Let them go

Chapter 35

Aiden POV

My heart was going to give out.

My eyes were glued to the laptop screen. I watched my twin as she put some papers into her backpack.

This was just after I left her.

If I didn’t leave her…

A small sob escaped me, and my brother tightened his arms around me.

A second later, I saw a male figure walk into the frame.

My heart stopped.

He was so much taller and bigger than Riley. He was stronger. He would be able to hurt her so much.

More tears fell on my cheeks.

How badly did he hurt her?

There was no sound, but I knew that the fucker told her something because she turned around to look at him.

Both Ethan and I sobbed when we saw her face.

My Riley. My twin. My little sister. Where was she? Where the fuck did he take her?!

I watched as her eyebrows furrowed. I watched as he took a step closer to her.

I clenched my fists. I wanted to jump up and stop him.

But this was a fucking video, and there was nothing I could do! I couldn’t save Riley. I couldn’t save my sister.

Ethan’s arms tightened around me. It was like he felt my need to jump up.

I watched as my sister glanced to her right. She was looking toward the exit to the football field. She was looking for me. I knew it. She was looking for me, and I wasn’t there.

My heart fucking broke, and I wanted to scream.

The guy approached her and leaned on the locker next to her, stopping her from running to me.

I saw fucking red. I would kill him.

He told her something before he raised his hand and caressed her cheek.

Ethan tensed up. I tightened my jaw so hard that I almost broke my teeth.

He touched her.

He continued talking to her. I saw her tell him something sternly.

What I saw next, had me ready to kill him.

He grabbed a fistful of her hair her hair, pulled her head back, and placed his hand over her mouth.

I flinched. Ethan cursed loudly.

Theo, Noah, and Liam gasped.

The only one who stayed silent was Peter. He already saw the video. He saw my sister getting hurt.

Riley narrowed her eyes at him, and tried to move his hand from her mouth. It didn’t work. He was bigger. He was stronger.
The fucker pinned her against the lockers, leaning his body on hers.

I was shaking so much that I was sure that I would break into a million tiny pieces.

He told her something that made her start trashing. She tried fighting him.

For a second, I hoped that she would make it. For a second, I hoped that she would manage to run away from him and go to me.

I knew it wouldn’t happen, but I fucking hoped.

The fucker moved his hand from her mouth, and I saw her scream something.

She never finished, because the next thing I saw was his fists hitting her on the side of her head.

She collapsed on the floor, and my heart stopped beating.

Ethan froze.

Nobody moved a muscle.

I watched as the fucker bent down, picked up my sister, and threw her over his shoulder. He walked in the opposite direction of the football field. A few seconds later, both of them were out of the frame.

I couldn’t see her anymore.

I couldn’t see Riley anymore.

So I screamed.

I screamed and got out of my brother’s arms. I screamed and jumped up. I screamed and punched. I screamed and trashed. I screamed and used my fists to tell them that I couldn’t see her anymore.

I couldn’t see her anymore!

The laptop fell to the floor. The coffee table got turned over. The mugs and cups broke into small pieces.

“Aiden, stop!” someone screamed into my ear as two tight arms wrapped my body in a tight hug. “Stop.”

I screamed again, only this time my scream sounded more like a sob.

“It’s okay.” I heard a soft voice tell me. “We will find her.”

It wasn’t okay.

I couldn’t see her. I couldn’t see my Riley.

“Is the laptop okay?” I heard a voice ask.

“Yes.” someone answered. “I will show you his face.”

His face? As in the man who took her? As in the man who hurt her?

I wanted to see his face! I wanted to see his fucking face!

I got out of the arms that were holding me and rushed toward the laptop.

“Let me see him!” I screamed. “I want to see him! Who is he?!”

The arms were back on my body. They pulled me toward the couch and made me sit down. The same hands cupped my cheeks.

“Breathe, Aiden.” someone said, making me look at them. “You will see him. We will see him. But I need you to breathe. Please.”

It was Ethan. My brother.

Ethan.

“There we go.” he said softly. “Take a deep breath, come on.”

I listened to him. What else could I have done?

I couldn’t see her. I couldn’t save her. I didn’t know where she was.

I didn’t know where she was.

I sobbed.

“Where is she?” I asked my brother.

Tears fell on his cheeks, and he took a deep breath.

“I don’t know, Aiden.” he said as he leaned in and kissed my forehead. “But I will find her. I promise. I will find her and I will bring her back to you.”

“Take a look.” I heard a voice say.

Ethan moved aside, and my eyes fell on the laptop screen in front of me.

There was a blurry picture of the fucker who took her.

I didn’t recognize him, but he did look familiar.

“I think that’s the new student.” Noah said, squinting his eyes and leaning toward the laptop screen. “I saw him around the school.”

My heart raced.

Noah was right.

“Do you know his name?” Peter asked as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.

“No.” Noah answered. “I saw him only a few times. He is a senior, I think.”

Peter nodded, stood up, and walked away from us. I watched him as he scrolled through his phone and put it against his ear.

I looked back at my friends, and my eyes fell on the mess I made.

“I am so sorry.” I mumbled as I tried to get up and clean up the broken mugs all around us.

Two hands stopped me.

“It’s okay.” Liam said softly. “We will clean it. Just sit here and take deep breaths.”

I heard him walk away.

I listened to him and took a deep breath. It didn’t help much. My heart still hurt. I still couldn’t see her.

I leaned against my brother, who kissed my temple and tightened his arms around me.

“We are used to cleaning broken shit around here.” Theo said, taking my hand in his. “I’m surprised that our house was still standing after Lucy got taken. I don’t even know how much shit I broke.”

“A lot.” Liam mumbled as he started sweeping broken mugs.

I didn’t even hear him come back.

The pain in my body made everything else around me irrelevant. I wanted my sister. I needed my sister. The pain wouldn’t go away until I got her back. I wouldn’t be able to breathe until I got her back.

Theo squeezed my hand, making me look at him.

“We will find her.” he said softly. “I promise.”

I studied his face for a second.

“How did you survive it?” I asked him, my voice breaking. “How did you survive not knowing where Lucy was? How did you survive not knowing if she was okay?”

Theo’s jaw clenched. His hold on my hand tightened.

“I don’t know.” he said quietly. “I can’t even remember those days. It’s too painful.”

“The boy isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.” I heard Peter’s voice as he walked back into the living room. “The camera at the school parking lot caught him leaving in his car. We have his license plate number. We are going to find him.”

My heart raced.

I would get my Riley back.

Right?