Chapter 194

Chapter 194

Gloria glanced at her screen. The corner of her mouth curved up, barely enough to notice, and vanished just as quickly from her usual cool expression.

She held her phone in one hand and typed back.

[Quite a show. You should've come to see it in person.]

Less than three seconds after she sent it, her phone buzzed again.

[Look up.]

Gloria paused, then looked up without thinking.

At the far end of the hallway, near the vending machine by the corner, Leopold was leaning against the wall.

He had on a dark gray overcoat, unbuttoned, with a black turtleneck underneath. He'd blended into the shadows so well that the warm yellow hallway light behind him only caught half his outline — easy to miss if you weren't looking.

He held up his phone toward her. The white glow from the screen briefly lit up his fingers, then went dark.

Gloria's eyes narrowed slightly.

She quickly glanced around to make sure no one had noticed, then pushed down the small jolt of surprise in her chest and walked toward him.

"What are you doing here?"

Leopold pocketed his phone and slid both hands into his coat pockets. He tilted his head slightly, a faint smirk on his lips.

"Just passing through."

Gloria looked at him and said nothing.

He let out a quiet laugh under her stare, glanced down the hallway, and shrugged casually.

"Heard there was going to be some drama tonight. Figured I'd come take a look."

Gloria looked away. "You're well-informed," she said flatly.

His gaze drifted back to her face. The lazy tone in his voice shifted, just barely, into something more serious.

"I'm alright. Looks like you're fine, so that's a relief."

Something stirred inside her, but her face stayed completely still. She didn't even blink.

"Nothing was going to happen to me."

"Fair enough."

He didn't push it. He tilted his chin toward the crowd down the hall. "So how's that mess going to wrap up?"

Gloria followed his gaze.

The noise from the other end of the hallway drifted over, muffled by the distance.

But she knew exactly how chaotic it was over there right now.

"I've watched enough. I think it's time to turn up the heat."

Leopold raised an eyebrow and waited.

"The Tudor family elders have been pretty idle lately. A show this good — it'd be a shame to let them miss it, don't you think?"

Leopold understood immediately.

She wanted the Tudor family elders to find out that Henry had been fooled by a woman for years — that he'd been raising another man's daughter.

Bianca had dragged the Tudor name through the mud.

There was a big difference between Marlowe screaming it out in a hysterical meltdown and having it reach the elders through outside channels.

The first way, it's a family embarrassment — something you try to bury. The second way, it's a full-blown scandal — and once it's out, someone has to answer for it.

"One more thing. It's time to let Lester make a move."

Gloria's tone didn't waver. She'd clearly run through this plan in her head more than once.

Leopold's gaze sharpened for a moment, then he got it.

"Have him run into Henry?"

"Yeah. Marlowe's completely consumed by the Bianca situation right now. She's not thinking about anything else. By the time she comes up for air, she'll realize she's been sidelined."

"When that happens, she'll need a way out. And Lester is that way out."

Leopold listened without interrupting, without questioning. He just nodded. "Got it. You don't need to worry about any of this. I'll handle it."

Gloria looked at him. After a few seconds, she gave a small nod.

Then Leopold spoke, cutting through the quiet moment. "Oh, right."

He turned his head, eyes settling on her face. The hallway light cast a faint shadow across his eyes, giving his expression something unreadable about it.

"I've been setting things up for you this whole time. Don't I get anything for that?"

Gloria blinked, then let out a soft laugh.

She cleared her throat. "After all this is over, I'll take you to dinner. Deal?"

He looked at her. After a moment, he smiled.

It spread slowly from the corner of his mouth, and just like that, the usual distance and edge he carried seemed to soften into something warmer and harder to name.

"I'll hold you to that, Ms. Seymour."

The way he looked at her made her slightly uncomfortable. She glanced away, her expression still calm — though the tips of her ears flushed the faintest shade of pink, gone almost as soon as it appeared.

"Alright, things are wrapping up over there. I need to get back."

Leopold didn't stop her. He stepped aside to let her pass.

She was walking by him when she suddenly stopped.

She turned her head and looked at him.

The hallway light fell from above, catching her face in half-light and half-shadow. Those usually quiet eyes of hers held something in them now — something that was hard to put into words.

"Leopold."

She said his name softly.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

She didn't wait for a response. She turned and walked away.

Leopold stayed where he was, watching her go.

He didn't follow.

He just looked down, something unreadable settling in his eyes.

Gloria didn't head straight back to the crowd. She stopped behind one of the hallway columns and leaned against the cold wall.

The chill seeped through her clothes and into her skin. The tension she'd been holding all night finally loosened, just a little.

The hallway light fell over her from above. She closed her eyes, drew in a slow breath, and let it out.

The air smelled like antiseptic, mixed with a faint trace of flowers drifting from some room down the hall.

She'd been on her feet at the hospital for hours, and her body was starting to feel it. There was a dull, heavy ache low in her abdomen that she'd been quietly ignoring the whole time, never letting it show.

Without thinking, she raised her hand and pressed it gently against her lower stomach. The warmth of her palm seeped through the fabric.

Somehow, the hard edge she always kept on her face softened.

After a moment, she opened her eyes again. Her gaze drifted past the dim light to the small group still making noise not far away.

She watched the scene unfold, and the faintest smile touched the corner of her lips.

This was only the beginning.