Page 103 of King of Ruin

"Miss Foster..."

Something in the maid's voice made Elise pause.

She looked up, only to find Layla standing there with an uneasy expression, her hands clasped nervously in front of her apron.

A faint crease formed between Elise's brows.

"What is it?"

Layla lowered her eyes briefly before looking back up, as though struggling to find the right words.

"Mr. Chen..." She swallowed. "...he didn't come back alone."

Elise's smile slowly faded.

"What do you mean?"

"He..." Layla's fingers twisted nervously in front of her apron. "He came back with a woman."

Silence filled the room.

For a heartbeat, Elise simply looked at her, unable to comprehend what she'd just heard.

Then Layla forced herself to continue.

"Mr. Chen told everyone that..." Her voice grew quieter with every word. "...she'll be the mistress of this house from now on."

The color drained from Elise's face.

Elise stood rooted to the spot, staring at Layla as though she hadn't understood what she'd just heard. For several long seconds, her mind refused to process the words, leaving her frozen in place while an unbearable silence settled around her. Her fingers slowly tightened around the belt of her robe, and every muscle in her body stiffened as the reality of Layla's words began to sink in.

Xavier had come home.

But he hadn't come home alone.

It took everything she had to steady herself. She slowly straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin, forcing herself to look composed even as the ground seemed to crumble beneath her feet.

"I... see."

The words came out rough and almost inaudible.

The smile that had brightened her face only moments ago disappeared without a trace. The light in her eyes dimmed, replaced by a quiet emptiness that made her expression change so completely that even Layla noticed it.

Concern immediately crossed the maid's face.

"Miss Foster..." she called softly. "Are you all right?"

Elise didn't answer.

She wasn't sure she knew how.

A familiar ache spread through her chest, one she had spent years pretending no longer existed. Ever since she was a child, she'd lived with the quiet fear that people eventually left—that no matter how much they cared for her, there would come a day when they realized she wasn't worth keeping. Her birth parents had proven that to her long ago, and although she'd found a loving family in Kevin and Grace, that fear had never truly disappeared.

Now, hearing that Xavier had returned home with another woman...

The fear she'd buried for so many years no longer felt like a fear.

Elise's gaze slowly shifted back to Layla.