Chapter 19
1143 Words
FLASHBACK
Bryan’s POV
Three Weeks Ago
Savannah thought she was smart. Pretty, manipulative, spoiled rotten by her father’s money and her own charm. But she was predictable. Like all of them.
He watched her laugh in the hallway that day—Lexi barely in the background, Jace looking like he wanted to be anywhere else.
Bryan grinned.
She thought she was playing Lexi.
But she never realized the moment she texted him back, she stepped into his game.
> “Distract her. I’ll do the rest,” she’d said.
Cute.
He gave her what she needed. Lexi’s location. The fake email template. Even made it traceable just enough to seem like Savannah was smart enough to do it herself.
And then he waited.
Waited for the moment she’d feel untouchable.
Then he planted the seed.
The second anonymous message—the one with the wrong date stamp. The one that made it look like Savannah had tried to frame Lexi again, when in reality, she hadn’t even touched her phone.
He watched from across the gym when the principal called her in.
Watched the cracks start to show in Savannah's perfect face.
Watched her fall from her little throne, humiliated, confused, unsure if she was being gaslit or framed.
Because she was.
By him.
She wanted to ruin Lexi because of a stupid crush.
Bryan wanted to ruin Jace,everyone associated with was just collateral damage and he wasn't even sorry or feeling guilty. It was their own fault for that.
His own father had hidden him like he was shameful. Like he was a mistake. While Jace was paraded like a brand new shiny toy for the world to see.
Jace? The golden boy. Captain. The one Richard chose.
No, Ryan wasn’t going to let Savannah have the satisfaction of taking Lexi down.
She was just a chess piece. A messy, overconfident pawn that would crumble in public and give Bryan front-row tickets to the implosion.
Because once Lexi was broken...
Once Savannah was disgraced...
Jace would finally be alone.
And when that moment came—really came—Bryan would be right there to watch him fall.
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AFTER SCHOOL , PRESENT DAY
He sat cross-legged on his bed, the screen casting a dim glow across his face as he watched Savannah’s breakdown one more time. She’d stormed out of the school restroom, eyes wild, pride shattered.
Pause. Zoom. Smile.
She thought she was the storm. But Bryan? He was the earthquake beneath the surface—quiet, slow-building, deadly.
He pulled open the desk drawer beside him and ran his fingers over the now-empty thumb drive case. No need to double-check the contents. He knew what he’d edited, what he’d included, and more importantly—what he hadn’t.
The real victory wasn’t in giving it to the school.
It was in sending it directly to Richard Callahan.
Sealed envelope. No return address. Anonymous, of course.
Inside: carefully edited footage. Bits and pieces of Jace’s sealed juvenile file. A voice recording that sounded close enough to Jace’s. Distorted. Damning. Just enough to make a father wonder what kind of son he really had. Just enough to plant doubt in the mind of a man who built his entire legacy on image.
Bryan could practically see it—Richard opening the envelope in his cold, sterile office. Watching, rewinding, rewinding again. Failing to breathe. Failing to ignore the itch in his chest that maybe—just maybe—he’d bet on the wrong one.
Bryan grinned, pulling his hoodie up over his head.
Jace thought Savannah was the problem.
He had no idea the call was coming from inside the bloodline.
Let Lexi calm him down. Let them hold hands and play house for a little longer.
Because when Richard confronted Jace?
When secrets were dragged into the light?
Lexi would start to wonder how much she really knew.
And when everyone else turned on him...
Bryan would be right there.
Waiting.
Jace’s POV
Same Afternoon
He barely had the door shut behind him before the pressure in the air changed.
His father stood by the window, blazer off, sleeves rolled, tie askew. That was never a good sign. Richard Callahan didn’t do casual—unless he was preparing to gut someone with words.
“Sit,” his father said, without turning.
Jace didn’t. “You want to talk, talk.”
Richard finally faced him. In his hand, a thumb drive. That goddamn thumb drive.
“Where did this come from?” he asked coolly.
“How the hell would I know?” Jace shot back, already tired.
Richard’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t play dumb. I had this analyzed. It’s sliced footage. Selectively edited. Juvenile files, Jace. Yours.”
Jace’s jaw clenched. “You’re the one who had them sealed.”
“Exactly,” Richard said sharply. “I paid to make them disappear. You think I did that for you?” He barked a cold laugh. “I did it for this family. For our name.”
Of course he did.
“But now,” Richard continued, voice low and cold, “someone out there has access. Someone is using you to get to me.” He tossed the thumb drive onto the desk like it was infected. “So I need to know everything. Now.”
Jace stared at it. He felt Lexi’s warmth from the morning still clinging to him, the illusion of calm already slipping.
“I don’t know who sent it,” he admitted. “But this isn’t about you.”
Richard’s eyes flashed. “Everything’s about me, Jace. Especially when my son’s name ends up tied to sealed police files and untraceable footage.”
Jace crossed his arms. “You don’t care what happened. You just care it might make you look bad.”
Richard’s gaze hardened. “I care that there’s a target on your back, and we don’t know who’s holding the damn bow. And I care that you’re sleeping with some girl while enemies are circling. Get your head on straight.”
“How do you know that,are you tailing me? You don’t know anything about her.”
“That doesn't matter but I know she’ll be the first to bleed when this explodes.”
That hit harder than it should’ve.
Jace swallowed back the rush of anger. “So what now? You want to control who I see again? Hide me away?”
“I want names. Suspects. Enemies. Anyone who’d want to ruin you—or me.”
Jace thought of Savannah. Of the anonymous messages. Of Bryan, though his name still tasted wrong in this context.
“There’s someone,” Jace muttered. “I’m not sure yet, but... they’re close. Too close.”
Richard’s expression darkened. “Then find out who they are. Fast. Before they take the shot.”
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- Writer
