บททั้งหมดของ The Wife He Burned, The Queen Who Return : บทที่ 151 - บทที่ 160

The upper path felt wrong the moment they turned into it. Like a corridor that had been built for access not escape.Damian didn’t slow.Couldn’t. Silas’s weight shifted again in his arms, lighter in the worst way. The boy’s breathing came shallow against his chest, uneven, like each inhale had to be pulled from somewhere deeper than it should. “Stay with me,” Damian murmured.A faint sound answered him. Not words.But not silence either.Enough.Evelyn stayed close closer than before her arm steady against his, taking what weight she could without saying it again. They moved as one now.No space between them. No hesitation.Victor’s voice cut through the comm again, tighter than before. “You took the upper route.”Damian’s tone was flat. “We didn’t have a choice.” “You do,” Victor said. “They’re just getting worse.” Evelyn’s eyes flicked down the corridor. It stretched ahead in a straight line, lined with sealed doors and darkened panels. No movement. No guards. Too empty. “Then

The collapse didn’t chase them.It caught up. A violent crack split through the tunnel, louder than before closer and then the ground beneath their feet jerked sideways. The ceiling buckled. Evelyn barely had time to react before something slammed down between them. Concrete. Metal. Dust. A jagged section of the ceiling dropped, hitting the ground hard enough to shake the entire passage. The impact sent a shock through the narrow space, forcing Evelyn back a step. “Damian!” “I’m here.” His voice came through the dust, close but not close enough. The path between them was no longer clear. Not completely blocked. But broken. A collapsed slab had wedged itself at an angle, leaving only a narrow gap beneath it—too tight to move through while carrying Silas. Evelyn stepped forward immediately, dropping to her knees, trying to see through the debris. “I can clear it” “No,” Damian said sharply. “It’s unstable.” Another crack answered him. The slab shifted slightly. Not enough

The tunnel finally widened.Not by much but enough to breathe without feeling the walls closing in. The air changed again.Less metallic.Less controlled.Closer to real.Evelyn felt it first. “We’re near the surface.” Damian didn’t answer. He couldn’t not right away. His breathing had turned rough now, controlled only by force. Each step looked the same as the last, but it cost more. It showed in the way his shoulders tightened. In the way he adjusted his grip on Silas more often than before. But he didn’t slow.He didn’t stop. Silas shifted faintly in his arms, his body still tense from whatever had been triggered inside him. His breathing hadn’t settled. It came in uneven bursts, like something inside him was still trying to stabilize and failing. “Stay with me,” Damian said quietly. A faint response.Not words.But enough.Evelyn stayed close.Closer than she had ever been before. Not watching him anymore.Supporting him. Her arm slid under his again, steadying his balance when h

The night air hit them all at once It didn’t feel like freedom at first. It felt like shock, like their bodies didn’t know what to do without walls closing in on them, without alarms and pressure and something constantly trying to kill them. They crossed the last stretch of ground without speaking. Gravel shifted under their feet as they moved away from the facility, its outer structure already beginning to fail behind them. Sections of it sank inward with heavy, distant crashes that rolled through the night like thunder. Damian didn’t stop until there was distance between them and it. Not safe distance. Just enough that instinct finally loosened its grip. Then he stopped. Evelyn stayed close, her hand still on his arm, steadying him out of habit now more than necessity. For a moment, neither of them said anything. The silence felt unreal after everything they had just pushed through. They were outside. They were alive. For a second, that was enough. Silas shifted in Damian’s

The signal didn’t need time to travel. It felt like it had been waiting. Victor stepped a few paces away, already pulling a secure device from inside his jacket. Not a standard phone. Something quieter. He activated it with a quick sequence, his expression sharpening as layers of encryption slid into place. Evelyn watched him, arms folded tight across herself not from cold, but from the pressure building in her chest. “How long,” she asked. Victor didn’t look up. “If they’re still listening? Seconds.” Damian stood where he was, Silas held close, unmoving except for the slight rise and fall against his chest. He hadn’t shifted his grip once since they stopped. Not when the boy went still. Not when his breathing faltered. He didn’t trust the stillness. Neither did Evelyn. Silas’s head rested against Damian’s shoulder, too quiet again, his breathing uneven, slipping in and out of rhythm like it didn’t know where to settle. Evelyn stepped closer, brushing her fingers lightly acr