Hades was shocked to see Alanna's tear."What's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?"His first instinct was to wipe the teardrop away.Having regained her senses, Alanna dodged his hand instinctively. Then, she gazed downward while wiping the teardrop away."It's late. You should go back to your room."After setting her laptop aside, Alanna got up and headed toward the bathroom. Her eyes were slightly red even after she washed her face.At least, the feeling of being on the brink of death that had plagued her in her dream had already vanished the moment she woke up.Alanna looked down at the crescent marks her nails had left on her palms. She took a deep breath a moment later before exiting the bathroom.Truth be told, this occurrence had grown to become a norm in her life ever since Alanna fell off the cliff.The helpless feeling of her near-death experience seemed to have transformed into a nightmare that she could never shake off no matter what.Alanna had been suffering from
Hades took a drag of his cigarette before tilting his chin upward and leaning against the wall."Travis, do you have any idea how much trouble you'll cause for her if you keep this up? Either you grow a pair and oppress your family before courting her, or stay away from her from now on."Travis was silent for a moment. "Hades, will your family accept her?"His words made Hades pause in his actions. Travis continued with a frosty chuckle, "Or have you never thought about introducing her to the rest of your family? "You're hell-bent on pursuing her right now. Is it all because you want to make her your secret lover again? Have you ever thought about marrying her and giving her a bright future?"Hades' fingers, which clasped the cigarette, curled slightly at the barrage of questions. "Aren't you being a little too nosy right now, Travis?"Travis just smiled. He didn't mind Hades' jabs at all."Hades, I can stay away from Ally for her own good. Are you able to do the same?"That
Hades grunted in pain before releasing Alanna.Alanna glared at him angrily. "Are you nuts, Hades Florentine? Why the hell are you towering over me by my bed? Get out of here right now! Also, give the keycard back to me!"Hades chuckled out loud. "It's mine now since you gave it to me."As he spoke, he withdrew another keycard from his pocket. "This is the keycard to my room. Let's exchange keycards for fairness' sake. If you can't sleep in this room, feel free to drop by mine."Alanna looked at the keycard in front of her. Fury shot up to her head in an instant. She snatched it and flung it at his face."Fuck off!"Hades didn't plan on overstaying his welcome. His original intention was to check on Alanna, after all.He felt immensely relieved upon finding out that Alanna was doing well.Then, Hades pulled Alanna into his arms. "Sweet dreams, Ally," he murmured under his breath.Before Alanna could struggle out of Hades' arms, she felt him releasing her swiftly. She gazed a
Hades went silent for a few moments. "If I were to cut down on my shamelessness, you'd be dancing the night away with Travis by now, wouldn't you?"Alanna pursed her lips. "I'm free to dance with whoever I want."She tried to leave right after she was done saying her piece. However, Hades refused to release his grip around her waist."Ally, you can't dance with him."A trace of emotions lurked within Hades' eyes. "Can you please not dance with him?"Alanna's lips were pressed into a thin line. In the end, she said again, "I'll dance with whoever I want."She left Hades' side after that.Hades' expression was extremely stormy as he watched her leave.Soon, Alanna returned to Travis' side. She said apologetically, "Sorry about that."Travis looked a little helpless. In the end, he could only sigh in response.As the rising star of the ministry, Alanna had to deal with numerous guests who kept toasting to her achievements. She'd take small sips out of her glass during every toas
Only when Hades heard Alanna's shriek did he feel pinpricks of pain coming from his arm. He grabbed the man's wrist before disarming him effectively."How dare you touch her?" Hades' gaze grew icy.The man was already as white as a sheet. "Hades Florentine, do you know who the fuck I am?"Hades chuckled coldly before plunging the blade into the same palm that the man had grabbed Alanna with. The man's blood-curdling scream echoed throughout the washroom in the next second. Even those outside the washroom could hear the scream clearly. It gave them a fright.On the other hand, Yvette was so frightened that her complexion became pallid.After tossing the man aside, Hades turned to glare at Yvette. "I remember warning you back then."Yvette forced out in a quivering tone, "Mr. Florentine, do you even have any idea what Melanie's like now? She's on the brink of going insane! Even so, she kept saying that you'd protect her! "Mr. Florentine, what on earth did Melanie do to you? How
Winston heaved a sigh of relief upon finding out that Alanna was unscathed. Soon, his anger was reignited."This is ridiculous! How dare they do such a thing here!"Jeff said soothingly, "Don't worry, Mr. Jyles. I won't let the culprits get away with this."After that, he turned to look at Hector. Clearly, he wanted Hector to give his two cents on this incident.Hector's expression was equally stormy. "It's true that we can't let the culprits get away with this. Jeff, you can just take them away."Only then did Jeff nod.After that, Hector summoned a doctor to the lounge. There, the doctor treated Hades' wound for him. He left after telling him what to do and what not to do.Hector wore a grim expression at that moment. Alanna's incident as well as Hades' injury should never have happened in the presence of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.If word were to get out, the ministry's reputation wouldn't be the only thing at stake.After passing down his orders to his subordinates,
Hades felt slightly uneasy upon hearing the question."Am I the type who can't even differentiate between good and bad in your eyes, Alanna?"Alanna just chuckled in response. She wanted nothing more than to retort, "Aren't you?"However, she opted to not say anything in the end. There was no point in saying such things, after all.Hades stood up and stalked toward Alanna. Soon, he stood in front of her."Don't worry. If Melanie really is the one behind this incident, I won't take her side."Alanna didn't say anything after that. But she didn't place much faith in Hades' words.She had heard too many of his empty promises in the past. All she got in return was disappointment that continued to accumulate over the years.At the same time, Alanna didn't want to lash out at Hades because of what Melanie had done to her. He wasn't obligated to help her out, what was with their awkward relationship and all.Besides, the fact that he saved her from Yvette and Mitch still stood."Let
Alanna knew what Jeff was planning to ask. She pressed her lips together before interrupting him, "I just didn't want to… owe him anything."The more she owed, the more she felt that it was difficult to clear all her debts in one go. If she couldn't clear her debts, she might choose to tolerate Hades' actions and allow him to do whatever he wanted.She didn't want nor wish to compromise on her decision to stay away from Hades because of her debts.Jeff chuckled in response. "Alright, then. Call me if you need a caretaker.""Okay."Meanwhile, Hades happened to overhear Alanna's phone conversation with Jeff. His expression slowly darkened.It turned out that Alanna didn't want to owe him any favors.Hades chuckled coldly before taking off his jacket and walking over to the window with his phone in hand."Post some men at Melanie's psychiatric hospital. I want them to monitor her all the time."Yves was stunned to hear the order. "Did something happen, Hades?"Hades hummed in re