Revenge After Divorce by Black Rose

Chapter 295

Olivia

I kept the mask of a brave face firmly in place, hiding the storm of emotions brewing within me. I had to; for my husband, Nick, and for Ethan, who seemed so unaware of the deep fear clawing at me. The reality was, though, that I was crumbling on the inside.

It wasn’t just the men Nick and Lake had sent to keep watch over me. It wasn’t even their looming presence. outside the house that had me on edge. It was the ever–looming possibility that Xander might escape, escape from whatever dark hole he had been burled in, and come to New Village to finish what he started.

I wasn’t ready to face him. Not yet. Hell, I wasn’t sure I would ever be ready. I had only just begun therapy to heal the trauma he had inflicted on me, but the thought of encountering him again made the pit of my stomach twist painfully. I couldn’t even wrap my mind around how much further my sanity would unravel if I had to see him, lef alone face him.

I had been through hell once already. No, scratch that, I had been through hell twice. The first time, when he had ruined everything, I held dear, and the second time, when I had to claw my way back, piece by broken piece. I thought I had recovered, thought I had escaped.

But now, with his name creeping back into my life, I felt the icy tendrils of dread wrapping themselves around my heart again. It wasn’t just about surviving anymore. It was about living with the knowledge that he could return and when he did, I didn’t think I would be able to bear it.

As I stood by the window, the sky growing darker with every passing minute, I couldn’t shake the images from my mind. The shadows of men moving around the house, Nick’s mother being escorted away, and the constant flurry of activity outside, replacing one set of bodyguards with another.

For a moment, I almost laughed, thinking that if anyone were to look at this, they might think the president himself had taken residence in my home. But there was no humour in it. There was no escape from the dread that clung to the air like a fog, choking any semblance of normalcy.

Lilly stirred in my arms, moving restlessly. Even she, my precious little girl, could feel the tension. Her small body shifted uncomfortably, and she let out a soft whimper as though mirroring my own unease. It broke my heart to see her like this, unsettled by something she couldn’t understand. The last thing I wanted was for her to sense the fear that coursed through me, but I couldn’t help t. It was everywhere. It was suffocating.

needed everything to

heard a voice crackle through the

confusion before my eyes landed on the walkie–talkie next to the crib, the device seemingly

you there?” the voice

My hand instinctively reached for the walkie–talkie, my fingers

voice

At the gate.

No. That wasn’t possible. My son, Samuel, was asleep in his room. He was safe, tucked in tight under his blankets, his little chest rising and falling in a

it would omehow make it

tidal wave. The walkie–talkie crackled again, but I didn’t wait to hear what James had to say, I had to make

the door to his room, but my heart stopped in my chest. The room

Empty.

twisted in a sickening mot. The alt seemed to press down on me, heavy with the weight of panic. My eyes darted around the room, desperately searching for any sign of my son. The

cracking as my mind

the unmistakable sound of gunfire shattered the stillness. A rain of bullets erupted from

of the house.

chest, my breath coming in shallow gasps. I dropped to my knees, panic clawing at my throat. The room spun around me as I tried to make sense of

mind. Had he come for me? Was he behind this chaos? My body shook with the realization that everything