10. Chapter 7
Chapter 7
D rinking had been a mistake—probably the worst one Lex had made in a while. Between the shit floating in his eyes when he blinked, and the dull throb of the headache, he wanted to throw open the car door and roll onto the road.
But more than the drinking? The lack of sleep? It was the fact that Morgan had left out a crucial part of the conversation .
If Morgan had told him what was going to happen, maybe it would’ve helped. Maybe he would’ve acted differently. Then again… maybe not. It would’ve given him something to look forward to, that’s for sure.
That was fucked up. So, so fucked up.
But it was the ugly, undeniable truth. Even if he had no idea if the people they were meeting would live or not, Lex still wanted to go. He wanted to watch .
After two failed attempts to find a decent radio station, he gave up and slumped back in the seat, nursing the water bottle Morgan had handed him.
“Why can’t you be nicer to me?” he asked, running his fingers over the grooves in the cap to stay grounded. To keep his mind on anything remotely normal.
Morgan didn’t look away from the road, free hand leaned into his temple. “I need you to understand that I am being nice.”
“That’s bull. Back there, you—”
“I wanted to see you crack,” Morgan interrupted. “You’re not cut out for this—any of it. The business, our game… you’re floundering. It hasn’t even been an entire day.”
“I didn’t crack, Morgan. Whatever you think is happening? Like I said, you’re fucking delusional.”
“So you have a drinking problem?”
The words hit Lex like a brick, stopping whatever argument he was planning on throwing back.
“Had,” Lex bit out sharply. “I had a drinking problem.” He fumbled with the bottle cap before he twisted it on tight and tossed it into the backseat. It hit something and rolled, but at least he wasn’t crushing the plastic.
Morgan didn’t react, didn’t so much as glance his way, and Lex had to stop himself from launching into all of Morgan’s downfalls.
“If I’m not cut out for this ,” Lex continued after he’d calmed down, “then why not go alone?”
“Because this part of you is interesting. Very interesting, actually.”
Was that… was that a compliment ? It sure as shit sounded like one, or close enough.
Lex’s mouth moved before his brain could catch up. “You like me more than Kate. Admit it. I’m more fun. She wouldn’t be into this, would she?”
“You’ve been begging me for crumbs since we met and now that you have my attention, you choose to talk about her?” Morgan’s voice was quieter, eerily calm, as he pulled off the highway and onto the shoulder. “How do you keep managing to disappoint me?”
It was darker than he remembered. A lot darker. Almost tripping and killing himself levels of dark.
He couldn’t figure out where they were going.
In the past, he had followed Morgan so often he thought he had memorized every inch of the woods— their woods— off the highway. Apparently not.
Save for their footsteps, it was completely silent. There weren’t birds or animals Lex could hear—he couldn’t even hear the wind .
“Do you care if I start recording?” he asked, unable to stop himself. It came out eager as hell, over loud, but he was fucking excited .
Morgan, a little farther ahead, glanced back and a jolt of electricity went through Lex’s chest. “I’d like that. I want you to capture the moment it happens.”
Capture the moment what happens?
Lex almost asked, but this fragile thing—this bonding—would have shattered, and honestly, screw that.
Morgan had invited him. Morgan was showing his true self. Morgan was here, happily, without all the other shit surrounding them. Morgan was treating him like someone worth something. Morgan was—
“ Stop it ,” Lex muttered under his breath. He shook his head hard enough to dislodge whatever had started and dug into his pocket for his phone. His hands were shaking, but he managed not to drop it. Or trip. Again.
Pressing record had never felt so good.
This area… this was a little more familiar. The trees here weren’t as densely packed, the cold, autumn moon casting fractured light through the leaves. Lex had been here before. Definitely. He knew the bushes around the edges better than himself.
Morgan stopped first, hands buried in his pockets and head tilted up as if he were admiring the half-dead trees.
God, when Morgan wasn’t being the most atrocious asshole on the face of the planet? He was attractive. The sharp lines of his nose and jaw, dark hair pulled away from his face… Lex would’ve given anything to look like that .
His whole blond-hair-blue-eye, boy-next-door thing had gotten old years ago. It was boring— plain —next to Morgan, who looked like the definition of a stereotypical movie villain.
And Lex always liked the villains more than the heroes.
Glancing down at the screen, Morgan was centered perfectly. The sort of slow, languid grace he had when he shrugged off the jacket and hung it over one of the branches was hypnotizing to watch. He rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and turned around.
Lex looked over his shoulder, expecting to see someone coming through the trees, but there was no one. It was just them.
Just them.
