The Wife He Never Meant to Love (Lila and Damon) novel Chapter 178

Chapter 178

Chapter 178

“Ina… stay here. Watch Lila. Will you?” Mark said, already moving toward the door.

“Mark-” Ina called after him.

He stopped.

Turned.

One look at Ina’s tear-streaked face-and the fear in her eyes-was enough.

Mark stepped back and pulled her into a tight embrace.

“Don’t worry,” he said softly, but firmly. “I’ll bring him back safely.”

Ina clutched his shirt, her shoulders shaking.

“And this is not your fault. Okay?”

Ina nodded weakly, though the guilt still clung to her like a shadow.

Mark pulled back, his expression hardening again. Focused.

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“If Marlou arrives, tell him to come to this place,” he said, quickly writing down the address and handing it to

her.

Ina took it with trembling hands. “Okay…”

Mark didn’t waste another second.

He left.

The drive felt endless.

Every second stretched thin with tension, every red light a personal insult. Mark’s grip tightened on the steering wheel as Damian’s cries echoed relentlessly in his mind.

Hold on… just hold on…

When he reached the apartment complex, two bodyguards immediately stepped in front of him.

“Stop.”

Mark didn’t flinch. His gaze was cold, unwavering.

“Marlou is coming,” he said flatly, locking eyes with them.

Before they could respond-

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Chapter 178

“Let him pass.”

The woman’s voice cut through the air.

She stood at the entrance, arms crossed, watching him with a faint, unsettling smile.

Her eyes lingered on Mark.

“Follow me,” she said. “That kid won’t stop crying.”

They walked through a long, dim hallway.

Then into the elevator.

Silence pressed in from all sides.

The slow rise to the rooftop felt suffocating.

Mark’s fists clenched at his sides.

The elevator doors opened.

The rooftop door creaked as it swung open-

And Mark saw him.

Damian.

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Curled up in the corner like a frightened puppy, his small body trembling. His eyes were swollen, red from crying, his face streaked with tears.

Something inside Mark broke.

“Damian-”

He rushed forward without thinking, dropping to his knees and pulling the boy into his arms.

Damian jolted awake, disoriented at first-

Then he saw him.

“Uncle…!”

The word came out as a sob.

Damian clung to Mark, crying harder, his small hands gripping him tightly like he was the only thing keeping him safe.

Mark held him close, one hand cradling the back of his head.

“It’s okay… I’m here,” Mark whispered, though his own voice was tight with emotion. “You’re safe now…”

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Chapter 178

:

“Cry, cry, cry… that’s all you do,” the woman’s voice cut in coldly. “You should shut up by now.”

Damian froze.

His small body stiffened in fear.

Then he buried his face deeper into Mark’s chest, hiding completely, trembling.

“Uncle… let’s go home,” Damian cried softly. “I want Mom…”

Mark’s heart twisted painfully at those words.

His arms tightened around the boy, protective, unyielding.

“I know,” he murmured, his voice low but filled with promise. “We’re going home.”

Slowly-

Carefully-

Mark lifted his gaze.

And looked at the woman.

This time-

There was no restraint in his eyes.

Only anger.

Only warning.

Because she hadn’t just crossed a line-

She had shattered it.

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“So you think you can just walk out?” the woman said, her voice laced with mock amusement. “You two reuniting like that… how cute.”

Mark didn’t respond immediately. His arms tightened protectively around Damian, who was still clinging to him like his life depended on it.

“Auntie… please let us leave,” Damian said between soft sobs. “I already returned the dinosaur…’

The woman’s lips curved into a faint, unsettling smile.

“Oh, honey… I don’t like that dinosaur anymore,” she said softly. “I like something else now.”

Her gaze shifted.

Locked onto Mark.

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Chapter 178

Not once.

Instead, she was treated like nothing more than an object. A possession. A convenience.

Even in front of others.

Even in front of staff.

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No love.

No respect.

As a wife, as the lady of the house.

