Chapter 66 Chapter 66

Chapter 66 Chapter 66
Tito’s POV

I always thought about the afterlife.

I imagined it as this place bathed in warm, golden light, the scent of roses drifting in the air, a quiet peace settling in my chest, all of my fears melting away. But this wasn’t it. I could feel the ground beneath my feet, hard and cold, and darkness pressed in on every side.

My stomach churned with panic, and for a fleeting, horrifying moment, I wondered if this was hell. If it was, I must have done something truly unforgivable. The air was thick, heavy, and it smelled faintly of dust and metal, and every heartbeat pounded in my ears so loudly I thought it might give me away.

My mind screamed at me to move, to do something, but my body felt rooted to the spot, numbed and helpless.

Time lost meaning. Minutes, hours—I couldn’t tell. My head throbbed, and I could feel the soreness in my arms from struggling against the ropes that dug into my wrists. Then, without even realizing it, I must have dozed because the next thing I felt was a subtle loosening of the grip on my arms.

I blinked, and instinctively flinched, trying to pull myself back, my body screaming from panic and adrenaline.

I carefully opened my eyes, heart hammering against my ribcage, and what I saw made me freeze mid-motion. Jax, who had been holding me so tightly, fell backward, his body hitting the floor with a heavy thud, his arms sprawling out in a chaotic mess. For a split second, I couldn’t process anything. My vision swam, and I could taste blood in my mouth from biting down so hard during the struggle. Then my gaze darted forward.

Kendrick was there.

His chest heaving, his shoulders tense, and for a moment I thought he might have been some kind of mirage in the chaos of the past few days. His eyes were wide, and there was a raw, unfiltered urgency in the way he took in the scene, as if he was trying to assess what had happened without wasting a single second.

Then I saw Damien, Kendrick’s brother, standing in the doorway, holding a pistol. Relief hit me like a wave, washing over the terror and exhaustion that had been coiling inside me for days.

“Are you guys alright?” Damien’s voice was steady, but there was a quiet tension under it that made my chest tighten further.

Kendrick’s expression softened just enough for me to see a hint of humor in the grim situation, a tiny smirk that was almost comforting, almost like he was telling Damien without words that we’d make it through this.

Without thinking, without measuring my actions, I ran to him, my body trembling as if it could finally release everything I had held in.

I wrapped myself around him, pressing my face into his chest, and the tears I had been holding back finally spilled over, warm and unrelenting. He hugged me tightly, his own body shaking with the weight of what he had just gone through, and I could feel him whispering soft reassurances into my hair, words that somehow calmed the storm in my chest.

“It’s alright. You’re safe now,” he murmured. I clung to him, sobbing, letting the relief and the fear intermingle until I could barely tell one from the other.

Once I had calmed enough to speak, I rattled off everything that had happened at the facility, my voice breaking and my words tumbling out in a frantic rush. “Beatrice and Stella… they’re still there. They were in the holding place… I don’t know if they’re okay…” My hands shook violently, and Kendrick tightened his grip on me, a quiet signal to keep going.

“Don’t worry,” he said gently, almost too calmly for the chaos I was still feeling, but it was enough. “They’re already safe. Stella will be recuperating soon, Beatrice as well. You’re not responsible for what happened to them, Tito. You need to breathe now.” His voice had this grounding effect on me, like I could finally feel my pulse slow, the edges of panic softening just enough to think straight.

I pulled back slightly, wiping my tears against the sleeve of my own shirt, and managed a shaky, “Thank you… I’m sorry again… for everything.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he replied. There was no judgment in his tone, only a quiet authority that seemed to settle everything around us.

Damien, ever practical, gave me a once-over, his expression softening just slightly as he saw the mess I’d been through, but his eyes still carried the weight of someone who had seen far too much.

Kendrick, still holding me, looked between us both and gave a small, almost imperceptible nod, signaling that it was time to move.

When we reached the car, I finally asked about my mom. My voice was low, tentative, but loaded with worry. Kendrick’s expression softened in a way I hadn’t seen before, almost tender.

“When I noticed you were missing,” he explained, “I sent her on a vacation. There’s nothing to stress her out with right now. She thinks you’re at school.” Relief and guilt collided in my chest. My mom had no idea what I’d endured, and somehow that made me feel both grateful and incredibly guilty.

On the ride home, exhaustion overtook me. I sank into the seat, my body finally giving in to the weeks of fear, struggle, and adrenaline. I asked him how he knew the location so fast, and he only shook his head, a hint of a smile playing on his lips. “Don’t worry about that. We’ll talk when we get home, and we need a serious discussion. Right now, sleep.”

My eyelids grew heavy, and despite myself, I surrendered to the exhaustion, letting the car’s motion rock me into a deep, dreamless sleep.

When I woke, the room was soft and warm, my clothes changed, and for a fleeting second, I panicked, not knowing who had helped me. A maid entered quietly, pausing when she saw me stir.

“Don’t worry,” she said gently, reading my expression. “Kendrick called me over. You needed to be freshened up.” Relief flooded through me, allowing me to relax into the softness of the bed and the care I hadn’t realized I needed so badly. She even gave me a brief massage to ease the tension in my shoulders, and I let myself melt into it, feeling a layer of the constant panic slip away.

We spoke quietly, the conversation light and calm. She asked about how I knew Kendrick, and I explained a little, my voice still weak but gaining strength with every word. Her presence was grounding, a stark contrast to the chaos I’d endured just hours before.

She left to bring food, setting it down carefully, and then reminded me that Kendrick would want to have a meeting with me once I finished. I nodded, grateful for the chance to gather my thoughts before facing him again.