Happy Reading Everyone!

Comment below, let me know your thoughts on the chapter.

Chapter 11

Truth be told

Tobias' POV

I feel the pounding of the cement beneath my feet and there is nothing like it. For years I have depended on the cement and I to work things out. For years it's all I have had to hold on to, to keep me grounded. A way to work things out in my head. Today is no different.

My father's funeral was finally yesterday. I hated all the last demands my father made for me to do. Things that I had no choice but to live up to since I'm "still being watched." Even from the grave he has found ways to continue to run my life.

Some of the demands weren't too bad to complete, I admit. The kind of flowers, the color casket to get, the location of his final resting place. All doable. It was the attendance and at any cost… That seemed to rub me the wrong way. Apparently it didn't matter how much the person didn't want to be there, they were obligated to be there in one way or another. Whether it was through blackmail or just good old fashion bribery…. It didn't matter. They were to attend the dreadful thing.

Other demands weren't so easy to carry out. Things like playing a tape that he insisted to be played, a tape that he, himself recorded.

"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for coming out, what I expect should be a fine evening.

As I'm starting this… Can someone be so kind as to get me the hell out of here.

I'm still alive."

He had joked. A joke that no one in the crowd found funny, nor even moved a muscle to check if he was in fact still alive. My guess is if he was still alive… He would suffocate to death in his bed that he had made, because no one would have come to the bastard's mercy. The recording continued for what felt like hours… Hours that this man spilled lie after lie. By the end of the funeral people were both devastated and ashamed. I, myself, couldn't look anyone in the eyes after that debacle.

Marcus was a monster even in death, making sure all of his secrets that he kept were revealed. All but his own that is. No, of course not, he would never reveal the true monster he was behind closed doors. The prostitutes he paid off, the amounts of alcohol he drank, the lessons he taught me for all those years. The scars that he so kindly left behind on my back.

I push myself a little harder, needing to feel the burn in my legs and body as I reach my maximum endurance.

My mind continues to wonder about so many questions I still have. The decisions that still need to be made about my father's possessions and his house out here in Chicago. Then there is that last demand he has. The demand about a questionable amount of money to be transferred once a month into an unknown account. I wonder if it's a mistress of some sorts, maybe a prostitute he puts up somewhere and takes care of. For a split second, the thought of my father having a kid somewhere out there with another woman terrifies me. What if it's hush money? Could he have been portraying his lessons on another innocent child and I didn't know it. No matter what, no one deserves what Marcus did to me for all those years.

I haven't stepped foot into that house… The house that still haunts my nightmares even after all these years. I know it's something that I will have to overcome sooner or later. Well more like sooner than later, really, as I have a meeting with a realtor come tomorrow morning to look over the property. It's something I have left last for a reason… as I'm not looking forward to even five minutes in that house. I have thought about just hiring someone to clean up the house, donating all that is in there and just be done with it. But I honestly don't know what they could find. Would he still have the belt that he used to beat me with, with my blood still on it. Or worse, the closet door with the gate lock on the outside of the door where he used to lock me in for days at a time. It's one thing to live through that, it's another to have people discover it. To see that look on their face, like I'm a kicked puppy or something.

There is only one person that I ever confided in about my past. That was Zeke. I was grateful for having him as such a good friend at the time. A friend that passed me extra food from home so I would have something to eat at night and on the weekends. A friend that always passed along extra bandaids and creams to care for my ravaged back.

I haven't spoken to Zeke since the other night I saw him at the diner. He seemed so standoffish when I asked him about Tris. I wasn't sure where that came from. Did something happen between them while I was gone? Was there a story that I was missing? I know I have no right to ask, or even feel the slightest anger about it if there was something to say… But I still can't help it.

He obviously knew about Tris and I… How? I can't help but accuse Tris. We made a promise to never tell a soul. To always keep us the way we wanted it to be, private. How could she betray me like that? The little voice in my head reminds me that in her mind… She thinks I betrayed her. I left her. Little did she know, I was actually protecting her. I knew it was stupid of me to even think she would stay faithful, for her to know deep down that I would never do something like I said I would in that letter, to hope that somehow she would end up on my doorstep demanding answers. I guess I was asking for too much. After all, she doesn't owe me anything. I still wonder, if she is happy though, if she ever got married or is seeing anyone? But I guess Zeke was right to be cautious of my questions. Afterall, I can't ignore Marcus' warning "Don't be stupid boy, someone will always be watching you." Fucking Marcus.


The sign "Sweet Treats Bakery" catches my eye. My stomach grumbles, reminding me that I have yet to have anything to eat this morning. I left just as the sun was rising, needing to get out and get some energy out of me. To just think. I decided it would be best to stop off for something to eat before heading back to the hotel.

I slow my pace down as I come up to the door. I roll my eyes as I hear the door chimes just as I open and enter the small bakery. Well that has to get annoying after a few times. I glance around the semi empty bakery. I notice a young boy sitting at one of the booths, busing himself with what could only be an art project.

My head turns towards a small audible gasp that is near the counter. I'm surprised to see the person that stands before me is none other than the girl that has been in the back of my mind all these years. The girl that I threw my life away to protect, Tris Prior. My eyes involuntarily rake her body, noticing the changes in her body. Her breasts have gotten much larger, her hips more round and her stomach still floats. I swallow my groan, feeling the twitch in my pants instantly. It's only when Tris glances behind her that my eyes catch a beautiful blonde little girl that is wiping the glass display case. The little girl seems pleased, with not a care in the world. What the hell? I glance back at Tris who is staring back at me, her color is paler than she would be normally. My gut tells me there's something obviously going on since I have been away. Something that for one reason or another has to do with me. I dare to take a step forward, feeling this pull towards Tris and this little girl. When suddenly a very familiar irritating voice comes rushing in from the back. I don't have to look to know whose voice it belongs to, it's the kind of voice I don't think anyone could ever forget.

"Alright. Alright… I'll tell her." Christina screams out into her phone. Her eyes are focused on Tris as she approaches us. "Tris, it's Zeke… His highness says to call him ba-" She finally stops cold as she notices that Tris isn't alone in the bakery. It's almost comical how her eyes almost pop out of her head and her mouth drops wide open. It's in that instant that we all come to the realization of why Zeke, my best friend, is calling my ex-girlfriend who is now standing a few feet away from me in total shock to see me.


A/N

Come on now…Did you really think I wasn't going to do that? It was just too easy. LOL

See you all next week.

Revised by: FDFobsessed

Like always, happy reading everyone, Be safe and stay healthy

Trini