Chapter 142 142
“I don’t understand,” she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper.
Damien stopped what he was doing and turned to face her. “We’re leaving in a few minutes,” he repeated, his tone leaving no room for argument.
“I don’t think it’s the right decision to take her there,” Dominique spoke for the first time since stepping out of Damien’s room.
The brothers locked eyes.
It wasn’t an ordinary glance it was sharp, loaded, almost as if an entire conversation passed between them without a single word. Their expressions were raw, serious, unyielding.
“It’s the safest option,” Damien said after a long pause.
Dominique’s jaw tightened. “Just say the word, and I will,” he growled lowly, something dangerous flickering in his voice.
Jacqueline’s brows shot up at the sudden surge of rage.
“No,” Damien replied curtly, shaking his head once.
“I… I don’t think I can just leave the city,” Jacqueline cut in hurriedly. “Mathieu’s doctor is here. His treatment”
“There are doctors there too,” Damien interrupted simply, as though the matter were already settled. He handed her a cup of coffee, and she took it automatically.
Damien raised a brow at Dominique in silent question coffee?
Dominique shook his head, jaw set hard.
“Get your brother. We’re leaving,” Damien said, already heading toward his room to grab his wallet and keys.
Dominique let out a long sigh before trudging out of the house.
Jacqueline finished the coffee almost immediately. She had wanted to savor it he had made it for her but her mind was spinning too fast to enjoy anything. Scenarios slammed against the walls of her thoughts, one after another, until she could barely breathe straight.
Mechanically, she knocked on the guest room door and urged Mathieu to hurry.
He emerged within a minute.
They followed Damien outside. He locked the house behind them, Coco’s cage in one hand, which he placed carefully in the back seat of the car.
Dominique was leaning against his heavy bike when they stepped out.
“I’ll meet you there,” he said.
Damien gave him a slight nod.
Dominique swung his leg over the seat, revved the engine until it roared to life, and sped down the road, disappearing from view within seconds.
Jacqueline slid into the passenger seat. Mathieu climbed into the back. Damien settled behind the wheel and steered the car onto the road.
She watched Mathieu through the side mirror. He was unusually quiet. He hadn’t asked about Dominique. He hadn’t questioned where they were going.
He was just… silent.
She didn’t want to destroy whatever fragile sense of calm he had left, but sooner or later, he would have to understand the truth about what Julien had been doing to her.
Her gaze drifted toward Damien from beneath her lashes.
He had changed into a black T-shirt and blue jeans. She noticed he hadn’t packed any duffel bag.
Would he leave them in his town and return here alone?
Her chest tightened.
What about her studies? Her friends?
God.
They would be frantic when she disappeared like this.
But she couldn’t trade her life or Mathieu’s for comfort. Not when Julien was involved.
Maybe there truly was no other choice. Maybe that was why Damien had made this decision so firmly.
Still, she couldn’t stay with him forever.
“Who lives there?” she asked softly.
He glanced at her, confused.
“The place you’re taking us,” she clarified. “Your town.”
She winced when he took a sharp right turn, her back pressing painfully into the seat.
His eyes snapped toward her instantly before returning to the road. She noticed him visibly reduce the car’s speed.
“My family lives there,” he answered curtly. “But don’t worry. I have my own place.”
Silence settled between them again, thick but not suffocating.
“You hungry, Mathieu?” Damien asked suddenly, meeting the boy’s eyes in the rearview mirror.
“Umm… yeah,” Mathieu replied hesitantly.
Damien nodded once. They hadn’t eaten breakfast.
A few minutes later, he pulled over near a roadside eatery close to the highway.
They stepped out of the car and walked inside Damien first, Jacqueline and Mathieu trailing behind.
She wasn’t sure what area they were in, but they were definitely close to the highway.
Damien tilted his head slightly toward a table. The siblings slid into their seats, and he took the chair opposite them.
She was grateful the place was nearly empty. No curious stares. No judgment over her mismatched, hurried outfit.
The menu cards were already laid out. Damien and Mathieu looked through theirs as a waitress approached.
Damien ordered his meal, then asked Mathieu what he wanted. The waitress jotted it down before Damien turned to Jacqueline expectantly.
She was staring at him, lost somewhere deep in her thoughts.
He arched a brow.
She wasn’t really there.
So he ordered for her as well.
The waitress left.
Mathieu nudged her thigh gently. She blinked and looked at him, confused.
“What are you thinking about?” he whispered, careful not to let Damien hear.
“Nothing much,” she replied with a soft smile.
But that wasn’t true.
She was thinking about money.
About how she would ever manage to gather the enormous amount required for Mathieu’s treatment. She had fled the mansion in such desperation that she hadn’t considered the practicalities. At that moment, all she had wanted was escape.
Not survival.
The waitress returned with their food.
Jacqueline glanced down and her brows shot up instantly.
Chocolate waffles.
Her eyes widened as if she had just been offered salvation itself.
She hadn’t ordered them.
Slowly, she looked up at Damien.
He was already watching her.
Her heart stumbled awkwardly in her chest, and she broke eye contact first.
He remembered.
Her ridiculous, undying love for anything drenched in chocolate.
That’s why he ordered it.
The realization warmed her from the inside.
A small, genuine smile curved her lips.
“Thank you,” she chirped softly.
He inhaled sharply, then shifted his attention to his own plate, giving her a brief nod before digging into his food.
They ate in silence.
Damien wasn’t much for conversation. Mathieu didn’t open up easily.
Yet the quiet felt… steady.
Comfortable.
But beneath it all, buried deep in her chest, fear coiled tightly.
Because she knew Julien would not let them go without a fight.
And she had no idea how far he would go to drag them back.