?Chapter 1564:


    After the words left his mouth, Marc gripped the wheel with one hand and flung his phone into the back seat with the other.


    Ste looked down and caught sight of a photo on the screen. William was at an extravagant party, his smile tilted slightly to one side, standing beside a stunning woman in a revealing dress. The woman was holding his arm, looking up at him — their stance unmistakably intimate.


    The image pierced through Ste’sposure. She drew a sharp breath, but inhaled cold air instead and broke into a harsh coughing fit. Real or not, tears welled in her eyes, bringing with them a crushing wave of misery. She set the phone down, but the image was too vivid to unsee, and her tears kept falling.


    Marc caught her breaking down in the rearview mirror, a heavy feeling settling in his chest. She had fallen for William again, even after losing her memory. The realization made his voice grow more desperate. “Stel, do you really want to spend the rest of your life trapped in that vi? Come with me. We will leave this ce, go somewhere nobody knows us, forget all of this, and start fresh. Please.”


    Ste stared at the streets rushing past outside, too overwhelmed to put her thoughts into words. Should she actually leave? And was William truly being intimate with another woman at this very moment?


    She nced at Marc behind the wheel, her emotions inplete disarray. Perhaps he had a point. What did staying with William offer her except continuous torment and the ever-present threat of his vengeance? She had told Sharon earlier that no matter what, she would eventually find a way out — she would work through theplications step by step. She would not remain in that vi indefinitely as William’s possession.


    It was precisely what Marc was suggesting now.


    Noticing her wavering, he pressed on. “Stel, I know you are still angry with me — but let me exin everything. Once we reach our destination, I will bepletely honest. If you still decide to leave afterward, I will not try to stop you.” He needed to show her he was nothing like William. If she was not ready to be with him now, he would respect that. After she had time to process everything, they could try building something new.


    Ste slowly closed her eyes, silent tears tracing their way down her cheeks. She felt utterly drained. She kept asking herself why her life threw obstacle after obstacle in her path. All she had ever wanted was an ordinary existence with someone she loved — and instead, she was here, trapped in this chaos.


    Perhaps getting away truly was her only option.


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    After a long silence, she heard her own voice emerge — rough and strained. “Alright. I wille with you.”


    Marc’s expression brightened at once. He elerated toward the airport and opened her door when they arrived. Nina had already secured false documents and seats on the next overseas flight. Everything proceeded withoutplication or suspicion.


    Ste moved through it all like an empty shell, letting Marc guide her through security in a fog and onto the crowded aircraft. The ne climbed and broke through the clouds. The city she knew shrank below — scattered lights dissolving one by one into darkness.


    She pressed her forehead against the window, gazed into the ck expanse for a long moment, then closed her eyes and said nothing. She had no idea what had be of Felix, or whether Tasha had gotten out safely — but none of it felt connected to her anymore. Her time at the vi seemed like a dream. More urately, a nightmare.


    Now that nightmare appeared to finally be over.


    Hours drifted by in a haze, and the ne touched down somewhere saturated with an unfamiliar culture. Only once they hadnded safely did Marc allow himself to breathe. He guided Ste toward the contact Nina had arranged.


    The contact turned out to be a middle-aged man with calcting eyes who spoke perfect English and offered them transportation. He drove a worn-out jeep away from the airport, through roads neither of them recognized.


    Marc watched the exhausted Ste beside him and reached for her hand. “Stel, we will be out of danger soon. He is taking us somewhere William will not be able to track us.”


    Ste registered the warmth of his palm but said nothing, withdrawing her hand gently.


    Her detachment made Marc’s expression harden. He started to speak, then stopped himself and held back. “Try to rest. You could not have slept much on the flight.” He turned his gaze elsewhere and decided not to push any further. She needed time alone with her thoughts — he could see that clearly enough.


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