TEN.

Tori sat on Jake's study table, she was typing one of his numerous documents while he was receiving a massage from his mom.

She was almost rounding off her work when Jake's beeping phone broke through the comfortable silence in the room.

"Cutie, aren't you going to answer your call?" Trinity asked when he ignored the caller.

"It's not relevant" he grunted. When the caller was not going to relax until he gets a reply, he grabbed his phone from the bedside table.

The caller didn't let him talk before she began to run her mouth, causing him to sit up at once.

"Kidding right?" He asked, jumping from his bed. His brow was knotted in a frown.

"You need to come over this minute" Jenny cried at the other end.

Pulling his mom close, he pecked her forehead then dashed out of his room. He returned a few minutes later to get his car key, which was lying on the table.

"Be careful, okay" Trinity yelled after him. His actions showed there was trouble.

The drive to the casino was rough. He darted through vehicles just to make sure he got to the casino in time.

Tyler wasn't going to die without given a second chance to live.

Despite all efforts he made, Tyler was gone a few minutes before his arrival.

"What… What happened?" He gasped, staring at Jenny, who was wailing uncontrollably.

She looked so unkempt. Her clothes were soaked with Tyler's blood.

"Please talk to me" Jake groaned, crouching beside her. When she wouldn't talk, he pulled her close then began to comfort her.

Her cries soon turned to sobs then whimpers. Jake was still patting her head.

"It's Brock" She sniffed after a pretty long time.

Losing a friend was like losing a brother. That was how Jake felt as he stared at the Tyler's corpse.

Brock had always been a foe right from the beginning. Killing Tyler was just going to worsen the whole situation.

Later that evening, Tyler's corpse was taken to the cemetery to be committed to mother earth.

All members of the gang were present to pay their last respect to the deceased.

Still mourning a deceased comrade, Jake left home one day without telling anyone his whereabouts, not even his mom who was his confidant.

He didn't stop there, he turned off his phone, so he would receive any call. He just wanted to be left alone.

On his return, a worried Trinity dashed out of the house. She was expecting an apology from him, instead she got a blood bathed son who was staggering towards her.

"What happened?" She screamed.

He spat out thick blood then wiped his nose which was bleeding with the cuff of his shirt.

"What happened man?" Jace asked. Everyone was outside then.

"I was attacked, but I'm fine" he replied, forcing a smile.

"You can't be fine" Nicole snapped, hurrying to his side. With Jace help, she was able to help Jake into the house.

No one had to ask Tori to get a basin of water and a clean towel before she did.

Jake had suffered few bullets injuries on his shoulder and also cut on his side.

Leaving the ladies to look after Jake, Jace hurried to fetch Hannah, who was a veterinary doctor and a childhood friend to the twins.

She had always been responsible for treating Jake's bullet injury whenever he sustains one, since going to the hospital was definitely going to spark a fire.

By the time she arrived, Jake had not only passed out, he lost a lot of blood too.

She set to work immediately. She fixed a pint of blood she brought along to his body that was gradually becoming cold.

When she was done, he was moved to his room, so he could relax on his bed and not the couch.

There was tension in the air when he remained motionless for hours. No one got a wink of sleep that night. Even Hannah had to pass the night with them.

With assurance from Hannah, they all went to their respective workplace, leaving Tori with Jake who was yet to wake up.

Sitting all day staring at an almost lifeless body was no fun for Tori. Despite their constant fight and argument, she never wished him death.

She would stare at him for a while before burying her face into the pillow, which had proved to be a great comfort to her.

This went up for a sometime before she fell asleep. By the time she woke up, it was past noon and the person kept under her care was nowhere to be found, instead she had taken his position on the bed.

"Oh my God!" She jumped out of bed with her heart in her mouth.

She searched everywhere, still yet, she could not find him

"Oh God, what am I going to do now?" She groaned.

She was still bemoaning her fate when she heard the clanging of pots. The sound spiked up fear in her, causing her to hold her breath for a few seconds.

She tip toed towards the kitchen, where the sound was coming from. But on a second thought, she decided to arm herself.

She tip toed towards the stairs, only to return with a baseball bat she got from the gym.

"What a fool he is to cook in someone's else house?" She muttered as the person kept making a hell of noise in the kitchen.

Trying to be a hero, she raised the baseball bat over her head. It came crashing on the countertop, upsetting the plate which was resting peacefully on it.

"What's wrong with you?" Jake yelled, seeing his meal on the floor.

Tori opened her eyes as wide as it could while moving backward at the same time. She never thought Jake was the so-called intruder.

"You…" She managed to say before Jake snapped.

"Yes, I was the one in the kitchen, not any intruder. Like come on Tori, you just spilled my sweat on the floor" he groaned staring at the omelette on the floor.

"I'm sorry. I'll make another one for you right now. Just relax" she said with a nervous smile.

Jake flopped on the island table with a large scowl on his face while she set to work.

His meal was ready within thirty minutes. Trying to appease him, Tori made a quick juice for him.

"Here you go" she chuckled, wiping her hands.

Without a word to her, he began to savor the meal. By the time he was done, Tori was feasting on the noodles she made for herself.

"My omelette was more tasty than this trash you served me" he gawked at her.

"But you finished the whole meal" she retorted. This was going to give birth to another round of unending argument.

"Who knows if this thing you call a juice will be tasty" he said eyeing the glass before him.

Annoyed with his act, Tori grabbed the juice then downed the entire content.

"How dare you drink the juice now I have no choice than to suck it from your throat" he smirked walking close to her.

Tori guessed his next move, so she scurried out of the kitchen while he was hot on her tail.

When he caught up with her, he caged, pinned her on the wall.

"Let go of me" she yelled

"Chill… It's not…"

"Leave me alone" she snapped, glaring at him angrily

"I would have just died, then you'll be sad to lose a rare gem like me"

Tori let out a shout laugh. She bit her lower lips then said, "It would have been better if you had died"

"Really?"

"Yea. Who cares anyway?" She snapped, rolling her eyes at smiling Jake.