Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run

Simon gripped his phone so hard his knuckles turned white, watching helplessly as Ryan's car pulled away from the townhouse and disappeared into the night.

Whenever he tailed Ryan, he kept his distance-sometimes so far he needed binoculars. He couldn't risk being caught. Ryan wasn't easy to fool anymore; these days, he'd drive around in circles, making it nearly impossible for anyone to follow him.

With a frustrated sigh, Simon tossed the binoculars aside. His eyes stayed fixed on the house swallowed by darkness, a cold glint flickering in them. Slowly, a sly smile crept onto his lips.

It was nearly three in the morning when Ryan's phone rang. He was still hunched over his desk, buried in work, not expecting a call from Simon-let alone from the hospital.

He didn't want to see him. He never liked Simon, and tonight, he was in no mood.

But then Simon said something that made Ryan forget everything else.

"Ryan, I was attacked. I don't know if Dylan's people did it or not."

Dylan made a move?

Ryan's heart skipped a beat. He grabbed his keys and rushed to the hospital, where he found Simon looking like he'd barely survived the night.

Bandages wrapped Simon's chest and arms; his face was so pale it was almost gray. Still, when he saw Ryan walk in, something like relief—and maybe a little triumph-flashed across his eyes.

"Ryan, I'm glad you're okay. After what happened to me, I thought you'd be next. Looks like Dylan's letting you off easy."

Ryan didn't buy it. Not entirely. He kept his voice flat. "Any other news about Dylan?"

The Ferguson family's reach was everywhere. Maybe Dylan already knew where Clara was hiding—and maybe he was just playing with her, like a cat with a mouse. The thought made Ryan's skin crawl.

When a guy like Dylan had that much power, he was practically untouchable.

Clara was on her own. If Dylan really wanted her, how could she ever get away? Simon let out a raspy, bitter laugh. "He's making a scene, alright. I heard he's tearing the city apart looking for Clara's mysterious boyfriend."

Ryan shot up from his chair. Clara cared about that man-if anything happened to him, she'd be crushed.

Ryan didn't like that guy, Z, not one bit. But he didn't want to see him get hurt, either.

Still, he couldn't trust everything Simon said. He'd already been used as a pawn

once.

ed back against thenoveldrama

Simon eased

pillows, winding. "If I hadn't been lucky tonight, I'd be dead. You should watch your back too. Dylan might took like a gentleman to everyone else, but I know what he really is a snake. Why else would he force Clara to marry him? And don't forget, he killed my cousin with his own hands. Even Grandpa knows, but he still lets Dylan do whatever he wants. He controls everything in the Ferguson family. No one can stop him. Poor Clara."

Ryan had heard enough. He stood up and walked out, not bothering to say goodbye.

Simon watched him go, a mocking smile twisting at his lips.

Every breath made his chest ache, sharp and deep.

A door creaked open nearby. Aaron stepped out of the bathroom, looking more like a ghost than a man. He'd been pushed out of the Ferguson family for weeks-he couldn't even set foot in the old

house anymore.

Mrs. Ferguson was back now, but after Aaron went against Dylan in public, he was nothing but an outsider.

He'd thought Dylan would find some

excuse to send him overseas, but Dylan hadn't done a thing. The

silence was worse-it made Aaron feel invisible, humiliated.

It was like he didn't even exist.

The more Dylan ignored him, the more all his years of scheming felt like a joke.

Just the sad tricks of a clown.