Chapter 228
The line crackled for a second, then exploded with fury. “You son of a bitch, Rafael! Married? You got married to Eliana without so much as a goddamn whisper to me? After everything? You knew—you knew how important she is to me! I handpicked her for you, vouched for her soul, and this is how you repay me? Sneaking off like some coward in the night p>
Rafael winced, holding the phone slightly away from his ear as H’s voice boomed through the speaker, laced with betrayal and raw anger. He could picture his friend: rugged with a scar across his cheek from some sad unforgotten skirmish, his dark eyes burning with the fire of a man who’d lived in the shadows too long. H had always been the steady one, the protector who’d hidden himself away after tangling with powerful enemies—perhaps even tied to H’s own family’s web of deceit. “H, listen p>
“No, you listen!” H interrupted, his tone sharp as a blade. “Why the hell would you marry her? You told me yourself, five months ago, screaming like a madman: ’Eliana’s not a good person! She’s in league with Mirabel, plotting to kill me!’ Remember that? You threw her out of your life, broke her heart, and now you’re playing house? What game are you running, Vexley? Because if this is another one of your puppet-master schemes, I swear p>
Rafael stopped pacing, leaning against the ornate wooden bedpost, his free hand clenching into a fist. The room’s opulent decor—crystal chandeliers casting fractured light, silk curtains billowing softly in the evening breeze—felt mocking in the face of this confrontation. He swallowed hard, his sarcastic edge crumbling under the weight of genuine remorse. “I… I was wrong, H. Completely, utterly wrong. I said those things out of anger, out of fear. The crash, the betrayal from my family—it twisted me. I saw enemies everywhere, even in her. But Eliana… she’s innocent. More than that, she’s everything good in this rotten world. I realized it too late, after I’d hurt her. I apologized, begged her back. The marriage—it was my way of making it right, of protecting her from them p>
A heavy silence stretched across the line, broken only by H’s ragged breathing. Rafael could almost hear the gears turning in his friend’s mind, the man who’d once nursed him back from the edge, sharing stories of his own hidden life to keep Rafael’s spirits up during recovery. H had confided fragments: a life on the run from corrupt syndicates, using his wits and fists to survive. He’d seen something in Eliana—perhaps a reflection of his own lost innocence—and pushed Rafael to hire her. Now, that bond felt severed.
“Wrong?” H finally spat, his voice dripping with disbelief and hurt. “You think a simple ’I was wrong’ fixes this? You broke my trust, Rafael. Shattered it like glass. I stood by you when no one else would—pulled you from that ditch, got you those surgeons, told you about Eliana because I believed you could protect her. And you repaid me by accusing her, blocking me out like I was nothing. I don’t trust you anymore to take care of her. Not with your games, your paranoia p>
Rafael’s heart plummeted, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He glanced at the door Eliana had fled through, imagining her in her room, curled up with her emotional wounds. “H, please. I’ve changed. I’m even done with the fake blindness, the paralysis—it was all to expose them, and it’s working. But Eliana… she’s carrying my child. Our child. I love her. Let me prove it to you p>
H let out a bitter laugh, devoid of humor, echoing through the phone like a thunderclap. “Love? From you? The man who hides behind sarcasm and walls? Save it. The situation that’s kept me hidden all this while—those bastards who were hunting me—it’s been taken care of. Dealt with, permanently. I’m finally coming back into the world, Rafael. No more shadows for me. And when I do, I’m taking over. I’ll protect Eliana, her unborn child, and her father in my own way. The way you should’ve from the start p>
Rafael’s steel eyes widened, a shiver racing down his spine despite the room’s warmth. H’s “own way” conjured images of ruthless efficiency—the man had connections that made Rafael’s billionaire empire look like child’s play. “What do you mean, take over? H, she’s my wife now. We’re building a life p>
“Your life?” H snarled, his voice dropping to a menacing growl that sent another chill through Rafael. “Listen closely, old friend. If anybody in your precious Vexley family keeps being a threat to Eliana’s safety—Mirabel with her icy manipulations, or any of those greedy leeches—I’m going to do what you’ve been too cowardly to do. I’ll end it. Clean, quick, no loose ends. And Rafael? If you hurt her again, even a whisper of pain… I’ll remove you from the world immediately. You, and anyone else who stands in the way. Friendship ties be damned p>
The threat hung in the air like a noose, Rafael’s breath hitching as shivers falling down his spine, raising goosebumps on his arms. He gripped the phone tighter, his knuckles whitening. H wasn’t bluffing; the man had the scars and the history to back it up. Memories flooded back: H in the clinic, bandaging Rafael’s wounds with steady hands, his voice calm amid the chaos. “We’re survivors, you and me,” he’d said then. Now, that alliance felt like ash.
“H, wait—” Rafael started, desperation creeping into his tone, but the line went dead with a click. The sudden silence was deafening, the phone slipping slightly in his sweat-slicked palm. He stared at the screen, the call ended, shock rooting him to the spot. His mind raced—H returning, a vengeful protector; the threats against his family, against him. The room spun slightly, the weight of secrets and betrayals pressing down like an iron fist. Rafael sank onto the edge of the bed, his commanding presence diminished, burying his face in his hands. What had he unleashed? And how could he protect Eliana now, when the shadows of his past were closing in?
Eliana, meanwhile, had retreated to her adjoining suite, the door locked behind her. She leaned against it, her warm brown skin flushed, her expressive eyes brimming with unshed tears. The kiss replayed in her mind—passionate, yes, but laced with the ghosts of their history. “Why now?” she whispered to herself, sliding down to the floor, her pregnant belly a comforting weight. Her father, Frank, had always taught her resilience, but this… this felt like a whirlwind. She placed a hand on her stomach, feeling the baby’s gentle movements. “We’ll be okay, little one. Somehow p>
Back in the bedroom, Rafael stood slowly, his resolve hardening amidst the shock. He needed to talk to Eliana, to bridge the gap before H’s storm hit. But as he approached the door, doubt gnawed at him. Was he worthy? Or would his flaws drag them all under?
The night deepened outside the house, stars twinkling indifferently above. Inside, hearts beat with uncertainty—Eliana’s hopeful yet wounded, Rafael’s calculating yet cracking. H’s call had shifted the board, turning allies into avengers, and the game was far from over.