Chapter 37 Avery found herself in a precarious position, having been forced to use Cole as a convenient scapegoat. With Shaun’s keen perception having pricked the bubble of their little deception, she had no choice but to deflect his scrutiny, to divert his focus elsewhere before the tide of trouble engulfed her entirely. Just as the weight of anxiety settled on her shoulders, her phone rang, slicing through the silence like a knife. A man, whose figure loomed ominously, reached into her handbag and yanked out the device. The screen brightened, illuminating the name "Foster Mansion" in stark letters. “Looks like you weren’t joking!” he remarked with a tinge of nervousness. “You’ve got ties with the Fosters, so I won’t keep you any longer. Off you go!” Eager to sever his connection with the murky dealings of the Foster family, he made a hasty retreat, having completed the job he was paid for. The second he released her, Avery wasted no time dialing Mrs. Cooper's number again. “Why did you hang up?” Mrs. Cooper’s voice crackled with concern. “It’s late, and you’re still not home! Something must have happened!” Avery paused, glancing around at the desolate, dimly lit stretch of road that slithered through an encroaching forest. The trees loomed like the gaping maw of a ferocious beast, poised to swallow her whole, sending shivers down her spine. “Is the driver still on duty, Mrs. Cooper?” Avery asked, her voice quivering slightly. “I’m stranded here, and it’s impossible to catch a cab.” “He just arrived with Master Elliot,” Mrs. Cooper reassured her. “I’ll send him to pick you up. Please send me your location.” “Of course.” Avery quickly sent her coordinates, which Mrs. Cooper relayed to the driver. But the isolation of her surroundings was palpable; this place was a ghost town even in daylight, a mere whisper of civilization under the cloak of night. “Get some backup there immediately and find out what’s going on!” Elliot’s voice rang with authority as he barked orders at his bodyguard. Three grueling hours slipped by before Avery finally returned home. The car rolled to a stop in the courtyard, and the driver stepped out, his face etched with a mixture of relief and unease. Mrs. Cooper, sensing something amiss, approached the vehicle. “She fell asleep in the car,” the driver explained, scratching his head. “I couldn’t wake her; it didn’t seem right for me to touch her.” As Mrs. Cooper opened the passenger door and gently shook Avery awake, she blinked away the remnants of slumber. “Welcome back, Madam! You’re safe at home now,” Mrs. Cooper said, her tone laced with warmth as she helped pull Avery from the car. “Master Elliot has been waiting for you all night. He was extremely worried.” Avery’s heart raced at the mention of Elliot. He had been waiting for her, a poignant reminder of his lingering feelings for her that no one could ignore. She remembered the painful choice he had forced her to make about their baby — a choice born of love, but laced with heartache. “He’s really waiting for me?” Avery gasped, her weariness momentarily forgotten. “He’s not going to explode at me, is he?” “Not at all! His concern is solely because you were out there alone at this hour,” Mrs. Cooper clarified. “Oh, I’m perfectly fine now,” Avery assured her, slipping on her house slippers as she crossed the threshold of her home. But as if the universe conspired to catch her breath, her eyes caught sight of Elliot striding toward the elevators — and he was not in his wheelchair. “His legs…” Avery stammered, her curiosity piqued. “He can walk now?” “Yes, but only for short distances. He still needs the wheelchair from time to time,” Mrs. Cooper replied, a smile breaking across her face. “And he’ll be fully recovered soon enough.” “Right, of course!” Avery felt her cheeks heat at the thought. “That way, he can get back to his life instead of being cooped up at home!” As she glimpsed the muscles in his back tensing, Elliot turned slowly, his expression darkening with fury. The tension crackled in the air like the prelude to a thunderstorm. “What have you done now, Avery?” His voice, low and loaded with unspoken words, sent an icy shiver down her spine. Avery’s heart raced, caught in the whirlwind of their entangled emotions, waiting for the storm to brew into an uncontrollable tempest.