The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1952

Stella snapped awake.

She didn't move a muscle, keeping her breathing perfectly even. In the pitch black of the bedroom, she felt the weight of a gaze fixed on her, lingering just long enough to ensure she was fast asleep.

After a moment of dead silence, sensing no shift in her rhythm, Joshua finally looked away and slipped out of the room like a ghost.

The moment the door clicked shut, Stella threw off the covers and followed him.

Joshua was incredibly sharp; she had to wait until his footsteps completely faded down the hall before she dared to step out of the room.

Peering through the crack of the door, she watched him head straight for the study.

Did he have some late-night business to handle?

Driven by a nagging sense of dread, she waited until he disappeared inside before stepping out of the bedroom.

She stood outside the heavy oak doors for a few agonizing minutes.

When he didn't re-emerge, Stella took a deep breath and decisively turned the brass knob.

The desk lamp cast a sickly, dim glow across the room, barely fighting back the shadows.

Caught in the pale light, the steel of a hunting knife glinted dangerously.

The breath left Stella's lungs in a rush—he was dragging the blade across his own flesh.

The sheer horror of the scene hit her like a physical blow.

Joshua was entirely focused on the bloodied metal in his hand.

Stella's sudden intrusion shattered the silence, leaving him momentarily frozen in shock.

Her gaze snapped to the fresh cuts on his body, all the blood draining from her face.

"Joshua, what the hell are you doing?!"

His expression darkened instantly.

He tried to conceal the knife, but Stella was already closing the distance.

Ignoring the weapon, she grabbed the collar of his silk pajama shirt and ripped it open.

His chest was a canvas of mutilated skin—crisscrossing scars, fresh scabs, and new, shallow cuts layered over one another.

In the dim light, the gruesome sight was utterly terrifying.

Stella's eyes darted frantically over the damage, staring at him with a suffocating wave of despair.

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