Chapter 296:

7 Months Ago (The Day of Robert’s Call)

Author’s POV

Robert was sitting in his leather office chair with sheer comfort, leaning his back all the way down. He placed his hand over the wooden surface of the desk, and holding his phone, he pressed the dial button, lifting it to his ear while releasing a long, drawn-out exhale. He looked entirely relaxed, in absolute control of the reins.

On the other end of the line, Lorenzo was sitting in his warm workshop. He answered in a quiet, deep tone, saying: "Robert, my friend... hello."

The dry edge of Robert’s voice suddenly shifted, and a warm, friendly smile one that rarely graced his features carved its way onto his lips. He said: "Yes, my friend Lorenzo... hello to you."

Lorenzo tilted his head as he gripped a small engraving pen over his desk, following up with a question: "Remind me of the girl’s name so I can etch the letters. Was it Julie?"

A silence loomed for a few seconds in the room, during which Robert listened intently and quietly to the other side, tracing the edge of the phone with his fingers. Then, he uttered the name with pure simplicity: "Yes... her name is Julie."

Lorenzo let out a sigh, looking at the sparkling gemstone held between his fingers through his magnifying lenses, and said: "You asked me for a green emerald, but of the exact color of her eyes... your request was difficult, but I found it."

Robert tilted his head slightly, his smile gradually fading to follow up his words with a freezing, icy coldness that didn’t carry a single shred of emotion: "I sent you her picture so you could see for yourself what I was talking about."

Lorenzo rotated the ring between his fingers to ensure its polish, speaking in a tone weighted with experience and suspicion: "Yes, the picture helped me comprehend what you desired... but I doubt you have fallen in love, Robert. I think you will regret this."

Robert waited for a few more seconds, listening to Lorenzo’s words. Suddenly, a low chuckle broke from him, shaking his chest as his features relaxed back into mockery: "Stop the nonsense, Lorenzo, you know me well... I don’t fall into the trap of love that easily. That’s why my decision is perfectly in place."

Lorenzo knitted his brows, bewildered by the young friend’s detachment, asking in a curious tone: "And does the girl know that you are going to propose to her?"

Robert drew a silent breath, the features of a victor painting his face. He adjusted his seating position, adding with a dismissive, mocking laugh: "She is a poor thing; she knows absolutely nothing of what is revolving around her. I told her I am preparing a surprise for her, and she believed every word... she has no idea what I am plotting."

Lorenzo shook his head in helpless surrender, then gripped the fine engraving tool with a hand that trembled slightly due to age, saying: "Fine, I only have left to etch the letters of her name onto the ring, and it will be ready."

Robert adjusted his posture, placing his other hand on the desktop, pressing gently against the wood as he continued in a confident, strict tone that brooked no argument: "I want you to come tomorrow, Lorenzo. Do not be late."

Lorenzo halted his work, pulling his magnifying glasses off as his features tightened with a warm, fatherly gravity, saying: "Listen, Robert, you are like a son to me, and I am the age of your father... if I feel that this girl will not suit you, I will tell it to you bluntly."

Robert drew a final breath in a tone saturated with pride, arrogance, and overconfidence: "You will definitely like her, I guarantee you that... in reality, she is miles more beautiful than the picture. Her features are rare."

Lorenzo’s features softened slightly, a faint smile gracing his lips as he leaned back against his chair, saying: "We shall see tomorrow... and what if she rejects your proposal?"

Robert’s gaze suddenly turned to stone, his jaw clenching with such force that a cruel, harsh detachment surfaced over the contours of his face. He spoke with immense firmness and a roaring pitch: "How can she possibly reject? She won’t even possess the option of refusal. Even if she attempts to rebel, I will force her into it."

Lorenzo went silent for a few seconds, feeling the sheer grip of attachment and possessiveness Robert held for this girl. He smiled slyly, saying in a challenging tone: "I think you are entirely drowned in love with this girl... are you ready to pay the price for this exceptional ring?"

Cutting through any lingering doubt, Robert pressed his fingers sharply against the phone, concluding his words with a decisive strike that put an end to the call, cutting the line: "As I told you, my friend, tomorrow you will be here, and we will agree on the final price then."

The Present

Robert’s POV

I was sitting in my house this exact house that I decided one day to return to for Julie’s sake. Because I thought, stupidly, that we could live together in peace here beneath its roof.

Even now, I could not believe or comprehend that Julie had fled from me. After she made me love her and open my fortresses to her, and after I believed with every fiber of my being that she loved me and craved me... she flees in such a humiliating, sudden manner without leaving a single trace behind! Throughout these seven barren months, my voice went hoarse and I searched for her everywhere, in every single corner and nook of New York, but I found nothing... not a single thread, as if the earth had split open and swallowed her whole.

To make matters worse, my father informed me that her mother had vanished in the exact same manner when my father loved her in the past. This clearly meant that I was merely another victim of hers the extension of an ancient curse. But the questions were gnawing at my mind, nearly exploding it: Why did she do this? Why did she seem, in every look and touch, to love me sincerely? Was all of that merely a flawless, orchestrated act just so she could escape me? But she had the opportunity to flee multiple times in the past and she didn’t... so why now, of all times?!

My facial features contorted, fury clouding my eyes. I lifted my palm and slammed my hand with all my might against the wooden desktop, a strike that echoed throughout the room. I must find her, no matter what it costs me, and no matter how much time or how many men it requires. I clenched my jaw tightly, uttering in a sharp pitch flooded with a promise of retribution: "I will find you, Julie... and I will make you pay a heavy, agonizing price for your betrayal!"

I rose from the leather chair with pure agitation, stepping toward the wall where I unlocked the small iron safe. From its depths, I pulled out a luxurious black box crafted from soft velvet. I opened its lid with slowness, my gaze turning to stone and my fingers trembling slightly as I stared at the enchanting green emerald ring resting right in the center... In that exact moment, I felt a sharp, heavy pain squeezing my chest, choking my breath. Because despite all this abandonment, and despite everything... I loved her. I loved her to a morbid, psychotic, and insane degree. To the point that there was no way on this earth anyone else could ever love her in this towering, dominant way.

I snapped the lid shut with raw violence, closing the box. I returned it to the darkness of the safe, then locked its iron door firmly.

The only option before me now is finding Julie finding her, returning her to my fortress, and holding her accountable for every single inhalation and exhalation, and for everything she has done to me.