Only shame.

And now-

Eric was in jail.

And she-

She had become a joke.

A whisper.

A fallen woman in the very circle she once belonged to.

Her eyes softened-but only slightly.

Twisted by something deeper.

Lonelier.

“Hey… little boy,” she said gently this time, crouching down just a little. “How about you come with me?”

Damian stiffened in Mark’s arms.

“I’ll be your mom,” she added.

The words hung in the air.

Heavy.

Wrong.

Mark’s expression darkened instantly.

“Don’t,” he said sharply.

But Damian-

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Chapter 178

Damian slowly shook his head, his grip on Mark tightening.

“I… I already have a mom,” he whispered, his voice small but firm. “I want my mom…”

The woman froze.

For a brief second-

Pain flickered across her face.

Raw.

Unfiltered.

Then it twisted.

Into something colder.

More dangerous.

The wind howled across the rooftop.

No one moved.

No one breathed.

Then-

Footsteps.

Fast. Heavy. Relentless.

The rooftop door burst open.

Marlou.

Behind him-

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Damon.

“Marlou!” the woman’s voice cracked, something desperate breaking through her earlier composure.

Mark didn’t lower his guard. His arms stayed locked around Damian, who buried his face deeper into his shoulder.

Marlou stepped forward slowly, his chest rising and falling unevenly as his eyes locked onto the scene-

Damian.

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Chapter 178

Crying.

Shaking.

Alive.

Relief hit him like a wave-only to be crushed by anger just as quickly.

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“What are you doing?” Marlou said, his voice strained, almost unrecognizable. “Have you lost your mind?”

The woman let out a shaky breath, her eyes glistening.

“I did this for you,” she said. “You left me. You disappeared like I meant nothing.”

“That doesn’t give you the right to take a child!” Marlou snapped, his voice finally breaking. “He has nothing to do with us!”

“He does!” she shot back. “Everything has something to do with you!”

Damon said nothing.

But his eyes-

His eyes were locked on Damian.

Every tear.

Every tremble.

Every second of fear the child had endured.

And something inside him-

Snapped.

“Give me the boy.”

His voice cut through everything.

Cold.

Controlled.

Terrifying.

Everyone froze.

Even the wind seemed to quiet.

Mark glanced at Damon, surprised-but didn’t move yet.

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Chapter 178

The woman turned her gaze to him, studying him carefully.

“And who are you?” she asked, her voice laced with suspicion.

Damon stepped forward.

Slow.

Measured.

Each step deliberate.

“You don’t need to know who I am,” he said. “You just need to understand one thing.”

Another step.

His presence alone began to suffocate the space.

“That child…” Damon continued, his voice dropping lower, “…is not someone you can touch.”

A chill ran through everyone on that rooftop.

Marlou swallowed hard.

Because he had never seen Damon like this.

Not this controlled.

Not this dangerous.

The woman’s expression flickered-uncertain for the first time..

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“You think you can just take him?” she challenged, though her voice had lost some of its edge.

Damon didn’t answer.

He simply looked at Mark.

That was enough.

Mark stepped forward, adjusting his hold on Damian.

“We’re leaving,” Mark said firmly.

The two bodyguards moved instantly, stepping in front of them again.

Tension snapped.

“Move.”

Damon’s voice was quiet.

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Chapter 178

But it carried weight.

Authority.

Finality.

The guards hesitated.

Just for a second.

And that second-

Was enough.

Marlou moved.

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He grabbed one of the guards, shoving him aside with force fueled by anger and desperation. Mark didn’t waste time—he pushed forward, shielding Damian completely.

“Uncle!” Damian cried, clinging tighter.

“I’ve got you!” Mark said, his voice steady despite the chaos.

“STOP THEM!” the woman screamed.

But it was too late.

Damon stepped between them and the guards, his presence cutting off any pursuit. His gaze was enough to halt movement-cold, calculated, merciless.

“Don’t,” he warned.

No one dared move.

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