Dear Ex Wife Please take me back by The Every Woman

Chapter 92 ~ A box

ATHENA

My breath catches.

"What?" I whisper. My fingers tighten around the strap of my bag as suspicion, curiosity, and confusion tangle in my chest.

"That doesn't make sense..." What kind of task?"

He doesn't smile, but there's something soft in his eyes. "They knew you'd be here at one point. Your mother planned this visit down to the year. She said you'd come when you were ready."

I stare at him, finding the whole ideal ridiculous, "I have been coming here every year-"

"Except last year." He interrupts me, and my heart jumps to my throat.

Is he a stalker?

Everything inside me screams to be cautious, but something else, a deeper pull, urges me forward. The way he said their names.

The certainty in his voice

Call it a hunch or stupidity, but I feel like I can trust him.

"Where are we going?" I ask, my voice quieter now.

He exhales slowly, almost like he's relieved I didn't walk away. "Just a short walk. There's a box... in my car. Your parents left it for you."

I hesitate for a beat longer, then slowly nod, my heart pounding loud in my ears. This is how people end up dead.

"Okay,” I say, my voice sounding more stable than I feel. "But if this is some kind of-"

he cuts in gently. "You'll

death twice, I'm pretty good at making

beneath our steps, I can't help but feel like my life is

beside an old black sedan parked beneath the shade of

paint is faded, but the windows gleam, and something about the car feels...

medium-sized box wrapped in aged leather and secured with a

placing the box gently on the hood of the car. "Just like

stare at it, my heart racing, unsure whether to reach for

like a

pretty much the opposite, so instead of running, I

I finally ask, my voice trembling. "Why

be known. Your parents hired me when you were five. I was their bodyguard, but also their shadow. A failsafe. Your

Athena. I was behind them. Always watching. Always protecting. You didn't know me because you weren't supposed

mind reels. A hidden bodyguard? A secret task?

"They were working on

could stop

reset the heart's rhythm permanently. No surgeries. No pills for life. Just

stare at him, stunned. "That's...

people funding it? They

investors didn't. They wanted control, patents, and profits. When your parents refused to

whisper, the truth slamming into me like a

but

weak. I lean against the car, the air around

me it

go to help out during the floods, but their enemies saw an opportunity and had them poisoned so it

stayed in the shadows and watched the Kings take you under their