Chapter 6

Chris got a call and hurried off to the office.

Before leaving, he told Bruce and me to call him if anything came up.

He'd transferred back to the company here, and it looked like he was swamped with work.

Bruce and I were shopping at the supermarket.

As I was picking out some household items from the shelf, I asked him, "Which one should we get?"

But Bruce didn't answer.

I suddenly realized something was wrong.

When I turned around, Bruce was gone.

Panic hit me hard. I dropped the shopping cart and searched the whole supermarket, but he was nowhere to be found.

I tried calling him, but he didn't pick up.

I searched the entire mall, but there was no sign of him anywhere.

Then, I heard a commotion not far away.

I followed the crowd, squeezing through until I could see what was going on.

Nathan'd fallen out of his wheelchair, lying on the floor.

Bruce's face was tight and twisted, veins bulging at his temples, his whole body shaking uncontrollably.

He was clenching a fruit knife in his hand, blood dripping from the tip.

Nathan's face and clothes were covered in blood, so much red it was almost unbearable to look at. Yet he was smiling.

He looked at Bruce, all gentle and innocent.

Bruce was like a beast gone berserk. He lunged at him with the knife again, but then, out of nowhere, he hacked up a mouthful of blood. "You monster. You filthy animal.

"I should've finished you off three years ago, but this time, I swear, I won't let you walk away. I'll never let you... Not ever."

He was rambling, coughing violently in pain, his eyes nearly bursting with fury.

I lunged forward, and everything went red before my eyes.

I clung desperately to Bruce's arm, opening my mouth again and again, but the words wouldn't come out.

Leon came rushing over from outside the crowd, his fiancée right behind him.

He instantly froze, stunned by the scene unfolding before him.

His brother, the one he'd always looked up to, was lying there, badly hurt.

For a moment, Leon was so stunned he forgot to even move or call for help.

It was so surreal that he couldn't process what he was seeing.

His fiancée rushed forward, calling out, "Nathan," as she quickly dialed for the police and an ambulance.

But Leon stood there, rooted to the spot.

For a long moment, he stood there, totally lost and confused.

He really knew what kind of person Bruce was.

After our parents passed, Bruce took care of me all by himself. He always had his priorities straight.

Breaking the law was never his thing.

He'd never risk ending up in jail and leaving me alone. He couldn't live with that. But he really meant to finish Nathan off.

This wasn't the first time he'd gone after Nathan with deadly intent. But Leon had no clue.

Three years ago, after Bruce crippled Nathan's legs, Nathan kept it under wraps.

A few days later, he claimed it was a car accident that ruined his legs.

And then he was using it to threaten me.

Leon had no idea. He didn't know anything, and he never believed me, no matter what I said.

To him, Nathan was always that flawless, gentle brother, spotless and kind.

It was back when the adults in the Hart family were all caught up in work, and Julia was hospitalized, really sick. Nathan was Leon's only brother, the one person he could always count on.

Leon looked like he wanted to go over to Nathan, maybe see how he was doing.

When he tried to move, his feet wouldn't budge.

His hands hung limply at his sides, his fingertips visibly shaking.

He used to be so smart, always quick to figure things out.

Maybe he was finally starting to catch on.

The police and ambulance arrived in no time.

As I held Bruce back, he kept struggling and shouting, his voice hoarse with fury, "Nathan, I swear, sooner or later, I'll kill you with my own hands, you animal."

Leon's gaze grew bloodshot, anger slowly rising in his eyes.

He snapped out of it, his face twisted with rage as he glared at Bruce. "What nonsense are you spouting?

"Zoe, if Bruce's crazy, send him to the psych ward.

"I know Bruce better than anyone, and this mess is all on you.

"I'm telling you, this isn't over."

I stared at him, watching him totally lose it.

Suddenly, I remembered that night when I hit rock bottom, desperate and out of options, and finally told him the truth.

The words were so dirty, so hard to even say out loud. But I laid it all out for him, no sugarcoating.

But he only said, "Zoe, you're confused."

Three years had passed, but nothing had changed.

I looked at him, and suddenly, I couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh.

Leon's face contorted, even angrier than before.

Nathan was helped back into his wheelchair, acting all calm and gracious as he turned to me. "Let's talk things through, okay?

"Ms. Turner, why don't we talk this out? It won't look good if we end up at the police station."

He sounded so magnanimous, so tolerant. But I could see the barely suppressed thrill in his eyes.

With that video and now this, he had another card to play against me.

Before I could say a word, Bruce snapped, his voice shaking with rage. "Screw you. Don't think I don't see you trying to use me against my sister.

"Let me tell you and the whole Hart family: don't dream on it.

"Even if I die, I'll never let myself be your weapon against her."

I cried out, "Bruce."

Bruce cut me off. "Even if the Hart family tries to cover up what happened today, I'll go to the police myself.

"Nathan, as long as I make it out of prison alive, I swear I'll kill you myself one day."