Chapter Twenty-Six.
[Isabelle Dawns' POV]
Grabbing coffee before my literature class and begun, I bumped into someone who I would have never thought I'd cross paths with again.
"So, how have you been?" Luke Cole asks taking a sip of his cappuccino. We were sitting outside of the coffee shop. He had his light brown hair slick back and his suit neatly on his body. He could have passed for a billionaire.
Luke is so sophisticated now. How can someone like him, who use to work for Dean in the past, transform into someone so classy? By the looks of it, he's gone pretty successful.
"I've been alright, thanks. How's your new life?" I asked rather intrigued, "If I distinctly remember, you're 24 now?"
He raised his cappuccino in my honour, "Your distinct remembrance is correct, Isabelle. I am fine also, I got a career as a law teacher at Frankston University a couple of hours away from here."
I beam, "That's amazing. Wow, congratulations, Luke. So what are you doing back here in town?" Frankston University is at least five to four hours away from here, therefore, curiousness once again, inched my brain.
"I just had some unfinished business to deal with here. It's a matter of saying goodbye to old past and hello to new futures."
"Old pasts meaning your ex girlfriend, Ellie?" I accidentally blurt out, his face turned pale.
"I just visited her grave a couple hours ago." He stated in a broken voice, I touched his hand.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean--"
"No, it's okay. Despite what happened to her death, I just needed to move on, you know?" I nod my head continuing to listen to his speech and somehow in between the topic, the subject of Ellie's death dug further, which also led to Dean.
"You know he's back, right? Dean." I announced in a whisper, Luke twitched a smile.
"It's kind of predictable, he's one of those guys who won't stop until something is done." His words sent shivers over my arms, "I hung out with Dean and the boys for most of my life but then I stopped after the incident with Ellie. Let's just say, they can get away with basically anything. I remember that his dad is the chief of the police, Dean is usually off the hook and that's the reason why he's never arrested. It's like the guy is invincible. That's why most people fear him."
"Are you, Luke?"
He grinned proudly, "Not as much as I use to. Fear is just something that's kept in your mind. I learnt that from the movie After Earth, starring Will Smith and his son, Jayden."
Listening to his choice in words, I comment, "Look at you, not only you're dressed sophisticatedly, but you're also speaking quite maturely."
He laughed, "My apologises, Ms Dawns. Let me rephrase my choice in dialogue: I watched this fucking sick as movie with Will and Jayden Smith and it had blood and guts, fighting and really deep words that I never understood until now."
Laughing loudly, I rolled my head back, "There you go!"
As the amusement faded down, he stared at me worriedly observing my display as I thought about the worst possible outcomes with Dean.
"You're scared, aren't you?" Luke spoke in a hushed tone, I brought my coffee up to the tip of my lips in wanting to answer his question, "Answer me."
"I'm terrified." I wouldn't want anything that happened to me before in that abandoned hall, happen again.
"So why did you come back to Florida? Why didn't you stay with your brother in California?"
"Personal reasons."
"Personal reasons meaning a certain someone brought you back here, huh?" He asks, I pursed my lips into a thin line.
"It's Chase, isn't it?" He asked again. Luke was suddenly getting everything right, he was easily unfolding my recent life like a blanket.
"Partly." I answered crossing my legs over the other.
He chuckled lightly, "Every love has a pinch of danger or sadness. That's just how life goes."
"Well, what about you and Ellie?" His face suddenly gone out of emotion and that's when I realised that there was also danger and sadness I his love life with Ellie just as much as there was with mine and Chase.
His girlfriend died from friends he trusted.
"Ellie and I were just normal college students at BHU, where you currently go to, I wouldn't really like to discuss the 'danger and sadness' parts of the story." I nod my head in fairness. Judging by the look on his face, I could tell that he was not ready to talk yet about her death again. It was truly heart-breaking to see him like this.
Therefore, I changed the subject, "You guys went to BHU?" That was something I didn't know.
