My father sold me to the Mafia King novel Chapter 403

Chapter 403: 403/A Faceless Monster

Chapter 403

Julie’s POV

My gaze hardened, slicing through Olivia with a cold glare that made her confident facade falter in visible anxiety. "Don’t you ever speak about my son," I rasped, the warning thick and jagged in my throat. "Do you understand me? What the hell is wrong with you?"

Olivia recovered quickly, her lips curling into a forced, dismissive sneer as her shoulders shrugged with artificial nonchalance. "Fine by me. My only concern is that you keep your mouth completely shut about anything regarding this matter."

The sheer weight of her arrogance was impossible to stomach for another second. I cut her off, my voice sharp and unyielding. "Keep your own mouth shut. And don’t you dare interfere in my business ever again."

Without waiting for whatever venom she had left to spew, I turned on my heel and bolted from the room. My breaths came in ragged, fractured gasps, my chest heaving violently under the immense pressure suffocating my lungs. Then, like a sudden bolt of lightning crashing through my skull, Max flashed across my mind. I needed to see him. I needed to look at him, to confirm he was real, and somehow draw the lingering agony straight out of his eyes.

I sprinted down the corridor with reckless speed, completely ignoring the startled stares of the passersby until I reached the door to his room. I didn’t bother knocking; I threw my weight against the heavy wood, shoving the door open violently and bursting inside.

Max was sitting on the edge of his bed, his face completely drained of color. He stood up in sheer bewilderment the second his eyes landed on me, but I didn’t give him a single chance to speak. I lunged forward, throwing my arms around his neck and clinging to him with everything I had. His arms wrapped tightly around my waist in response, lifting me off my feet with a heavy, raw emotional desperation.

"Julie..." he whispered, his voice thick and muffled against my shoulder. "I... I can’t believe my own eyes."

I slowly unclasped my frantic grip, pulling back just enough to look directly into his eyes, my face burning with longing. "Max... I missed you so damn much."

His hands trembled slightly as he cupped my face, a buried, suffocating ache pulling at his features. "Me too. You have no idea... you have absolutely no idea how empty everything felt after you left."

I forced a deep, stabilizing breath into my lungs, desperate to unburden the crushing weight inside me all at once. "Robert found me, Max. He tracked me down at the village."

Max’s eyes dilated in pure horror, his hands dropping from my face. "Oh my God... did... did he hurt you? Did he do something terrible?"

I shook my head rapidly, trying to ease his sudden panic. "No, not physically. But... he has Steve. He’s holding my brother captive right now."

Max stumbled back a step, the shock hitting him like a physical blow. "Jesus... that’s impossible."

"He knows," I continued, my voice cracking, the vulnerability tearing through me. "He knows Steve is my brother now, and he’s using him as leverage. He’s forcing me to do exactly what he wants by threatening to mutilate or kill him. I’m terrified, Max. I am so deeply terrified."

He stepped back in, gripping my shoulders firmly, his thumbs digging in to anchor my shaking frame. "If he wants you by his side, he won’t destroy his only winning card. He won’t touch a single hair on Steve’s head."

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