My brother was destined to be the tragic casualty of a bestseller romance. In the grand narrative of life, every golden couple needs a stepping stone—someone whose heart is destined to be shattered, whose life is meant to be ruined, just to prove how insurmountable their love is. In our world, that stepping stone was my older brother, Colby. According to the script, Dale, the beautiful, delicate heroine, would use him as a pawn to make her billionaire husband, Will, jealous. And once his purpose was served, Will would have him discarded like trash, his life ending in the cold depths of the Atlantic. To prevent that tragic end, I had been bound to a System since the day I took my first breath. My infant mind was hardwired with one singular, exhausting mission: keep Colby Kemp alive. Whenever he tried to slip out for a date with Dale during our childhood, I would make sure to ruin his pristine designer suits by wetting myself right on his shoulder. When he spent hours pouring his soul into handwritten love letters, my chubby toddler hands would tear them to shreds while I beamed up at him, entirely innocent. For eighteen years, I ran him ragged. I kept him so deeply buried under the chaotic demands of raising a high-maintenance little sister that he barely had the time or energy to notice the star-crossed lovers playing out their drama in the background. But then, my college acceptance letter arrived. That evening, Colby called me into his quiet, wood-paneled study. The scent of old paper and expensive cologne hung heavy in the air. "You’re an adult now, Maisie," he said, his voice flat, devoid of the warmth I had spent a lifetime coaxing out of him. "My obligation to raise you is complete. It’s time for me to go and live my own life." In my head, the System’s robotic voice flared to life, sending a cold shiver down my spine. [Warning. Target’s danger index has reached 100%. He has acquired military-grade explosives. He plans to strap them to his chest and gatecrash Dale and Will's tenth wedding anniversary party tomorrow. He intends to end it all.] I didn't panic. Instead, I simply nodded, smiled, and went to make a phone call. The next morning, I marched right back into Colby’s study, dragging a bleached-blonde punk by the hand. I leaned heavily against Ryder’s leather-jacketed shoulder. He was covered in tattoos, smelled faintly of cheap cigarettes, and looked like he had never held a real job in his life. I held a giant, dollar-store plastic cup of sugary lemonade in my left hand, and a forged ultrasound printout in my right. I looked up at Ryder with an expression of pure, unadulterated adoration. "Colby," I said, my voice dripping with saccharine sweet devotion. "He’s not just some deadbeat. He promised me that as soon as he customizes his new street bike, we're going to take over the family business together." I turned my starry-eyed gaze back to Colby, whose face was already beginning to twitch. "So, why don't you just sign over your company shares to him? Once that's done, you can go off and do whatever it is you need to do. Don't worry about us." Colby’s face twisted in sheer, unvarnished horror. He stared at the ultrasound slip, then at Ryder's smug, pierced face, and finally at me. With a muffled curse, he ripped a heavy canvas vest from beneath his desk and hurled it onto the Persian rug. The metal canisters clattered against the wood floor—the explosives. He didn't care about them anymore. He lunged forward, grabbed me by the ear, and hauled me away from Ryder. "My plans can wait," Colby growled, his chest heaving as he stared me down. "Today, I’m dealing with you!" … "Ouch! Let go, let go!" I pried his fingers off my ear, rubbing the stinging skin as I took a hasty step back. "Colby, you’re the one who said I’m an adult now! You can't just treat me like a child anymore!" I protested, pouting. Then, I turned back to Ryder, casting him a dramatic, lingering look before lowering my gaze in mock embarrassment. "Besides, the love of my life is standing right here. Do you mind giving me some dignity?" Colby’s face flushed a deep, dangerous crimson. I could practically see the steam rising from his collar. "You're eighteen! What the hell do you know about love?" He snatched a broom from Lawrence, our terrified housekeeper who had been trying to sweep the hallway, and brandished it like a weapon. In my mind, the System’s voice chimed, sounding remarkably impressed. [Host, his danger index has just dropped from 100% to 90%. It actually worked!] I felt a surge of smug satisfaction. Of course it worked. Our mother had passed away from complications during my birth. Colby had