Another moment passed and realization struck. His feet froze to the ground.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Lex murmured, the words tumbling out too loud in the stillness.
Morgan’s eyes swept over him, and the smile on his face wasn’t the one reserved for board members or taunts. No. This was different—sharper, more teeth. Hungry . “I’m impressed. Most people don’t figure it out until I tell them.”
This isn’t what I signed up for.
“Why the hell did you lie to me? What did I even do , Morgan?”
“I never lied. You never asked.” Morgan stepped closer, tilting his head slightly. “Where do I start? Do you want an itemized list? You’re refusing to listen. You’re nosing around where you shouldn’t… and don’t forget, you’re the one who asked me for this.”
Lex’s throat tightened .
Morgan took another step forward. “Here’s what’s going to happen. You can stand here, and try your best and fail. Or you can get a head start, and try your best and fail. Which one?”
This wasn’t a game. This was real.
Morgan was dead serious.
“I don’t want to do this,” Lex said, his voice uneven, the edge of fear clawing its way to the surface.
“Don’t you? I’m having a hard time believing that. I’ve always wondered—what’s your addiction, little brother? Which part are you drowning to keep the rest of you afloat?”
“Morgan, please… I’m sorry, alright? I’m really, really sorry about yesterday, tonight… all of it. It won’t happen again.”
He sounded like the people in the videos; the ones pleading, begging, desperate. All of it fell on ears that he knew, deep down, wouldn’t ever listen. There wasn’t any way out of this.
This wasn’t what Lex had thought it would be.
Morgan stepped closer still, his presence suffocating. “Fine. Don’t answer me then. I’ll see for myself soon enough.”
Lex flinched as Morgan’s fingers pressed into his shoulder, knees threatening to buckle.
“You run,” Morgan whispered, “or you fight. Tick-tock. My patience is waning.”
Lex’s breath hitched before his legs obeyed the primal scream in his skull. He turned and bolted, the uneven dirt shifting under his feet. Something hit the ground, but he couldn’t stop to see what. Each crack of a twig was deafening—a blaring alarm. Too loud. Too present. Too much .
He knew there were footsteps behind him, but Morgan wasn't running.
No.
Morgan knew these woods; Lex was the outsider here. Just a visitor. And now, all Lex wanted was to put as much space between them as humanly possible.
His chest heaved, cold air biting into his lungs with each inhale. He hadn’t run in years and a stitch was already forming in his side. The alcohol from earlier burned away under the adrenaline, leaving him painfully, painfully sober.
The old, familiar ache roared up his leg when his ankle twisted on a scattering of fallen leaves. Lex gritted his teeth, pushing himself forward. He glanced back for just a second, long enough to make sure Morgan wasn’t there, wasn’t right behind him—
The tree came out of fucking nowhere .
Pain exploded on impact, bark scraping at his skin. He stumbled, the world tilting before he landed flat on his back. His hands flew to his face instinctively, cradling his nose, blood gushing between his fingers.
Lex heard the crunch of sticks before Morgan came into view, slow and deliberate. He had already begun to move when Morgan’s foot came down on his neck, pinning him there.
“How’re you bad at this, too?”
The heel pressed down harder and Lex’s world shrank down to the pressure crushing his windpipe. He couldn’t fucking breathe . It was the car all over again—paralyzing and desperate. Helpless.
Gasping, he clawed at Morgan’s shoe, but all it did was smear blood and dirt over his hands and scrape his fingers raw. Every muscle in his body shook, his vision clouding with tears. Black, swirling splotches that grew darker.
“You know,” Morgan began, “I had a personal rule of not damaging your face. Our game. I didn’t want someone at the office to worry. But this, you did to yourself.”
It hurts.
Morgan leaned in, all of his weight pressing down, and Lex’s head was going to pop . His lungs screamed for air, choking on the metallic tang of his own blood.
“Do you want me to stop? Or do you want me to keep going?”
“St—stop, please ,” Lex rasped, barely able to force the words out.
“Wrong answer.”
The pressure disappeared, and Lex inhaled hard—raw and wheezing—raking his throat. He rolled onto his side, scrambling to get the hell up , but he didn’t even make it to his knees. The toe of Morgan’s shoe drove into his side, white-hot pain radiating through his ribs.
There wasn’t enough air in the world.
Lex curled in on himself, every breath a struggle. Trying to process anything beyond the agony.
“We’re almost there,” Morgan said, his voice threading between Lex’s ears. Warped. Too loud then inaudible. “You are… so close. Right on the brink. I wanted more, honestly, but we’ll work up to that.”
What the hell does that mean?
