“You are here because I allowed it.”
Then she looked toward Lucas.
“And he stays because I decided it.”
Neither warmth nor apology existed in her voice.
Only decision.
Lucas stared at her for a long moment.
Then finally spoke coldly.
“You are becoming reckless.”
Olivia answered immediately.
“No.”
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
“I am becoming difficult to corner.”
Silence.
Lem looked at her sideways again.
Interesting woman.
Very dangerous woman.
They finally reached the upper corridor where guest rooms were prepared.
Servants hurried nervously ahead, clearly terrified about arranging rooms for one of the empire’s most feared assassins.
Olivia stopped outside one of the rooms.
“You will stay here temporarily.”
Lem glanced inside briefly.
Large room.
Elegant.
Far too noble for his taste.
“You trust me an impressive amount.”
Olivia looked at him evenly.
“If I did not trust your control, I would not have brought you here.”
Lem stared at her for a second longer.
Then asked quietly,
“And the children?”
Peter and Lucas both looked toward Olivia immediately at the question.
Olivia’s answer came without hesitation.
“You stay away from them until I decide otherwise.”
Simple.
Direct.
Protective.
Lem nodded once immediately.
No offense taken.
If anything— he looked more interested again.
Because the only time Olivia’s tone changed even slightly tonight…
was when the children became part of the conversation.
Lem noticed that carefully.
Then he stepped into the room.
Before the door closed, he looked back at Olivia once more.
“You really are building something dangerous here.”
Olivia answered calmly,
“Yes.”
And for the first time in years—
Lem believed someone in a noble society might actually survive what was coming.
The corridor became quiet after Lem entered the guest room.
The door closed softly behind him.
But the tension he left behind remained.
Servants quickly disappeared down the hallway, clearly unwilling to stay near the situation longer than necessary.
Nur looked exhausted.
“I am going to sleep before this entire mansion explodes.”
Nobody stopped her.
She left immediately.
Leaving only Olivia, Lucas, and Peter standing in the corridor under dim candlelight.
Silence stretched for several moments.
Then Peter suddenly laughed once under his breath.
Olivia glanced at him.
“What?”
Peter ran a hand through his hair.
“You brought the most feared assassin in the empire into your home.”
“Yes.”
“And somehow he seems calmer than the two of us.”
Lucas’ expression darkened slightly.
Peter noticed immediately and almost smiled.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Olivia, however, looked completely unaffected.
“He is practical,” she answered simply.
Lucas finally spoke coldly,
“You trust him too easily.”
Olivia looked at him calmly.
“No.”
“I understand him.”
That answer irritated Lucas immediately.
Because she spoke about Lem with certainty.
Clear certainty.
The kind she never used with him.
Peter crossed his arms loosely.
“You seem comfortable around him.”
Olivia’s expression remained unchanged.
“He understands negotiations.”
Lucas’ eyes narrowed slightly.
“And we do not?”
Olivia looked at him directly.
“You respond emotionally too often.”
Silence.
Peter looked genuinely offended.
Lucas looked worse.
Because neither of them could deny it completely.
Especially tonight.
Peter suddenly muttered,
“He was looking at you strangely.”
Olivia blinked once.
“…Who?”
“Lem.”
Lucas’ expression became colder instantly.
Olivia looked mildly tired now.
“You are both imagining unnecessary things.”
Peter scoffed lightly.
“That man looked one second away from either threatening someone or following you into war willingly.”
“That is his normal face,” Olivia replied flatly. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
Peter actually laughed at that.
Lucas did not.
Because annoyingly—
Peter wasn’t entirely wrong.
Lem had been attentive to her.
Interested.
And worst of all—
Olivia handled him easily.
Naturally.
Without forcing anything.
Lucas suddenly realized something unpleasant.
Olivia spoke more openly to Lem tonight than she ever had to him during most of their marriage.
Not warmly.
But directly.
Honestly.
No chasing.
No emotional desperation.
And somehow that bothered him far more than her old obsession ever did.
Peter leaned lazily against the wall nearby.
“You know,” he said casually, “I think he likes you.”
Olivia looked genuinely uninterested.
“That sounds inconvenient for him.”
Peter choked slightly on his own laugh.
Even Lucas looked briefly stunned.
Because she truly sounded like she did not care.
Not denial.
Not embarrassment.
Nothing.
Just indifference.
Peter shook his head slowly.
“You really became terrifying.”
Olivia answered calmly,
“I became efficient.”
Lucas stared at her quietly.
The moonlight through the hallway windows touched her face softly, but there was nothing soft in her expression now.
Everything about her lately felt controlled.
Measured.
And somehow farther away from both of them than before.
Peter suddenly frowned slightly.
“…Do you even realize how much attention you attract lately?”
Olivia looked at him.
“No.”
“That’s the problem,” Peter muttered.
Lucas agreed silently.
The old Olivia demanded attention desperately.
The current Olivia ignored it completely.
