Thinking back to the first time she met Leda, Blanche remembered how fiercely confrontational Leda had been.
But now, staring at these cold, impersonal words on the screen, she realized Leda wasn’t as intimidating as she’d once thought. In fact, there was something almost pitiable about her.
Blanche’s fingers curled tightly into a fist as she rested her forehead beside her laptop, uncertain how she was supposed to feel.
She had no idea how much time passed. The faint scent of ink drifted around her, and when she finally opened her eyes, she found Ablett’s calm gaze fixed on her.
“Why are you sitting on the floor?”
Ablett reached out to help her up. She’d been lying on the bed just a moment ago.
Blanche jerked back as if she’d been shocked, quickly withdrawing her hand and stepping away. “It’s nothing.”
Ablett let his hand drop, his tall frame straightening as he looked at her.
The room carried a faint trace of tobacco mixed with cedar.
His dark eyes held undercurrents she couldn’t see.
“You should get some rest, Mrs. McCarthy.” Blanche’s deliberate distance made Ablett’s brows knit for a moment, but the expression vanished almost instantly, as though nothing had disturbed him.
He murmured, “Alright.”
He stepped out, and the door slammed shut behind him–lock
were barring out a thief.
This time, he was truly annoyed.
ught, as if she
When Wendy was called in to see Ablett, she noticed the plainclothes officers he’d dismissed standing nearby, heads hung low like children caught misbehaving.
Ablett sat on the sofa, fingers curled against his knee, gaze fixed on the tightly closed door across from him.
“Director, we only stepped out for a moment. Wendy was watching her the whole time,” one of the officers protested, sounding more aggrieved than apologetic. “She’s still here, nothing happened.”
1/3
16.11
Wendy immediately understood what was going on. “Director, I just had a stomach ache and stepped away for a few minutes. Did something happen to Mrs.
McCarthy?”
Ablett’s curled fingers tapped the armrest twice–softly, but the sound made all three of them flinch, knees nearly buckling.
“You don’t need to stay here anymore.”
The words sent a chill through all of them, especially Wendy.
“Director, what did we do wrong?” Wendy mustered her courage to speak up. She knew he wasn’t the unreasonable type, and besides, she held plenty of secrets about the base–about Ablett himself.
If she was reassigned, for the sake of protecting Ablett and the base, she’d surely be sent somewhere remote and forgotten. She couldn’t let that happen. She didn’t want to leave him.
She’d dedicated five years to this, to the man who should have been hers.
The two male assistants chimed in as well. “Sir, Wendy’s always been reliable and capable. This must have been a fluke.”
Ablett’s gaze was cool as he looked at Wendy.
Blanche had been taken by Eddy once, and twice he’d managed to get close to her.
People under his command shouldn’t, make such mistakes.
Everyone was watching him, hoping he’d reconsider, but his decision was final. “Head back to headquarters, finish up your handover, and you’ll be reassigned.”
Wendy’s face crumpled. “You’re sending me away?”
Ablett said nothing. He was never one to change his mind. Wendy knew her chances of staying by his side were gone. Five years of loyalty, wasted. Her eyes turned icy as she glared at the closed door across from her.
If it weren’t for Blanche, the title of Mrs. McCarthy would have been hers.
The male assistants quickly ushered Wendy and the officers out.
But Ablett’s gaze remained fixed on that closed door, his thoughts more tangled than ever.
He’d seen those two pages of reports.
He could guess what Eddy might have said to her.
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Chapter 231
What unsettled him most was that she hadn’t asked–and he had no right to explain.
Even now, even as her husband.
His eyes darkened and he made a call. The moment he hung up, Blanche flung open the door and hurried toward him, clutching her phone and slightly out of breath.
Ablett sat motionless on the sofa, watching the mix of worry and determination on her face, the limp in her stride as she hurried over–her foot still injured.
A storm of emotion swelled behind his calm eyes. Deep down, he thought: She’s my wife now. If I don’t act, someone’s going to steal her away.
That would be unacceptable.
The moment Blanche crossed the threshold, her foot caught and she stumbled sideways. Ablett’s long arm shot out, wrapping around her slender waist and pulling her toward him, guiding her straight into his arms.
Just then, a shriek sounded from her phone.
