Chapter 125 TYLER
By the time I got to Peter’s house, he was already waiting for me.
The front door opened before I could knock, and he stood there like he’d been listening for my car the entire time. No confusion, no questions, just a look that said he already knew this wasn’t normal.
“You look like you ran a marathon and lost,” he said, stepping aside to let me in.
“Your parents?” I asked, glancing past him.
“Handled,” he replied. “My mom already called yours. Told them I wasn’t feeling well and you came over to keep me company. She sounded very convincing, by the way.”
I let out a quiet breath. “Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” he said, closing the door behind me. “If this turns out to be something stupid, I’m exposing you myself.”
“It’s not stupid.”
He studied my face for a second, then nodded toward the stairs. “Come on.”
We headed up to his room, and the moment the door closed behind us, everything went quiet for a second before Peter dropped onto his bed, watching me. “Alright. Talk.”
I didn’t sit immediately. I paced once, then twice, dragging a hand through my hair before finally stopping.
“It’s not about me,” I said. “It’s… someone I know.”
He snorted softly. “Here we go.”
“Just listen.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “I’m listening.”
I told him everything. Not her name, not anything that would make it obvious, but enough. The way she looked. The bruises. The story she told me in the car. The fear in her voice. The way she refused to go home.
By the time I finished, my chest felt tight again, like saying it out loud made me realize just how serious this was.
Peter didn’t interrupt once. He just listened, his expression shifting slowly from curiosity to something more serious.
When I stopped talking, he leaned back slightly, exhaling. “That’s… not small,” he said.
“No, it’s not.”
“And you’re sure she’s not lying?”
I looked away for a second, jaw tightening. “I don’t know.”
“That’s a problem.”
“I know it is.”
He sat up a little straighter, resting his elbows on his knees. “Okay. First thing, are you sure I don’t know this ‘friend’ of yours?”
“It doesn’t matter,” I said quickly. “And I promised I wouldn’t say.”
He held my gaze for a moment, then nodded. “Alright. Fair.”
I sat down across from him, leaning forward slightly. “I just… I can’t ignore it. If it’s real, then I can’t walk away. But if it’s not…”
“You get played,” he finished for me.
“Exactly.”
Peter rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then glanced up at me. “You came to me for advice on this?”
“Don’t make it weird.”
“I’m not making it weird,” he said, though a small grin tugged at his mouth. “I’m just appreciating the moment. You finally realized my genius.”
I scoffed. “You’re not a genius.”
“Wow.”
“You’re not,” I continued, but a small breath of amusement slipped through. “But sometimes your nonsense ideas lead to something useful. So here I am.”
He didn’t take offense. If anything, he looked pleased.
“I’ll take it,” he said. Then his expression shifted again, settling into focus. “Alright. Here’s what I think.”
I leaned back slightly, waiting.
“If this guy is actually doing what she says he’s doing, then he’s not going to stop just because she left the house for one night,” Peter said. “People like that don’t suddenly grow a conscience.”
My stomach tightened, but I nodded.
“So you give him the chance to mess up,” he continued. “You set him up.”
“How?”
“You let him think she’s somewhere he can reach her. Somewhere private. Like that hotel you said she’s staying in.”
I frowned. “And then what? Just wait?”
“No,” he said. “You catch him. On video. Audio, anything. Something solid. That way, it’s not just her word against his.”
I stared at him for a second, letting it sink in. “That’s dangerous.”
“This whole thing is dangerous,” he replied. “At least this gives you something real to work with.”
I exhaled slowly, running a hand down my face. “And after that?”
“Then you involve your parents,” he said. “Or someone you trust who actually has power. If her parents are as influential as she claims, you’re going to need someone who can match that. Otherwise, this goes nowhere.”
I nodded, even though the thought of dragging my parents into it made something in me tense.
“But,” he added, holding up a finger, “before any of that, you need to make sure she’s telling the truth.”
I looked at him. “How?”
“Background check,” he said simply. “The stepbrother. If he’s done anything like this before, there’s a chance something is out there. Records, complaints, anything.”
I frowned slightly. “You think we’d find something that easily?”
“I think it’s better than guessing,” he said.
