Adam froze the instant he stepped into the room, his gaze locking on lanie slumped against the pillows with an IV running into her hand. His chest tightened."You okay?" he asked, voice rough, almost breaking. Dam* it! Hadn’t she made it out in ti? Then why did she look pale and have an IV?
lanie lifted her head, and the mont her eyes found his, a radiant smile broke across her face. She opened her arms without a word, and Adam rushed forward, gathering her into him. She clung to him with desperate strength, burying her face against his chest as a trembling sigh escaped her lips. "Thank God you’re okay," she whispered, her voice shaking as though the words themselves were a prayer.
Adam’s arms tightened around her, holding her as though he might never let go. For a long mont, neither of them moved, both anchored by the simple truth that they had survived.
His throat burned as the weight of everything they had endured crashed down on him. Was this the beginning of peace, or only another cruel pause before the storm? He didn’t know. All he knew was that she was alive, and in his arms, and that was enough, for now.
Finally, after a few monts, they both moved away a bit, still unwilling to let go and asked," Are you okay?"
lanie smiled and nodded," Yes. This is just because of the smoke and chemical inhalation. The doctor has already checked. What about you?"
Adam nodded, "I am okay too. Just shaken about what could have happened. I never thought she would take such a drastic step so suddenly."
lanie nodded at that," Hmm. Even I don’t understand why she did that. But where is she now? Did everything get handled."
Adam nodded. Max’s people apprehended her the mont there was fire but because they wanted her to confess to get the charges to stick, they simply pretended to be concerned about her and took her to the hospital. And Richeard carried out the rest of the things until she confessed. Also, we were able to retrieve the recordings of what she did to the house and how she killed the driver after instigating him... before everything burned down."
"The police is already in the middle of filing charges and everything will be resolved and back to normal soon."
lanie nodded and hugged Adam again, letting herself feel reassured. Despite the brave front she had shown to Madam Pierce, she was actually scared and worried. Worried about Adam’s return... and now about their future.
All she wished was to follow Dr Jung’s steps and just escape everyone, living a life on an island alone. They were definitely not up for any more surprises and intrigues. Especially when a new life was at stake.
lanie leaned back slightly, still keeping her hand tangled in Adam’s shirt as though afraid he might disappear if she let go. Her eyes searched his face, the relief in them now shaded with uncertainty. "So... what do we do now?" she asked quietly, the question slipping out almost like a confession.
Adam exhaled heavily, running a hand down his face before settling it at the back of her head. His hand stroked absently at her hair as he sighed. "I don’t know the reason behind Madam Pierce’s approach to us. But after everything that’s happened, I can’t risk leaving things to chance anymore. I won’t wait for another attack or give anyone another shot at us lon.
lanie stayed silent, watching him with wide eyes. It was true. She was unsure of Madam Pierce’s intentions as well.
"I already asked Max to arrange things," Adam continued after a pause. "Our escape, our way out. I’ve decided to take you away, far from here."
Her lips parted and she blinked at him, almost startled. Hadn’t she just been thinking the sa thing. About running away from this place? "Take away?"
Adam gave a faint, almost guilty smile as his hold on her hand. "I hope you wouldn’t mind. LuxeArt is running smoothly and you can manage it from anywhere. Stordge can be handled the sa way."
"We don’t need to be here, not in the middle of all this madness. I just want to take you sowhere quiet, sowhere safe. Hide from the world for a while." His voice dropped, almost pleading now. "I want to spend my ti with you. No more sches, no more traps. Just us. I know you like to work at LuxeArt and be in the middle of things but..."
lanie stopped him before he could try and convince her more as she shook her head, and patted his cheek, "You don’t have to convince , Adam. I’m already on board."
Adam blinked, as if her easy answer had caught him off guard. "You are?"
"Yes." lanie’s smile widened just a little, though her voice stayed quiet. "I don’t want to stay here either. I don’t want more surprises, or intrigues, or dangers lurking around the corner. Not now, not when..." she trailed off, her hand brushing unconsciously against her stomach. Her eyes softened. "A new life is at stake."
Adam’s throat tightened. He reached out and cupped her face in both hands, his thumbs brushing against her cheeks. "Then we’ll go," he said firmly. "We’ll disappear before anyone even knows. Retire before we turn thirty, live the life everyone else dreams of."
lanie let out a quiet laugh, almost disbelieving. "Retired before thirty... people will hate us for that."
"Let them," Adam murmured, pulling her against him again. He kissed her hair, breathing in the scent of her, grounding himself. "As long as I have you, the rest of the world can burn."
Her arms wound around him, holding him just as fiercely. "I’m with you, Adam. Always."
His chest rose and fell against her cheek. He nodded, pressing another kiss to her temple. "Good. Then it’s settled." He leaned back slightly, determination settling on his features again. "I’ll call Max and tell him to bring Adir to our ’retirent’ ho. Once we’re set, no one will find us."
lanie tilted her head up to look at him. "Adir will love it. He deserves a ho without shadows too."
"Yes," Adam agreed, his voice softening at the thought of their boy. "He deserves peace. We all do. lanie Collins. You are finally going to elope with ."
Adam and lanie grinned at each other over the words and then, just as Adam leaned in to kiss her softly, there was a sudden knock at the door. The sharp sound echoed in the quiet room, startling them both. They turned in unison, eyes narrowing in instinctive caution.
"Who...?" lanie began, but her words died in her throat when the door opened.
Max stepped inside. For a mont, neither Adam nor lanie spoke. Both stared at him in shock, unable to hide their surprise.
"Max?" Adam’s voice was incredulous. "What the hell are you doing here? In the Pierce Villa of all places?"
Max looked at the two of them and then turned to lanie, asking quietly," lanie. Are you okay?"
lanie nodded at the words but there was sothing in the way that he stood, that had alarm bells ringing in her head."
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