apter 22
74
55 vouchers
A heavy quiet settled over the living room. Xylia continued packing in silence, only to look up and see Joshua smoothing out a sheet of drawing paper on the table.
The harsh edge in Joshua’s eyes had vanishedpletely. When he looked at Xylia, there was a hint of something unexpectedly soft.
He raised an eyebrow at her. “Throwing in the towel this early isn’t really your style, is it?” He gestured towards the paper. “Give it a shot?”
Joshua stood in the middle of the room. The re of the overhead light fell on him, casting sharp shadows across the defined angles of his face.
Xylia stared up at him, a tangled mess of feelings she couldn’t name swirling inside. ‘Is he trying to encourage me?‘ she wondered.
Xylia hesitated for just a second, then sat down at the table. She picked up the pencil and touched its tip to the paper.
A dull ache pulsed in her wrist, and cold sweat beaded on her forehead. The pain dragged her back, kicking and screaming, to her time inside.
Memories of that night mmed into her, and her hand started to shake.
Back in prison, the other inmates had hated Xylia because she could read and write. The ringleader of her cell block had led the pack. They’d pinned her down and beat her senseless.
To keep the guards from hearing, they’d shoved a nket over her head, muffling her screams. Then, with a jagged shard of broken mirror, cold sharpness against her skin, they’d cut the tendons in her hands and feet.
That agony was etched into Xylia’s bones, a pain she’d never escape. And the ones who’d delivered it was her own husband and son.
They’d looked down on her artwork. To pave the way for Tessa, they’d destroyed Xylia’s entire life.
Xylia’s hand shook violently now.
Just as she was about to m the pencil down and give up, arge, warm hand suddenly closed over hers. The hesitant line on the paper steadied, then began to flow smoothly under Joshua’s firm, guiding pressure.
Xylia felt the warmth of his breath near her ear, catching the faint, clean scent of him as he stood close.
74
55 vouchers
“Don’t be afraid.” Joshua’s voice cut through Xylia’s memories, sharp and clear. His tone was gentle, but there was a steel underneath it, brooking no argument.
Xylia turned her head to look at him, meeting his downward gaze. In the dark pools of his eyes, she saw an intensity she’d never seen before—a kind of possessiveness he hadn’t quite managed to hide.
It hit her that Joshua wasn’t always the easygoing guy he seemed. Kind of the opposite, actually. He could be really forceful, and that quiet power of his left no room for questions.
“What’s wrong?” Joshua looked at Xylia.
They were close enough for him to catch a hint of sweetness from her. His eyes darkened, the desire hidden deep within them.
A faint blush touched Xylia’s cheeks, and she just got up and moved away, putting some space between them.
As her warmth faded beside him, the warmth inside Joshua faded too.
“I promise.” Xylia said, putting her paintbrush into the suitcase nearby, “I’ll give it a shot.”
A slight smirk touched Joshua’s lips, his eyes fixed on her. Where Xylia couldn’t see, that possessive look was in as day.
“Alright then,” he replied smoothly, “I’ll look forward to it.”
The next day, Xylia lugged her suitcase towards the Ford Mansion.
Joshua had offered to drive her, but she’d turned him down. She was worried Connor might see Joshua and give him a hard time. She didn’t want Joshua getting dragged into her problems.
Seeing how set Xylia was, Joshua didn’t push it. Instead, right after she left, he pulled out his phone and made a call.
“Set things in motion.” he ordered.
*****
Rain was falling. On damp days like this, the old wound on Xylia’s leg always acted up, sending a dull ache through it.
She got out of the taxi, lugged her suitcase, and gritted her teeth against the pain as she walked to the mansion’s front door.
The porch roof kept off the steady drizzle, but she’d had to make a run for it without an
<b>11:48 </b>Wed, Sep 10
umbre, so her clothes were a bit damp.
:
The pain in her leg sharpened, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
74
55 vouchers
The heavy front door was shut tight. Xylia rang the bell. No answer. So she started knocking.
“Anyone home? Ivan? Open up.” She kept knocking for what felt like ages, still no response.
But that was weird. Xylia could clearly hear music ying inside. Someone had to be in there.
Just as she was puzzling over this, Sonny’s voice rang out from inside.
“Tessa, you
dance so beautifully. Way better than Mom ever did. Dad’s always saying how amazing you move, that you’re a top dancer. When you be my momter, all my friends are gonna be so jealous.”
Sonny was doing this on purpose. He’d definitely heard Xylia knocking.
But thinking about how she’d barely paid him any attention these past few days, he felt ticked off.
Sonny scoffed to himself. ‘Mom can’t do anything useful, and she never learns. All she does is make trouble for me and Dad.
‘She got Great–grandpa hurt, and now Tessa has to apologize to Dad because of her. She’s just a mean woman. She doesn’t deserve to be my mom. No way I’m opening that door for her.‘
Tessa shot a sly nce towards the front door, a smirk ying on her lips. She called out loudly, “Connor, who dances better, me or Xylia?”
Connor’s gaze stayed locked on Tessa, feeling a little flutter inside. The answer came without thinking. “You, of course.”
Sonny piped up right after, his voice loud and clear, “Tessa, you dance the best. Mom can barely walk properly now. She totally can’tpare.”
He made sure to say it loud enough for Xylia to hear outside. He wanted her to know she wasn’t fit to be his mother anymore,
Tessa beamed, reaching out to pat Sonny’s cheek. “Our Sonny here knows good stuff when he
sees it,”
Standing outside the door, Xylia heard every word. Itnded like a physical blow alongside the cold rain, chilling her to the core.
She pressed her lips together and kept knocking. “Sonny, open the door.”
…
<b>74 </b>
55 vouchers
No one answered her from inside. Or rather, that was deliberate ignoring.
The porch roof was useless against the wind–whipped rain, which now drove against Xylia. She felt utterly frozen, inside and out.
She stopped knocking. But the warm, happy sounds from within just drifted out, showing no sign of stopping.
Sonny’s voice carried on, saying crueler and crueler things–tearing down Xylia, praising Tessa to the skies and wishing Tessa were his mom instead.
Soaked by the rain, the pain in Xylia’s leg red sharply.
She had no idea how long she’d been standing there when the dizziness started, washing over her in waves. Her strength gave out. She crumpled to the ground, consciousness slipping
away.
11:48 Wed, <b>Sep </b><b>10 </b>