Chapter 22

Sophia exhaled deeply.

Using the emergency exit during her hasty resignation had indeed violated protocol.

Ethan Roscente always valued efficiency and despised employees who disregarded rules.

"I understand," she murmured in response.

His dark gaze lingered on her face before he turned away. As the elevator doors closed, Sophia's legs gave out. She leaned against the cold wall, pressing a hand to her abdomen. A bitter smile touched her lips. "It's just us now, little one."

......

"Get out."

Ethan stood in the shadows below, his voice icy.

A scruffy orange tabby emerged from the bushes, tail wagging nervously.

"You were supposed to watch her, not scare her." His eyes narrowed. "One more mistake, and you'll join Calico."

"Meow~"

The cat trembled against the pavement.

His expression softened slightly. "Remember—any male who approaches her—" A long finger drew across his throat. "Claw them to death." A pause. "Extra treats for disfigurement."

The tabby rubbed against his polished shoes.

"Not me." Ethan kicked it away in disgust. "No males. Except me."

"Meow!"

Satisfied, he glanced up at the lit window before driving off.

......

Sophia tossed and turned.

Fragmented dreams haunted her—the bloodied boy from the rainy alley five years ago, and the man who walked away without looking back.

She'd first met Ethan during the summer after high school.

Deep in that alley, blood mixed with rainwater, forming crimson streams. When her mother reached for her phone, he'd gripped Sophia's wrist with surprising strength. Those blood-clouded eyes made her bring him home against all logic.

Blind and vulnerable, Ethan had been gentle. Two months of shared meals and quiet conversations made her young heart flutter. Until she returned from vacation and overheard him whispering sweet nothings to another woman.

Their reunion happened at the Roscente estate.

Only then did she learn the boy from the alley was the ruthless heir to a business empire. That "mugging" had been part of a power struggle—one where Ethan broke the wings of every surviving sibling.

The man who regained his sight bore no resemblance to her memories. Perhaps the gentle scholar had always been an act, designed to manipulate her family.

She wanted to ask if he remembered the girl who brewed his medicine.

But the indifference in his eyes answered clearly enough.