Chapter 109: Selena
Selena’s POV
Kaiden’s knuckles crashed against Ross’s jaw with a thud that echoed like thunder in the silent room.
Another blow. And another.
Ross’s head jerked with each hit, his mouth bleeding, the chair he was tied to creaking under the sheer force of Kaiden’s fury.
His chest was heaving, jaw clenched so tight it looked like he might snap his own teeth. His hair, damp with sweat, stuck to his forehead as he paced around the bastard like a predator circling its prey. The veins on his arms bulged, muscles taut with rage, and yet there was a terrifying control in his violence. Kaiden wasn’t just hitting Ross–he was punishing him. “You touched her?” Kaiden growled, breath coming in short, ragged gasps. He didn’t wait for an answer. His fist slammed into Ross’s ribs so hard it shook the whole chair. “You even looked at her?” Another punch, this time across the temple.” You sick piece of shit-”
Watching Kaiden like that… I should have stopped him. Told him enough. Said something.
But I couldn’t.
Because in that brutal, terrifying moment, I saw something I hadn’t seen in a long time–a man who would burn the whole world just to protect the girl he loved.
And damn it… it moved me.
His rage wasn’t just fury–it was desperation, helplessness, love twisted into something violent, all because the monster infront of him hurt the girl he loved. And though I hate to admit it, a small part of me–one I buried deep–was impressed. He would kill for Lucy.
He would die for her.
She needed someone like that. Someone strong. Loyal. Obsessive, even.
If only…
If only they weren’t step–siblings.
If only their love didn’t risk destroying everything I’d built with Dan.
If only it didn’t make me loose unlimited money source.
I would have approved them in a heartbeat.
I would put her hand on his and say, “She’s yours.”
But life never makes it that simple, does it?
So instead, I stood still. Silent. Watching Kaiden’s fists do what Ross deserved, and hating the fact that there was even a moment when I admired him.
Kaiden didn’t stop.
Even when Ross’s face had turned a sickening shade of purple.
Even when his nose broke with a sick crack.
Even when blood gushed from his mouth with each hit like he was coughing up the truth.
“I didn’t take her!” Ross kept shouting, his voice hoarse, laced with agony. “I swear–I didn’t take Lucy!”
Kaiden didn’t hear him.
His boot crashed into Ross’s chest with a brutal thud, knocking the air from his lungs and sending the chair lurching dangerously backward. The wooden legs scraped against the floor with a shrill screech, threatening to topple under the force. The ropes bit into Ross’s arms and torso, groaning under the strain, their coarse fibers stained dark with blood and grime. His head lolled forward, neck too weak to hold it upright–like a broken marionette abandoned mid–show. Thick rivulets of blood oozed from the corner of his mouth, trailing down his chin to mix with the sweat and tears that clung to his dirt–caked shirt. Every breath rattled in his chest, shallow and sharp, echoing the quiet agony of a man on the edge of collapse.
“I’ll rip your skin off,” Kaiden seethed, grabbing Successfully unlocked!anking his head up. “Where. Is. She?”
“I don’t know!” Ross sobbed. “God–I didn’t even yonica was to go inside the school, but before that you guys had caught me. That’s it! I didn’t kidnap her. I didn’t even touch her–please–check my tracker, I had arrived just a few minutes before you caught me. Please, believe me. Please-”
His voice cracked and broke.
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Chapter 109: Selena
His body was trembling now, on the verge of collapse. If Kaiden hit him one more time, I was sure the bastard’s lungs mi give out. For a man like Ross, pain was deserved–but death? Not yet. Not when we still had no answers.
“Kaiden,” I said firmly.
He didn’t turn.
“Kaiden, stop!” I grabbed his arm just as his fist drew back for another punch. My fingers dug into his wrist, forcing him to look at me. “He’s not lying.”
“He-” Kaiden growled, trying to shake me off.
“He isn’t,” I repeated. “You’ll kill him before we know anything else. Look at him–he’s barely breathing.”
Kaiden’s chest rose and fell in violent waves. His hands were trembling now, not with weakness–but with restraint.
Reluctantly, he stepped away, his knuckles bloodied, face twisted in frustration.
Ross collapsed forward, coughing blood, barely conscious. “I swear to God. I didn’t kidnap Lucy. I didn’t… please… I didn‘ I didn’t want to believe him.
Hell, a part of me still wanted to shove my heel into his gut for all the nightmares he’d caused Lucy.
But there was truth in his voice.
“He didn’t do it,” I said. “He may be a twisted son of a bitch, but… this time, he’s not lying.”
Kaiden looked at me, his chest rising and falling in sharp, uneven gasps, sweat glistening on his temple. His hazel eyes- usually so confident, so unreadable–were wild now, storming with fear and desperation.
“Then…” he rasped, voice barely holding itself together, cracked like dry earth. “Where is she?”
His tone turned savage, a thunderclap of anguish breaking through the stillness.
“Where the hell is Lucy?!” he roared, the words erupting from his throat like a wounded animal’s cry. His voice echoed off the walls, raw and frantic, as if shouting loud enough could tear the truth from the silence.
The question didn’t just linger–it engulfed us. It hung in the air like acrid smoke after a fire, thick and choking, curling into every corner of the room.
She wasn’t with Ross.
Which meant Lucy was out there… somewhere else.
With someone who might be far more dangerous.
Just as the silence tightened around us, Kaiden’s phone rang.
We both, Ross and I, jumped. Kaiden’s bloodied hand reached into his pocket and pulled it out, eyes narrowing when he saw the caller ID.
“ACP,” he muttered.
My breath hitched.
“Put it on speaker,” I said quickly, stepping beside him.
Kaiden hesitated for half a second, then tapped the screen. The voice came through instantly–calm, composed, but weighted with something darker than before.
“Kaiden,” ACP said, “I did some more digging. I pulled up every name tied to Lucy Hailstone’s past and present. I started cross–referencing phone pings, activity, parole lists, even old restraining orders. Anything. Anyone who might have a reason to come near her.”
Kaiden’s jaw clenched. My heart slammed against my ribcage.
“And?” he asked sharply.
A pause.
“Among those names, one stood out. Female. Her last known location was West Sterlingo, though she shouldn’t even be here. However,” the ACP continued, voice tight, “what really raises the red flags is her phone. It pinged here just a few hours ago–then went dead. If Lucy was really kidnapped, then she’s our number one suspect. She has motive, too.”
My heart thudded painfully in my chest.
“Who is she?” I whispered, the words slipping out before I could stop them.
Then, louder–panicked-“Ask him! What’s her name? Her age? Her husband’s name?”
I scrambled through the cobwebs of memory, dragging out the names of every woman whose life I might’ve wrecked. Every secret. Every mistake. Every affair.
“Is it Susana?” I blurted out. “I remember once I slept with her-”
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Chapter 109: Selena
Kaiden’s eyes snapped to mine like a whip, sharp and accusing, and I instantly clamped my mouth shut. The air between us tensed, thick with unspoken guilt.
Without a word, he tore his haunted gaze away from me and focused back on the call, forcing steel into his voice. “Who is she?” he demanded.
Silence.
My knees trembled, barely able to hold me up. The weight of anticipation coiled tight in my stomach like a loaded gun. Every second stretched, slow and unbearable. My breath caught in my throat.
I didn’t realize I was whispering until the words left my mouth.
“Who would do this to her now…?”
And more frighteningly-
Why?
To be continued…
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