ROOM 7
Chapter Sixty-Four: The Reckoning
---
The call came at 3 AM.
Keifer was on the couch, Jay asleep against his chest, the shark between them. His phone buzzed. He grabbed it before the sound could wake her.
Percy's voice was low. "We found him."
Keifer went still. "Where?"
"An old warehouse. Near the port. The same one his family used to own before they sold it."
Keifer looked at Jay. Her face was peaceful. Her breathing was steady. She looked nothing like the woman who had been tied up in a dark room for three days.
"Don't tell anyone," Keifer said. "I'm coming."
He hung up. Gently moved Jay's head to a pillow. Covered her with a blanket. Picked up the shark. Set it beside her.
She stirred. "Keifer?"
"Go back to sleep."
"Where are you going?"
He kissed her forehead. "I'll be back."
She closed her eyes. He walked out.
---
Part One: The Warehouse
The building was dark. Abandoned. The windows were boarded. The doors were chained. But Percy had found a way in—a loose panel in the back, hidden behind overgrown weeds.
Keifer parked down the street. Walked the rest of the way. His footsteps were silent. His hands were steady. His heart was cold.
Percy was waiting by the entrance. Aries stood beside him. Their faces were grim.
"He's inside," Percy said. "Alone."
Keifer nodded. "The police?"
"Not yet." Aries crossed his arms. "We wanted you to see him first."
Keifer looked at the building. At the dark windows. At the door that led to the man who had taken everything.
"Stay here," he said.
He walked inside.
---
Part Two: The Room
The room was small. Concrete walls. A single light bulb. A chair in the center. Yuri was sitting in it. His hands were in his lap. His head was down. His clothes were wrinkled. His hair was matted.
He looked up when Keifer walked in.
"Keifer."
"Yuri."
Yuri didn't stand. Didn't move. His face was pale. His eyes were hollow. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.
"I knew you'd find me."
Keifer walked to him. Stopped in front of him. "Did you think I wouldn't?"
Yuri shook his head. "I knew you would."
Keifer looked at him. At the man who had once been his friend. The man who had threatened Jay's family. The man who had forced her to marry him. The man who had tied her up in a dark room and left her there.
"My parents," Yuri said. "They didn't know. About any of it. The threats. The marriage. The—" He stopped.
Keifer's voice was low. "The kidnapping?"
Yuri nodded. "They didn't know."
Keifer grabbed his shirt. Pulled him up. Slammed him against the wall. "You expect me to believe that?"
Yuri's back hit the concrete. His head snapped back. Blood dripped from his lip.
"I don't expect you to believe anything," Yuri said. "I just wanted you to know."
Keifer's grip tightened. "Your mother sent her the dress. Your father hosted the engagement. Your family smiled and posed for pictures while she stood there like a prisoner."
Yuri didn't answer.
"They knew, Yuri. Maybe not everything. But they knew enough."
Yuri's voice was barely a whisper. "I'm sorry."
Keifer hit him.
---
Part Three: The Truth
Yuri crumpled to the floor. His hand went to his face. Blood dripped through his fingers.
Keifer stood over him. His fists were shaking. His chest was heaving.
"She cried," Keifer said. "Every night. In your house. In your bed. She cried herself to sleep while you were in the other room, pretending you had a wife who loved you."
Yuri looked up. His eyes were wet. "I know."
"She couldn't eat. She couldn't sleep. She couldn't breathe. And you just watched."
Yuri pushed himself up. Sat against the wall. His face was swollen. His lip was split.
"I thought if I gave her time—"
Keifer grabbed him again. Pulled him up. Slammed him against the wall. "Time? You thought time would make her love you?"
Yuri didn't answer.
Keifer's voice was low. Dangerous. "She will never love you. She will never forgive you. She will never even think of you without remembering what you did."
Yuri's face crumpled. "I know."
Keifer hit him again.
Yuri fell. Didn't get up.
---
Part Four: The Family
Percy and Aries came in when they heard the crash.
Yuri was on the floor. Unconscious. Blood on his face. Blood on the concrete. Keifer was standing over him, breathing hard, fists still clenched.
Percy grabbed his arm. "Keifer. That's enough."
