A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 838

It had been a little over a month since she last saw him.

Fairfax had gotten a tan, and he looked leaner, more rugged. Dressed in all-black tactical gear, the hard lines of his muscles were distinctly visible.

Starla rolled down the window but didn't bother opening the car door, glaring at him with icy detachment.

"Cut to the chase. Why is he protecting her?" she demanded.

Fairfax leaned against the hood of a sleek G-Wagon, casually taking a drag from his cigarette. The refined billionaire from Marina City was gone; this Fairfax radiated a wild, untamed energy. It took a certain kind of psychological resilience to lose everything and still look this arrogant, and a small part of Starla had to respect it.

"Not getting out?" Fairfax smirked, exhaling a plume of smoke. "Afraid I'll eat you?"

Starla scoffed. "This is Yoran Country. Why would I be afraid of you?"

She hadn't been afraid of him when he wielded the entire Yelchin empire in Marina City. Now that she was on her home turf with the Hoggart family behind her, he was the least of her concerns.

"Then what's stopping you?" Fairfax challenged. "Step out. The night air feels great."

The humidity of summer had broken, leaving behind a crisp, cool breeze. But Starla stayed firmly in the driver's seat. She just wanted the intel so she could leave.

Fairfax tilted his head. "Are you really Yardley Hoggart's sister?"

"What's it to you?"

"Are you biologically related? Have you run a DNA test?"

"Tell me why Herbert is shielding Brinley," Starla demanded again.

"He really didn't tell you?"

Starla's silence was her answer. Her stomach tightened. If Herbert was hiding the reason, it had to be significant.

Seeing her genuinely in the dark, Fairfax let out a dark chuckle. "I knew it. He's playing you."

"Just spit it out!" she snapped, her patience vaporizing.

"Did he ask you for a specific time limit? Say, a month?" Fairfax asked knowingly.