Chapter <b>322 </b><b>shing </b>Loyalties
Chapter 322 shing Loyalties
Leander froze, evidently stunned that Quinn had slipped from his grasp with such effortless <b>grace</b><b>. </b>
“Security! Where are the guards in this ce?” Serena shouted, fury ring hotter now that her own strength had failed.
Uniformed personnel hurried over, their faces shifting when they recognized Serena. Though the <b>Fane </b>family traced its roots to Celosia, Serena had be a darling of Doria’s social pages; her reputation preceded her.
“She injured my hand–drag her out,” Serena said. Then, as if remembering something, she walked up to Quinn. “Apologize first, and perhaps I’ll be merciful.”
“Shouldn’t you be apologizing to me?” Quinn shot back, voice icy.
“Apologize to you? You’re not worth it,” Serena sneered.
“Every life is born equal–status doesn’t change that,” Quinn replied, the words falling like frost.
Serenaughed, short and cruel. “Equality is the luby nobodies sing to fool themselves. Right now, I demand an apology, and you will give it.” With a tilt of her chin she signaled the guards <i>to </i>advance.
The foremost guard stepped up. “Please apologize to Ms. Fane, or we will be forced to <b>act</b>.”
Serena might have belonged to a coteral branch of the sprawling Fane dynasty, yet the shadow standing behind her–Leander, the family’s sole heir–made every whispered insult crawl back into the speaker’s throat. Quinn’s brows knitted, but she forced the tension down. <i>I </i><i>still </i><i>have </i>too <i>many </i><i>questions </i>for Leander. <i>Starting </i>a <i>scene </i><i>won’t </i><i>get </i><i>me </i><i>answers</i>.
“I am Julius Whitethorn’s date,” Quinn announced, her voice as calm and sharp as ss sliding across stone, each syble refusing to tremble.
In Doria, even a whisper of Julius‘ name could still a ballroom; the very mention of him carried all the menace of a drawn de.
Serenaughed, a bright brittle sound. “Are you kidding me? Julius Whitethorn–the head of the Whitethorn family? Everyone knows he never brings a woman to his gs. If you’re going to lie, at least research first.”
Around her, the other silk–d heirs and heiresses echoed the derision,ughter rippling like broken porcin across the marble floor.
Serena’s smile vanished. “Forget apologies. I’ve decided–I’m taking her hand.” Malice glimmered in her eyes, cold and deliberate.
Something about Quinn–the way she had looked at Leander, as though greeting a long–lostpanion- scraped like sandpaper against Serena’s nerves.
A new voice cut through the tension. “If you want to break my girlfriend’s hand, then I’ll break yours <b>first</b>. Julius‘ words fell like iron weights.
The entire gathering gasped.
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Chapter <b>322 </b>shing Loyalties
Quinn spun toward the voice and <b>saw </b>Julius striding across <b>the </b>parquet <b>with </b><b>Han </b><b>Ingram </b><b>on </b><b>his </b>heels <b>both </b>men moving with the purpose of iing storm clouds.
Han skidded to Quinn’s side. “Quinnie, what happened<b>?</b><b>” </b>
“Nothing worth fussing over,” Quinn murmured.
Han’s brow furrowed as his gaze settled on the fresh bruise blooming across her cheek. “This is ‘nothing? Who hit you?”
Julius‘ tone dropped to ice. “Who did it?”
Moments ago, the onlookers had doubted Quinn’s im, but Julius‘ rage burned all uncertainty <b>away</b>.
Their skepticism dissolved as his furious gaze swept the room like a searchlight.
Julius was famous for his cold detachment; to see him enraged for a woman left no doubt of her <b>status</b>.
Every eye pivoted to Serena, the handprint on Quinn’s face suddenly glowing like a signature.
Julius faced Serena. “You hit her?”
Serena lifted her chin. “Yes, I did. She grabbed my brother for no reason. One p was a lesson.”
Julius‘ eyes narrowed. “Then you’ll repay it tenfold.” He lifted his hand toward her cheek, intention clear <i>as </i>daylight.
“Stop!” Leander’s voice rang out, but it was Quinn’s palm that caught Julius‘ wrist mid–swing.
Serena stumbled behind Leander as he stepped forward, his arm shielding her while astonishment rippled across the crowd at Quinn’s sudden intervention.
Julius looked down at the hand restraining him. “She struck you, Quinn. She deserves the same.”
Han nodded emphatically, surprisingly agreeing with Julius for once. “Exactly, Quinnie. That p can’t be erased.”
And if Julius hesitated, Han was fully prepared to deliver justice himself.
Leander drew Serena behind him and faced the two men squarely. “If you truly wish to raise your hands against a member of the Fane family, I will fight back. We are not pushovers.”
Julius and Han froze, taken aback <i>by </i>Leander’s face–so uncannily reminiscent of Rowan’s–that for a breath they wondered whether they were staring at friend or foe.
After all, no one had yet proved the stranger’s identity.