Chapter 269

JULIAN'S POV

I stood paralyzed in the middle of my living room, the silence in the apartment deafening after the police, Aria, and her massive bodyguard had vanished down the hall.

My mind was a complete storm of confusion and shock. Aria. The way she had looked at me with pure, unadulterated disgust replayed in my head like a nightmare on loop.

She had called me a sorry excuse for a father. She had threatened to drag my family's entire legacy and my ice hockey career through the mud if I dared to step in.

And I had backed down. Like a coward, I had just stood there while they cuffed Leonie and dragged her away. Sure, Leonie had gone behind my back and tried to get Amelia, but could she really have had ulterior motives about my daughter?

I traced Leonie's attitude the past weeks and found nothing unusual. If anything, she was willing and actively trying to help me. If she wanted to harm Amelia, she would have done so, wouldn't she?

I couldn't even understand what was happening.

Before I could even process the heavy weight in my chest, my phone rang. The sharp, piercing tone shattered the quiet. I reached into my pocket with trembling fingers and looked at the screen.

It was my dad. I was sure he had heard about Leonie's kidnapping and that's why he was calling me. I swallowed hard and pressed the phone to my ear. "Father—"

"What the hell is going on, Julian?” my father's voice exploded through the speaker, tight with raw, suppressed fury. "What the hell were you and that stupid wife of yours thinking? Are you trying to destroy what's left of our legacy? Leonie’s arrest is all over the news. Corporate espionage, conspiracy to kidnap a child, every major network is running her mugshot."

"Father, listen to me," I stammered, rubbing a hand frantically over my face as I tried to organize my thoughts. "It’s not what it looks like. Leonie... She was just trying to help me get Amelia back. She was helping us. Aria hid Amelia and now she's playing house with my daughter. Leonie just wanted to bring her back…"

"Shut up, Julian. Just shut your mouth," my father roared, cutting me off instantly. "Are you out of your mind? You're sitting there trying to defend a woman who just dragged our family name directly into a high-profile criminal investigation? Do you have any idea what our shareholders are saying? They're saying your wife is a loose canon. She can't be trusted. The only luck she has is the fact that she isn't related to us by blood.”

"Father, please—"

"I have already spoken to our head legal team," he said, his tone turning ice-cold and unyielding. "The papers are being drafted as we speak. You are divorcing Leonie. Immediately. You will sever every single legal, financial, and personal tie to that woman before her scandal completely destroys this family."

I gripped the phone tighter, my throat tight. "Father, she was just trying to help. Why can't you see that? You want me to divorce her now when she's trying to bring Amelia back to me? She's…"

"She is nothing, Julian. She is just a liability,” my father barked. "And it gets worse, Julian. My contacts at the precinct just called me. Leonie isn't even in police custody anymore."

I blinked, taking a step back. "What? What do you mean?"

"She escaped," my father said grimly. "Her transport van was ambushed by a heavily armed squad in broad daylight. She’s officially a wanted fugitive on the run.”

"She must have had help," I muttered into the receiver, my voice barely above a whisper. "There's no way she pulled that off on her own."

"Of course she had help," my father snapped, his breath heavy with anger. "The woman is a loose cannon, Julian. She’s dangerous, and she’s dragging us straight into the gutter with her. You listen to me very carefully. You are going to get your act together right now. You stay the fuck away from Aria, stay away from Brandon, and keep your head down. Any more tantrums or crazy stunts and I promise you, I will disown you.”

Before I could even open my mouth to respond, the line went dead. I pulled the phone away from my ear, staring at the blank screen for a long, quiet second.

A low, bitter laugh bubbled up in my throat, breaking through the heavy silence of the empty apartment. I reached up, gripping handfuls of my disheveled hair, and tugged hard as the laugh grew louder, ringing out like the sound of someone completely possessed.

Stay away?

I shook my head, my chest heaving as my laughter died down into a cold, dangerous smile. I checked the wall clock in the kitchen. My team had a game this afternoon.

I was the captain, and there was no way in hell I was missing it, especially because I was sure as fuck that Brandon would be sitting right there in the arena.

They all thought I was going to pack up and walk away. They thought Leonie's mess would make me give up. But Aria and Amelia were my family.

Leonie had tried to handle things her way and failed miserably. Now, it was my turn. I was going to do whatever it took to get my family back, no matter who tried to stand in my way.

Determination surging through my veins, I threw the phone onto the couch and headed upstairs to the master bathroom. I stripped off my wrinkled clothes, stepped under the scalding hot water, and scrubbed every trace of the cheap alcohol and stale sweat off my skin.

Fifteen minutes later, I threw on my sharp team tracksuit, packed my gear into my duffel bag, and grabbed my car keys.

As soon as I settled into the driver's seat of my car and tossed my bag into the back, my phone buzzed on the console. The screen lit up with Seb's name.

I tapped the speaker button as I backed out of the garage. "Seb? What's up?"

"Hey, Julian," Seb's voice came through the speakers, sounding frustrated over the faint sound of passing traffic. "Man, I've got a flat tire on the freeway, about ten minutes from the arena. The tow truck is taking forever. Is there any way you can swing by and pick me up?"

"Yeah, no problem," I replied, gripping the steering wheel tight as I merged onto the main road. "Sit tight. I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Thanks, brother. See you soon," Seb said, ending the call. I dropped the phone back onto the passenger seat and pressed down on the gas pedal.