I could not part with.
No longer having the patience to wait for his call or for him to show up at my doorstep, I picked up my phone from the bed, calling up Erica.
“Hi, Lana,” she happily greeted. “Glad you called. I’ve been trying to reach Tyler but can’t get a hold of him. Do you know where he is?”
“I was just going to ask you the same question.”
“Huh…” she grunted, sounding surprised. “When did you last see him?”
“I don’t even know. Sometime in the afternoon. At the office.”
“Yeah, same. Late afternoon.”
Her response left me pondering. If that was the case, it meant he went to see Erica immediately after leaving me at the office. “What was he doing there?”
“He just rushed in, not saying a word. Then after a minute in my brother’s room, he immediately left. I’ve been calling him since to see what he’s up to, but he hasn’t answered.”
My body turned cold. Air left my lungs as my throat constricted. “Your brother’s room?” I gasped.
“Yes. James. My brother, James.”
Author’s Note
Hi, there! Just one chapter left! If you’re reading, thank you, and could you pretty please tap on that like (❤️) button for me? It helps for algorithm sake (more likes = more distribution).
What was your reaction to the end of Chapter 51? Surprised? Or did you already had it figured out? I placed some subtle clues throughout the story. Did you notice any? Comment below!
Next chapter, expect even more…let’s call them “answers” for now. Hehehe….
See you next week for the final chapter of Book 1.