Chapter 55

~TESSA~

(THE NEXT DAY 📍 REYNOLDS MANSION)

I was back. Back in hell.

Marcus Reynold's mansion. A place I never dreamt of coming back to.

But here I was. Trapped again. By none other than the devil himself.

He brought me here because I had agreed to all his stupid terms. But I had to follow.

Really had to. For my Ryder and Sarah.

They were dear to my heart, and I couldn't afford to see any of them in pain.

~

The dining room looked more like a museum than a place for food.

Marble floors, gold chandeliers, and a polished table so long it could seat twenty people.

But it was just the two of us—me and Marcus.

I sat stiff in the velvet chair, the silver fork in my hand shaking with every move I made. I wasn’t hungry. The roast in front of me smelled rich, heavy, suffocating.

But Marcus was watching, his cold eyes narrowed, daring me not to eat.

“Better get used to it again, babe,” he said, slicing into his steak like it was nothing. “Back where you belong. Right here.”

I swallowed, forcing my voice steady. “If I’m really back where I belong, then let me work again. At the diner. Just one thing. Please.”

His fork stopped halfway to his mouth. His jaw tightened. “Why would you need to work? I give you everything.”

“I just…” I forced myself to meet his gaze. “I need something normal. You’ve got me wearing this—” I touched the thin chain with the tracker around my neck, its weight like a shackle. “I’m not going anywhere you don’t want me to. You know that. But the diner… let me have that.”

For a long moment, he stared. Then, with a humorless laugh, he leaned back in his chair. “Fine. Go flip burgers. Make yourself useful. But don’t forget—” He tapped his temple. “I’ll always know where you are.”

I nodded, keeping my face blank, though inside my chest twisted.

It wasn’t freedom. It was a leash disguised as mercy.

The phone on the table buzzed. Marcus picked it up, his lips curling as he saw the caller ID.

He slid it across the table toward me.

“Pick up.”

My heart stopped. Ryder.

I grabbed the phone, pulse racing. “Ryder?”

His voice came fast, desperate, full of fire. “Tessa! Baby, where are you? I’m coming, I swear I’ll find you—”

Marcus gestured sharply, his eyes hard as knives. Say it.

I froze, my throat closing.

“Tessa?” Ryder’s voice cracked. “Talk to me.”

I forced my lips to move. Each word was a blade I pushed into my own chest.

“Don’t call me that. I… I never loved you, Ryder.”

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end.

My vision blurred with tears, but Marcus’s gaze pinned me in place.

“I’m back where I belong,” I whispered harshly. “With Marcus. He’s the love of my life. Not you. I don’t want to see your face again.”

The silence that followed was unbearable. I could almost hear Ryder’s heart breaking.

When he finally spoke, his voice was low, shredded.

“…You’re lying. I know you’re lying.”

I ended the call before he could say any other thing.

I shoved the phone away and ran, tears streaming down my face, straight into the bedroom.

I slammed the door, dropped to the floor, and sobbed until my chest ached.

The door burst open minutes later. Marcus stood there, fury twisting his face.

“You think you’re clever?” he snarled, storming toward me.

“No—Marcus, I—”

His hand cracked across my cheek before I could finish.

The world tilted. Pain bloomed hot and sharp.

“You’re mine,” he growled, standing over me. “And if you ever make me doubt that again—your sister pays.”

I stayed on the floor, clutching my face, choking back sobs. For Ryder. For Sarah. For myself.

I had no choice but to obey.