Fake Dating My Ex's Hockey Star Brother (Maya Scott) novel Chapter 115

KATY’S POV

My heart flutters violently in my chest. My stomach turns, and what I ate for breakfast rises fast enough that I have to swallow hard. Braydon has been taken by his father, of all people. And I have no idea what to do.

Part of me wants to ignore every warning and call the cops. It feels like the obvious choice, the right one. But I know his father too well for that.

He is the most predictable man I’ve ever encountered. Predictable enough that I know he would kill Braydon if it came to it. Predictable enough to believe that if he can’t have Pendant, then neither of them will. He has nothing left to lose and everything to gain.

I force my hands to stay still, stiffening the tremor out of my fingers.

This is hard….too hard.

I could call the cops and ask the hotel to pull CCTV footage from the lobby…there has to be something. But that takes time and Braydon doesn’t have time. And if I go to whatever address they send, there’s no guarantee I’ll come back. There’s no guarantee Braydon will walk free either.

We could both die.

I shake my head.

I need to get myself together. Braydon will call soon, and I can’t let him hear the fear in my voice. I can’t let him think I can’t handle this. I have to believe I’ll find a way to save him-save both him and Pendant.

I force a breath into my lungs, but it sinks straight to my knees instead, leaving me weak. My legs threaten to give out, the floor suddenly too far away, but I stay where I am, rooted in place by sheer will.

Then my phone starts ringing.

It’s an unknown number but I know it’s him.

I answer quickly. “Braydon?”

“Hey, Peach.” His voice is small, and drawn out in a way that means he’s either hurt or barely awake. My heart tightens, and it feels like I’m falling…like the ground has dropped out beneath me. “Don’t do what he’s asking.”

“What did they do to you?” I ask, gripping the phone so hard my fingers ache. “Are you hurt?”

“Don’t do it,” he repeats. Voices murmur in the background, and then I hear his father’s quiet chuckle.

“I have to-”

“I really love you, Katy.” His words stop me cold. “I know we argue sometimes, and I act like I have this long arm that can grab anything I want in life. I’m sorry.”

I feel every muscle in my body tense. My thoughts begin to reel, not just because I’ve heard those words before, barely an hour ago, but because of the moment he’s choosing to say them now.

“I’m extremely talented at giving hints and clues,” he’d said to me this morning.

I press the phone closer to my ears, my eyes stinging. What are you trying to tell me?

“I’m sorry,” he continues quietly. “But I don’t think I’m worth 17 billion dollars. Don’t let him have Pendant. We were generous enough to offer 4 million.”

Before I can respond, I hear his father’s voice in the background. “It’s 35 billion. Why keep a company if you don’t know math?”

But Braydon knows that. If anyone knows what his mother’s company is worth, it’s him.

“I’m not worth seventeen billion,” Braydon murmurs again. “The bastard got four million.”

I move on instinct, crossing the room in a rush. I dig into my bag, grab a pen, and drag out a notebook. Something is wrong in what he’s saying….two things, at least: 17 and 4 million. His father didn’t get 4 million in the contract. He got 3.

I write the numbers down anyway. 17. 4.

“I don’t want to see you hurt,” I tell him, my voice barely holding together.

“Time’s up!” His father’s voice cuts through the line, and panic surges so fast it makes me dizzy.

“Katy, you’re a queen, and I never had the opportunity to tell you how much dating you was like a drive to my-” He’s cut off and the next voice I hear is his Dads.

“You’ll receive an address soon. Don’t play the hero,” he warns calmly. “I’ve got every inch of your movement covered. The moment law enforcement gets involved, he’s gone. Bring what I asked for and be a good girl.”

The call ends.

A sob catches in my throat, choking me as I stare at the screen. My body shakes, even though I keep telling myself there’s no time to cry.

God, I can’t do this.

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