OUT OF JAIL

OUT OF JAIL
"What? Wait—let me get this straight. Eric asked you to marry him, and you said no?"

"Well... technically, I didn’t say no. I told him I’d think about it."

Brianna stared at me like I had completely lost my mind.

"Think about what? Wait—are you in love with Adams?"

"What? Hell no! Adams and I are just friends."

"Then what are you waiting for? Eric is the guy you’ve literally had feelings for your entire life!"

"Because... I keep feeling like he’s only agreeing to this because of the company. Like he’s going to regret it."

Brianna folded her arms. "Hmm. That means you don’t know Eric too well."

"I don’t understand."

"Eric doesn’t do things just because someone tells him to. He only goes for what he wants—or what he knows he’ll benefit from."

I sighed. "Speaking of benefits, Eric broke up with Hannah."

Brianna didn’t look even slightly surprised.

Narrowing my eyes, I asked, "Wait… did you already know about this?"

She shrugged. "Come on, Gia. Of course, he had to end things with Hannah before starting anything with you. Besides, Hannah is getting married next month."

"Wow. I didn’t expect it to be so soon."

I clasped my hands together dramatically, pretending to pray. "We shall both give her our marriage blessings and send her off in peace."

Brianna was really laughing her ass off. I hadn’t seen her smile this much in years. I wish things would just get better for us.

"How about you make a comeback at her and say yes to Eric? Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting for you two?"

"I know, but I really want him to say that he loves me and wants to spend the rest of his life with me."

"But his actions are supposed to tell you everything."

"Really? Brianna, the Eric we know has always been kind to us. He’s been that way since day one. So how am I supposed to figure it out?"

Brianna sighed dramatically. "Okay, has he ever said anything to make you think he loves you? Or doesn’t love you?"

"Not really, he only asked me to marry him. I told him I wanted to marry someone that loves me."

"And? What did he say?"

"He said, ‘What if I said I love you? Would you marry me then?’"

Brianna’s eyes widened. "Gia, Eric actually told you he loves you!"

"No, he said what if."

"He loves you. He just doesn’t know how to say it outright."

I let out a sigh. "Okay, fine. He loves me. I agree. But enough about me—what happened with you today? You looked like a mess when I came back."

"Rough day at work."

"Yeah, I saw the news. Most of the police officers were injured in the gunfire exchange between them and those men."

"Yeah, Dax chose a better plan. I had to gunfire fight."

I frowned. "I don’t understand, what happened?"

One look at her grumpy expression, and I immediately knew—she had a big fight with Dax.

"Those guys raped a sixteen-year-old—just to force her stupid brother into their group."

My stomach twisted. "You mean... just like what happened to Jake’s sister?"

"Exactly. I had a plan that could have worked, but Dax just fucked it up."

"Maybe he had a reason."

"Oh, he did. Turns out, he knows those guys. They were the group he joined back in West Town."

My jaw dropped. "Wait—the exact same people that raped Jake’s sister?"

"It seems so."

A chill ran down my spine. "This is bad. Dax must know how dangerous they are."

Brianna scoffed. "He literally said, ‘I know these people—I know how they breathe, eat, and think.’"

I grabbed her hand, my voice urgent. "Brianna, if that’s true, then you need to stay off this case."

"I know. I wasn’t even supposed to get involved at first, but I just wanted to help. That poor girl was murdered, and to think her brother was involved in all of this... It’s just heartbreaking."

"Just don’t go back to the station until you’re healed. Who even said you could start working with an injured leg?"

"No one, Gia. No one. You guys left me all by myself. While you and Eric were busy confessing your dying love for each other, boredom was killing me at the hospital."

I rolled my eyes, but Brianna continued before I could respond.

"And to top it off, Dax got a new partner—a beauty, at that. I felt left out, so I asked for a discharge from the hospital."

I sighed. "I’m so sorry I left you out. I was just trying to deal with my dad."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that. How did it go with him?"

"Not so well. He said my mom cherished the company more than anything. He’ll literally do anything to save it."

Brianna frowned. "And what about you?"

I let out a humorless chuckle. "The funny part? I promised to save the company, but after that, I don’t want anything to do with that man ever again."

"Come here." Brianna opened her arms wide, offering me comfort. I sank into her embrace, holding onto her tightly.

"I don’t know what I would have done without you. Thank you, Brianna."

She smiled. "You’re welcome, sweetie. Now, let’s go to bed. We both have a big day tomorrow."

I raised a brow. "And why exactly do we have a big day?"

Brianna grinned mischievously. "Because you’ll be accepting that proposal from Eric."

I scoffed. "I can always make him wait a little longer, just to torture him for making me wait."

"Well, at least your waiting was worth it."

I tilted my head. "Can’t you just get back together with Dax?"

She hesitated, looking down. "Actually... I did. Right before the building collapsed. But I’m having second thoughts."

I caught the sadness in her eyes. "Why second thoughts?"

She sighed. "You need to see us together. We can’t stand each other. I know the spark is still there, but we just can’t go a day without fighting. And honestly? I can’t stand it anymore. I think it’s better if we remain friends. What we had... it’s gone."

"That’s because you two don’t understand each other. Dax is a closed book, and you’re an open one."

"I know." Her voice cracked slightly. "The way he builds a wall around himself whenever I try to let him in... it hurts. I just want him to share his problems with me, but he always shuts me out like I’m his enemy."

"Maybe you should give him some space. He might open up to you when he’s ready."

Brianna shook her head. "I don’t think I can. Every time he does that, I feel hurt. I just want to back out now, while it’ll hurt less."

But she was already hurting. I could see it. The way her eyes glistened, how she refused to let the tears fall.

"Let’s go to bed," she whispered before wishing me goodnight and heading to her room. I watched her go, saying a small prayer for her and Dax. I hoped they’d find a way to understand each other.

Dax’s POV

Today was, without a doubt, the worst day of my life.

Not only had I been avoiding Brianna all day, but my father’s wife wouldn’t leave me alone. I didn’t kidnap her son, nor was I her husband, yet she had been calling me nonstop. As if that wasn’t enough, I had this growing, gnawing feeling that Jake was coming for me.

I wasn’t even scared for myself. I was terrified he’d go after Brianna. Again.

A sudden wave of dizziness hit me, and I nearly collapsed.

"You need to rest. If you keep this up, you’re not going to live long enough to protect her," Nancy said, her tone sharp with concern.

I exhaled heavily. "I owe you a lot for transferring here just to help me. I don’t know who else to trust."

Nancy folded her arms. "You must love her a lot to be doing all of this. You two are the worst couple I’ve ever seen."

I forced a smirk. "Brianna’s just being her stubborn self. It’s nothing serious."

Nancy gave me a pointed look. "Are you sure about that? You need to tell her the truth. Sooner or later, she’ll find out Jake is out of jail. He still had seven more years to serve—how do you think she’ll react when she realizes?"

I ran a hand through my hair. "I just don’t know. But I can’t tell her. I know Brianna too well—she’ll try to find Jake herself."

Nancy sighed. "I have a feeling Jake’s release is tied to the guys who killed Amanda Click."

I clenched my fists. "I know. And I feel so fucked up. How am I supposed to keep her safe this time? I couldn’t protect her eight years ago... I can’t let it happen again."

Nancy’s voice softened. "You can’t protect her in this state. You need to rest. I’ll handle things. Just go get some sleep."

"Thanks, Nancy."

"I owe you a lot, so it’s nothing. Just take care of yourself."

I nodded but felt the weight of my fears pressing down on me. No matter what I did, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad was coming for Brianna. And this time, I might not be able to stop it.