"You will?" Varrel shot her a stare full of disbelief. The corners of his lips tugged, stretched-unstretched, like he was holding back a laugh.
Lethia chuckled. "Why? You don’t believe me?"
"Who will?" Varrel stood from his kneel and caged Lethia in the chair with his arms. "Will you believe you’ll submit to me willingly?"
Her gaze held nothing but confidence as she met his eyes. "Why not? Like you said, you have what I really want, and Zeran Tuffin can’t be trusted. You said you love me. And your desperation proves there’s no way you’d betray me again. So, what else must I look for, when everything most women could only dream of is already served on my plate?"
["Oh, for the sake of my holy spirit, what the hell are you planning? I smell the stink that says I’ll have to clean up the dirt."]
Varrel stared into Lethia’s eyes, trying to read the truth behind her words. His grip on the chair tightened. He knew he couldn’t trust her that easily.
He knew her well enough. Even when they were married, he never felt she’d ever truly love him. The woman before him had a heart carved from stone, only loyal to her own desires.
But still, he couldn’t tame the maddening lust and craving to own her... Even now, in this position, he could’ve touched her, claimed her. But he loved her. He wanted her to submit to him, to want him. Was this his chance?
Fuck it. No one could separate him from Lethia now. Not anymore. He had full control over her.
His fingers brushed through Lethia’s hair. And she still locked eyes with him.
Was she really not going to resist him this time? His eyes dropped to her lips, and without realizing, he leaned in, ready to claim those beautiful lips.
"Sir, we have a problem." Adam’s voice cut in, forcing Varrel to halt mid-move.
"Shit!" Varrel rested his forehead against Lethia’s, swallowing hard, choking on the lust that had risen in his throat. "I hope you won’t go back on your words. Wait for me."
With a suppressed look, Varrel turned and walked away from her.
Lethia blew out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding since his disgusting fingers tangled in her hair.
Her gaze dropped to her baby bump, and she gently caressed it. She was grateful for Adam’s interruption. She was certain Varrel was about to kiss her, and she couldn’t just slap him again, otherwise her whole act would be useless.
["So, what’s with the acting? I don’t think you’ve got a solid plan to beat your ex on your own."]
’My father once told me: A cheese farmer must keep making cheese every day, even if the storage room is already full. That way it’ll push the marketing team to sell faster.’
["And? Are we going to make cheese now?"]
’I don’t need a solid plan. Because even if my clumsy plan fails, I’ll keep making new ones. Even my backup plan might have a backup plan.’
["So, what’s this clumsy plan then?"]
’First, I need to use the hearing power to find out what kind of information made the calm Adam suddenly panic.’
["Huh? You’re really making the sudden plans, aren’t you?"]
’Just do it. Now!’
After she was into it, Lethia managed to catch Varrel’s voice.
From what she heard, Zeran’s press conference earlier that afternoon had seriously shaken things up, causing some fallout for Ashcroft Corp’s stocks.
On top of that, the party backing Varrel in the election was now pressuring him to hold a public hearing and make an official statement about the sperm swap scandal the day after tomorrow.
’This is it. This is my chance.’
Lethia quickly stood from her chair, glancing around like she was looking for something. Without wasting another second, she walked out of the dining room, pacing down the corridor in a rush.
["What are you planning now? What are you even looking for?"]
’That oracle woman or whatever the hell she is, can you find her?’
["Hmm... She’s got dark energy. But I’m not sensing anything like that around here. I don’t know... Why are you looking for her? I’ve got a really bad feeling about this."]
Lethia stopped at the bottom of the stairs, gripping the railing tightly. She shut her eyes for a second, like she was weighing a heavy decision.
’Whisney... you owe me a power for the sixth bead, right?’
["I knew it. Bad feelings never lie."]
’And I know you saw me when I was researching spirit foxes. You must’ve seen what kind of powers a sacred many-tailed fox possesses.’
["Ah, mortals... always asking for things way beyond what they’re worth."]
’I want to make a deal...’
["Ha ha ha... and what makes you think you deserve to strike a deal with me?"]
’You said I need to kill, right? I won’t question that. I’ll do it. I’ll kill whoever it is.’
Lethia climbed the stairs slowly, eyes scanning her surroundings with caution.
Whisney didn’t respond right away, and for a moment, her mind fell into silence. Only the sound of her footsteps echoed as she ascended.
["Are you sure? I think you’ll regret what you just offered."] Whisney’s voice sounded indifferent.
Once she reached the second floor, she paused when a sudden clatter echoed from her right. She turned toward the source of the sound, following it without hesitation.
’Then let me regret it later. But what needs to be done, must be done.’
["And what kind of burdened favour are you asking for this time?"]
She reached a corridor with a buffet table lined against the wall and saw a picture frame toppled over, which must’ve been what caused the noise.
She picked up the photo, her father’s face staring back at her. Her fingers clenched tighter around it. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a shadow.
She turned sharply and strode toward the main bedroom.
’Let me choose the power I want this time.’
["And what’s that, now?"]
’The ability to manipulate someone’s appearance.’
["Hah... You really know how to piss me off. What kind of shape do you want to shift into?"]
Lethia stopped in front of the master bedroom, where the door was slightly ajar.
She swung it open hastily and smirked at the sight inside.
"Not me. But her. I want you to shift her form into me."