Together We Fall

Chapter 70 | After All This Time

A/N : another few more chapters. Then this book will be complete!

Languidly, I opened my eyes, wincing as my head throbbed with pain. I noticed that my mouth was covered with a strap of duct tape. I tried to move my hands but they were tied together with a rope behind me. I looked down, realising that I was sitting on a feeble wooden chair, unable to move my ankles as they were also hampered by a rope.

I got no shoes on and my feet were cold, I got no jacket on to keep me warm. My jacket was lying there on the ground, so far away from me. My breathing speed became rapid as I found myself in a place that I wasn't familiar with. It looked like an abandoned warehouse, it was spacious and there was no other thing around here other than wooden stools and metal casks with fire burning inside it, supposedly to provide warmth.

Abruptly, my hair was being grasped in a fist and pulled back as the person who did that came standing in front of me.

"Good. You're awake now," I frowned when I saw Ronald's sister, Reyna, was in front of me, wearing dark brown jacket and black skinny jeans with her hair tied in a ponytail. "Did you have a nice dream?" She pouted at me before she released my hair with a sinister laugh.

What...was...happening? Why was she here? Why did she do this? I didn't understand. What was really happening?

"You know, it's really hard to capture you actually because you're always with that stupid son of a bitch," she thrust her hands into her pockets. "But, thank God, I've got someone who's willing to help me."

My eyes widened in astonishment the moment I saw Tyler came into my view, standing alongside of Reyna with no emotions on his face. His arms were folded crosswise and he looked down at me as if I was no one to him.

"Hey, Lennox," he uttered phlegmatically.

This couldn't be happening. That wasn't him. He was beguiled into doing this. Reyna controlled him. The real Tyler wouldn't do this to me. He never would. I shook my head, denying the fact that he was in on this.

"Surprisingly this guy and I have one thing in common," Reyna placed her arm around his shoulders, smirking at me devilishly. "Which is the urge to kill you and burn your body, so that no one will recognise you and you'll die alone. And no one will ever visit your funeral because you ain't gonna be buried in a grave. You'll be thrown into the river and I'll watch your body floats away and—"

"Reyna, stop," Tyler said.

"What? That's what totally going to happen," she shrugged before she turned her attention back to me. "And everyone will be happy to see you dead. Except for your...ugh, boyfriend. He'll suffer. And I'll laugh so hard when he cries because he'll give up on his mommy's wealth for he has no reason to live now without you around. And my dad promised to me and my brothers that whoever manage to get their hands on Luke's money, they'll be the next heir for his company. And I want that!"

Now, I understood Luke's fear. He knew that his step family members were going after me but I was too oblivious. Yet, I didn't get why Tyler willingly helped her. What was his motives? Why was he doing this? I thought he got my back all this time. But now, why was he turning against me?

"So, I figure," Reyna unexpectedly took a gun out from her back and pointed at me. My heart began to race, my mind was not at ease as the thought of dying revolved around my brain. "It'll be best to kill you rather than killing your boyfriend directly—"

"Wait, Reyna!" Tyler snatched the gun away from her grip.

"Hey!" She growled at him.

"I want to talk to her, okay?"

Ronald's sister rolled her eyes as she walked away from him with a groan of irritation. It was amazing how the amount of money his dad promised her could make her this crazy. She really couldn't hold herself from killing me just to get her hands on that wealth.

Tyler grabbed a wooden stool and seated himself on it right in front of me. I couldn't look at him in the eyes. I'd never felt so betrayed as this. My stomach was churning and my heart was aching. He was my best friend for years. But now, what changed him? What made him be like this?

"You know, actually I've been trying to get you back to love me again all this time," he confessed after a moment of silence. "After you broke up with me, I tried to suck it all in and man up. Thinking that maybe there's something missing on me and maybe I should try hard to impress you."

I finally cast my eyes at him, bewildered with what he just said.

"So, I made Carrie pregnant intentionally just to see if you really care about me but you didn't. You care about her instead," he glowered at me. "I made Alice dress up like you just to draw your attention away from Luke but instead, you got closer to him! And I had to get rid of those girls, threatening them to move out of this town because my plans fucking failed!"

What the...? So, Carrie moved to North Carolina not because she had to but she was forced to? And Alice moved away because of him?

No. That could not be. This was not happening.

"And I even tried to get Max join me in ruining your relationship with Luke, but he refused to. So, I poisoned him and got some men to thrash him," Tyler nonchalantly shrugged.

Tears suddenly welled up in my eyes. I tried to deny all these truths coming out of his mouth, believing that he was actually a good guy but everything just made sense.

"Does it hurt, Lennox?" He asked the second he noticed tears trickling down my cheeks. He cupped my face with his hand, "To know that I did all of those evil stuffs? Well, I did it for you."

I felt a rush of angry, yet sad. My heart was burnt with fury yet it ached. My emotions were unstable, I felt two opposite feelings concurrently. But the only thing I wanted to do right now was to wake up from this nightmare. I wanted to believe that this was just a dream, that this was not happening, that what he said was a bunch of lies.

But then, reality was harsh.

"I joined Mr Dooley's side when I knew I didn't have the chance to win you back. I became his informant, telling him everything about you and Luke. And now, I'm willing to kill you for them," then he huffed, pushing my face away as he took his hand off my face and shook his head. "I was gonna kill Luke. But then, I guess it would be fair to kill the person who hurt me more than him."

My cheeks were damp, tears kept streaming down my face. Why was he doing this to me? After all this time, I thought that he was happy all along. But to see him now, scowling at me for the first time, somehow hurt me.

I shook my head as I wept with my mouth shut, looking down at my feet with my eyes blurred with tears. I wanted to say something to him but I couldn't. I wanted to slap him in the face but I couldn't. I wanted to kick him in the ass but I couldn't.

"You done?" Reyna asked Tyler in irritation as she approached him.

"Let's kill her," Tyler pulled the gun out and pointed it toward me.

"Now, we're talking!" She exclaimed enthusiastically.

But then, unexpectedly, the sound of glass shattering filled the whole warehouse and Reyna's shout instantly dragged my attention. I lifted my head up and I found Luke was on top of Tyler, pummelling him with all his might.

How did he know I was here?