Chapter 700

Charles lifted his eyes and collided with Daniela's icy,unblinking stare.

A tremor snuck down his spine before he could stop it.

His grip slipped, splashing hot coffee onto his hand and dripping onto the floor.

He snatched a napkin and chuckled awkwardly."swear, I've never seen that handwriting before. It doesn't ring a bell."

Kohen raised an eyebrow at him. "Seriously? Weren't you the guy bragging about your photographic memory? I've seen this handwriting around the office.With your brain,how could you just forget it?"

Charles gulped. "I'm telling you-l don't recognize it.If I did, I'd admit it without hesitation." As he spoke, Charles couldn't shake the sense that Daniela's sharp stare was slicing straight through him.

Daniela didn't say a word.

But her silence weighed heavier than words-her stare sharp as a blade, making his heart stutter.

Without a flicker of emotion, Daniela pulled out a blank sheet and slid it toward Charles, along with a pen. "Write the words on the note."

Charles stretched a strained smile across his face."Is that really needed? Do you seriously think I helped Joyce escape and sent her to kill you?"

As soon as Charles finished, Nikolas and Kohen cracked up.

"Come on, Daniela, suspecting Charles? He doesn't even know Joyce. Why would he break her out and send her after you? That's just plain crazy," Kohen said.

Nikolas chimed in, "Yeah, Charles has never even stepped foot in Olisvine."

Charles jumped at the chance to agree. "Total misunderstanding,I swear."

Daniela's frosty stare didn't budge. She spoke one word,low and firm."Write."

Charles pressed his lips together, swallowed by the weight of Daniela's authority.

He leaned down and scrawled a word onto the clean sheet.

Daniela gave it a brief look. Charles said, "See? Told you it wasn't me. My handwriting's always been awful."

Before heading out, Kohen turned to Daniela. "We'll get a doctor to check out Cedric's leg."

Before Daniela or Cedric could respond, the three walked off.

Daniela's eyes followed Charles as he walked away.

She looked down and caught the subtle shake in Charles' hand hanging by his side.

Daniela paused in silence for a beat, then turned her attention to the handwriting scrawled across the sheet on the table.

She'd already ripped Joyce's name from the note, so how had Kohen known who it was for?

A flicker of frost passed through Daniela's eyes.

As the three men strolled off, Charles suddenly felt eyes burning into him. He turned, and through the villa's towering glass, his gaze locked with Daniela's from across the distance.

His heart stuttered in his chest.

Without a second thought, he climbed into the car and shut the door behind him.

Sitting in the car, he absently massaged the base of his left thumb, his expression sinking into a stormy shadow.

As Kohen brought up the handwriting, Nikolas suddenly turned to Charles.

"Charles, I recall you were a lefty when you were younger, but then you switched to your right hand.Can you still write with your left now?"

Charles gazed out the window,watching the scenery blur as the light and shadows danced around. The streetlights flickered softly across his face. "Not anymore. That was forever ago."

Nikolas nodded thoughtfully, sat back, and picked up a casual conversation with Kohen again.

The next day, as Daniela spoke on the phone with headquarters in the garden, Charles and Kohen strolled in, both smiling.

They brought a whole team of doctors and medical equipment with them.

"Cedric, we know you hate hassle. Everything's set up-doctors, equipment, all of it.Just work with them for the check-up."

Cedric's expression tightened. He shot Charles a frosty glare. "Get out."

Charles froze, caught off guard. "Cedric-"

Cedric's voice sharpened. "I said get out."

Daniela turned her head just in time to catch Cedric tossing Charles out of the villa.

She opened the door and locked eyes with Cedric."What happened?"

Cedric pressed his lips together. "Nothing," he muttered. But his simmering anger gave away his restlessness. A quiet unease crept into Daniela. She stepped closer and reached out to touch his forehead, but he turned away, dodging her hand.

Her hand hung suspended midair, unsure where to go.

She studied Cedric, confused by his abrupt resistance.

"What's gotten into you?" she asked.

Cedric stared at her in wordless silence, his eyes heavy with something unspoken.

His mind drifted back to the conversation he'd overheard the night before. Daniela, speaking on the phone in the garden, had told headquarters that everything here was taken care of. Once his leg was healed, she would return to headquarters.

So the moment he could walk again, she'd leave him.

He had believed she'd always be there for him. But clearly,that wasn't the plan.

He had pride, and yes, he cared about his recovery.But Daniela was only staying because she felt indebted.

The desperate need to keep her close was eating him alive.

He couldn't bear the thought of Daniela walking away.

He wanted her to stay here in Olisvine forever.

He was terrified that once he was back on his feet, she'd ask for a divorce.

And once she made a decision, nothing in the world could change it.

That fear weighed heavy on him.