Ethan watched them in silence.
The tension between the three was palpable, suffocating. He had known this would happen.
But he couldn't allow it.
His aura shifted.
Gone was the warmth, the quiet gentleness they were used to.
Now, he was firm. Unyielding.
"Stop."
His voice echoed through the room like a command carved into stone.
Julie, i, and Ellie froze.
Their heads snapped toward him—instinct, reflex. But what they saw made their breath hitch.
This Ethan was different.
i and Ellie, especially, were stunned.
They had only ever known Ethan to be gentle with them, his presence always laced with an inviting warmth. Even when he was serious, there was never any true coldness.
But now?
Now, there was nothing of that.
"She is Julie Bloodsanguine," Ethan said, his voice leaving no room for argunt. "My second partner."
At the ntion of her na, i and Ellie unconsciously straightened.
The Bloodsanguine.
A na that carried weight. Fear. Power.
Ellie knew her place. She was just a maid. No matter how special she was to Ethan, she was still soone who could be erased if the Bloodsanguine deed it necessary.
i, even with her newfound status, was still adjusting to it. She had strength now. Power. But power was not the sa as security.
And Ethan…
Ethan hated what he was seeing.
The hesitation. The restraint. The fear.
He frowned.
That wasn't what he wanted.
His people would not fear anyone. Especially not his won.
"Don't fear her or her family." His voice was steady. Unshakable. "Julie is with us now. She'll explain her role to you later."
He let his gaze sweep across them, ensuring they understood his next words.
"But there is no reason to be afraid."
His lips curved slightly. "Because I'm with you. I might not be strong physically, but I have money. And money solve all problems. "
Silence.
Then—
Soft laughter.
The tension in the room eased, if only slightly.
But even as they laughed, their minds were elsewhere.
i, now Ethan's woman, was already calculating. How to keep her position secure. How to remain the first.
Julie, new but not timid, was already strategizing. How to take the lead. How to beco Ethan's favorite.
But Ellie…
Ellie wasn't thinking about competition.
She was drowning.
She felt like she was standing outside of her own life, watching sothing that no longer belonged to her.
As if none of this concerned her.
Because she was the only one in this room who wasn't Ethan's woman.
And that thought…
That thought hurt more than she could ever have imagined.
A sharp, twisting pain—like sothing inside her was breaking.
Like her heart was being squeezed so tightly she couldn't breathe.
She had been first.
She had been there since the beginning.
She had been the one to witness his first steps.
The one who had fought to be his personal maid, out of all the others.
The one who had consoled him when he was sad.
The one who cried with him when he cried.
The one who laughed with him when he laughed.
The one who killed, in secret, anyone who mocked him.
She had been there.
She was still here.
So why did it feel like he wasn't seeing her anymore?
Her fingers clenched into fists. Her head lowered.
There was nothing worse than losing sothing you had taken for granted.
And the cruelest part?
You only understood its value after it was lost.
Never before.
Only after.
And most of the ti…
By the ti you realized it, it was already too late.
A mory flashed through her mind.
A younger Ethan, looking at her with pure reliance.
"Ellie, promise you'll stay with forever."
And she had smiled. "Of course, Young Master."
She had been so sure, back then.
So sure she was irreplaceable.
But now?
Now he looked at others that way.
And not her.
Her vision blurred.
Ellie…
Cried.
A single, silent tear slipped down her cheek.
And before she could wipe it away—
Ethan saw.
—End of Chapter 20—
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