been both father and mother to me, sacrificing his youth to raise me. If he could sit back and watch his precious little sister get whisked away by a tattooed punk on a loud motorcycle without losing his mind, he wouldn't be Colby Kemp. I darted around the mahogany coffee table, keeping it between us as I sniffled theatrically. "You're willing to throw away your entire life and the family business just for Dale!" I cried. "Well, I feel the exact same way about my baby! I would betray the entire world for him. Who are you to tell me I don't understand love?" Colby froze, his knuckles whitening around the broom handle. Before he could speak, his phone on the table began to buzz. The screen lit up with Dale's name. He stared at it for a second before hitting speakerphone. "Colby," Dale’s soft, fragile voice echoed through the room. "I actually thought you might try to ruin our anniversary today. I'm glad to see you finally have some self-respect." She let out a soft, delicate sigh that sounded entirely practiced. "I know how much you've done for me over the years. But honestly, with that little sister of yours clinging to you like a parasite, it was never going to work between us. If I had chosen you back then, she would have spent her whole life competing with me for your attention." She paused, her tone turning effortlessly condescending. "But I suppose I can still offer you a chance to be helpful. Will and I want a private weekend away. You can watch our kids for us today. I'll have the driver drop them off." The silence in the room grew heavy, suffocating. Colby’s jaw clenched so hard I feared his teeth might crack. He stared at the phone, his breathing shallow, yet he couldn't bring himself to utter a single word. Dale had always played the part of the fragile, helpless heroine in front of Will. It was only because of Colby’s unconditional, obsessive devotion that she felt comfortable treating him like a convenient doormat. The System’s alarm blared in my head. [Warning! Target’s danger index is surging back up! Take immediate action. If he attempts to harm the main characters, the fabric of this world will collapse, and you will be erased.] I shot Ryder a sharp, desperate look. He caught on instantly. Stepping forward, he slapped the broom out of Colby’s hand, letting it clatter to the floor, and stood protectively in front of me. He glared at Colby with a look of pure, theatrical defiance. "My girl is the undisputed Queen of the Emo Scene," Ryder declared, puffing out his chest. "If someone crosses her, I break them. If she's hungry, I feed her. What right does an old man like you have to disrespect my queen?" He turned to me, his expression softening into something absurdly dramatic. "You remember that, my dark princess?" I squeezed out a tear, throwing myself into his arms. "Colby doesn't love me anymore. I don't care about him either. If you want to ride your street bike over his grave someday, I won't stop you." Colby closed his eyes, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he fought to keep his composure. "Colby? You wanted to join our world so badly, don't ignore this opportunity," Dale’s voice piped up from the phone, sharp and demanding. "Can you be here in ten minutes?" Colby ground his teeth, reached down, and abruptly disconnected the call. "I am currently being driven to an early grave by my own sister," he snarled into the empty room, throwing the phone onto the sofa. He poured himself a glass of ice water, draining it in one go to steady his breathing. He pointed a finger at me. "Are you really pregnant?" "If I tell you the truth, will you make me get rid of it?" I countered, playing the stubborn teenager. I couldn't back down too easily; if I seemed entirely unreasonable, he might just give up on me and return to his self-destructive obsession with Dale. After all, his love-sick second-lead settings were deeply ingrained. "Why do you hate him so much?" I asked. Colby looked at me as if I had lost my mind. "Because he can't give you a life, Maisie. If I wanted you to end up with a deadbeat, I wouldn't have spent a fortune protecting you from the real world. I could have just thrown you in the slums." "But Dale hasn't given you a life either," I pointed out, leaning on the formulas I'd memorized from the original plotline. "To make her smile, you spent three hundred million dollars bidding on that diamond necklace, nearly bankrupting our firm. And what did she do? She wore it to her wedding with Will." I pointed out the window toward the yard where a golden retriever was barking at a butterfly. "And Rusty out there—he's bitten me three times, but you