Chapter 271

Adrian's piercing stare remained locked on Vivian. "Do I truly mean nothing to you?" His voice was dangerously calm, each word measured like a blade being sharpened.

The moment the words left his lips, Adrian despised himself for voicing them. It felt like unleashing a storm of vulnerability he'd spent years suppressing. This wasn't him - the man who'd always mocked jealous tantrums now found himself craving even a flicker of possessiveness from her.

Vivian let out a bitter laugh. "That's rich coming from you. When you paraded Serena around like some trophy, humiliating me at every turn, your precious advice was to 'be the bigger person.' But now with Clarissa - that delusional stalker - suddenly it's proof I don't care? Listen to yourself!"

She was done swallowing her words. No more silent suffering. From this moment on, she'd speak her truth without restraint.

Adrian tugged at his collar, irritation flaring. "Why must you always drag Serena into this?"

It wasn't just her words that cut deep - it was the mirror they held up to his own hypocrisy. Control had always been his armor. Yet their marriage was spiraling into chaos, and he barely recognized the man he'd become.

Vivian met his gaze with an icy smirk. Of course. The mere mention of Serena's name and he jumped to defend her. Predictable.

Her mind flashed to last night, to the paradox that was Adrian Blackwood. How could one man's actions and emotions be so violently at odds?

She'd always believed intimacy should be an expression of love - something sacred born from mutual respect. Without that foundation, it was just primal instinct. Yet despite everything, the embers of her feelings still smoldered. At least she hadn't let passion - or foolish hope - cloud her judgment.

Adrian braced for her usual sharp retort, but silence stretched between them. When he finally glanced at her, she was watching him with a gaze so cold it could freeze fire. Their eyes locked for a charged moment before she deliberately looked away.

"It's handled. I have work to do." With a clipped instruction to Ethan, she turned and walked off without a backward glance.

Frustration erupted in Adrian. His foot connected with a nearby stool, sending it crashing against the wall. Ethan watched the scene unfold, his gaze darting between Vivian's retreating form and Adrian's thunderous expression. The assistant sighed internally. If Mr. Blackwood kept playing these games, he'd lose her for good.

Meanwhile, in an upscale Willowbrook neighborhood, Julian sat motionless on a leather sofa, his usual charm replaced by a terrifying stillness. His fingers tapped a rhythmic pattern on the armrest.

"Willowbrook has barely 300,000 residents," he said softly. "Yet after all this time, you still haven't located him?"

A portly man stood sweating before him, mopping his brow with a trembling handkerchief. "M-Mr. Montclair, we've checked every piano instructor, music store owner, even bar pianists - anyone remotely connected to-"

Julian's hand flashed out, sending a porcelain teacup shattering against the man's temple before he could finish.