Chapter 76 Betrayed

Chapter 76 Betrayed


Ruan walked slowly up the basement stairs, blood dripping from his right hand. The blood fell onto the floor, leaving small red spots on the tiles. He didn’t feel any pain, he only felt exhausted.

When he reached the top of the stairs, he stepped into the hallway.

Kai stood there, holding his gun down at his side. Liana sat on the floor, her hands tied behind her back with a belt. She was crying. Cole leaned against the wall, staring at his shoes. His face was red and wet from crying.

"Where is she?" Kai asked, looking behind Ruan, hoping to see Seraphina.

"She is gone," Ruan replied, his voice flat. "She went out the basement window. She had a boat waiting."

"Shit," Kai said, kicking the wall hard. "What do we do with these two?"

Ruan stopped walking and looked down at Liana, then at Cole.

"Call the police," Ruan said. "Tell them Liana broke into my house and tried to stab my wife. Tell them Cole opened the gates for her."

"Ruan, please," Cole sobbed, falling to his knees. He reached out his hands toward Ruan. "She has my little sister. If I go to jail, she will kill her."

Ruan focused on Cole. He didn’t feel angry anymore, he just felt empty.

"You let them into my house," Ruan said softly. "You let them inject my wife with poison. You let my baby die, Cole. I don’t care about your sister."

Cole buried his face in his hands and cried loudly.

"Take them away," Ruan ordered Kai. "Take them outside now, before I shoot him myself."

Kai nodded, grabbing Cole by the back of his shirt and pulling him up. Then he pulled Liana up by her arm.

"Get up," Kai ordered Liana.

"Ruan, I am sorry," Liana cried as she stumbled to her feet. "I didn't know she was going to poison the baby. I just wanted you back."

"Get her out of my sight," Ruan said, turning his back on them. He didn’t want to hear her voice again.

Kai pushed them down the hallway toward the front door.

Mina peeked out of the guest room, opening the door just a crack. Her eyes were swollen and red as she watched Kai pushing Cole and Liana toward the exit.

Mina stepped out of the room and walked up to Kai.

"Are you leaving?" Mina asked, her voice trembling.

Kai stopped and handed Cole over to the other guards waiting by the door, then he turned to Mina.

"I have to take them to the police station," Kai said, reaching out to touch her cheek. His hand felt warm. "I will make sure they get locked in a cell. Then I will come back to you. I promise."

Mina nodded and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. Kai hugged her back, resting his chin on her head.

"Be careful," Mina whispered.

"Always," Kai replied, kissing her forehead. Then he turned and walked out the door with them

The house was quiet again.

Mina looked at Ruan and his bleeding hand. She gasped softly.

"Ruan, you are bleeding," Mina said. "You need a doctor. That cut is deep."

"Leave us alone, Mina," Ruan said, not looking at his hand. He only stared at the door. "Go sleep in the other room tonight. I need to be with my wife."

Mina nodded slowly, walked past him, and went into another bedroom down the hall, closing the door behind her.

Ruan stood in front of the door for a long time. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

The room was dark, with only light coming from a small lamp on the nightstand.

Aysel sat up in bed, wearing his shirt. Her knees were pulled up to her chest as she stared at the wall, not looking at him when he entered.

Ruan walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress, which sank under his weight.

Aysel slowly turned her head, her eyes looked blank. She glanced at his face, then at his right hand, where blood dripped from his palm onto the rug.

Aysel didn’t scream or cry.

She pushed the blankets off her legs and slid out of bed.

"Where are you going?" Ruan asked quickly, panic flashing in his eyes as he reached out to stop her.

"You are bleeding," Aysel said quietly.

She walked into the bathroom attached to the guest room. Ruan heard the water running. After a minute, she came back with a wet white towel and a small first-aid box.

She sat back down on the bed next to him and took his hand.

Ruan let her hold it and watched her face.

Aysel pressed the wet towel against the deep cut on his palm. He winced slightly but didn’t pull away. She wiped the blood from his skin.

"I am sorry," Ruan whispered, his voice breaking. "I am so sorry, Aysel."

Aysel opened the first-aid box and took out a bandage.

"You didn’t cut your own hand," Aysel said softly, wrapping the bandage tightly around his palm. "Liana tried to stab me and you stopped her."

"I’m not talking about the wound," Ruan said, looking down at the floor. A hot tear slipped from his eye. "I’m talking about everything. I brought you to this island to keep you safe, but my own mother betrayed me, my guard betrayed me. I let our baby die."

Aysel paused while wrapping the bandage and held his injured hand with both of hers.

"Look at me," Aysel said.

Ruan slowly raised his head. His eyes were completely red,

"You didn’t kill the baby," Aysel said, looking directly into his eyes. "Your mother did. Arthur did. Not you."

"But I failed to protect you," Ruan cried, his broad shoulders shaking. "I am a billionaire. I have all the power in the world, and I couldn’t even keep a needle away from my pregnant wife."

Aysel closed her eyes, a fresh tear rolling down her pale cheek. Hearing the word "pregnant" felt like a knife in her chest.

"Ruan," Aysel whispered, opening her eyes. "She wants to kill me."

Ruan’s face hardened instantly.

"She will never touch you again," Ruan growled, squeezing her hand. "I will put a bullet in her head before she gets within a mile of you. I swear it."

"She is your mother," Aysel said softly. "Can you really kill your own mother?"

"She stopped being my mother the second she hurt you," Ruan said firmly. "She is just a monster now."

Aysel looked away, releasing his hand and pulling her knees back to her chest.

"I am so tired, Ruan," Aysel whispered, her voice shaky now. "I lost my baby already. I almost got stabbed in my own bed. My best friend almost got taken. I am just so tired of fighting."

Ruan moved closer to her on the bed, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tight against his chest.

"We will leave," Ruan said quickly. "I will sell the island. I will sell the company. We can buy a quiet house in another country. We can go to where nobody knows our names."

Aysel rested her head on his shoulder and shook her head slowly.

"Running won’t fix anything," Aysel replied. "She will just follow us, she doesn’t want your money, Ruan. She wants you."

Ruan closed his eyes, knowing Aysel was right.

"She told me she lost twenty years," Ruan whispered into Aysel’s hair. "She wants me all to herself. She wants to be the only woman in my life. She thinks you stole me from her."

"What do we do now?" Aysel asked,

"We wait," Ruan answered, opening his eyes. "She wants my attention, so she will call me. She will try to make a deal."

"And if she doesn't?" Aysel asked.

"Then I will hunt her down," Ruan promised.

He gently pushed Aysel down onto the pillows. He climbed into bed next to her. He pulled the blankets over both of them and wrapped his arms around her waist.

Aysel closed her eyes. The ro
om was warm and she was safe but just for tonight, because seraphina was still out there moving around freely and planning her next deadly move.