Page 165 of Tangled In Lies

Blinking, I stare at the scene in front of me.

Tyler charges toward Ruby with his mouth open in a war cry. “You fucking bitch.”

My stomach free-falls when I catch sight of the gun on the floor right next to where Ruby is standing, immobilized. Did she drop it? Tyler picks it up and smacks her straight in the temple with it. Ruby goes down like a sack of potatoes, an eerie crack filling the room when her head hits the floor.

“Oh my gosh.” I cover my mouth and rush toward her. “Ruby, no.”

My voice is shrill and loud, amplifying the ringing in my ears even more.

There’s blood on the floor next to where she collapsed. Already so much blood. How is that possible? And she isn’t moving.

I need to get to her. I need to make sure she’s okay.

Tyler hobbles into my path, blocking her from view. “Don’t even think about it.”

I peer down at the blood running from his pant leg. She got him. Ruby really shot him, though clearly nowhere fatal.

And she paid for it. My God. “Please, Tyler, let me see if she’s okay.”

Phoenix groans, and I glance at him. Despite being a bloody mess, I think he’s okay. But Ruby . . .

I stare at her lifeless body again, and silent tears run down my face.

Tyler waves his gun at Phoenix, motioning for him to get up. “I will enjoy the next part of our program even more now. Everything is so much more intense when emotions run high.”

The words come out in a low, feral tone, eliciting goosebumps all over my body.

He kidnapped us, chained us to a bed, forced us to get married, and potentially just killed Ruby. What could he possibly be excited about after all of this?

But there is undeniable glee in his eyes that not even his injuries can seem to rob him of. And while Ruby was the one to shoot him, Phoenix did some damage too. Joining the bloody nose and the swollen eye from earlier, Tyler now also has a split lip that mirrors Ruby’s and a nasty cut on his eyebrow. He could star in a horror movie.

Phoenix strides toward us, and I immediately grab his hand. Although the contact won’t be able to sever the tendrils of panic seizing my chest, I feel stronger when we’re together.

Thankfully, he looks better than Tyler, still only a small gash on his temple.

“Back to the room. Now.” Tyler gives us both a shove toward the corner of the basement.

Each footstep, every click of my heels on the unfinished concrete floor, feels like a bad omen.

Please, just let him chain us back to the bed and leave.

I can’t believe I just thought that, but it’s the truth. In a twisted way, after everything that happened, that would be the best-case scenario right now. Other than being released or rescued, of course, but I’m not even entertaining either of those options right now, not with the gun aimed at me.

Now that shots have been fired, and Tyler got injured, I’m afraid his breaking point is just around the corner.

Tears quickly blur my vision, and I have the urge to cover my mouth to hold the fear inside.

I don’t want to die. I really don’t.

So many times over the years, I’ve wondered if it wouldn’t be better if I just ceased to exist. If that would ease my suffering and pain and keep others from hurting too. All this time, I thought I was the catalyst for all the awful things that had happened. That somehow, I did something to attract a psychopath, and now he’s trying to ruin my life and everyone I care about.

But it’s not my fault; it never was.

And now, more than ever, I want to live. I want this nightmare to be over for good. I want the life Phoenix promised me. I wantmylife back with him by my side.

We have to get out of this.

I know not everyone gets their happy ending, but damn it, we deserve it.

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