\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 83\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 83\u00a0<\/p>\n
Violet\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is happening, why is she making a scene instead of being worried about her brother.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
55uchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know right, she is just standing there. Maybe she doesn\u2019t even care about him and she is trying to make a big deal out of it to make some cash.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words drifted into my ear, but I ignored them and kept my eyes on the officer in front of me. He met my gaze with a nervous expression.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roman stood behind me but didn\u2019t move. He knew I wanted to handle this myself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My body felt like it was on fire, I was seeing red. Their words didn\u2019t matter anymore. I had a more pressing thing to deal with.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was going to make sure my brother survived, and I was going to get to the bottom of this. If anyone had hurt him, I would make them pay for it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The officer cleared his throat. \u201cWhen we got the call, we found your brother and rushed him to the hospital. During the investigation, nothing suspicious turned up. Students in his class said he was sitting there one moment; then suddenly walked to the window and jumped.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJumped?\u201d I looked at him as if he\u2019d gone mad. \u201cAre you saying my brother wanted to commit suicide?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a possibility,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ll have to do a more thorough investigation to find out why he jumped.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t you dare focus your investigation on that!\u201d I snapped. The lobby hushed. The officer froze, surprised by the anger in my voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMiss, why do you keep insisting something else happened at the school when I\u2019m telling you the truth? Don\u2019t you think you\u2019re overreacting a bit?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you think I\u2019m dumb?\u201d I stepped forward. \u201cWhy would I believe my brother decided to jump from a tall building when we were supposed to meet later that afternoon, when he still had so much to do? Do you fucking think Sebastian would leave me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He frowned. \u201cYou know, I didn\u2019t want to say anything because I didn\u2019t want to sound rude, but maybe you don\u2019t know your brother as well as you think.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I paused. \u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom what I\u2019ve heard about your brother, he\u2019s a scholarship student, he is different from the other kids in his class, right? I mean, I don\u2019t understand why people are so obsessed with being in a place they don\u2019t belong. That could be one reason he decided to jump. Maybe he was frustrated he wasn\u2019t as rich as the other kids and he jumped.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something inside me snapped. To hell with common sense. My hands rose before I even thought about it. I was about to punch him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roman\u2019s hand caught my wrist. I looked at him, breathing hard, tears burning my cheeks. His face was blank in a way that made my stomach drop; I hated that expression. I closed my eyes and forced the words out. \u201cI know I\u2019m not supposed to punch him, I know, but-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re wrong,\u201d Roman said. \u201cA scumbag deserves to be punched, but I don\u2019t want you to dirty your hands. Let me do it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before I could even blink, Roman shoved me back and stepped forward. His fist cracked against the officer\u2019s face, sending the man stumbling before he hit the ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:54 Tue, Jan 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 83\u00a0<\/p>\n
The lobby went quiet. I stared at him, surprised myself, this was the man who looked like he hated anything that led to violence; he had just punched a cop.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The cop wailed, clutching his nose. Blood ran down his lip. \u201cFuck-are you crazy?!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roman tilted his head and looked down at him coldly. \u201cI hardly resort to violence, but watch your filthy mouth,\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
90\u00a0<\/p>\n
The cop\u2019s eyes widened. \u201cDo you know who I am? I\u2019m a cop, and you assaulted a cop. I will make sure you pay for this! I will lock you up!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roman acted like the punch was nothing at all. He dusted off his knuckles, utterly indifferent, and said flatly, \u201cThat\u2019s good. Let\u2019s go. I\u2019ll have a word with your supervisor.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He turned to me,. \u201cCan you stay here? I\u2019ll be back. Let me handle the case.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was exhausted, but I nodded. My gaze flicked from the cop back to Roman. Nothing would happen to him, he was a Sinclair. He could find out the truth. \u201cI\u2019ll be okay,\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roman looked at me one last time, then turned his head toward the officer. The man squared up, hand reaching for the cuffs at his belt, but when Roman fixed him with that look, he stopped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you still want to keep living in this country,\u201d Roman said, \u201cdon\u2019t you dare.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The officer swallowed hard. He might not have known exactly who Roman was, but he was still afraid of him. The cop stepped back as Roman strode past and out of the hospital, and the officer trailed after him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After they left, I couldn\u2019t hold it anymore. My legs gave way, and I stumbled to the floor. I couldn\u2019t breathe as tears fell down my face. I pressed my hand over my mouth and nose as if that could stop the sobs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Oh God. What should I do? How could I save my brother?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I cried, the officer\u2019s words looping in my head. Jumped? Suicide? The idea felt impossible. Sebastian wouldn\u2019t care about money the way the officer suggested. He wasn\u2019t the type to compare himself to others. We had each other. He wouldn\u2019t leave me behind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If he hadn\u2019t done it, then who had? Who would hurt him? Who would push my brother?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I want, I\u2019ll tell Mother to make his life harder. I also have friends whose siblings are in your brother\u2019s class. Should I tell them to make his life miserable? From what I\u2019ve heard, he\u2019s already a loner because he\u2019s different. Maybe I\u2019ll make his school days as hellish as yours were.\u201d I remembered Riley\u2019s words.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My eyes widened. Could Riley have pushed Sebastian? I wanted to deny it, to find some excuse, but it no longer felt like coincidence. The more I thought about it, the more my anger boiled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I pushed myself up off the floor. People around me glanced over, surprised, I\u2019d been crying a moment ago, but now I looked like something else. I wiped my face with the back of my hand and fumbled for my phone with shaking fingers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[Penelope, my brother got into an accident. Come to New Haven Hospital, Room 10. Please stay with him.]\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I hit send, my phone buzzed almost immediately, both Penelope and Kai were texting. I glanced down, tapped the screen once, then flipped the phone face-down and shut it off.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked out of the hospital and called a cab from the curb, giving the driver the address.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It didn\u2019t take long to reach the house. I handed the driver whatever cash I had in my pocket and stepped inside,\u00a0<\/p>\n
My aunt, Nora, and Riley were on the couch, laughing about something.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riley sat in a chair, one leg tucked under her, a small smile on her face as if she owned the world. Seeing her smiling, and\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 83\u00a0<\/p>\n
alive, while Sebastian was fighting to wake up made something inside me snap.\u00a0<\/p>\n
55.2&uchers:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nora looked up as I walked in. \u201cWell, what do we have here? I didn\u2019t expect to see you back so soon. If I had known you were going to be bothering Riley by living in her house, I would have asked Matthew to let you stay somewhere else.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riley\u2019s smile widened. She opened her mouth, like she was about to say something. I didn\u2019t give her the chance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stalked forward, my hands moving before my brain could catch up. I stepped to the coffee table and grabbed the knife they\u2019d been using to slice apples.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My aunt noticed immediately. \u201cViolet\u2014\u201d she started to speak. I shoved her sideways with a furious push, and she stumbled back onto the couch, tumbling into Nora.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell\u201d Riley started, but I yanked her forward by the front of her shirt, forcing her to stand right in front of me. My hand shot up, slapping her hard across the cheek.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAhh!\u201d she screamed, clutching her face. I grabbed a fistful of her hair, pulling her head back so she had no choice but to look at me. The knife pressed against her throat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI warned you, didn\u2019t I?\u201d I said. \u201cI warned you that if you crossed the line, I would kill every last one of you myself and drag you to hell with me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
AD\u00a0<\/p>\n
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10:55 Tue, Jan 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nights Burn With Regret \u2014 by Nathan Perez 83 \u00a0 Chapter 83\u00a0 Chapter 83\u00a0 Violet\u00a0 \u201cWhat is happening, why is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-craving-the-guardian-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27999"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27999\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}