"Oh, yeah. We were the class of 2010. Look us up in the yearbook." As he stood up, he began writing a piece of information down on a napkin and thruster it over to me, "Here, I think this will help with your 'fear', don't let it strike you out, kid. I have to go, I have a conference at the school and if I don't leave now, I'll be late."
He hugged my warmly before walking off into the distance.
Looking down at the napkin I received, my eyes scan across his writing and sooner realised that he was quoting the movie After Earth, it clearly said:
Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist is in our thoughts of the future. It is a product of our imagination, causing us to fear things that do not at present and may not ever exist. Do not misunderstand me, danger is very real, but fear is a choice.
****
Scanning over the 2010 yearbook pages, I finally found Luke Cole and his class photo. Reading his yearbook quote, I laughed and cooed at how cheesy yet adorable it was:
Ellie Hamilton is my goddess. Thanks for reading, now you know she's mine.
Ellie Hamilton? That was her full name?
Flicking over more pages, which felt like a dozen, I came across a photo of her. Now I finally knew what she looked like; light blonde hair, hazel coloured eyes and beautifully clear skin. Her smile was very much model material, it showed the dimples on her rosy cheeks.
Geez, no wonder Luke Cole was head over heels for her. She looked like she could win the award for Miss Universe. Why would anyone want to hurt a girl like her?
Reading over her yearbook message my face went pale as a ghost. I can't even breathe and for a split second, I thought I was going to pass out in the library. It was a two sentence quote, half was about Luke and the other half was about... Frankston street.
That was the street Dean, Hunter and Bryce had taken Chase and I last year. It was practically near the abandoned hall at the night where we almost got killed.
Ellie Hamilton quote: Frankston place is my favourite place.
Frankston street? That street is nothing more than deserted. Unless... It was actually something back at Ellie's time where there were actually something special in it.
My mind was racing.
It didn't add up, why would Frankston street be her favourite place?
And just when questions had bombarded my mind, I thought: Out of all places in Florida, why would Dean kidnap me and take me at the same place where Ellie loved to go?
So far, I didn't have the answers. I didn't want to think and stress about this because I thought it was over, but after my recent dangerous meet with Dean a couple of weeks ago, I really needed to figure this plot out.
Luke and Chase told me that Dean was the one who murdered Ellie. I remember them saying that he wanted to get revenge for Luke when he quit Dean's group therefore, he took Ellie away from him.
However, wasn't that too far? I admit, Dean is reckless and evil but I mean, killing people Luke loved? Wasn't that too much unless Luke done something worse to Dean?
Wait.
Did Luke do something much worse to Dean?
Perhaps the reason why Luke quit Dean's group was because of something he did to him. That's why Dean was furious and killed Ellie. It couldn't have just been because Luke left. Isn't it?
After all, Luke never told me the real reason behind why he left the group besides 'they killed my girlfriend'
I have no clue what I'm actually telling myself but I do know this: I have to go back to Frankston street and investigate. Alone.
Who was I suppose to tell about this anyway?
Chase would think I'm just over reacting again and Zachary doesn't even know the story of what happened to me late last year in that abandoned building with Chase and Dean. As for Asher, I trust him but I can't be too sure to let him in considering that his friends with Ellie's murderer.
___________________________
gUYS?!?!? I don't know how to feel about this chapter, let alone the next one!
What do you think about it? Do you reckon Isabelle is just over-reacting again or do you suspect that something is definitely coming her way? If you were in her shoes, what would you do?
Comment your thoughts on this chapter and your predictions in the next chapter!
And as for all of you messaging me about how many chapters there are left, I think you'll be pretty shocked to realise that there is only 3 chapters left until you discover the big ending.
I'm really praying you guys would enjoy the last chapter of LTBB because IT FREAKING MADE ME SHOCKED JUST BY READING IT TO MYSELF (EVEN THOUGH I WAS THE ONE WHO WROTE IT.)
If you liked this chapter, please vote!
Tell all your friends about LTBB! Let's get the book to 100k reads!
Thank you to my readers for their endless support, I love you guys! Xoxo