refuse to rehome him just because Dale gave him to you. Your logic doesn't hold up, Colby. You're just jealous because Ryder and I are actually happy." Ryder looked at me, his eyes practically sparkling. "You are so deep. From this day on, I crown you my Muse of Wisdom." He actually dropped to one knee on the rug, dramatically belt-singing an old 80s rock ballad about surrender. Between his off-key singing and the dog barking outside, the house was a chaotic circus. Colby pinched the bridge of his nose, looking utterly defeated. "Lawrence," he called out, his voice exhausted. "Give Rusty back to Dale. I don't want him in my yard anymore." He pointed toward the front door. "And now, tell your boyfriend to get out of my house." The System flashed a green notification. [Danger index is dropping. Keep going, Host!] It was a start. I knew the classic rule of negotiation: push hard, then give a little space. "Go home for now, babe," I whispered to Ryder, patting his arm. "I'll sneak out to see you tomorrow." After ushering Ryder out, I hoped to finally catch my breath. But before I could even sit down, our security guard hurried into the room, looking pale and hesitant. "Mr. Kemp... Ms. Dale is outside. She says she needs to see you immediately." Colby stiffened, his gaze flying to the door. "What?" He caught me watching him and quickly cleared his throat, trying to mask his sudden tension as he sat back down. I sighed. "Just let her in." There was no point in blocking her; his mind was already drifting toward her anyway. Better to keep her where I could see her, so I could manage whatever crisis she was about to throw at us. Dale burst through the doors, her face streaked with tears. Without a word of warning, she threw herself directly into Colby’s arms. Colby went entirely rigid. "Colby, Will was so cruel to me," she sobbed against his chest. "We were supposed to have our anniversary dinner, but he abandoned me at the restaurant just to take a business call. I feel so empty... I didn't know where else to go." The anger in Colby’s eyes melted into a look of profound, familiar pain. "Don't cry," he murmured, his hand hovering over her hair before gently patting it. His expression darkened. "I'll make sure anyone who hurts you regrets it." Inside my head, the System began to screech. [Warning! Target is contemplating financial retaliation against the male lead! Host, do something!] I stepped forward, offering Dale a fresh handkerchief and a calm smile. "Dale, why don't you stay here tonight? My brother is wonderful at taking care of people." This was her usual pattern. Every time she had a minor argument with Will, she would run to Colby to cry. Colby would then retaliate by sabotaging Will's business ventures to defend her honor, only for Dale to turn around and accuse Colby of trying to ruin her marriage. Colby looked up, a faint spark of hope in his eyes. But Dale, true to form, instantly recoiled, slapping the handkerchief out of my hand. "Who asked for your input?" she spat, her tear-stained face twisting into something ugly. "Will is the heir to a multi-billion-dollar empire. I know exactly what girls like you are thinking—you're just waiting for us to get a divorce so you can try and climb your way into high society, aren't you?" She stared at me, her eyes flashing with a sudden, vicious jealousy. She raised her hand high. "A motherless brat with no manners. I think it's time someone taught you some respect!" I braced myself, closing my eyes as her hand came down. But the blow never landed. When I opened my eyes, Colby was standing in front of me, his tall frame shielding me completely. He took the force of the slap. A bright, angry red mark began to bloom across his cheek. He frowned, his voice remarkably quiet. "Dale, I know you're upset. But Maisie is my sister. Please treat her with respect." Even after eighteen years in this world, his boundless tolerance for this woman still shocked me. I quietly reached into my pocket and fired off a text message to Ryder. Even with Colby’s submission, Dale wasn't satisfied. "You're defending another woman over me?" she gasped, taking a step back. "Fine! I won't stay here. Enjoy the silence when I'm gone!" She turned to run out, and Colby’s face immediately tightened with panic. [Host! Danger level is at 99%! He's thinking about locking her in the house to keep her safe!] I calmly pulled out my phone, dialing Ryder on speaker, using my most breathy, helpless voice. "Babe, where are you? Colby is going out tonight. Can you take me to get that tattoo? I want your name across my ribs. You're my whole world now." Colby’s steps halted. "That old