Chapter 51
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
maddox
A piercing whine fills my skull, drowning out everything around me. Heavy footsteps thud across the floor and the sound of voices fills the room, but they’re distant—like I’m underwater.
The sharp metallic tang of blood saturates the air. My vision steadies just enough to find Lucas sprawled on the ground, his face twisting in agony. He clutches his arm, crimson leaking fast between his fingers.
My hands frantically sweep over my body, checking to find blood or a wound, but there’s nothing.
A shaky breath escapes me, air flooding back into my lungs as the weight of what just happened crashes down. I was inches from death.
Just moments ago, Lucas stood in front of me with a gun aimed at my chest. One pull of the trigger and I wouldn’t be standing here.
A tall man wearing a bulletproof vest grabs Lucas’s arms, cuffing them behind his back. He winces in pain, leaving a trail of blood as he gets dragged away.
A pair of hands lands on my shoulders, causing me to jump. “Mr. Kamado, are you hurt? Do you need to go to the hospital?” a young paramedic asks me.
I shake my head. “No, I’m—I’m okay.”
“I need to do a quick assessment on you to be sure.”
Pushing myself off the floor, I get up to follow her.
“How did you guys know to come?” I ask as we walk out the door. “I didn’t even get a chance to dial 911.”
“Masashi!”
I look ahead and see Otōsan pushing past everyone and rushing toward me.
“Otōsan?” I widen my eyes, shocked to see him there.
He yanks me toward him, wrapping his arms around me tightly. “Thank God, you are alive. When I saw Lucas’s location at your house, I was so worried. I thought I was going to lose you.”
I stare back at him, confusion written all over my face. “You had Lucas’s location? But how?”
“Annalise approached me a few weeks ago and asked if I could help track down the person who was blackmailing you. It took me a while to crack the code, but it seems as if Lucas was using some program to send you anonymous texts through his phone. Once I was able to get into his system, I was able to access his location. Detective Takeda works at the San Francisco police department, and he’s a good friend of mine. So I called in a favor.”
A wave of gratitude crashes over me—for Annalise, for Otōsan. I told Annalise I didn’t want his help, but if she hadn’t gone to him, I would’ve been leaving here in a body bag while Lucas walked away untouched.
“Arigato, Otōsan. You saved my life,” I rasp, my throat tight.
“You are my son. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you,” he whispers, eyes shining with conviction. “I’ve been such a horrible father to you.” His voice fractures, breaking under the weight of his words.
Then, something in him crumbles. His shoulders cave as though the admission has gutted him and he folds in on himself, clutching his sides as if holding himself together. “Gomenasai. Gomenasai. Gomenasai.” His body shudders as raw sobs tear free.
In my twenty-two years, I have never seen Otōsan display this much emotion, let alone have I imagined him apologizing to me.
“It’s okay,” I say softly, touching his shoulder.
He shakes his head. “No, it’s not okay. It was wrong of me to dismiss your passion for basketball and push you to take over my company so you can continue my legacy. I promise I will be more supportive of you and will stop putting work first.”
Using the back of his hand, he swipes his tears away and lifts his gaze to meet mine. “You are extraordinary, Masashi. I am so proud of the man you’ve become, and I know you will continue to succeed.”
My eyes brim with tears, and a warmth flows through me as all the negativity I’ve harbored toward Otōsan fades away. After going through a near-death experience, I no longer want to hold onto any grudges. I want to let go and move forward.
Otōsan pulls me into his arms once more. “I love you so much, Masashi. I’m sorry I ever made you doubt that.”
“I love you too, Otōsan.”
A faint, nervous chuckle escapes him. “I’m not looking forward to telling your Okāsan about this.”
I can’t help but smirk. “Yeah. She’s probably going to force me to move back in with you guys.”
A deep laughter rumbles in his chest, and soon I’m laughing too. For the first time, the bond I’ve been aching for feels like it’s finally beginning to take root.
The paramedic clears her throat. “I need to do a set of vitals on you.”
I give her a nod and follow her to the ambulance.
She shines a penlight in my eyes. My gaze follows as she moves it in every direction. Then she wraps a blood pressure cuff around my bicep and places her stethoscope on my chest, asking me to take deep breaths.
The sharp slam of a car door echoes across the front yard. Annalise rushes out, her face pale with panic. “Maddox!”
I rip the cuff from my arm and bolt toward her. The paramedic mutters a curse behind me as I break free.
Annalise collides into me, arms wrapping tight, her breath ragged against my chest. “Oh, God,” she chokes out, tears shining in her eyes. “When I saw the police cars and ambulance outside, I was so scared. I thought I was too late.”
I kiss the top of her head and caress her soft hair as she sobs into me. “It’s okay, baby. Everything is going to be okay. Lucas is going to go away for a long time. He can’t hurt us anymore.”
She shakes her head, pressing trembling fingers to her lips. “I can’t believe I went on a date with him. That I kissed him. Oh, I feel so sick.”
“Don’t beat yourself up about it, Rosie. There’s no way you could’ve known. Even I didn’t think he was capable of trying to take my life.”
Tears well in her eyes as her voice cracks. “I’m so sorry, Maddox. For the way I treated you.”
I brush my thumb gently across her cheek, wiping the tears away. “You don’t have to apologize, my love. You were dealing with a tragic loss.”
“I’m not only sorry for that. I’m sorry for everything. Charlotte came to the pop-up shop today.”
My brows shoot up. “She did?”
She nods. “She confessed to everything. She overheard Andrés talking to Katie about my plan to surprise you, and then came up with her own plan to deceive me into thinking you had betrayed me.”
Anger claws its way through my chest, my jaw tightening. Four years. Four years stolen from us because of Charlotte’s lies.
“I can’t believe she carried that lie for so long,” I mutter, shaking my head in disbelief.
“Maybe she wanted to free her conscience,” Annalise whispers.
Relief floods through me. The truth is finally out, and those unwanted memories will no longer haunt her.
Her eyes glisten as she takes my face in her hands. “What I said before—that I regret letting you back into my life? I didn’t mean it. Not for a second.”
Her voice breaks, raw and achingly tender. “You are the best part of my life. My world is brighter because you are in it. I love you, Maddox. I am so deeply, hopelessly in love with you. Every piece of me has always been yours.”
Fireworks erupt in my chest upon hearing her utter those three little words after all these years.
She pulls me into her arms, her lips crashing against mine. We drown into each other, and nothing else matters.
When we finally break for air, I rest my forehead against hers. “I love you, Annalise. Nothing will ever come between us again.”