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Xylia watched as three intensely curious faces leaned in, feeling utterly exasperated.
“What are you all thinking? I just got divorced. How could I possibly drag someone else into my mess right now?”
Leon frowned. “So what if you just got divorced? You’re stunning. If you hadn’t met that Ford scumbag and married so young, who would even be worthy of you?”
Hudson shot Leon a re.
“Why are you bringing that guy up for no reason?” he snapped.
He turned back to Xylia, his expression earnest.
“Xylia, you’re the princess of this family now–beautiful, capable, and with the Sadler name behind you. There’s no need for you to feel insecure about anything. If anyone gets to be with you, they should be the one worrying about whether they’re good enough for you.”
Xylia cut them off with a helpless sigh.
“Alright, that’s enough. Joshua and I are just friends. Besides, I have zero ns to start dating anyone right now, so can we please drop this?”
Cyrus quickly intervened. “Alright, that’s enough. Xylia is still weak. Stop crowding her and go home.”
“Go home? I’m staying right here to take care of her,” Hudson dered, plopping down onto a nearby chair with <i>a </i>look of finality.
Leon moved to sit down too, but Hudson stopped him with a sly grin.
“Don’t you have that charity g tonight? If you no–show, Ste will have your head on a tter.”
Ste Cole was Leon’s notoriously strict agent.
His recent solo stunt–coborating with a rising starlet to fabricate dating rumors, followed by the drama at his university’s anniversary in Jupiton–had already generated a wave of bad
press.
Even for a Best Actor like him, the constant negativity was taking a toll, and Ste was in no mood for further willfulness. Another misstep, and she would not go easy on him.
Leon swallowed hard.
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He looked at Xylia, guilt written all over his face.
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“Xylia, I’m really worried about you, but I also have to survive under my agent’s reign. I’ve got
to run.”
Xylia offered an understanding smile. “It’s fine, Leon. Really. Go handle your work.”
“I’ll make it up to you! I’ll take you out somewhere amazing when I’m free,” he promised before hurrying out of the room.
Cyrus also had rounds to make at the hospital. After giving Xylia a few more instructions, he left as well.
Finally, alone with Hudson, Xylia’s thoughts drifted back to Joshua.
Seeing her brother settled nearby, she couldn’t help but ask, “Hudson, have you these past few days because you were getting back at Xavier for me?”
Hudson nodded, a shadow of guilt crossing his face.
been busy
“I’m sorry, Xylia. I just wanted to help you vent your anger. I never thought he’d retaliate against you like this. This is my fault.”
He lowered his head in frustration.
Xylia shook her head. “How exactly did you ‘discipline‘ him?”
“Xavier’s obsessed with car racing,” Hudson muttered. “So I set up a few races and challenged him to high–stakes bets. He lost a lot of money and even more face. I guess it pushed him over the edge.”
“That’s all?” Xylia was surprised.
Hudson nodded. “I wanted to beat him up at first, but for guys like him, losing his pride and his wallet hurts a lot more than a few bruises.”
Something felt off to Xylia.
Xavier talked a big game, but in reality, he was less bold than even Sadie.
The likelihood of him orchestrating a daylight kidnapping was low.
There had to be more to the
story.
*****
Meanwhile, Joshua was exiting the police station.
He came face to face with Kaden, who was waiting outside.
9:38 Wed, Sep 17
Joshua paused for a brief moment before stepping forward.
“Mr. Garcia, since you hit Xavier, let me handle the people behind him.”
Joshua ignored his words, but noticed how Kaden addressed him.
As expected, Kaden knew his identity.
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He recalled David’s advice: to be more courteous to Xylia’s family if he ever hoped to gain their eptance.
He reined in his imposing demeanor.
“Mr. Sadler,” he replied, his tone more respectful than usual, though it still carried inherent authority. “I was the one who dismantled the Zimmer family’s influence in Jupiton. It’s only right that I deal with their remaining… disgraces.”
If David were here, he would certainly find Joshua’s attitude to be a hundred times better than usual.
However, Joshua had been ustomed to a cold and unyielding manner; when his tone reached Kaden’s ears, it still carried an indefinable air of defiance.
Kaden let out a soft, humorlessugh. “Are you suggesting Ick the capability to avenge my own sister?<b>” </b>
“Certainly not,” Joshua said, “I simply wish to do something for Xylia.”
“In what capacity are you acting for Xylia?”
Seeing the subtle hostility in Kaden’s eyes, Joshua began to suspect gaining his approval would be an uphill battle.
“For now, as a friend,” Joshua stated. “But that may not always be the case.”
Kaden’s eyes sharpened, his gaze turning icy cold.
His eyes, so simr to Xylia’s, held a cool detachment that could be piercing.
“Mr. Garcia, I don’t care what game you’re ying by hiding your identity and staying close to my sister. But if you’re toying with her, you’d better quit now. Otherwise, I will make absolutely certain your life bes very difficult.”
Joshua met his gaze squarely, his expression utterly serious.
“You have my word,” Joshua said, his voice low and steady. “I value her more than you can possibly imagine.”
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Kaden held his cold stare for a long moment before finally turning and walking away without another word.
*****
In his hospital room, Xavier groaned as consciousness returned, bringing with it a symphony of pain from every part of his body.
He hadn’t expected Joshua, a mere driver, to hit that hard.
His n had been simple: snatch Xylia from the cafe and spirit her away to the suburbs.
But almost immediately, a car had tailed him, cutting him off and forcing him to stop.
What followed was a brutal, one–sided beating that left him and his men broken on the asphalt.
‘The Garcia’s driver will pay for this,‘ he seethed internally, viciously cursing both Joshua and Xylia.
‘Once I’m out of here, I’ll make him wish he’d never been born.
The door to his room creaked open, interrupting his vengeful thoughts.
A figure in a nurse’s uniform and a surgical mask entered.
But Xavier immediately recognized the eyes ring down at him.
“Sadie?” he hissed, his voice a mixture of pain and panic. “What are you doing here? Are you insane? Get out before someone sees you!”
He tried to wave her away, wincing as the movement sent a fresh jolt of agony through his ribs.
The hatred in Sadie’s eyes was palpable.
“They’ve all left, Xavier. All the men are gone from Xylia’s room. Now is the perfect time.”
“This is a hospital! There are cameras everywhere!” he argued, his anxiety spiking.
He had agreed to help her get revenge, but this–this was a reckless, suicidal move that would implicate them both.
“Just wait. Let me heal. Then we can n this properly-”
“I can’t wait any longer!” she growled.
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The hatred in her eyes grew even more intense, and even her body trembled uncontrobly.
Her eyes, already bloodshot, welled with tears of pure, undiluted rage.
“She ruined me! She destroyed my family! I want her to pay now!”
She took a shaky step back from his bed, her body vibrating with manic energy. “You were useless. You couldn’t even deliver her to me. I don’t need your help anymore. I’ll do it myself.”
Before he could form another word of protest, she turned and darted out of the room.
Xavier tried to shout, to stop her, but the painncing through his body pinned him to the bed. He could only watch, helpless, as the door swung shut behind her. *****
Down the hall, Hudson had just stepped out to take a phone call. The room was quiet, lulling Xylia into a light doze.
A nurse came in, preparing Xylia a fresh IV bag. “Xylia Schultz? It’s time to change your drip,” the woman said, her voice oddly t.
Xylia’s gaze traveled from the IV bag up to the nurse’s face–to the familiar, hate–filled eyes ring down at her over the top of the surgical mask. Xylia’s own eyes slowly widened in dawning horror.
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