Divorced But Not Defeated The Military Queen’s Rise Again novel Chapter 281

Chapter 281 Shattered Trust.

Chapter 281 Shattered Trust

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Quinn said, “Don’t lie to me. When we first started dated, you promised that every question I asked would be answered with the truth and never a single lie.”

Julius pressed his lips together, then forced out a rough, “Yes.”

She went on, her voice frighteningly calm, “So when my brother begged you for help that night, were you really sitting in the back seat?”

He stared at her back, stunned. There were only a few steps between them, yet an impossible distance seemed to open, cold and endless.

“Yes.” The word scraped out of his throat. “Quinnie, please forgive me. If I had known he was your brother, I never would have stood by and done nothing.”

Quinn’s shoulders trembled. She turned slowly and faced Julius.

“Stood by and did nothing?” Her lips lifted in a bitter curve. The irony cut deeper than any blade.

She had always despised Sidonie for letting an innocent life slip away because she refused to help. Now the man she loved had done the same to her own brother.

“Why didn’t you tell me long ago? You knew I was searching for Rowan. You even saw his photograph. Or are you going to say you forgot what happened five years ago and simply failed to remember? Even Marley had guessed I was looking for him, so do you expect me to believe you never made the connection? Julius, answer me. I want the truth, not another lie.”

Her fingers curled tighter and tighter while she waited, dread knotting with anger.

“I’m sorry,” Julius rasped.

Those words sent Quinn’s heart crashing to the bottom of a dark abyss.

She closed the distance in a single stride, swung, and drove her fist straight into his face.

Bang!

The blow landed hard, yet Julius neither dodged nor raised a hand. He simply absorbed the pain.

“Why? Why did you lie to me? You knew Rowan was in Doria, an invaluable clue, yet you kept silent!” Tears of fury burned her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Quinnie, I’m sorry,” Julius pleaded. “I was afraid that if I told you, you would never forgive me, that you would leave. I have sent people to look for Rowan in Doria. I… I planned to confess everything once they found him.”

“So your honesty comes with conditions?” Quinn let out a laugh that sounded more like a sob. Her fist shot forward again and cracked against his cheek. “Do you know how completely I trusted you before today? In a single moment, you destroyed it all.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” He had nothing else to say.

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15:52 Mon, 4 Aug

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“He only asked me to save him,” Julius replied, bitterness in every word. “He was injured, speaking Clusian, which is why I remember. Back then, I felt no compassion for anyone or anything, so I…”

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“I didn’t notice,” Julius answered. “There are several industrial parks near that spot. Once I realized I had seen Rowan before, I sent people back to Doria to search, but they found nothing. He isn’t in any of those parks.”

Quinn lowered her gaze. Not being there meant Rowan had left, been taken elsewhere, or–perhaps–was already dead. She knew the district was notorious for chaos. No. Rowan will not die. However hard life becomes, he always survives.

“One last question.” Quinn lifted her eyes and fixed them on Julius. “When did you realize you had met my brother before?”

“When you

took me to the diner in town,” Julius said. “I saw a photo of you and Rowan on the wall and recognized him.”

Quinn drew a long breath. So he had been hiding the truth from her since that day.

Back when they started dating, she had told him she could not bear deceit, and he had sworn he would never–lie.

“So, when you vowed to answer any question I asked,” she said, her eyes turning crimson, “you had already decided that as long as I stayed silent you could keep the truth buried, didn’t you?”

“Never again, Quinnie. I swear it will never happen again in the future,” Julius pleaded. For a moment, Quinn felt lost. Do we still have a future?