Chapter 19: Reality wormed its way into my brain

Emery's POV

"I'm your real brother Emery."

My face shows no emotion as I process his words. I stare at him dumbfounded as he stares at me waiting for my reaction.

"What? No, no that can't be true!" I yell while standing up from the bench. I won't believe what he has to say. Jonah is my brother, my real brother.

"Why would I be lying? Emery look at yourself, your beautiful red hair and green eyes. Haven't you ever thought why Jonah looks nothing like you? With black hair and blue eyes," he explains while standing up and walking towards me.

"He doesn't have to look like me to be my brother!" I shout. How dare he comes up to me and freaking tells me the man I loved and called my brother for my entire life is now not my brother.

"But he should resemble your parents. Your mother has light red hair and hazel eyes. While your father has sandy blonde hair and green eyes. How is it possible that Jonah has dark hair and blue eyes," he states, giving me all the facts.

"Don't you dare talk about my family! And don't you ever dare come here and say that my dead brother isn't my brother!" I scream not even acknowledging his last statement.

He looks up at the sun and walks out from the gazebo as he stands in the sun. "Look at me Emery, just look," he pleads. I stare at the ground for three more seconds as I look up and glance at him.

I take closer steps towards him as I see the sun hitting his blonde hair. The tinges of red comes in and mixes with his blonde hair, like highlights. I look down his face and see my mother's eyes, her beautiful hazel eyes. I look down further and see my dads nose, his pointy yet sturdy nose.

An image of Jonah flashes through my mind. His dark brown, almost black, hair falling over his warm blue eyes. I remember Jonah as I look at River, trying to compare the two.

River's right.

Jonah looks nothing like my parents and I. How did I not notice this earlier. I look down at my feet as I realize something I was trying so hard not to believe.

River is my biological brother.

River now looking at my face, walks over and sits back on the bench. I stand there, leaning against the banister. He knows that I know.

"It all happened a year ago, when I was helping my dad build a fence. I was cutting the wood when the electric saw went haywire, cutting deep into my arm. I lost a lot of blood once I got to the hospital.
My dad offered his blood to the doctor. Once the doctor took his blood they ran blood tests on his and figured out we weren't a match. My father got upset and asked my mother why we weren't a match. He assumed she had an affair and that he's not my real father. She was then asked to take a blood test which wasn't a match either. So neither of my parents were actually my parents. The doctor then asked if I was adopted which my parents answered no. He then explained that I could've been switched at birth. Once I heard everything I started my hunt to find my real family." He told while playing with his fingers as he explains further.

"You don't need to hear the boring details on how I found you, the good thing is that I did. The day that I saved your life was the day I finally tracked you down. I was following you guys until you reached your house so I can tell you everything. But that wasn't the case." He continued as a tear slips his eye jut remembering that horrific scene.

"I wished that I could've saved all of you. Once I got out of my car I went to the backseat to get you first. Once I got you away safely I went back to get your parents but I stayed in my spot once I saw the explosion. Then a couple months later Jonah died because of the awful place you guys were at and your financial troubles. I just wished I knew sooner so I could've done something but-" I interrupt his ramble as I sit next to him and hug him.

"You can't blame yourself for anyone's death, especially Jonah's. That was Raiden's doing," I concluded. Disgusted with myself once I think back to our kiss.

"That's why I'm here, I'm here to get you away from Raiden. After a year of looking for you and finally finding you I won't let it end here. We're getting out of here tonight Emery. I'm gonna help you escape so we can live our lives I know we were meant for."

He sounded so confident that I was happy about escaping with him and leaving here forever. But then.....

Reality wormed its way into my brain.

"We can't leave River. He'll kill us if we even step out the door, he has cameras everywhere." I exclaim, truly scared of the outcome if we go through with his plan.

"I have a plan for all that and I also know he won't kill you," he says so confidently, what makes him think Raiden won't kill me. He's tried to kill me before, I think. He's punished me but as I try to think back I don't think he's tried to kill me.

He never really crashed the car I was driving, I did. He wasn't trying to chase me to my own death, he was trying to catch me.

When he locked me in the closet, punishment.

When he locked me in the cage, punishment.

When he locked me underground, punishment.

I now realize how much times he's locked me away.

The only time where I think he tried to kill me is when he dropped me down ten feet, well his guards.

But other than that, I think if I would've escaped for real this time, he'd kill me.

"What makes you so sure?" I questioned.

"I see the way he looks at you Ems. He likes you. That's why we need to leave, every second we're here he starts to like you more and more."

Okay this was now pretty laughable. Raiden liking me after what he's done to me. I'm pretty sure than when you drop someone down ten feet it's not a way of saying 'oh I like you." River's theory was completely and utterly ridiculous.

"That's ridiculous," I flat out told him. Raiden is a killer, a murderer. He wouldn't hesitate to kill me if I ever escaped.

"Then why hasn't he done it yet?" He questions. I look at him, confused.

"Done what?" I asked, forgetting about our conversation for a moment.

"Killed you, why hasn't Raiden killed you yet? You've already tried escaping and even after that he still hasn't kill you," he finalizes. I was pretty badly hurt after the accident, he probably wanted me to suffer instead of killing me when he forced me into the cage with a broken leg.

"Why? Do you want me dead?"
I seriously ask since he keeps asking why hasn't Raiden killed me already.

"You know I would never want that! All I'm trying to say is that even if Raiden points a gun at you, he won't shoot you."

"Okay, if what you say is true and Raiden supposedly doesn't want to kill me, then what about you?" I mean I don't think Raiden will even take a second glance before killing River.

