Always Into You

I can't breathe - Chapter 19

(Maico’s POV)

The first drop of rain hit my cheek as I watched Christopher struggle with his emotions, his confession still hanging between us like a ghost that refused to leave. The night air had been freezing before, but now, with the storm rolling in, it felt suffocating.

Neither of us spoke.

Then, as if the sky itself couldn’t handle the weight of what had been said, the heavens split open.

The rain poured down, hard and relentless, drenching us in seconds. Christopher exhaled sharply, looking up, letting the water wash over his face like it could somehow cleanse him of everything.

“Go home, Maico,” he whispered, his voice hollow.

I scoffed, pushing back my wet hair. “Like hell I’m leaving Tanya to deal with whatever the hell this is”

“She doesn’t need you to fight for her.” His eyes burned into mine. “She never did.”

My blood boiled, but before I could snap back, he turned and walked away, disappearing into the storm like he had always belonged to it.

I clenched my jaw, watching his shadow fade into the night.

And I wasn’t the only one watching.

From the shadows, a figure stepped forward.

Tall. Broad shouldered. A black trench coat dripping with rain.

His presence was like ice crawling up my spine.

He had been there the whole time.

The man didn’t acknowledge me at first. He simply exhaled, pulling out a cigarette, the light glowing in the dark.

Then, in a voice as smooth as oil, he said, “What a remarkable thing… to throw away an empire for love.”

My mind twisted.

The man turned his head slightly, his eyes gleaming under the streetlights.

“Ambessa will be very interested in this.”

And just like that he was gone.

Christopher’s POV

The storm followed me home.

I don't know why i went to our family house, i guess i don't want to be lonely after the commotion.

The Hightower estate was a towering beast in the night, its golden lights flickering through the rain like watchful eyes. I stepped inside, my soaked clothes leaving a trail of water across the marble floors.

And then I felt it.

A presence.

Lurking.

Waiting.

I turned the corner, and there she was.

Ambessa Hightower my mother, stood in the center of the grand hall, her posture regal, her eyes burning like flames in a dying fire. She was still dressed in one of her signature black gowns, the silk glistening under the chandelier.

I barely had time to brace myself before she spoke.

“Sit.”

A single word. A command. A sentence dressed as an invitation but laced with venom.

I didn’t move.

She inhaled deeply, stepping forward, her heels clicking against the floor like a countdown to destruction.

“I gave you everything,” she said, her voice smooth but deadly. “I built you, Christopher. I shaped you into a man worthy of the Hightower name. And yet...”

She let out a cold, humorless laugh. “Yet, I hear whispers in the dark that my son, my own flesh and blood, would trade it all away… for a girl for a simple and uncultured girl.”

I clenched my jaw, my fingers curling into fists at my sides.

“I never asked for any of this,” I said, my voice sharp. “I never wanted this life.”

Ambessa’s eyes flashed with fury.

“Oh, poor Christopher,” she mocked, her voice dripping with scorn. “Burdened by wealth. Chained by privilege. Must be so exhausting to sit on a throne.”

I took a step forward. “A throne that feels like a prison.”

The room fell silent.

Then

A sound I had only heard a handful of times in my life.

Ambessa laughed.

Low. Dangerous.

Then, in a blink, the laughter was gone, replaced by something darker.

She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“You will end this pathetic fantasy,” she said. “Now.”

I swallowed, the air tightening around me. “No.”

Her face hardened.

“You’re a fool,” she hissed. “A weak fool. If you think I will let some insignificant girl pull you away from everything I have built, then you don’t know me at all.”

I met her look, unwavering.

“She’s not insignificant to me.”

Ambessa stilled. Her fingers twitched at her side.

Then, she smiled.

And I felt the noose tighten.

“You’re going to make a choice tonight, my son,” she said. “One you cannot refuse.”

She stepped past me, toward the grand fireplace, the flames casting shadows across her sharp features.

“You will forget her,” she said, her voice like steel. “Or you will no longer be a Hightower.”

I inhaled sharply.

Ambessa turned, her expression unreadable.

“You think I’m bluffing?” she asked. “Then test me.”

Her voice was a storm, her presence an unshakable force.

“If you walk out of this house to chase that girl,” she said, “you will leave with nothing. No name. No power. No money. Nothing!.”

I swallowed the pain in my throat, my pulse hammering.

“Leave, and you become no one,” she continued. “Stay, and I will make you untouchable.”

She stepped closer, lowering her voice.

“This is the moment, Christopher,” she said. “You either become a king or you become forgotten.”

The weight of her words crashed into me like a tidal wave.

I thought of Tanya.

I thought of her laughter, of her fire, of the way she had saved me that night on the rooftop.

I thought of my mother.

Of her control, her power, the empire she had built brick by brick, built for me.

The storm outside howled, but the real storm was in my chest.

And for the first time in my life.

I had no idea which way to run.

I just stood i just think.