All Chapters of CRUEL DESIRES: MY BULLY TURNED STEP BROTHER : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Derek's POV I forced myself to take a deep, shaky breath shoving the suffocating panic down into my chest as I slammed the car into drive and tore toward the precinct. Outside, the city was practically screaming my victory. I passed massive digital billboards flashing breaking news banners, the internet already blowing up with reports on Michael Blackwood and Julian Rivera. Thanks to the concrete evidence I had dumped directly into the feds laps, their entire empire was crumbling live. Their family stocks were plummeting into the dirt, their assets getting frozen by the second. I had ruined them. Completely. But as I stared at the flashing red lights up ahead, it didn't feel like a win. It felt like nothing. I parked haphazardly, practically kicking my car door open as I stormed into the police station. The noise of the bullpen phones ringing, radios buzzing grated on my nerves, making my jaw ache from clenching it so hard. I bypassed the front desk and marched straight up to th

Gabriel's POV The darkness wasn't just empty, it felt heavy, like it was pressing down directly onto my chest. My head was pounding with this sick, wet thudding behind my eyes, the kind of ache that makes your stomach turn every time you try to blink. My mouth tasted like dry copper and whatever chemical they had stuffed down my throat before everything went black. I tried to lift my hand to rub my temple, just a natural reflex because the pain was splitting my skull open but my arm didn’t move. It jerked back, hard, and the sudden resistance sent a sharp jolt of wood scraping against my wrists. I blinked fast, staring into nothing. Nothing. Just pitch black. I tried to pull my right arm forward again. Same thing. A thick, rough cord was biting deep into the skin around my wrists, pinning my hands backwards against the frame of a heavy chair. My legs were loose, but when I tried to kick out, my sneakers just hit empty air and then the solid thud of floorboards. Think. Gab

Gabriel's POV I stared at him, trying to process what he just said. Murderers are not usually yappers right? Look at him. Brandon was just standing there, threatening me, talking about his mom and his therapy sessions. He didn't even look like a murderer. He was wearing a pink, tight tank top, black shorts, and flashy jewelry that jingled slightly whenever he moved. Murderers don't dress like that, right? They wear trench coats or all black or leather jackets. They don't wear neon pink tank tops and talk about their mothers forcing them to go to therapy. He had to be bluffing. He was just a spoiled, dramatic, deeply unstable kid who wanted to scare the life out of me because his ego was bruised. Brandon suddenly clapped his hands, cutting me off right in the middle of my thoughts. "Hello! You are in your last moments and you are zoning out." I snapped my gaze back up to him, my chest still heaving but my mind trying desperately to hold onto that small thread of hope. Oka

Derek's POV The sheer absurdity of him asking that right now made a surge of heat rush through my veins. I didn't turn around, my eyes never leaving the thugs direction. "You can't even keep your mouth shut when you are about to die," I shot back, my voice low, rough, and sharp. Within seconds, the heavy thud of boots finally burst into the room. The police officers flooded the basement, their flashlights blindingly bright as they swarmed the area, slamming the two giant men onto the floor and throwing handcuffs over their wrists. They grabbed Brandon by his arms, hauling him up. The second the plastic ties zipped around his wrists, Brandon’s face twisted back into that frantic, dramatic mask. He started screaming at the top of his lungs, his body thrashing against the officers hold as they dragged him toward the door. "It wasn't me! I was kidnapped too by these men, Gabriel tell them the truth!" His shrill voice echoed off the concrete, desperate and pathetic, but I d

Derek's POV Before Gabriel could answer, Erica cut in leaning forward from where she was standing by the edge of the mattress. "Uhh Derek... are you Derek Miller right now?" I didn't answer her. I didn't even look up to acknowledge her annoying face. My chest was still tight, my hands stayed right there, hovering awkwardly in the empty space above Gabriel’s shoulders, my fingers twitching with this stupid, restless panic that I couldn’t shake off. I wanted to keep touching him to make sure he wasn't broken, but I was terrified that if I pressed too hard, I would make whatever was hurting worse. The room felt entirely too loud, his fingers were still a bit cold, his skin pale against the dark fabric of his sleeve but he wrapped them firmly around my wrist pulling my hand down just enough to break the frantic tension in me. He looked up at me through his intact glasses, his light brown eyes fixed on mine. "Wait, calm down," he said, his voice quiet, a little rough from eve