Chapter 454 - 50 Poisonous Reunion
Daniel’s POV
My peaceful days had shattered like glass against concrete. Dominic finally returned from his extended business in Sicily and summoned all of us to dinner at the Thorne family’s private dining room. His intention was to get updates about Gemma’s situation, but the conversation took a sinister turn when he revealed that her ex-boyfriend had been making death threats against her—and against Lila. That information sent rage coursing through my veins like molten steel.
After returning to my penthouse, I tried to discuss the threats with Lila, but she dismissed them casually, claiming she barely remembered being threatened. How does someone forget a death threat from a desperate man with nothing to lose? But before I could press the issue further, my little temptress distracted me with her irresistible touch, and I allowed myself to be drawn away from the subject.
The next morning, anxiety and concern ate at me like acid. Then Sasha called, transforming my worry into pure fury.
"Hello, darling husband! Have you sorted out our marital situation yet?" She was clearly savoring every moment of this torment.
"Sasha, crawl back to whatever cesspit spawned you and pretend I never existed!" I snarled before ending the call. The phone rang again immediately.
"You used to have better breeding," she purred with mock disappointment. "Daniel, I’m still legally your wife, so the least you could do is take me to a proper establishment and treat me with the respect I deserve."
"Respect? Go straight to hell, Sasha! Forget I exist. Whatever sick game you’re orchestrating, I’ll crush it. Now find something else to occupy your twisted mind and leave me in peace—I have real work to do." I had zero patience for her psychological warfare today.
"You’d better meet me for lunch today, or I might pay an unexpected visit to that sweet little plaything you’ve been bedding." Sasha’s threats were becoming increasingly brazen, and my restraint was hanging by a thread.
"What the hell do you want from me, Sasha? I don’t have time for lunch meetings."
"I want to move back into our matrimonial home. That’s why we need to discuss terms. Luxury hotels aren’t suitable for permanent residence."
"What matrimonial home are you fantasizing about?"
"Don’t play dumb with me."
"You’re the one living in a fantasy! Don’t you dare set foot near my building or Lila. If you do, what happens next will be far worse than anything you’re prepared for."
"Don’t threaten me, Daniel."
"Don’t threaten me, Sasha."
"I’ll give you some time to compose yourself, but this matter needs resolution soon."
"Soon, you’ll be nothing but a nightmare I’ve forgotten, you poisonous witch!"
I slammed the phone down with my head pounding like a war drum. Leaving the precinct, I drove straight to Caleb’s corporate office. We had arranged to discuss the escalating threats from Gemma’s psychotic ex-boyfriend, but with everything spiraling out of control, I lost my composure and treated Gemma with inexcusable harshness.
Now my little one was livid with me. When she returned that evening and announced she would be sleeping in the guest bedroom, I nearly came unhinged. She was withdrawing from me, and I had only myself to blame. She refused to even acknowledge my presence.
But Sasha was relentless in her pursuit of contact. When she called repeatedly, I decided confronting whatever twisted scheme she had brewing might be the fastest way to end this nightmare permanently. I drove to her hotel, answering her latest call during the journey.
"Finally. I was about to visit our home personally and escort that little nymph out myself," Sasha spoke as if she owned everything in my life.
"I warned you to stay away from her."
"And I told you we needed to have a proper discussion."
"Wait in the hotel lobby. I’ll be there shortly."
I drove through the city with rage burning in my chest like wildfire. When I arrived, Sasha was waiting in the opulent lobby like she belonged there. I approached and took the leather armchair across from her.
"What do you want? I know this performance isn’t motivated by genuine love like you claim."
"Daniel, how can you treat your wife so callously?"
"I know your methods too well, Sasha. What is my father paying you for this charade?"
"Don’t be juvenile, Daniel. I am your legal wife!"
"Drop the theatrics, Sasha! You disappeared for years after stealing a fortune in cash and assets, and now suddenly you remember you’re married to me and claim to love me? I don’t believe a word of it. Either be completely honest about your motivations, or I’ll resolve this situation through other channels."
"I am being honest. I love you, I always have. Don’t you remember how perfect we were together?"
"I’ve come to realize we were never perfect together. We were simply comfortable with familiar dysfunction."
"That’s not what you whispered after making passionate love to me." Her eyes glittered with calculated provocation.
"Imagine how spectacularly wrong I was!" I feigned shock, which clearly infuriated her.
"Seriously, Daniel? Is this how you’re going to behave? Come on, for the sake of our history, let’s have dinner at an exclusive restaurant with fine wine, and enjoy each other’s company like we used to."
"That’s absolutely not happening, Sasha. I’m not the same man anymore, and I have zero interest in dining with you. I’m only here attempting to handle this diplomatically."
"Handle this diplomatically." She laughed with bitter mockery, making me want to wrap my hands around her throat. "Daniel, the only acceptable solution is for you to send that little nymph back to wherever she came from and restore me to my rightful position as your wife."
"Have you considered that I could pursue divorce proceedings again?"
"For that, you’d need to locate where I’m actually residing, which you cannot." She laughed with supreme confidence.
"When did you transform into such a despicable creature without me noticing?" Her corruption disgusted me completely. My father and she were definitely conspiring together.
"When did you become so melodramatic?" She laughed directly in my face with contempt.
I stood to leave, but she called after me with venom.
"Daniel, you have until next Friday. If you don’t comply with my demands, I’m going after your precious little nymph personally."
I spun around instantly.
"You actually believe threatening her will force me to submit to your will? It won’t. If you make that mistake, what you receive from me will be exponentially worse than anything you’re imagining. Touch her, and I’ll expose every single one of your father’s illegal operations. And you know I’m aware of every dirty detail." It was time to deploy serious pressure. Her father was involved in numerous questionable ventures, and I would absolutely use that leverage—she worshipped him and wouldn’t risk destroying him.
"You wouldn’t dare drag my father into our personal business!" Her entire demeanor shifted to panic.
"Then don’t drag Lila into ours!" I responded with steel in my voice. "Are you actually trying to manipulate me, Sasha? Me, of all people? Push me further, and I’ll detonate this entire situation."
I walked away without a backward glance. How had I misjudged someone so completely? When I married Sasha as a young man, I was still working within my father’s organization and believed she was my perfect match. But I was already planning to join law enforcement, which I did not long after our wedding. From that point until our divorce, she made my existence miserable, constantly pressuring me to abandon police work and return to the family business.
Years ago came the breaking point—she issued an ultimatum: either her or my detective career. I chose my badge, so she filed for divorce, seized everything she could legally claim, and vanished completely. Initially, I felt devastated, but that pain quickly transformed into relief as I found fulfillment in my profession. Sasha became a distant memory, someone I rarely contemplated—until now, when she’s returned to torture me again. She was driving me toward madness, but I would end this. I just needed patience while the investigation and legal machinery did their work.