Chased by My Possessive Ex (Dylan) novel Chapter 74

Chapter 74

DYLAN

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Today marks the third day since Hunter left. He hasn’t come home. He hasn’t called. He hasn’t texted.

And every time I ask-every single time-the answer is the same. Vague looks. Half sentences. Silence dressed up as patience.

At first, I told myself not to overthink it. That this was just how his world worked. That he hadn’t meant to disappear.

By the second day, the ache had settled in. Heavy. Familiar. Like a bruise I kept pressing just to make sure it was still there.

By the third, the ache sharpened into something else.

Anger.

I pace the room, restless despite my body finally feeling stronger. Every corner reminds me of him-his jacket slung over the chair, the faint scent that still lingers on the pillow, the empty space across the table where he should be sitting. Each reminder feels like a quiet accusation.

You trusted him.

The thought burns.

I replay our last conversation over and over, his promise echoing in my head. Then we talk. Everything. The word tastes bitter now.

Maybe this was his solution all along.

Disappear long enough and I’d stop asking. Stop pushing. Accept the life I was handed without explanation.

Just like with Beckett.

My hands curl into fists at the memory. I won’t be fooled twice.

If Hunter thinks leaving me alone, surrounded by unanswered questions, will make me compliant… he’s wrong.

It’s doing the opposite.

I stop pacing and turn toward the door, resolve settling hard in my chest.

If no one is willing to tell me the truth, then I’ll find it myself.

With or without Hunter.

I dressed up and hurriedly left our room. I went downstairs and was heading towards the main door when a

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Chapter 74

loud noise suddenly erupted.

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The mansion doors burst open with a force that echoed through the hall, sharp and violent, snapping me out of my thoughts. Boots thundered against the marble floor. Voices overlapped-urgent, clipped, controlled panic barely kept in check.

I froze.

Men flooded in, Hunter’s men-I recognized them distantly, faces I’d seen hovering at the edges of rooms, always watching, always silent. And then I saw him.

Hunter.

His weight sagged heavily against one of them, his arm thrown over the man’s shoulder, his steps uneven. Blood stained his shirt, dark and spreading, dripping steadily from his abdomen onto the pristine floor. One hand was pressed there, fingers slick and trembling as he tried to stop the bleeding.

Time seemed to fracture.

I didn’t move. Couldn’t. My body refused every command my mind screamed at it. I just stood there, rooted to the spot, watching as they maneuvered him inside, hearing the sharp intake of his breath, seeing the tight set of his jaw as pain carved itself into his features.

“Clear the hall.”

“Get medical now.”

“Careful-don’t jostle him.”

The words washed over me, distant and unreal.

Hunter’s head lifted slightly, as if he felt my presence before he saw me. His eyes found mine across the chaos. Dark. Focused. Still him-even like this.

For a split second, everything else fell away.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t reach for me. But his gaze held mine with a quiet intensity that stole the air from my lungs, as if he was anchoring himself there-on me-just to stay upright.

Blood hit the floor again.

That was when the sound finally registered. The smell. The reality. The blood on the floor blurred.

No-exploded.

The sound of boots became thunder. The sharp commands fractured into ringing static, and suddenly I wasn’t standing in the mansion anymore.

I was back there.

Fire tore through the air. The ground buckled beneath me. Heat-so much heat-followed by pressure

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Chapter 74

…

crushing my chest, stealing my breath. Someone was screaming.

It took me a second too long to realize the scream was mine.

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My knees gave out, my body folding inward as the memory swallowed me whole. My hands flew up, uselessly shielding my head as if I could stop what wasn’t really happening. My teeth chattered violently, every muscle locking up, my chest burning with panicked, shallow breaths.

“Stop-please-stop-” The words tore out of me, raw and broken, meant for a past that couldn’t hear me

anymore.

Agony ripped through my head as if the explosion was happening all over again. I screamed, the sound sharp and desperate, echoing off the walls.

Someone shouted my name. I didn’t hear it.

Another voice barked orders. I didn’t register those either.

What cut through-what anchored-was him.

“Dylan.”

Hunter’s voice was hoarse, strained, but unmistakable. It cut through the chaos like a blade.

Despite the blood soaking his shirt, despite the man barely holding him upright, he twisted toward me. The movement drew a pained sound from him, but he didn’t stop.

Hands caught me just before I collapsed, strong despite the tremor running through them. He shouldn’t have been standing. Shouldn’t have been anywhere near me. Blood soaked through his shirt, warm against my skin as he pulled me in, shielding me with his own body as if instinct mattered more than survival.

“Look at me,” he murmured, forehead pressing clumsily to mine. His breathing was shallow, uneven, but his focus-his focus was entirely on me. “You’re safe. It’s not happening again.”

My sobs stuttered, uneven, but my chest followed his rhythm despite myself.

Around us, his men hesitated-uncertain, alarmed.

“Get him down-he’s losing blood-” someone urged.

“No,” Hunter snapped, the word costing him more than he let on. “Not until she’s steady,”

His grip tightened protectively, his forehead still pressed to mine, his voice dropping lower, grounding. “I’m here, bunny. I won’t let anything take you from me.”

I gasped, air finally ripping into my lungs as if I’d been underwater too long. My body still shook uncontrollably, fear coursing through me in violent waves, but his grip tightened, grounding, unyielding.

“Breathe with me,” he said, eyes locked on mine, ignoring the blood dripping between us. “In. Now out. Stay with me, Dylan.”

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Chapter 74

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Tears streamed down my face as I clung to his hand like it was the only solid thing left in the world. The room slowly stitched itself back together around me-the marble floor, the men, the lights.

Hunter sagged visibly the moment he saw recognition return to my eyes.

Only then did he let himself wince.

“Don’t you dare disappear on me,” he murmured, voice rough but steady. “Not after I fought my way back to you.”

The shaking eased little by little, like waves finally losing their strength.

My breaths slowed, no longer tearing out of me in broken gasps but settling into something shaky and real. The ringing in my ears faded, the fire in my chest dimming until the present bled back in-marble floors, worried faces, the unmistakable weight of Hunter’s arms around me.

I blinked, grounding myself in the warmth of him.

“Hunter…” I whispered, assuring him that I was fine.

Hunter didn’t answer right away. His forehead still rested against mine, his breaths uneven, shallow. I felt it then-the subtle shift, the way his weight suddenly pressed heavier against me.

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