Page 134 of The Road Less Traveled By

I love you, Teags. You’re the only person I can call a true friend.

I love you, Tristan. Take care of my sister for me.

I love you, Vince. And I’m sorry I never said it when I had the chance.

I speak all these things in my mind, hoping that after I’m gone, they’ll all know that, in my last moments of being Bree Hart, I loved them.

In my last moments, I choose to think about them and not what’s happening because if I’m leaving this world, I’m leaving it with good memories.

As my breathing starts to slow, the tears continue to fall, and I swear I hear something crack before I pass out.

“Half of you arewith Nico. Go around the back of the property and enter through that door. The rest of you are with me. We’re going in the front,” I say to my men as I adjust my bulletproof vest before we pull up to Bree’s old house.

It looks just like I remember it. I haven't been back here since I left the first time, and I never thought I would be.

Leave it to Ralph to bring her back to the one place she’s been trying to forget.

I know he’s here. The white Ford Fusion is parked in the driveway, and all the lights inside are off. He’s taunting Bree, playing the cat-and-mouse game he loves so fucking much.

Good thing he won't be breathing properly in a few minutes. Once I find this fucker, I’m going to fucking kill him.

“Everyone ready?” I ask as I take the safety off my gun.

I hear a string of agreements across our comms, and the police we called lead the charge.

“Pennsylvania State Police!” they shout as they breach the door with a battering ram, the rest of us rushing inside. While Nico’s team clears the back of the house and the guys I’m with clear the first floor, I head straight upstairs to Bree’s old room.

She has to be in there, and I bet Ralph is with her.

I stride up the stairs two at a time, feeling Emerson behind me. I run over to her door and kick it open, and what I see makes my body go cold.

Ralph’s standing over Bree, who appears to be passed out, bound to the bed with duct tape over her mouth. She’s not moving, and I can’t see if her chest is rising and falling.

All I see is red before I tackle him off the bed, my gun getting lost in the struggle, and all I see is the smirk on the fucker’s face as he looks up at me from the floor.

“Did you enjoy my note? I definitely enjoyed finally getting a piece of Bree’s sweet—”

Instead of letting him finish, I punch his fucking teeth in. I grab his shirt with one fist and punch him with the other, wanting the blows to hurt. He fucking touched her again,hurther again. He doesn't get any of my fucking mercy. My knuckles are killing me as I pound his face in, blood splattering on the carpet, but my pain doesn't matter.

Just his. And he needs to feel all of it.

“You’re a fucking coward!”Punch.“It doesn't feel as good being on the receiving end, does it?”Punch.“You touched her, and I should fucking kill you!”

It could be five or ten minutes later, and his face is a mess, the black mask wet with blood.

Good,I think. I should kill him right now for all he’s done. I should let him fucking die.

“Boss…I think he’s down,” a voice says to me, but I keep hitting. Somehow, it’s not enough. None of this will ever be enough for the rage I feel.

“Vince! Stop it!” Nico says as he pulls me off Ralph. “He’s down.”

“He deserves worse,” I bite, but Nico slapping me in the face somehow brings me back to reality.

“Go help Bree while I sort all this shit out.”

I turn my head to where Bree lies on the bed, her chest finally moving as I rush over to her. Tears are spilling down her face, and her eyes are red as fuck, practically bulging out of her head.

She’s alive,I remind myself a thousand times as I look at her.

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