Chapter 317 Shattered Trust 

Harlan released a short, brittle laugh that cracked the silence. “What’s wrong, Mr. Whitethorn? Cat got your tongue, or do you simply prefer plotting in the dark?” 

Julius did not so much as glance at him. His attention stayed fixed on Quinn, the plea in his eyes quiet yet. urgent. “Will you grant me a moment, please?” 

Quinn pressed her lips together, weighing possibilities, then gave a single nod. “All right.” 

She turned to Harlan, her tone softening. “Head back to the hotel. Once Julius and I are finished, I’ll join you.” 

Harlan showed no surprise; he had anticipated her decision the instant Julius stepped forward. After all, Julius had rescued them from a dead end earlier that day, and gratitude carries its own gravity. 

“Fine. I’ll go first. Call me the second anything changes,” Harlan said, offering Quinn a brisk nod before striding down the hall. 

She returned the nod. “I will.” 

The door closed behind Harlan with a muted click, and the private room felt suddenly cavernous, as though every polished surface had been waiting for this precise silence. 

Quinn drew a slow breath. “What is it you want to say?” 

Julius hesitated–a rare fracture in his composure–then spoke. “If the man we found today truly is your brother, then when the day comes you’re reunited… Could we… go back to the way we were?” 

“What?” Quinn blinked, unprepared for the question. 

He stepped closer, closing the last foot of distance. “You ended things with me because I hid that I’d met your brother–and worse, because when I could have saved him, I chose not to. Now I’m ready to spend every scrap of influence I possess to bring him home. If I succeed, will you be able to forgive me?” 

Hope blazed in his eyes, fierce and naked. 

“If you help me find Rowan, I will be grateful–truly. But our relationship… that’s a separate matter altogether.” 

He frowned. “Separate matter?” 

“Yes,” she said, holding his gaze. “Julius, the main reason I ended us was because I can no longer trust you -not in the way love requires. From now on, every word you speak would have me wondering whether it’s truth or strategy. I’d start chasing shadows until I drove myself mad. That isn’t the kind of love I want. I told you before–I need something I can lean on, someone who stands on my side without reservation, every single time.” 

“Then let me earn it back. I will rebuild that trust, no matter how long it takes,” Julius insisted. 

Quinn’s answering smile was tinged with sorrow; if trust were so easily restored, the world would not bleed from so many unforeseen betrayals. 

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Chapter 817 Shattered Trust 

“Julius, I can’t” His fingertips brushed her lips, silencing the words before they were horn. 

“Don’t say it,” he whispered, voice roughened by desperation. “For the sake of what did for you today. don’t say it.” 

He lived with a single dread: that the instant she finally spoke her mind, even the faintest daydream of a future with her would vanish like smoke in the wind. 

Quinn released a weary sigh and pushed Julius‘ hand aside. “If there’s nothing else, I’m going back to the hotel.” 

She had barely turned when Julius surged forward and wrapped her in a fierce embrace from behind, as though letting go meant losing her forever. 

“Quinn, whatever you think stands between us, I will find your brother. I don’t care what it costs–time, money, blood–I’ll pay it. So promise me this: don’t throw yourself into danger. If a risk must be taken, let it be mine to shoulder. I’ll fetch every scrap of intel you need.” 

Quinn tried to pry his arms away. “Julius, you don’t have to do any of this.” 

“I already swore I would,” he murmured, tightening his hold. “Use me as spear or shield–however you like -just so long as it helps you.” 

A heavy pressure settled on Quinn’s chest, so dense she could hardly draw a full breath. 

Back at the hotel, Harlan hurried over the moment she stepped through the door. “Julius didn’t give you trouble, did he?” 

“No.” 

Relief flickered across Harlan’s face, then guilt chased it away. “Good. Still, tonight’s mess is on me. If I’d prepared better, Julius wouldn’t have had to step in.” 

“Let’s be honest–it was my recklessness that started it,” Quinn replied. 

Anything concerning Rowan burned away her caution; danger meant nothing if it might lead her to him. Night deepened. Quinn lay rigid on the mattress, eyelids clenched, cold sweat beading along her brow. Suddenly she bolted upright, a cry ripping free. “No! Rowan!” 

Darkness greeted her wide–open eyes. Only then did she realize it had been a nightmare. In her nightmare, Rowan was bullied again and again while she stood powerless to intervene. 

A sharp chill raced down her spine./Someone else was in the room.