Keifer pulled free. "No. It's not."
Aries knelt beside Yuri. Checked his pulse. "He's alive."
Keifer turned. Walked to the door. Stopped.
"His parents," he said. "They're coming."
Percy blinked. "What?"
"I called them. Before I came. I told them if they wanted to see their son alive, they'd meet me here."
Percy stared at him. "Keifer—"
The door opened.
Yuri's mother walked in. Her face was pale. Her eyes were red. Her hands were shaking.
Behind her, Yuri's father. His face was gray. His jaw was tight. His eyes were on his son.
"Yuri," his mother whispered.
She ran to him. Knelt beside him. Touched his face. "Yuri."
He didn't move.
She looked at Keifer. "What did you do to him?"
Keifer looked at her. At the woman who had sent Jay the white dress. The woman who had hosted the engagement. The woman who had smiled while Jay stood at the altar, trapped.
"I did what you should have done," Keifer said. "I stopped him."
Her face crumpled. "You don't understand—"
"I understand that you knew." Keifer's voice was cold. "You knew he threatened her family. You knew he forced her to marry him. You knew she was miserable. And you did nothing."
Yuri's father stepped forward. "That's not—"
"You hosted the wedding. You paid for the flowers. You invited the guests." Keifer looked at him. "You stood at the front of the church and watched her say vows she didn't mean."
Yuri's father's voice cracked. "We didn't know—"
"You knew enough."
The room was silent. Yuri's mother was crying. Yuri's father was staring at the floor. Yuri was still unconscious.
Keifer walked to the door. Stopped.
"The police are on their way. They'll have questions for all of you."
He walked out.
---
Part Five: The Aftermath
The police arrived ten minutes later.
They took Yuri to the hospital. His parents went with him. Keifer gave his statement. Percy gave his. Aries gave his.
The sun was rising when they finished.
Keifer stood outside the warehouse. The sky was pink. The air was cold. His hands were still shaking.
Percy stood beside him. "You okay?"
Keifer looked at his hands. At the blood on his knuckles. At the bruises forming on his fingers.
"I will be."
Aries walked over. "They're charging him. Kidnapping. False imprisonment. Assault." He paused. "The marriage is being annulled."
Keifer nodded. "Good."
Percy put his hand on Keifer's shoulder. "Go home. She's waiting."
Keifer walked to his car. Got in. Drove away.
---
Part Six: The Return
Jay was on the couch when he walked in.
The shark was in her lap. Bruce was beside her. Her bandaged wrists were resting on the blanket. Her eyes were on the door.
She stood up when she saw him. "Keifer."
He walked to her. Pulled her into his arms. His face was in her hair. His voice was low.
"It's over."
She held him. "What's over?"
He pulled back. Looked at her face. At her eyes. At the woman he had almost lost.
"He's in the hospital. The police have him. The marriage is being annulled."
She stared at him. "You found him."
"We found him."
She touched his face. "You're hurt."
He looked at his hands. The blood was dry. The bruises were dark.
"It doesn't matter."
She grabbed a napkin from the table. Wiped his knuckles. Her hands were gentle. Her touch was soft.
"You're impossible," she said.
He caught her hand. Kissed her knuckles. "You like it."
She didn't answer. She pulled him to the couch. Sat beside him. Leaned her head on his shoulder.
"Tell me everything," she said.
He told her.
The warehouse. Yuri's parents. The police. The annulment.
She listened. Didn't interrupt. When he finished, she was quiet for a long moment.
"His parents," she said. "They knew?"
Keifer looked at her. "They knew enough."
She closed her eyes. "I thought they liked me."
"They did like you."
She shook her head. "No. They liked the idea of me. The daughter-in-law. The wife. The trophy."
Keifer pulled her closer. "It's over."
She opened her eyes. Looked at him. "Is it?"
He kissed her forehead. "It's over."
She leaned into him. His chest was warm. His arm was steady. The apartment was quiet.
"Keifer."
"Yeah."
"Thank you."
He held her tighter. "You don't have to thank me."
She closed her eyes. His heartbeat was under her ear. His hand was in her hair. The shark was in her lap.
She was safe. She was home.
She was finally home.
---
End of Chapter Sixty-Four