Chapter <b>323 </b>


    ETHAN


    The drive back was a silent one, I couldn’t get the picture of Xander like that out of my head. I knew it was going to haunt me for a very long time. I thought Luke was the one who did that, but I was wrong, “How could you allow him to do something like that?” Luke gave me a side nce then shook his head.


    “Allow you said?” He chuckled darkly. “Nick is a grow man in case you forgot, he is not a child, and I didn’t have to give him permission to do anything or allow him to do anything. He does what he wants and that has nothing to do with me.” He clicked his tongue.


    “How could I allow him, is Nick my child that I must keep an eye on? Don’t piss me off Ethan.” He was angry but I didn’t care, he should have found a way to stop him. If he could do something like that to another man, that meant he snapped, something in him snapped.


    “Still, you should have found a way to stop him. you were the only one there with him and the only one who could have stopped him.” I wasn’t looking at Luke, but I could feel his re. “If he did something like that, I don’t think he is alright in the head, Luke. We should get him help.”


    Lukeughed, like a full bellyugh as if I had told him the funniest joke he has ever heard. “Help him, you said?” He continued tough but I didn’t see anything funny in what I said. “Since he has been back, have you noticed anything different about him?”


    I thought about it but there was nothing, he seemed fine and if Luke hadn’t shown me Xander like that, I wouldn’t have been having the thoughts I was having. “Exactly! Nick is fine because what he did back then, didn’t affect him at all. You are worried for nothing because that man is fine.”


    It was my turn to send a re his way, how could he say something like that about someone who skinned another man like an animal? What in his world about that was alright? “re at me all you like but you know am right, Nick is fine because doing something like that is in his blood. Second nature. He didn’t need to be taught what to do to inflict pain on Xander and make him pay.”


    Luke shook his head as if he couldn’t believe Nick was capable of such, I couldn’t either. “I thought Xander was sick and twisted son of a bitch, but he has nothing on Nick, he is worse than his grandfather. If he were alive, he would have been proud of his grandson’s handy work. Now, that son of a bitch was twisted.”


    I thought he hated his father but the way he spoke about him was with pride. I could never understand Luke. ” There is nothing to be proud about in this, Luke. Don’t you see?” He frowned looking confused.


    “If Nick can do something like this, it means his dark side is worse than yours and you are at fault for bringing it out. I me you for this. All the time you spent with him in Summer Strand. You did this.” Lukeughed mockingly.


    “If you must know, I didn’t let Nick anywhere near my business in Summer Strand, ask Owen if you don’t believe me. Face it, Ethan, this is who your friend is, there is no one to me for it but himself. So, stop trying to shift the me on me and find out what his next n is because he seemed to enjoy doing that too much if you ask me.”


    ke that, he He shook his head as if he were thinking about what had happened back then. “I had never seen h ? worked in silence, only Xander’s cries could be heard from that room. The horrific cries that still haunt me to this day. I thought he woulde out of that room a changed man but…”


    He shook his head. “But when he finally came out, after seven days, he was fine as if nothing happened. The only thing that stood out was that he had a terrible smell. Nothing else changed, the man was the same. See Ethan, you can only pull off something like that ande out on the other side still the same if you have a heart as cold as a corpse’s.”


    I didn’t like that analogy, the Nick I knew wasn’t like that. I refused to believe he was a cold–hearted beast as Luke imed. He couldn’t be. “I see you are in denial, which is fine. He is your friend, you have known him for many years, but I think he only let you see what he wanted you to see not all of him.”


    I ignored Luke until we got back to his ce. I got out of the car without saying a word. “If you want your friendship to continue the way it is, I suggest you don’t bring Xander up to Nick.” Luke called after me. I stopped briefly but went into my car.


    My n was to go and see Nick but what Luke said stuck with me. Who else knew about what he did, who else did Luke inform about that? I wondered if I should go to Olivia’s ce and ask Marcus. A knock sounded on my window, I looked up and Luke was standing there.


    I lowered the window. “Come on, let’s go have a drink. It’s clear you don’t know what to do or where to go from here.” He walked away and I got out of the car. I followed him. “Why did you tell me? I was fine not knowing, why did you have to ruin my friend’s image to me like that?”


    Lukeughed and nced at me over his shoulder. “How do you think I felt having to carry this on my own? Now I have you to talk to about it.” he shrugged as if it was nothing.


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