Chapter 119 End of the Nightmare

Chapter 119 End of the Nightmare
Tyler's POV
The pain in my shoulder was becoming unbearable.
I stared at the ropes around my wrists and wondered if I had finally lost my mind. Maybe I had. Because the only thing keeping me from screaming was the thought of Quin sitting only a few feet away from me. He was still tied to the chair. Still trapped. And I was done sitting there doing nothing.
I shifted carefully, trying not to put too much pressure on my injured shoulder. Pain shot through my body anyway, making my teeth clench.
Quin immediately noticed. “Tyler.” I looked at him. “Stop.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine.”
“I will be.”
His eyebrows pulled together. “ Stop moving before you make it worse.”
I almost laughed. Even tied to a chair and held hostage, Quin was still trying to boss me around. “I need to get us out of here.”
“We will.”
“When?”
He didn’t answer, because obviously there was no answer.
I looked down at the ropes again. They had loosened when I smashed the chair against the wall. Not enough to pull my hands free, but enough that I could move them slightly. That was all I needed. I took a slow breath. Then I started working.
I twisted my wrists against the ropes, ignoring the burning sensation. Every movement scraped the skin around my wrists raw. I gritted my teeth and kept going. A little more twist and pull. Nothing. I stopped and breathed through the pain.
Quin watched me silently. “You’re going to hurt yourself.”
“Already did that.”
“Tyler.”
“I have to..”
He sighed. I smiled despite myself. For a few seconds I just sat there staring at my hand before I decided to try again. The rope loosened another fraction.
“Come on,” I whispered, wriggling my hand.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
I kept working. The knot had been pulled tight enough to leave deep red marks around my wrists, but the impact against the wall had damaged the chair and loosened the ropes. I twisted harder. Pain exploded through my shoulder like fire. I almost screamed. Instead, I bit down on my lip until I tasted blood. The rope slipped. My right hand came free.
I froze. I stared at it. Free. For the first time since waking up in this horrible place, I was actually free. I looked at Quin. His eyes widened.
“You did it.”
I nodded. “Don’t move yet.”
I ignored him. I leaned forward and started working on the ropes around my other wrist. It took longer. My fingers were trembling from exhaustion, and my shoulder felt like it was being pulled apart every time I moved. But eventually the second rope loosened. Then it fell away with a soft thud against the floor.
I was free.
I slowly stood. My legs nearly gave out under me. The room tilted for a second. Quin’s expression immediately changed. “Fuck. Tyler.”
“I’m okay.”
“You’re shaking. Sit down."
“I Know.”
I took one step toward him. Then another. Every muscle in my body screamed at me to stop but I didn’t. I reached Quin’s chair and crouched beside him, my knees protesting. “Let me see your hands.”
He lifted them as much as the restraints allowed. I started working on the knot. My fingers were clumsy and stiff. I was exhausted. But I didn’t care. I was getting him out. “Almost,” I whispered.
“Tyler.”
“Hmm?”
“Behind you.”
I froze. The sound of the door opening reached my ears. My blood ran cold. I turned.
Luca stood in the doorway. For a moment, none of us moved. His eyes dropped to the broken chair behind me. Then to my freed wrists. Then back to my face. His expression slowly changed from surprise to something darker.
“You’re kidding.”
I stood, ignoring the way my shoulder burned. Lucas closed the door behind him with a soft click. “I leave you alone for a few minutes…” He shook his head. “And you decide to become brave.”
I stepped in front of Quin. “Stay away from him.”
Lucas laughed, the sound sharp in the quiet room. “Look at you.” He walked farther into the room, his shoes scuffing against the floor. “You can barely stand.”
“Still enough to hurt you.”
His smile disappeared. Then he looked at Quin. “This is what you chose?”
Quin’s expression remained cold. “Any time and any day."
Lucas looked back at me. “You know, Tyler, I almost feel sorry for you.”
“I don’t want your pity.”
“You should.” He walked slowly around us. “Because you have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into.”
I clenched my fists. Lucas stopped behind me. “Your mother was much easier to manipulate.”
My entire body went still. Quin’s expression changed immediately. Lucas smiled. “There it is.”
I turned around. “What did you say?”
He looked amused. “Your mother.”
My stomach dropped. “What about her?”
Lucas tilted his head. “She was the most easily manipulated human I’ve ever come across.”
My breathing stopped. Quin’s voice became dangerously quiet. “Lucas.”
But Lucas wasn’t looking at him anymore. He was looking at me. “I barely had to do anything.”
My hands curled into fists so tight my nails dug into my palms. “What did you do to her?”
Lucas shrugged. “Nothing complicated. She was desperate. Angry. Bitter. All I had to do was give her a little information, a comfortable life and let her paranoia do the rest.”
My heart hammered against my ribs. “You’re lying.”
“Am I?” He smiled. “It was almost disappointing how easy she was.”
Quin strained against his restraints. “Shut up.”
Luca ignored him. “She wanted someone to blame. She wanted to believe everything wrong in her life was someone else’s fault.” He laughed softly. “And she blamed and hated you already, so I made it easier for her.”
I couldn’t breathe properly anymore. “You.”
Lucas nodded. “She was as cheap as you..”
My vision blurred. I didn't know if it was disappointment I felt towards my mother or I was just pained.
He stared at me for a few seconds. Then he shrugged. “She died in the funniest way I've ever seen.” he laughed.
My mother was dead. I’d known that. But hearing him say it like it meant nothing—like her life had been nothing more than a failed experiment—something inside me broke.
Lucas sighed. “Honestly, it’s such a shame.” He looked almost disappointed. “She died far too easily.”
