His Destructive, Toxic Love

Dillon clutched his phone, dialing up Casper. For days now, he'd been knee-deep in the whole Manuel mess, piecing together the puzzle. His job? Brief Casper and wait for the next move. "Remember that accident ages ago? Manuel's been nursing a grudge ever since. He cozied up to Ms. Eliza for revenge. And, well, there's something else. Your plane crash? That was his doing too." "He bribed the pilot, swapped him out last minute. The new guy botched it, causing the crash. Also, I've noticed Manuel's been lurking around the young master's preschool. What do you think...?" There was a long silence from Casper's end. Dillon waited patiently.

Finally, Casper's calm, deep voice came through, "I recall his family was buried at Willow Grove Cemetery, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Casper."

"Dig them up."

Dillon: ...What???

"Mr. Casper, I'm not really following you." It was a bit chilling, honestly.

"He wants revenge on me? Wants to mess with my wife and kid? Then let's have his family join the party."

Casper's voice was icy, sending chills down the spine.

Dillon: ...

This move would shake Manuel to his core. Sometimes, you had to fight fire with fire.

"Mr. Casper, what next?"

"He'll respond appropriately." Casper flicked the ashes from his cigarette, "If he keeps being stubborn, go to Mr. Raths. He'll know what to do." Dillon understood.

"Mr. Casper, I'll handle it."

"Make sure she's safe. No room for errors." That was his bottom line.

Dillon got it, "You got it."

Hanging up, Dillon gently opened the door to Eliza's hospital room. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting dappled patterns across the room. Eliza sat quietly on the bed, knees hugged to her chest, her gaze distant as if the world around her didn't exist.

The sound of the door and footsteps brought her back, her eyes finding Dillon, "Dillon?"

"How are you feeling?" Dillon moved closer, concern and respect in his eyes.novelbin

Eliza nodded slightly, "Much better."

"I'm here to let you know, I've got a handle on the Manuel situation. I'll take care of it, so don't stress."

Eliza blinked, a sense of calm returning to her eyes. She nodded, a hint of relief washing over her.

"Thank you, Dillon."

"Of course." He looked down for a moment, then asked, "Any plans for what's next? If you need somewhere peaceful to recover, I can help arrange that."

"No, I'm planning on going to France." She was upfront with Dillon.

Dillon was a bit taken aback, "France?"

"With Manuel in Falconridge, I can't relax. Even if this settles, what if another Manuel pops up? I can't handle that. So, I think... it's best I go abroad. I'll come back after the baby's born."

She couldn't guess the number of enemies Casper might have, visible or not. That was her reasoning. She didn't care if others got it. Right now, she just wanted to safely bring her baby into the world.

"Honestly, you'd be safe at Welton Estate too," he said earnestly.

Eliza shook her head. They were divorced; staying there didn't make sense. With what identity, what right? Wouldn't seeing her daily, pregnant with Casper's child, just deepen Audrey's sadness? It wouldn't be good for anyone.

"I've made my decision."

The phone on the table buzzed. Eliza glanced at it, seeing an unfamiliar number. She wasn't one to pick up calls from strangers and casually ended the call.

Dillon didn't push, nodding, "Understood."