I considered it for a moment, then nodded. “Alright.”
We spent the next stretch of time going through everything we could find. Names, profiles, anything connected to the description she gave me.
Eventually, we found him.
Law student. Studying abroad. Clean record. Too clean.
I leaned back in the chair, staring at the screen. “There’s nothing.”
Peter didn’t look surprised. “That doesn’t mean she’s lying.”
“And it doesn’t mean she’s telling the truth either.”
“Exactly.”
I exhaled through my nose, frustration building. “This doesn’t help.”
“It does,” he said. “It tells you there’s no easy answer. You’re not going to solve this by digging online. At some point, you’re going to have to involve someone older. Someone who can actually do something about it.”
I didn’t respond immediately, but I knew he was right.
“You just need to convince her,” he added. “Because right now, she’s thinking emotionally. She’s embarrassed, she’s scared. But that doesn’t change the fact that she needs help.”
I nodded slowly. “Yeah.”
“And until then,” he said, “be careful. If this turns into something bigger, you don’t want to be caught in the middle without knowing what you’re dealing with.”
“I won’t.”
He watched me for a second longer, then leaned back, the tension easing slightly. “So,” he said, “are we done being serious, or is there more?”
I huffed out a quiet breath. “There’s more.”
“Oh, good,” he said dryly. “I was starting to relax.”
“It’s about Harper.”
That got his attention instantly.
“What about her?”
I hesitated for a second, then said, “She asked me out.”
Peter blinked. Then his eyes widened. “You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
He sat up straighter, staring at me like I’d just said something unbelievable. “You’re actually serious?”
“Yeah.”
A grin broke across his face. “No way. No actual way.”
I couldn’t help the small smile that followed. “Yeah.”
“Finally,” he said, shaking his head. “I thought you two were going to keep going in circles forever.”
“So did I.”
“So what’s the plan?” he asked. “Tell me you didn’t just stand there and freeze.”
“I didn’t,” I said. “I talked to mom. She agreed to call off the grounding.”
Peter stared at me again. “You’re kidding.”
“I’m not.”
“And?”
“I was going to ask her out properly,” I said. “Before all this happened.”
Peter let out a low whistle. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Yeah,” I murmured.
“Well, don’t mess it up,” he said. “Because if you do, I’m never letting you hear the end of it.”
“I won’t.”
“You better not,” he added. Then he tilted his head slightly, as if studying me. “You know, you could just tell Harper too so she'd understand the delay.”
I shook my head. “No.”
“No?”
“No,” I repeated. “There’s nothing to tell yet. I’ll handle this first. Then I’ll go back to her.”
He looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. “Alright,” he said instead. “But don’t take too long. You don’t want this to mess things up with her.”
“It won’t.”
The next morning came too fast.
I barely slept, and it showed. Peter didn’t look much better either, though he had less of an excuse.
“This is actually torture,” he complained as we got into the car. “School on a Saturday should be illegal.”
“You’ve been saying that for years,” I said, starting the engine.
“And I’ve been right for years,” he shot back.
I huffed out a quiet breath. “You’ll survive.”
“I don’t want to survive. I want to sleep.”
“Too late.”
We stopped by my place so I could get ready, then headed straight to school. The parking lot was already filling up, students dragging themselves in like they’d been personally offended by the schedule.
Peter was still muttering under his breath as we walked toward the building, before my eyes landed on Harper.
She was walking toward us, her face lighting up the moment she spotted me. She lifted her hand in a small wave, her smile easy, like nothing complicated existed in the world.
For a second, everything in my chest settled.
I started toward her.
Suddenly a car cut in between us.
It pulled in too fast, tires scraping slightly as it stopped right in the space between where we stood. Harper stumbled back, caught off guard.
“What the—?” Peter snapped, already stepping forward.
I was right behind him, irritation rising as I moved toward the driver's side.
The window rolled down, and I went still.
Racquel.
She had sunglasses on, but it didn’t hide the tension in her face. Even from where I stood, I could see something was off.
“Tyler,” she said, her voice tight. “We need to talk.”
I stopped short, the frustration hitting first.
Dragging a hand through my hair, I exhaled slowly as I stared at her.
What the hell had I gotten myself into?