Chapter 306

"I'll handle this personally," Dominic declared to the police captain.

His fingers closed around Evelyn's delicate wrist. "She's coming with me."

The captain gave a curt nod.

Once outside, Evelyn wrenched her arm free from Dominic's chilling grip.

Dominic's brows arched as he took in her defensive stance.

"Killing Margaret won't bring Clara back, Evelyn," he said, voice low. "There are smarter ways to seek justice than this reckless stunt."

"Who gave you the right to lecture me?"

Evelyn's bitter laugh cut through the night air as she studied his achingly familiar yet alien features.

"Are you judging me as the almighty CEO Dominic Blackwood? Or as Margaret Montgomery's future son-in-law?"

Each word was a razor blade.

Something unreadable flickered in Dominic's stormy gaze. "Calm down."

"Calm down?" Her voice shattered. "Every time I close my eyes, I see my mother's lifeless face! What crime did she commit? None! And yet someone murdered her in cold blood!"

Her knees buckled as violent sobs wracked her body.

Dominic's carefully constructed composure crumbled at the sight.

Before she could collapse, his arms locked around her, crushing her against his chest.

The moment his distinctive sandalwood scent enveloped her, Evelyn snapped.

Even if his cologne remained unchanged, the man wearing it was a stranger.

"Let go!" She shoved against his unyielding chest.

"Never." His embrace tightened. The raw ache in his voice surprised them both. "Calling Margaret my future mother-in-law is bullshit. There's only ever been one woman I called mother-in-law - and she was your mother."

Realizing escape was futile, Evelyn went limp in his arms.

She tilted her tear-streaked face upward with icy detachment. "Now that Zoe's carrying your child, will you send your bodyguards to drag her to an abortion clinic too?"

Dominic recoiled as if struck.

"I thought you hated children, Dominic," Evelyn continued, stepping back. "Why make an exception for Zoe? Did she blackmail you? Or is this another sacrifice for precious Sophia? You always play the noble martyr with me. Didn't even blink when forcing my abortion... Am I just easier to bully?"

Dominic's jaw clenched, but his gaze remained steady.

Though her outburst had subsided, her words grew more venomous.

"Don't you dare mention my mother again," Evelyn spat. "She never accepted you as family. Even dead, it's an insult having you speak her name."

A shadow crossed Dominic's face.

Instead of pain, Evelyn felt perverse satisfaction.

This was what giving up felt like.

Let Dominic father Zoe's children. Let him welcome Clara's murderer as family. She didn't care - as long as he stayed out of her life.

"Let's get you home," Michael called, pulling his car alongside them. His worried eyes scanned Evelyn's exhausted frame. "You need rest."

"I'm fine," she replied with eerie calm. "I don't want to go home."

"Then where?"

Evelyn stared blankly out the window. "If I'd never returned to Ravenswood... Mom would still be alive..."

Michael's heart clenched at the hollow guilt consuming her.

Was this psychological trauma?

At the next intersection, he changed course toward St. Elizabeth Medical Center.

After evaluating Evelyn, Wesley exchanged a grave look with Michael.

"She's resilient. She'll pull through."

He prescribed sedatives, handing the bottle to Michael.

"Rest is critical now. We'll reassess in a week."

Seven days later, Evelyn's condition stabilized. The children returned to Mooncrest Academy.