Page 102 of King of Ruin

The bedroom fell silent once again.

She lowered the phone into her lap and stared blankly at the dark screen, hoping it would light up again almost immediately with Xavier's name flashing across it.

It never did.

The silence stretched late into the night, broken only by the ticking of the clock on the bedside table. Every few minutes, her eyes drifted back to her phone, convincing herself she had simply missed a vibration or forgotten to turn the volume on. More than once, she picked it up to check, only to find the screen just as empty as before.

No messages.

No missed calls.

Nothing.

She told herself Xavier was busy.

He had flown overseas for work without any preparation. Meetings were probably lined up the moment his plane landed, leaving him with barely enough time to catch his breath.

He would call when he had a moment.

He always did.

That thought became the only thing she held on to.

But one day quietly slipped into the next.

The first morning passed without a word from him.

Then the second.

By the third day, every glance at her silent phone left a little more disappointment behind than the last. Even Benjamin, who had promised to update her once he reached Xavier, never called.

The waiting slowly became the hardest part.

Each passing hour fed the uneasiness she had tried so desperately to ignore, until the knot in her chest seemed to settle there permanently.

It wasn't until the evening of the fourth day that the silence was finally broken.

The front door of the Chen Manor swung open downstairs, followed by the faint sound of footsteps echoing through the entrance hall.

A few seconds later, hurried footsteps raced up the staircase.

The bedroom door was knocked on in quick succession before it opened just enough for Layla, one of the housemaids, to peek inside.

Her face was bright with relief.

"Miss Foster," she called, unable to hide the excitement in her voice. "Mr. Chen has returned home."

Elise's gaze lifted from the phone in her hands the instant she heard Layla's voice. A wave of relief washed over her so suddenly that she almost laughed.

"Xavier’s back?"

The anxious weight that had been pressing on her chest for the past three days seemed to loosen all at once. Without wasting another second, she threw the blanket aside and hurried out of bed, reaching for the silk robe draped over the armchair beside her. She slipped it over her shoulders as she walked, hastily tying the belt around her waist before stepping into her slippers.

"Did you take his bag?" she asked, smoothing a hand over her slightly rumpled hair. A small smile touched her lips despite the hour. "He must be exhausted."

Already thinking about the things he would need after days of traveling, Elise brushed past the end of the bed and headed for the bedroom door.

Before she could take more than a few steps, Layla hurried in front of her, blocking her path.