And somehow— that made people follow her willingly instead.
Lucas suddenly spoke again.
“You should not trust Lem near the children.”
This time Olivia’s gaze sharpened slightly.
The smallest change.
But both men noticed immediately.
“Which is why,” she said evenly, “he will not go near them until I decide.”
Peter observed her carefully then.
Interesting.
That was the first genuinely protective tone she used tonight.
Not for herself.
For the boys.
Always the boys.
Lucas noticed it too.
And strangely—
That realization made the jealousy worse.
Because no matter what changed around Olivia…
the only people who truly reached inside her guarded space— were Max and Mike.
Everyone else remained outside the walls
The hallway quieted again after that.
Peter leaned against the wall with crossed arms, still watching Olivia carefully.
Lucas stood a few steps away, expression colder than before.
And Olivia— looked entirely ready to end the conversation and leave.
Which somehow irritated both men further.
Peter finally sighed.
“You know what bothers me?”
Olivia glanced at him briefly.
“You both look personally offended by decisions that have nothing to do with you.”
Lucas immediately answered,
“They involve this estate.”
Olivia looked at him calmly.
“No.
They involve me.”
Silence.
Peter almost smiled at Lucas’ expression.
Because that hit directly where it hurt.
Olivia had stopped treating herself as part of Lucas’ authority completely.
Not emotionally.
Structurally.
Lucas spoke after a moment, voice lower now.
“You brought a dangerous man into this mansion without informing anyone beforehand.”
“Yes.”
“And you expect no reaction?”
Olivia’s gaze remained steady.
“I expected reactions.
I simply did not require permission.”
That answer landed heavily.
Peter rubbed his forehead briefly.
“You really changed into a difficult person.”
Olivia answered immediately,
“No.”
Her expression stayed calm.
“I stopped making myself easy to control.”
Lucas went still.
Because the words sounded aimed at no one specifically—
Peter noticed too.
The old Olivia had bent herself painfully around other people’s expectations.
Around Lucas.
Around noble society.
Now?
She moved entirely on her own judgment.
And the worst part— she was becoming more effective because of it.
Peter looked toward Lem’s closed guest room door briefly.
“That man is dangerous even by underground standards.”
Olivia nodded once.
“I know.”
“And you still trust him.”
“I trust his priorities.”
Lucas frowned slightly.
“You barely know him anymore.”
Olivia looked at him calmly.
“I know enough.”
That answer bothered him again.
Because she sounded certain.
Confidence.
While every interaction with him lately felt distant and restrained.
Peter suddenly asked casually,
“Would you have brought him here if children were not involved?”
Olivia answered instantly.
“No.”
No hesitation.
No confusion.
Just the truth.
And strangely— that answer made the atmosphere even heavier.
Because both men understood what it meant.
Everything she was doing lately— the political risks.
The alliances.
The changes.
Even bringing Lem into the mansion— none of it was for power.
Not for status.
Not for herself.
Only for Max and Mike.
Lucas looked at her quietly.
“You would go this far for them.”
Olivia met his gaze without emotion.
“Yes.”
Peter exhaled softly through his nose.
Dangerous.
Not because Olivia loved recklessly.
But because she had chosen something worth becoming dangerous for.
And once Olivia decided something belonged to her— she protected it completely.
Lucas suddenly asked,
“And if they grow attached to you?”
Olivia’s expression barely shifted.
“They already are.”
“That is not what I meant.”
Olivia understood anyway.
But her answer remained calm.
“Children become attached to people who make them feel safe.”
Peter looked at her carefully.
“And you?”
Olivia blinked once.
“What about me?”
“Do you feel attached?”
The question lingered in the hallway quietly.
Lucas looked at her too now.
Waiting.
Olivia’s answer came after only a brief pause.
“They are my responsibility.”
Peter immediately understood that was the only answer she intended to give.
Not because she felt nothing.
But because Olivia categorized emotions differently now.
Protection mattered more than naming affection aloud.
Lucas suddenly felt irrationally irritated again.
Because she gave everything to those boys naturally— attention.
Protection.
Presence.
Yet every interaction with him felt like standing outside a locked door.
Peter seemed to realize the same thing.
And unfortunately—
That shared realization made the atmosphere between the two men even worse.
Olivia noticed neither reaction.
Or chose not to.
She simply turned toward her room calmly.
“You should both sleep.”
Peter scoffed softly.
“You command people too naturally now.”
Olivia answered without turning back.
“People listen more efficiently when instructions are clear.”
Lucas watched her walk away down the corridor.
Cold.
Controlled.
Untouchable.
Yet somehow the entire mansion had begun revolving around her decisions anyway.
Peter spoke quietly beside him after she disappeared from view.
“…We’re losing.”
Lucas frowned slightly.
“To who?”
Peter looked toward the closed hallway where Olivia vanished.
“Her priorities.”
Silence.
Because that was exactly the problem.
Neither of them existed inside them