The words made Zoe falter.
For the past ten years, she had never truly had a home. Not in the McPhersons and not the Tarvers–none of those places were her home.
Those places gave her no warmth. Instead of offering solace, they wielded the word of family as a weapon to inflict harm.
The banquet hall was already in chaos.
“Isn’t that Mr. Tarver? He’s in charge of Tarver Group, and wasn’t he Ms. Quinn’s ex–husband?
someone said.
“Oh my God, is he here to crash the wedding?”
For the first time, Malcolm’s smile vanished. His face hardened as he stepped forward, shielding Zoe behind him.
“Security. Take him away,”
Security guards poured in and surrounded Elijah. He raised his eyes, gaze sharp and venomous as he locked onto Malcolm.
A silent battle of wills ignited between them.
Snapping back to reality, Zoe looked at Elijah, who seemed like a relic from her past. Her heart was filled with a sorrow beyond words.
“Elijah, why are you here?” she asked. “You read the documents I gave you, so you should understand. I never loved you.”
Despite having guessed the truth, hearing her say it so plainly made Elijah flinch. He stared at her, the woman who had haunted his dreams endlessly. Then, he took an unsteady step
forward.
“No, I don’t believe you. Even if you never loved me, I love you,” he said, his voice hoarse and ragged.
Zoe’s eyes were unwavering as she met his gaze and said, “Elijah, didn’t I make myself clear? I never loved you, and I never will.”
“But you’re my savior. Won’t you give me a chance to repay you?” Elijah replied, trembling. It seemed as if he would shatter with a single touch.
“You mistook me for someone else, and you subjected me to so much cruelty, all in the name of repaying a debt,” she calmly said. “Now, who else will you hurt in the name of repaying
Chapter 15
me? This kind of gratitude isn’t something I can accept.”
At that, his already weary face went deathly pale.
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“No, Ave, that’s not it. It was that bitch, Lara,” he blurted out. “She blinded me to the truth, so I brought her here today so you can take revenge, and so you can make her pay for all you suffered.”
As Elijah’s words fell, Lara was shoved into the hall.
She was nothing like her former self. She hugged herself as she trembled, mumbling again and again as if in a trance. “I know I was wrong. I really know I was wrong.”
Elijah’s brow curled in disgust as if he were looking at filth. “I already punished her thoroughly. Ave, do whatever you want. She’s powerless now.”
For the first time since he appeared, Zoe’s expression changed. She shot him a disgusted look and coldly said, “This is my wedding. You barged in and ruined it. Now, you bring her here just to disgust me? Do you want me to hate you, Elijah?”
Hearing that, he froze, then suddenly laughed. The madness on his face broke free, obsessive and deranged.
“Fine,” he said. “Hate me as you wish, it’s better than being treated as non–existent.”
Then, Elijah pulled out a gun and levelled it at Malcolm. “Come with me, or watch him die.”
Malcolm’s brow furrowed. The security guards around Elijah immediately raised their weapons in unison. He was ready to drag everyone down with him.
Finally, Zoe panicked. She hadn’t expected him to be so far gone.
“What do you want, Elijah?”
Elijah’s eyes were filled with anguish as he locked onto hers. “Let’s start over,” he said. “Give me one month, and I’ll make you head over heels for me.
“I know the truth now. I know how the Tarvers humiliated you, and even how I… I hurt you,” he added, afraid she would refuse. “But I regret it deeply, and I only realized how much I love you after you left. Please, I swear to spend the rest of my life making it up to you. Just come home with me. Or else… I don’t know what I’ll do.”
At that moment, a group of trained bodyguards stormed in, completely surrounding the hall. The mass of bodyguards made Zoe realize something–Elijah wouldn’t crash a wedding without a plan.
He had planned everything and was determined to take her with him today.
Then, one of the bodyguards dragged another person forward and tossed him to the floor. The
Chapter 15
gun
that had been aimed at Malcolm shifted, pressing against this person’s head.
Madness burned in Elijah’s eyes. “Ave, you love Walter, don’t you?”
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The rest of the words choked in his throat. Pride wouldn’t allow him to use another man as leverage against Zoe, but his desperation had overridden his pride.
His hands trembled as he tightened his grip on the gun, and he closed his eyes in resignation. The scorn of Hartington awaited him by morning and it was a fitting punishment for his
actions.
Walter lay on the floor, dishelved and pitiful. He stretched a hand towards her and pleaded, ‘ Ave… save me.”
Chapter 16
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Chapter 16
