<b>Chapter 561 </b>


    The chill of the night air, fraught with a tension as thick as msses, wove through the space between them like an unwee specter.


    Avery’s heart plunged the moment he saw his beloved Evadne standing with Thaddeus, the joy of her presence crashing down. around him, shattering like fragile ss.


    “Evadne, my dear, you’vee?” Mrs. Chambers‘ eyes sparkled with a tender gleam, and she looked as if she would rise from her wheelchair to embrace the girl if only her legs would allow it.


    It was curious how Mrs. Chambers, whose memory often faltered when it came to her own son, never failed to recognize Evadne’s striking beauty. Her affection was a poorly kept secret, transparent as ss.


    “Mrs. Chambers, good to see you,” Evadne greeted, bowing her head in polite deference.


    Thaddeus wrapped a protective arm around Evadne’s waist, his gaze sharp and unyielding as a de of ice, vignt of Avery’s every move.


    “Evadne, who is this?” Mrs. Chambers asked, bewildered by Thaddeus‘ stoic expression, clutching the hem of Avery’s shirt for


    reassurance.


    Evadne’s gaze lingered on the man’s chiseled profile, about to speak when Avery, adjusting his gold–rimmed sses, stole the moment with a smile. “Evadne, what a coincidence to bump into you here. Are you heading out on a journey?”


    Talking only to Evadne, he acted as though Thaddeus wasn’t even there. <i>– </i>


    “Avery, do you really think I’m in the mood to travel?” Evadne’s voice was sharp as frosted crystal, unwilling to mince words with Avery in front of Mrs. Chambers. “You know the darkness you’ve conjured, the blood on your hands better than anyone else. With Eden still atrge, Cassius and Thaddeus‘ vendettas unavenged, how could I possibly entertain the thought of leisure?”


    Thaddeus‘ l*ps twitched ever so slightly, his gaze loaded with a love as brilliant as the stars.


    “Ave, what is Evadne talking about? I don’t understand,” Mrs. Chambers said, her confusion evident.


    “It’s quite normal that you don’t understand, as I’m equally perplexed,” Avery reassured, hands gently massaging his mother’s shoulders, his angelic features belying the venom within. “Evadne, who’s Eden? I don’t know the man. And what trouble have Cassius and Thaddeus found themselves in? Is there anything I can do to help?”


    Rage boiled within Thaddeus, a tempest swirling in his chest at the memory of he and Cassius’s near–fatal encounter on Star Ind while pursuing Ward.


    And here was Avery, the puppet master of it all, feigning innocence.


    Offering help? What, a quicker death?


    Evadne felt Thaddeus‘ hand trembling on her waist, his anger nearly self–destructive.


    Her heart was heavy, longing to avenge her brother and Thaddeus, to breathe relief to Debby and her husband far away in Helgen. But this was not the time for trivial verbal victories. She sought a reckoning, Avery’seuppance, his atonement.


    “Ave. I’m cold, can we leave now?” Mrs. Chambers whispered, her frail b*dy curled slightly, asking tentatively.


    She had been sheltered for years, her son’s care leaving her fragile as a leaf. Although autumn was nigh in Elmsworth, the chill of early morning and evening had yet to take hold.


    “Of course, Mother, I’ll take you to the ne right now.”


    Avery was about to wheel his mother toward the aircraft when Thaddeus interjected with a <b>frosty </b>voice, “Avery, I regret to inform you that your ne won’t be taking off tonight. Not from here. You’re going nowhere.”


    Yet Avery continued undeterred towards his private jet.


    <i>“</i>Avery.” Thaddeus‘ gaze darkened, his aura so intimidating it seemed to freeze the very wind in its tracks.


    “My mother said she’s cold, did you not hear her?” Avery nced sidelong at Thaddeus, his eyes venomous as a viper ready to strike, “And what right do you have <b>to </b>dictate what I do? If the police suspect me of wrongdoing, let theme with <b>a </b>warrant. I willply with any investigation. Otherwise, no one can stop me<b>.” </b>


    <b>“</b>Suspect? Hardly.”


    <b>Evadne’s </b>l*ps curled into a <b>scornful </b>smile, herugh sharp enough to pierce his heart. <b>“</b><b>If </b>it were mere suspicion, we wouldn’t be <b>here </b>confronting you, nor stopping you from leaving. Avery<b>, </b>you are the culprit. No matter what you say, I will never believe you.”