"I'll take the risk Emery. If that means I can possibly get you out of here," he holds my hand and pulls me up from the bench.

"I have a plan to get out of here, meet me back here at 8pm, got it?" He didn't give me time to respond before he dashed away from the gazebo.

This is it. This is the night I may possibly escape this place forever. I still need more proof about River being my biological brother. I mean all I got was the looks, he does look like my parents and I but I feel like I need more.

I need more proof to make it official that Jonah's not my brother.

A let a tear slip once I think about all the game nights, the movie nights, and Jonah trying to bake kind of nights. All the smiles he shared with me more than fifty times a day now feels like it wasn't real.

He wasn't my brother, he was my best friend.

I let a sob escape my lips just thinking that he risked his life to make mine better when we weren't even related.

He thought he was protecting his sister when really, he was just protecting the only person that was left in his life.

He never even got to meet his real parents, his biological parents.

He left this world with loose ends.

He may not be my brother, but I loved him like one.

I wonder if Jonah has siblings from his biological parents? River only talked about his parents. Man, I should've asked him.

I stand up from the gazebo, afraid to leave it. This is the only place where I can actually clear my mind, but now this place is also a place of secrets. The first one being River's.

I walk inside the living room as I look at the clock on the wall. 7:03 is what the clock read, I have exactly 57 minutes before I pack up my life, which isn't much, and leave.

I willingly walk downstairs towards the basement. I stop once I reached my cell, I opened it quietly as I close it back.

I take a step towards my wardrobe before I stop and turn around where the security camera is located. I remember which angle it was at when Kade showed it to me on his laptop. I grab my desk chair and put it right under the camera.

I turned back around and looked at the vase filled with white roses. I don't know why Keith brought that in here. I stalk over to the flowers while taking them out of the vase. Once I grab the vase I dump the water in the trash bin as I grab my comforter. I wrap the comforter around the vase as I slam it down on the floor. Creating a muffled sound of glass breaking while also preventing a mess.

I grab a rag from one of the desk drawer as I open the comforter and grabbed the sharpest piece with the rag.

I walk back over to the chair as I stand on top of it while looking directly into the camera. I push the camera downwards as I look at the wires connected.

Grabbing a blue wire I sawed it off with the piece of glass, to be sure I cut the red one as well.

Now that that's finished I cleaned the mess up as I threw the glass including the flowers away. I remade the bed, making sure to flip it around so no one see the snags of thread on the other side.

I finally walk back towards the wardrobe as I grab a backpack and stuff everything, which isn't much, inside.

Once I'm done I change into some black skinny jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt. I leave my black converses on while grabbing my black hoodie and putting it over my shirt. I tie my hair up in a low ponytail while grabbing the backpack and walking out of cell #23 forever.

I walk back up the stairs and through the hallway, trying not to be spotted. I take the stairs quietly as I hear plates and utensils clanking together. They must be finishing up dinner since it started at 6. I take this time to run in the living room as I look at the clock,
7:49pm. Time went by fast.

I open up the French doors while closing it and taking giant leaps to reach the gazebo. Once I'm there I pant, trying to breathe as I bend over and putting my hands on my knees. I look back to see through the windows that everyone is filing out of the dining room.

That was close.

"You should probably work out more," someone chuckled, I look up to see River is the one doing it.

"I'd say we better hurry up, it's gonna take Raiden a couple minutes to figure out I'm missing," I explain, knowing it's true.

"Before we leave I want you to have these," he then hands me a folder stuffed with paper.

"What's this?" I question, not opening it.

"It's all the research and proof of me being your actual brother, including some information about Jonah's real family. I know it's hard to hear but I wanted you to have it." He's right, it was hard to hear him say Jonah's real family.

"Does he have any siblings?" I asked knowing I'd forget the question later.

"He has a 16 year old sister named Jessalyn," he smiles.

I bet she would've been a better sister than I've been lately.

"Okay, follow me." He leads me around the gazebo towards the back. Which showed a line of a boarded up fence that was way taller than the both of us. I turn toward my backpack while I stuffed the folder in, leaving it unzipped as he starts to speak.

"Okay, you see these boards? They are all strong and boarded up good except one." He walks over towards the right and pushes one board in particular. It swings up as he holds if in place with his hands.

"Hurry, go through!" He whisper-shouted. I ran towards him and went through the hole with ease. I look around and see that this is it.

We're out.

"Now hold the other end so I can get through," he guided as I reached up and held it with all my might. He quickly goes through as I accidentally slammed it down a bit too hard.

We both stay quiet hoping no one heard it. After a couple more seconds we breathed out and turned around, walking wherever our feet would lead us, anywhere except here.

"I can't believe we made it!" He whispers excitedly as he puts his arm around my shoulder.

We soon freeze as we hear a manly voice behind us.

"Where does Emery and River Denton think they're going?"

~*~**~*~**~*~

Oh yeah, another chapter completed!

This story is almost coming to an end. I'm planning to only have 30 and if not, below 30 chapters.

I'm making it very clear now that there will be no sequel. I don't feel like I should drag out this story when it's totally unnecessary.

Anywho, I'm writing a new book called The Billionaire's Choice. It's all made I just have to put the first chapter on. Which means you might not be able to see it yet.

I would've started The Billionaire's Choice after this one was completed but I've had that book idea for so long I just needed to do it.

I hope you guys love the new book cover as much as I do. Which was made by Joli_Belle

The other cover which I've decided to put as a banner is made by her also.

Good morning, Good afternoon, or Good night to all of you!

💕Izzy💕