I moved before I could think. I shoved him hard with my good arm. Lucas stumbled backward. His foot caught against the edge of the rug and he fell heavily onto the floor with a loud thud. For the first time since I’d met him, genuine surprise flashed across his face.
I turned immediately toward Quin. “Hold still.” I grabbed the ropes around his wrists. My fingers shook. “Tyler, hurry.”
“I am.” I pulled at the knot. It wouldn’t move. The rough fibers bit into my already raw skin. “Come on.” I tugged harder.
Behind me, Lucas groaned. I froze.“Tyler.”
I looked over my shoulder. Lucas was getting up, his face twisted with fury. He reached down and grabbed a long, jagged piece of wood from the shattered chair. The broken end looked sharp enough to do real damage. My blood ran cold. I successfully freed one hand.
“Tyler, move!”
Luca charged. I barely had time to turn before he raised the wood high above his head, ready to bring it down on me while I was still crouched by Quin’s chair. The air whistled as it came down.
Then Quin moved.
Despite being restrained, with a grunt of effort. His free hand shot up and caught the descending piece of wood mid-swing. The impact jarred through his arms—I heard the dull thud of wood against flesh—but he held on. His fingers locked around the broken chair leg, stopping it inches from my head.
For a split second, Lucas’s eyes widened in shock.
Quin didn’t give him time to recover. He yanked the wood hard toward himself, throwing Luca off balance, then ripped it free from his grip. The jagged piece of wood was now in Quin’s hands.
What happened next was pure, uncontrolled violence.
Quin swung the wood like a club. It connected with Luca’s shoulder with a sickening crack. Luca staggered sideways, a sharp cry tearing from his throat. Before he could straighten, Quin hit him again—this time across the ribs. The sound of wood striking flesh was loud and ugly. Luca crumpled to one knee, gasping.
Quin didn’t stop. He quickly unite his second hand. He stood over lucas, the broken chair leg still gripped tightly in both hands, and brought it down again. And again. Each impact echoed through the room—dull, heavy thuds mixed with Lucas’s increasingly desperate grunts of pain. The wood splintered a little more with every hit. Luca raised his arms to protect his head, but Quin kept swinging, driven by something raw and furious.
“You should have left him alone!” Quin’s voice was ragged, almost unrecognizable. Another hit. “who gave you the right to touched him!”
I grabbed Quin’s arm with my good hand, my fingers digging into his sleeve. “Quin!” He didn’t hear me at first. His breathing was harsh and uneven. His eyes were dark with rage. He looked like he was seconds away from killing Luca right there on the floor. “Quin!”
He finally looked at me. Chest heaving. Knuckles white around the wood. Luca groaned beneath him, blood trickling from a cut on his forehead, one arm curled protectively around his ribs.
“Stop,” I said, quieter this time.
Quin blinked. The wood slipped from his fingers and clattered to the floor. His chest rose and fell rapidly. I looked toward the door. “We need to go.”
Quin nodded. He stood, still breathing hard. I reached for his hand. He squeezed it tightly, like he needed the contact to ground himself.
Then—a loud crash came from somewhere outside. We both froze. The sound of Footsteps fast and heavy could be heard from outside. Lucas’s expression changed, pain and fear mixing on his face. “What?”
Another sound. A man’s voice echoed from the hallway. “SECURITY! DROP YOUR WEAPON!”
My heart nearly stopped. Then another voice. “Clear the hallway!”
Quin looked at me. Jake.
The door burst open. Three security guards entered first, guns raised. Behind them came Jake. His eyes scanned the room in a quick sweep. They landed on Quin. Then me. “Jesus Christ.”
He rushed toward us. “Are you both okay?”
“I’m fine,” Quin said, his voice still rough.
Jake looked at him. “You don't look fine to me."
Quin shrugged. “I’m alive.”
Jake looked at me. His eyes immediately went to my shoulder, then to the blood on my wrists. “You?”
“I think I broke my shoulder.”
Jake’s expression tightened. “Of course you did.”
I almost laughed. Behind him, the security team moved toward Luca, who was still on the floor, struggling to push himself up. One of the guards grabbed his arm. Lucas tried to pull away, wincing. “Get your hands off me!”
Another guard restrained his other arm. “Don’t make this harder.”
Luca looked toward Quin, blood still dripping down the side of his face. “You’re really choosing him?”
Quin stared at him. There was no hesitation. "Yes.”
Lucas’s face twisted. Then he looked at me. For a moment, pure hatred burned in his eyes. But I didn’t care. Jake stepped between us. “Take him.”
"This isn't over."
The guards dragged Lucas away. He continued shouting as they disappeared into the hallway, his voice growing fainter until it was gone. Then the room became quiet. Really quiet.
I suddenly realized how exhausted I was. My knees weakened. Quin caught me immediately, his arm solid around my waist. “Easy.”
“I’m okay.”
“like hell you are
He wrapped both arms around me carefully, mindful of my shoulder. Jake came closer. “We need to get you both to a hospital.”
Quin nodded. Then he looked at me. “You heard him.”
I sighed. “Yeah.”
Jake frowned, glancing at the shattered remains of the chair and the bloodied piece of wood on the floor. “What happened to your shoulder?”
“The chair.”
Jake stared at the broken wood. “You broke a chair with your body?”
“Technically, yes.”
Jake shook his head. “I don’t even want to know how.”
Quin laughed quietly. It was the first normal sound I’d heard from him in what felt like forever. He placed a soft kiss on my head. He looked exhausted. I reached for his hand with my good one. Our fingers intertwined.
For the first time since Lucas took us, I finally allowed myself to breathe. We were out. The nightmare was over.
I hope he's the last of his kind to bother us, if not I might need the least of all Quin's EXs and have a word with them. When my hand is healed obviously.