Lahat ng Kabanata ng Seven Minutes with my Ex's Uncle : Kabanata 121 - Kabanata 130

The laughter in the penthouse slowly faded into a calmer silence.For the first time in days, the atmosphere didn’t feel completely suffocating.Maria, the kind older housekeeper, had gently but firmly forced Nadia back onto the large sectional couch, draping a soft cashmere blanket over her legs despite Nadia’s weak protests.“I’m fine, Maria,” Nadia insisted, her voice still raspy from the hospital stay. “I can sit up properly.”Maria gave her a stern but affectionate look, the kind only someone who had raised children could perfect.“You were shot, young lady. You will rest. Doctor’s orders and mine.”Nadia sighed but complied, leaning back against the cushions with a tired smile. The blanket was impossibly soft, a luxury that still felt foreign in the middle of their pain. Chloe wandered around the living room still staring at everything expensive with open fascination.Layla stood quietly near the massive windows overlooking the city.The sunset outside painted the sky orange an

The peaceful feeling from the balcony didn’t last forever. Nothing did anymore.By noon, Elias had finally left for work after receiving three different calls from Marcus about urgent company matters. Layla watched him leave from the penthouse entrance, her chest tightening strangely when the elevator doors closed behind him.It was ridiculous.The man had only gone to work and somehow the entire penthouse already felt colder.Chloe noticed immediately.“Oh my God,” she groaned dramatically from the couch. “You’ve got it bad.”Layla threw a pillow at her face.“Shut up.”Chloe caught it easily. “You literally watched the elevator after he left like a sad wife in a romance movie.”“I did not.”“You did.”Nadia looked up from where she sat carefully wrapped in blankets beside Milo. “You absolutely did.”Layla stared at both of them in betrayal. “Whose side are you on?”“The truth’s side,” Nadia answered calmly.Chloe burst into laughter.Layla rolled her eyes and sat down beside Milo on

Both of them froze. Another knock came immediately after,harder this time.Elias’s expression changed instantly and Layla felt it immediately too.Something was wrong.Elias stepped away from her at once and reached for the gun hidden beneath the nightstand drawer automatically.Layla’s heartbeat quickened.“Elias…”A third knock,then voices downstairs.Titan started growling while Milo barked. The kind that made the entire penthouse atmosphere shift instantly.Elias checked the safety on the gun calmly before looking toward her.“Stay here.”Layla stood immediately. “No.”“Yes.”Another sound echoed downstairs. This time louder,like furniture moving.Then—Chloe screamed.Layla’s blood ran cold instantly.Elias moved before she could even react.The bedroom door flew open as he stormed into the hallway with the gun already raised.Layla followed anyway despite his order.Downstairs chaos exploded.Titan barked furiously near the entrance while Maria hurried Nadia backward away from t

Layla stared at the closed file on Elias’s desk like it might explode.Her heartbeat became uneven instantly.The office felt colder than the rest of the penthouse.Elias leaned back slowly in his chair, one hand resting against the armrest while the other remained near the file he had closed too late.Layla swallowed hard. “Who?”Elias’s gaze lifted toward her calmly. “What?”“Who are you planning to blame?”There was silence and that silence alone answered enough.Layla stepped farther into the office, shutting the door quietly behind her.“You said I wouldn’t go down for this,” she whispered. “So who will?”Elias didn’t answer immediately.Instead, he studied her carefully like he was trying to decide how much truth she could handle tonight.Finally—“Marcus already volunteered.”Layla felt physically sick.“What?”“He knows the risks.”“No.” She shook her head immediately. “Absolutely not.”Elias’s expression remained unreadable. “It’s the cleanest option.”“The cleanest option?”

The penthouse remained tense long after the news broadcast ended.Nobody spoke much since morning till evening. Even Chloe had stopped making jokes.The television stayed muted now, flashing endless images of police cars, reporters and Serena's photograph across the screen.Layla sat near the massive windows hugging her knees tightly against her chest while Milo rested beside her feet quietly.Her phone remained clutched tightly in her hand.Still no calls from Elias and every passing minute made the tightness in her chest worse.Nadia had eventually fallen asleep again on the couch from exhaustion while Maria gently covered her with another blanket.Chloe sat nearby pretending to scroll through her phone, but Layla could feel her watching her constantly.Worried. Everyone was worried but Layla felt something else too.Fear.Not fear of Elias hurting her. Never that.Fear of what he might have done for her. Fear of what he was becoming. Fear of what she was becoming beside him.The so