She Took The House The Car And My Heart novel Chapter 260

Chapter 260 Completely Unhinged

Both Brendan and Natasha turned to Freya at the exact same time.

Freya’s face didn’t shift in the slightest; she wasn’t about to give anything away–not until the final moment arrived.

“Or maybe she’s K,” Ashley snapped, pointing her finger at Natasha with a shrug that said she had nothing left to lose. “If you’re still not convinced, you can say I’m K.”

Brendan let out a quiet chuckle. “Are you really that eager to get your brother killed?”

“I’ve already told you,” Ashley said sharply. “You’re the one who refuses to believe me.”

Brendan studied her.

Ashley met his gaze head–on, and for once, the fear that had been gnawing at her seemed to recede. “You want me to name someone I’ve never seen or heard of? How the hell am I supposed to do that? Go on, kill me. Maybe K will swoop in and rescue me.”

“You’ve got a death wish, don’t you?” Brendan murmured, idly lifting her chin between his fingers.

Ashley’s heart thudded in her chest. “It’s you who wants me dead!”

“If you don’t know, just admit it. Why get all worked up?” He let go of her chin and casually drew her into his lap, “How could I ever not trust you?”

Ashley didn’t flinch.

She knew his moods too well. One second he was cold and cruel, the next he was playing the tender lover. He was completely unhinged.

“If you listen to me, your brother stays alive.” Brendan gently tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

Ashley’s body quivered ever so slightly, a chill running down her spine as sweat soaked the back of her blouse.

Freya, watching it all unfold, wasn’t fooled for a second. That so–called tender touch? It wasn’t affection–it was a calculated check for any hidden earpiece.

His mind worked in twisted, meticulous ways.

“Ashley,” Brendan said sweetly, his voice coated with charm, like he was in unusually high spirits.

The sound sent ice straight through her veins. Any warmth she had left was gone.

Brendan grabbed her chin again, forcing her to look at him. “Are you mad at me?”

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“I dare not.”

“How about I let you bite me to vent your anger?” He coaxed her, his tone as patient and gentle as a lover’s.

To someone watching, he might’ve passed for a doting boyfriend.

But Ashley only felt dread.

She’d seen firsthand just how fast he could flip.

“I’m only trying to protect you,” Brendan said, his long fingers pinching her waist with a smile that looked more like a threat. “K is bad news. If you tangle with her, you’ll end up in a world of pain.”

“More like the pain will come from you!” Ashley didn’t say it out loud, but she thought it anyway.

Brendan started counting her fingers. “Your grandma’s in pain, old and frail. I’m doing this for her sake. Can’t you see I mean well?”

Her heart gave a sharp twist, and that awful scene she’d just seen sprang back into her mind.

Someday, she’d make him pay–every last drop of blood he owed–for what he did to her grandmother.

“Do you understand?” he asked again, noticing the flicker in her eyes. He pinched her harder this time.

A wave of dread surged through her. Forcing the words out, she muttered the thing she most didn’t want to say, “I understand.”

“Good girl,” Brendan purred, clearly pleased.

Natasha, having watched enough, shot Brendan a glare. “What’s wrong with you, scaring a woman like that?”

“I enjoy it. What’s it to you?” Brendan replied lazily. “You just focus on finding K.”

“I can’t find her,” Natasha snapped, one of the few who dared talk back to him. Then she turned to Ashley.

“Your grandma’s fine. He was lying.”

“What…” Ashley froze.

“That photo? It was edited. He paid someone to make it look real,” Natasha explained, and Brendan didn’t bother stopping her. “Your grandma’s alive and perfectly safe.”

Panic gripped Ashley.

Brendan was beyond terrifying.

The picture had looked so real, not a single flaw. If she had turned on Freya back there, she would’ve betrayed

her all over again.

She glanced at Natasha, though her eyes briefly flicked toward Freya. Freya had kept her promise after all.

“Is it true?” Ashley asked, eyes darting back to Brendan. “She’s not dead?”

“In your heart, do you really think I’m the type to kill for no reason?” Brendan poured himself a glass of wine with that infuriating air of sophistication that never quite matched the madness in his eyes.

She did think that.

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But she’d never say it aloud. So she just muttered, “No.”

Brendan smiled, but it was empty. His gentleness never warmed the air around him–he was a gentleman in appearance, a lunatic underneath. She knew better than to provoke him.

The memories were carved into her bones, and she was afraid.

He didn’t call her bluff, sipping his wine slowly.

Fear kept her compliant.

Fear would keep her from trying to escape and ensure she stayed leashed at his side.

A while later, Brendan pulled out an iPad.

When he saw Kristian sitting alone on the beach in nothing but a shirt, something strange stirred in his chest.

Kristian owed him. And he would pay for it–every bit.

“Ms. Briggs,” Brendan said, handing the iPad to Freya. “Take a look at your ex–husband. Doesn’t he look

pathetic?”

Freya looked.

In that bleak setting, Kristian sat on the sand, the sea wind cutting into him like knives. Even from a screen,

cold seeped through.

He was stubborn to the end, refusing to believe in her. He didn’t have to be suffering like this.

“What exactly do you have against him?” Freya asked for the second time.