man is finally out of the way?" Ryder’s voice boomed through the speaker. "I'm right outside, baby. I'm coming to get you." The deafening roar of a modified engine shattered the quiet of our driveway. Ryder rode his loud, obnoxious street bike right over the manicured lawn, crushing a bed of white orchids—Dale’s absolute favorite flowers, which Colby had spent years cultivating. He pulled up to the porch, killed the engine, and gave me a sharp, crooked grin. "You don't have to walk on eggshells around him anymore, baby. I'm here." I bypassed Colby entirely, hopping onto the back of Ryder’s bike and wrapping my arms tightly around his waist. "Since you won't let Dale leave, Colby, I won't keep Ryder away either," I said, leaning my chin on Ryder's shoulder. "Go be with her. I'll just stay at the warehouse with Ryder and his crew tonight. There are about twelve of them living there, so I'll feel totally safe." Inside my mind, the System let out a breath of relief. [Host, his mind is literally blank right now. The dark thoughts have stalled.] Dale had stopped near the gate, clearly expecting Colby to chase after her and beg for forgiveness as he always did. But when she turned around, she saw him standing on the porch, his face grim, his eyes locked entirely on me and the boy on the motorcycle. He wasn't even looking at her. "Colby!" she screamed, her voice cracking. "I'm really leaving this time! I mean it!" Colby waved a hand dismissively without shifting his gaze. "Then leave. I'm trying to deal with my sister." Realizing she was being ignored, Dale's composure shattered completely. She marched over to the motorcycle, glaring at me with venom. "First you try to get close to my husband, and now you're playing these pathetic games with Colby? Do you enjoy having men fight over you?" I blinked, genuinely baffled by her leaps of logic. "Ma'am, Colby is my biological brother." "Don't call me ma'am! Are you calling me old?" she shrieked, lunging forward and grabbing my denim jacket, her long, manicured nails scratching at my arm. Before she could pull me down, Ryder shoved her away, sending her stumbling onto the grass. "Dale!" Colby took a step forward, his brow furrowing. "Security, get this guy off my property!" "Don't you dare touch me!" Ryder yelled back, pointing a finger at Colby. "You call yourself a brother? If you can't protect her, I will. My girl, my rules." He revved the engine, preparing to pull away. "But you tell your little friend here to watch herself. If she hurts my girl, I'll tear this whole place apart." I cheered, raising my hands in the air. "You're the best, babe! So much cooler than my brother!" I looked down at the red scratch on my arm and sighed. "I get hurt and he just stands there. I'm staying with you forever." Colby stood by the pillar, his eyes closed, rubbing his temples in sheer exhaustion. "Lawrence... please escort Dale out." Dale let out a sharp, bitter laugh from the lawn. "You protect her? Colby, she's probably praying for your demise right now." She reached into her designer bag, pulling out a handful of printed papers and throwing them onto the grass. "I knew something was off when you refused to watch my kids. I had my people look into her. These are her actual chat logs with her boyfriend." Colby slowly walked down the steps and picked up the papers. His expression went entirely blank. He walked over to the motorcycle, holding the sheets up to me. "Did you write this?" I looked down. It was a screenshot of a text message I had sent Ryder: [The second my brother's stupid plans go sideways, you and I are going straight to the family lawyers to claim the estate. We'll turn his corporate offices into a motorcycle custom shop.] I had no defense. I had actually sent that. But Ryder and I were just playing roles; we were literally rehearsing our script to keep Colby on his toes. Dale crossed her arms, a triumphant smirk returning to her face. "Silent? So it's true." She turned to Colby, her voice dropping into that soft, manipulative purr. "Colby, I'll give you a choice. You can come back to me and prove you still care... or you can keep protecting this ungrateful child. But if you choose her, you will never see me again." My chest tightened. Nobody knew better than I did how much Colby had sacrificed for this woman. If he chose her now, if he fell back into that toxic loop, our world would end. Colby’s hands clenched into fists, then slowly relaxed. He looked up, his eyes steady as he looked at Dale. He opened his mouth to speak.
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "544682", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel