The Imposter Bride (Natalia and Magnus) novel Chapter 324

Magnus felt a wetness at his nose. He wiped it with his hand, seeing blood smeared on his palm. It was then he realized that Callum had injured him. He looked up with an irritable glare, snapping at Callum, "What the hell is wrong with you, Callum?"

James also rushed over, ready to defend his friend. He squared off with Callum, saying, "If you're itching for a fight, Callum, I'm game! But you're asking for trouble, coming here to our turf."

Callum was seething with anger. Ignoring James, he pushed James away with a forceful hand, swinging his fist at Magnus again. "Magnus, I can't believe I let Natalia go with you! Look at how you've treated her. You're a total screw-up! You've got her on the run again. If you want a fight, Magnus, then let's do it. Don't hide behind your lapdog!"

James was taken aback at being referred to as a dog. His anger flared up, and he stomped his foot, a blade popping out from the sole of his shoe. The blade gleamed menacingly as James swung his leg, aiming for Callum’s back.

Callum heard the whoosh of the blade, ducked just in time, and shot James a glare. "A sneak attack? You're a real piece of work!"

"At least I don't resort to name-calling!" James retorted, his eyes flashing as he aimed another kick at Callum.

On the other hand, Magnus had been feeling down lately, needing a way to vent his frustrations. If Callum was looking for a fight, he would get a fight! Magnus didn’t bother about keeping up appearances or coordinating with James. He just swung his fists at Callum, hoping to drive away his feelings of despair.

Despite Callum’s strength, he was outnumbered. He had to deal with Magnus' punches while avoiding the blade on James' shoe. Before long, he looked rather disheveled.

Lexi, watching from the sidelines, was horrified. She had asked Callum to come and talk to Magnus about Natalia, not to start a fight. And now, Callum was in a precarious situation, facing off against Magnus and James alone.

Worried for Callum, Lexi blurted out, "Magnus, we didn't come here to fight! I've seen Natalia!"

This caused Magnus to freeze in his tracks. He turned to look at Lexi. "Where is she?"

Seizing the opportunity, Callum landed a solid punch on Magnus, causing him to stagger back. But he didn’t get away scot-free. James' blade came whizzing towards his back. Callum ducked, but the blade still grazed his shoulder, leaving a shallow cut from which blood began to seep.

Lexi had had enough. She screamed, "Can you all just stop fighting? We came here to talk, not cause trouble! Can't we just sit down and discuss things calmly?"

As she spoke, Lexi rushed towards Callum and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Just stop it! No more fighting!"

Magnus felt his heart shatter. He couldn't imagine his wife hiding alone in the filthy bowels of a freighter. He had seen freighters before, their oily decks stacked with cargo. The lower levels must have been stuffy, hot, and reeking.

She had gone to such lengths to leave, to hide from him. Natalia...

"She's been sleeping at the bottom of the cargo hold all this time?" Magnus' voice trembled with heartache. "And where is she now? You came here to tell me where she is, right?"

Lexi shook her head regretfully. "I'm sorry. We had a bit of a disagreement, and by the time we turned around, Natalia had disappeared again. Callum searched the entire Fareham but couldn't find her. I think she was deliberately hiding from us."

"Nothing? And yet you two have the gall to stand here running your mouths? Absolutely unbelievable!" James sneered, itching to throw another punch at Callum. If they hadn't found Natalia, what right did they have to strut around here, blaming Magnus?

Callum caught the sarcasm in James' voice and glared back. "What about you? Didn't you come up empty-handed as well?"

Without waiting for James to respond, Callum turned his attention to Magnus. "Magnus, you promised to give Buttercup a lifetime of happiness when you took her away. But look at her now, constantly on the run, trying every trick in the book to avoid Melfort. Is this your idea of happiness?"