Coughing, Lex looked up, the taste of blood and bile thick on his tongue. The world was tilting; trees, shadows, and Morgan spinning in chaotic circles .
“Morgan. Morgan, please ,” he choked out, “you said we couldn’t kill each other.”
“If I was planning on killing you tonight, I already would have. You’ll survive.”
I have to move. I have to fucking move. Right now.
God, it was so hard though. He pushed himself up onto his hands, trembling, every nerve screaming in protest. The ground was cold. Damp. Hard to get a grip. He had to move . He had to get away .
Then something came down on his ankle, and everything fractured into pure, blinding pain.
The sound was worse—bones crunching, unforgiving—and Lex’s scream ripped through the air. The tears clinging to his lashes spilled over. This agony wasn’t short. Fleeting. It didn’t come and go. It stayed, consuming every part of him.
“Stop! Stop, stop, stop. Please stop. ”
Somewhere beyond the fog of terror and unbearable pain, Morgan’s voice slid into his ear.
“There you are.”
Velvet soft. Tender. Almost loving.
Whatever weight on Lex’s ankle shifted, and the relief was so sudden that his body betrayed him. Sobs racked his chest, brittle and raw, impossible to stop. Hard to listen to. He was just damn grateful that the humiliation didn’t have time to settle in.
When he pried his eyes open, Morgan was crouched in front of him. Everything swam—blurry one second, perfect the next, shimmering like a fucking fever dream.
And Morgan’s smile… jesus . His smile was hungry and warm, dark eyes all pupil .
“You tried your hardest, didn’t you?” Morgan whispered, pushing a strand of Lex’s hair away from his face. “You gave me all you had.”
Lex’s breathing came shaky, harsh, but he couldn’t look away. He hated how he sounded, how screwed his entire body felt, but the way Morgan was watching him? Like Lex was the most fascinating creature?
His heart slowed.
He should have been out of his mind with fear, ready to leave.
Maybe it was shock.
But instead, he felt… relaxed. Quiet. His brain shut off, blissful and blank, as Morgan’s gaze tracked down to his throat.
Morgan cradled Lex's face, fingers so firm they almost hurt, and Lex’s skin lit on fire.
“This is your addiction, isn’t it? Don’t lie to me now. There’s no space for that here.”
How was Lex supposed to speak? His mouth opened, the words sticking before they fell out, quiet and trembling, “I guess.”
“Let me tell you a little about yourself,” Morgan murmured, his breath brushing Lex’s lips. “You think you want my attention? You don’t.”
There wasn’t anything else. No pain, no woods. Nothing. It was only Morgan.
“You want me to shatter you and hold all of your broken, pathetic parts. You want to be owned .”
That wasn’t it.
That wasn’t it at all .
But Lex couldn’t think straight. Not when Morgan’s tongue dragged through the blood smeared down his nose, warm and wet. He couldn’t even fucking blink.
“Let me hear it. Tell me what you want, little brother, and I’ll decide if you deserve it or not.”
Lex swallowed, his throat too dry, his heart ricocheting inside of him like it wanted to break free. “I… I want you…”
As soon as it was out of his mouth, an invisible weight lifted off his chest—years of pent-up frustration, of biting his tongue, of being so goddamn tired of fighting himself . All of that anger finally burned itself out.
“This isn’t weakness, you know. There’s no shame in admitting to the other side of yourself.”
The words were soothing, almost kind, Morgan’s hands sliding up into his hair. They were gentle at first, fingers threading through the strands, caressing his scalp in a way that sent shivers down his spine. But it only lasted a second.
Then Morgan yanked his head back.
Pain ripped through Lex's skull, snapping him out of the trance. He gritted his teeth, the stinging reminding him of where he was, who he was with.
And how much actual fucking danger he was in.
“Even if that other side,” Morgan said, hovering over him, his voice low and steady, “is riddled with so much sickness that no one else would want what you are. But me? I’d keep you just like this. There’s always space for another monster in the woods.”
Morgan let go, brushing dirt from his hands and pants as he stood. The sound of his knuckles cracking broke through the silence, and Lex almost jumped. “You dropped this when we started. I couldn’t let the moment go to waste.”
He held up the phone.
The screen glowed in the dark, small numbers at the bottom ticking up. Forty-five minutes. Forty-six.
Lex’s stomach rolled over.
The camera could have been pointed anywhere—inside Morgan’s pocket, at the ground—but the sound… shit, the sound would have picked up everything .
Every breath. Every guttural sob. Every single broken, humiliating word.
It was all there.
A video of himself at his most vulnerable, captured in perfect clarity. It wasn’t just leverage—it was a goddamn noose.
“Now we both have momentos, don’t we?”