Before Hailey could reach the taxi stand, a sleek black Bentley rolled silently to a stop beside her.

The man in the front passenger seat stepped out—dressed in black, cold-faced. She recognized him immediately. The same bodyguard who had dragged her into the elevator last night. The one who handed her over to Travis.

He opened the back door with stiff formality. “Young madam, please get in.”

Hailey’s eyes lifted, locking onto the dark figure inside.

Travis Blake.

Even with the hospital entrance crowded and noisy, the weight of his stare silenced everything around her.

Her heart squeezed tight. Gossip was the last thing she needed.

She hesitated for a moment, then ducked her head and slipped into the car.

Travis’s face was blank, eyes fixed on the road ahead. He didn’t speak.

Neither did she.

Dragging me into your car without a word. What now? Hailey’s fingers curled into fists in her lap, frustration simmering in her chest.

A tense minute passed.

“I’m sorry… can you stop at the bus stop ahead?” Hailey finally broke the silence, her voice steady but distant, as she gestured toward the driver.

Samuel, seated behind the wheel, glanced at her in the rearview mirror. His lips twitched faintly. Young madam clearly doesn’t know… if the boss doesn’t want the car to stop, no one’s stopping it.

Travis’s voice cut through the quiet, low and sharp. “There isn’t a bus stop within two kilometers of Blake Manor. Planning to walk the rest of the way?”

Hailey met his gaze, her expression cool. “Since Calvin is gone… I see no reason to go back to Blake Manor.”

She had barely lasted fifteen minutes there. That house wasn’t hers. That room wasn’t hers. Her luggage… she could collect it another day.

A flicker of something dangerous lit in Travis’s eyes.

“You married into the Blake family. That doesn’t change just because you feel like running,” he said, his voice cold, edged with warning.

Hailey’s jaw tightened. The words scraped at her pride, but she said nothing. Smile. Endure. Don’t provoke him. Denver’s warnings rang in her ears.

But Travis wasn’t finished.

“Your commitment wasn’t just to Calvin,” he added. “It was to the Blake family. You don’t get to pick and choose when that applies.”

Hailey clenched her fists tighter, her mind flashing to her mother—forced to kneel, humiliated. She shoved the painful image away, swallowing hard.

Travis noticed her trembling fingers. His eyes narrowed.

“You thought what happened last night would fix things for the Stewarts?” His voice dropped lower, more dangerous. “You’re not even connected to their hotel. But you walked in… acted bold… and thought you could play with me?”

Hailey froze. So, he knew.

She wasn’t from the hotel. She shouldn’t have been there. And he’d pieced it together.

Suddenly, his hand shot out, gripping her by the neck—not choking her, but enough to send her heart racing.

“Did you target me on purpose?” Travis’s eyes burned into hers. “You knew who I was. You planned it.”

Panic surged in Hailey’s chest. She wanted to shout If I knew you were Travis Blake, I wouldn’t have gone near you!

But fear sealed her lips shut.

Denver’s voice echoed in her mind. He took over the Blake family young. Ruthless. Unforgiving. Don’t provoke him, Hailey…

She stayed frozen, silent.

Travis held her gaze for another second, then let go.

The car kept moving, the tension suffocating.

Neither of them spoke.

But the war between them… had just begun.

Denver’s warnings echoed in Hailey’s mind like a broken record. When you enter the Blake family, smile. Endure. Don’t provoke him. Especially Travis. If you anger him, no one wins—not even you.

She didn’t want to owe the Stewarts anything. She hated that name. But her sick uncle… he needed help. And the Blake family had resources ordinary people could only dream of.

For now, she had to play along.

“I didn’t know it was you,” Hailey finally said, her voice steady, though her heart clenched tight. She studied his cold profile, unsure what he was thinking. “I’ve never seen your picture before. I didn’t know you were… Travis Blake.”

For a moment, silence.

Then, fury.

Without warning, Travis slammed his fist against the car window.

The heavy, bulletproof glass shuddered under the force, a deep thud filling the car. The glass held firm, but the skin on his knuckles split, blood pooling fast.

Hailey flinched, eyes wide. His sudden violence caught her off guard.

Did I say the wrong thing? she wondered, panic rising. Should she have lied? Pretended she’d known? But it was too late now. The words were out.

Up front, Samuel and the bodyguard sat stiff as statues, eyes forward. But Hailey caught the quick glance they exchanged, their unease clear. Even they didn’t dare predict Travis’s next move.

By the time they arrived at Blake Manor, the grand house looked colder than ever.

The red lanterns were gone. The cheerful characters stripped from the walls. It was as if all signs of celebration had been erased overnight.

The butler rushed over, eyes widening as he spotted the blood on Travis’s hand. “First aid kit, quickly!” he ordered the servants.

Hailey lingered by the door, invisible, as a small crowd circled Travis. No one looked at her. No one acknowledged her.

The familiar feeling of being unwanted, of being out of place, crept over her. Her fists clenched at her sides.

“Enough. Leave,” Travis barked, his voice sharp.

The servants scattered like frightened birds.

His cold eyes locked on Hailey. “You. Come here.”

She took a cautious step forward, every gaze in the room now fixed on her. She could feel it—judgment, pity, even contempt.

“I… I don’t know how to dress wounds,” she admitted, her voice quiet but clear. She held up her uninjured hand, the other still bruised from earlier.

Travis’s stare was cold, unreadable. But the air in the room was thick with unspoken blame.

They all looked at her the same way.

To them, she was already a curse. Calvin Blake was dead. The patriarch was furious. And this unwanted outsider—beautiful but powerless—was standing at the center of it all.

Her beauty meant nothing now. If anything, it only made her a bigger target.

And her future in this house?

It was already hanging by a thread.