ELLA.

The hell... do they all have a habit of not knocking?

The thought flashed through my mind the instant the door burst open again. My breath was still uneven, my chest rising and falling too quickly as Lawrence pulled away from me.

And then my eyes met his.

Lurgard.

He stood by the door, his presence filling the entire space, his body rigid with tension. His emerald eyes burned with something fierce, anger, sharp and unrestrained and yet, there was something strangely captivating about them, even in that moment.

"What exactly are you doing, Lawrence?" he demanded, his voice low but laced with fury.

His hands clenched tightly at his sides, the muscles in his arms visibly tensing as though he was barely holding himself back.

"Is this the reason why you decided to come instead?" he continued, stepping further into the room. "So you could..."

He stopped abruptly.

His gaze shifted to me.

Whatever words he had been about to say died instantly, cut short the moment his eyes settled on my face. The tension in the room thickened, heavy and suffocating.

Lawrence stood up immediately.

"Calm down, Lurgard," he said quickly, his tone controlled but firm. "I was only trying to convince her to get the divorce."

"Spare me that bullshit, Lawrence," Lurgard snapped without hesitation.

He took another step forward, his presence growing even more imposing, the air around him almost charged with his anger.

"Was what I just saw the proper way to convince her?" he added, his voice rising slightly.

The tension between them snapped into something sharper, something dangerous.

I stood there, frozen, my heart racing as I looked from one to the other. The room felt smaller, hotter, as though the space between them was filled with something ready to explode at any moment.

And somehow...I was at the center of it.

I didn’t understand it.

I didn’t understand why they were reacting this way, why everything seemed to revolve around me, around a person I wasn’t.

"Can you both just stop!" I yelled suddenly.

The words burst out of me before I could think, my voice louder than I intended, cutting through the tension like a blade.

Silence fell instantly.

Both of them froze.

Slowly, they turned to face me.

The anger that had been so clear moments ago softened, shifted, into something else entirely. Something calmer. Almost... concerned.

And then, in perfect unison, they spoke.

"I’m sorry, Theresa. I didn’t mean to startle you."

Their voices overlapped, identical in tone, identical in intent and somehow...that was what truly startled me.

I looked away from the intensity of their gaze, unable to hold it any longer, and coughed slightly to ease the tightness in my throat.

The silence pressed in again, thick and uncomfortable. Before I could gather myself and look back up, both of them moved at the same time.

Two glasses of water were suddenly in front of me.

I froze.

My eyes shifted from one glass to the other, then slowly upward to their faces. The gesture was simple, almost thoughtful, but the way it happened, so perfectly in sync, made something inside me stir uneasily.

It felt... unnatural.

Before I could react, Lurgard stepped closer, his hand came to my back, patting it lightly.

The moment his palm made contact, a strange sensation shot through me. A sharp, sudden surge, like electricity, ran down my spine.

I stiffened instantly.

My breath hitched as a shiver followed, crawling through my body in a way that made my skin prickle. It wasn’t pain, It wasn’t exactly fear either.

It was... something else, something I couldn’t explain and it made me uncomfortable.

What exactly is wrong with me?

The thought echoed in my mind as I instinctively pulled slightly away, trying to regain control over my own body.

I couldn’t keep reacting like this.

Not to them.

Not to their touch.

Not to anything.

Without thinking further, I stood up suddenly.

The movement was abrupt, almost desperate, as if putting physical distance between us would somehow steady me. My heart was racing again, my thoughts spiraling as I tried to focus on what truly mattered.

They weren’t going to leave.

I could feel it.

They wouldn’t walk out of this room unless I gave them what they came for.

And the truth was...I didn’t have much of a choice.

Alex.

The name alone sent a cold wave of fear through me.

He had rejected me and tried to destroy me but if he found out I was still alive... if he discovered where I was...He could use the law. He could drag me back.

And this time, there would be no escape.

My body trembled slightly at the thought, my fingers curling into my palms as I fought to steady myself.

There was nothing left to lose.

"I agree," I said finally, the words leaving my lips more firmly than I expected.

Both of them stilled.

"I will divorce Alexander Blake."

The room fell silent again, but this time, it felt different and the moment the words settled in the air, I caught it.

A glance.

Lurgard looked at Lawrence.

It was quick and subtle, but I saw it and then... something else, like the faintest hint of a smile touched the corners of their lips.

My chest tightened slightly as unease crept back in.

What exactly are they up to?