Chapter 57

Chapter 57
Liam’s POV
The drive back from the office was longer than usual. Traffic lights felt endless, the air heavy. Liam didn’t even have music playing,just the hum of the engine and his own thoughts.
He’d been quiet since he left Adele’s hospital two nights ago. She’d told him everything, the hospital visit, the things Katherine had said, the look on her face when she talked about it. It had bothered him more than he wanted to admit.
He wasn’t close to Julian. They worked together onve, tolerated each other at best. But Adele… she didn’t deserve to be dragged into that mess.
When his phone buzzed, he glanced at it. Selene’s name flashed on the screen.
He answered without much interest. “Yeah?”
“Liam, you might want to hear this,” she said. Her tone was calm, but it carried that edge that always came before trouble. “Apparently, Katherine’s been showing up again. Talking to Isabelle. Talking to people.”
He sighed, switching lanes. “And?”
“And Julian’s pretending like he doesn’t care,” Selene continued. “But he does. You can see it on his face.”
“I’m not Julian’s keeper,” Liam said flatly.
“I know,” she replied. “But Adele’s name is coming up too. I figured you’d want to know.”
That made him tighten his grip on the wheel. “How?”
“She’s been using Adele to get to Julian,” Selene said. “Same way she always works ;starts soft, plays victim, then poisons everything around her.”
Liam didn’t say anything for a while. The sound of horns filled the space instead.
“Alright,” he said finally. “I’ll handle it.”
He ended the call.
By the time he got home, the sky was already dark. The city lights flickered through the window, cold and restless. He walked into the kitchen, poured water into a glass, and leaned on the counter.
He thought about Adele again, the way her voice had trembled when she said, “She came to see me, Liam. She said things that weren’t true. Things that made me question him.”
Adele wasn’t dramatic. She didn’t exaggerate. So if she said it shook her, it meant it really had.
He put the glass down and reached for his phone. Scrolled until he found the name. Katherine.
He stared at it for a few seconds before pressing call.
She answered almost immediately. “Liam. What a surprise.”
Her tone was light, fake-sweet. The kind that made his jaw clench.
“Evening, Katherine,” he said.
“To what do I owe this?” she asked. “It’s been a while since we spoke.”
He ignored that. “You went to the hospital.”
Silence. Then a small laugh. “Straight to the point, I see.” She said, not trying to pretend.
“You told Adele things that weren’t true,” he continued. “You tried to mess with her head.”
“I didn’t try to do anything,” she said softly. “I just had a conversation with her. That’s all.”
He frowned. “A conversation that made her doubt someone she trusted. That wasn’t innocent, Katherine.”
“You sound so sure,” she replied. “Did Adele tell you that herself?”
“Yes,” he said.
She went quiet again, and when she spoke next, her tone had shifted ;calmer, lower. “She’s smart, Liam. She’ll figure out the truth eventually.”
“What truth?” he asked.
“That Julian isn’t who she thinks he is,” Katherine said. “He never was.”
Liam let out a small breath and leaned back against the counter. “You really don’t get tired of this, do you?”
“Of what?”
“This cycle. You hurt him. He leaves. You wait. Then you come back and start again.”
Her voice hardened. “You don’t know what happened between us.”
“I don’t need to,” Liam said. “I’ve seen enough to know it’s over. You’re the only one who hasn’t accepted that.”
He could hear her breathing through the line — uneven now.
“You think Adele’s different?” she asked. “You think she’ll fix him? He’ll ruin her the way he ruined everything else.”
He almost smiled, but it wasn’t amusement. “You talk like you care, but you’re just bitter that someone else got what you lost.”
“That’s not true.”
“It is,” he said. “You’ve convinced yourself this is revenge, but it’s not. It’s just sad.”
There was silence again. Long enough that he thought she’d ended the call. Then she said, quietly, “Why are you even in this, Liam? Since when do you care?”
He paused, choosing his words. “Since she told me what you did. She didn’t deserve that. She’s not part of your story.”
“So you’re protecting her?”
“No,” he said. “I’m warning you. Stay away from her.”
Her voice cracked, barely audible. “You really think I’m the villain here.”
He didn’t answer.
“Julian will come to me,” she whispered, almost to herself.
Liam exhaled. “No. He won’t.”
There was a click she’d hung up.
He set his phone down and stared out the window. The city looked alive, but it felt distant, like noise without meaning.
He didn’t know what Katherine would do next, but he knew it wouldn’t end here. People like her never stopped until they burned everything around them.
He poured another glass of water, drank it in one go, then stood there a while longer.
Later that night
Liam sat on his balcony, the night wind cool against his skin. He had his laptop open, but he wasn’t working. His mind kept drifting back to Adele. The way she’d looked at him in that hospital room ,tired but trying to smile.
He remembered how she’d said, “I don’t even know what’s true anymore.”
He’d told her, “You’ll figure it out.”
But now, sitting alone, he wondered if she really could —not with people like Katherine hovering around.
His phone buzzed again. A message from Selene.
You talked to her?
He typed back:
Yes.
And?
She won’t stop. Not yet.
Selene replied almost instantly.
Then we make sure she can’t.
He stared at the message for a few seconds before locking the phone.
He didn’t like schemes. He didn’t like drama. But something in him knew Selene was right. If they didn’t stop Katherine now, she’d come for Adele again — and next time, she’d hit harder.
He leaned back, watching the lights blur in the distance.
“Stay out of it,” he muttered to himself. But deep down, he already knew he wouldn’t.