---- Chapter 12 Madam Mankin stepped out from the inner room. She glanced at Charles before turning to me. "He called earlier to check in," she said. "I mentioned you'd be dropping by. So he came." I forced a dry and awkward smile but didn't respond. Madam Mankin, clearly sensing my reluctance, let the subject drop. Instead, she turned to Charles again. "I need to speak with Mindy about something. Go clean yourself up. Just look at you." I didn't spare him a glance. Without a word, I followed Madam Mankin toward the inner hall. We were just passing the couch when, for reasons I couldn't begin to understand, Charles suddenly lost it. He shot up from the sofa like something inside ---- him had snapped. In a few long strides, he was beside me, eyes bloodshot and feral, like something wild and cornered. Before Madam Mankin could say anything, he grabbed my wrist and started dragging me toward the door. "I need to talk to her," he said. "Just the two of us. Something private." The agreement had long since expired. I didn't owe him anything-not my time, not my silence, and definitely not my submission. I fought him hard-kicking, hitting, twisting to break free-but he was stronger, always had been. He dragged me all the way to the garden, to the edge of the pool. "You've lost your damn mind!" I shouted, yanking my wrist free and stepping back, putting distance between us. ---- Charles moved closer, eyes burning, jaw clenched so tight his words barely got through. "That day at the villa," he said. "You weren't joking, were you? There's really someone else?" For a moment, I froze. Ihadn't connected the dots fast enough. "What are you talking about...someone else?" But my confusion must've reassured him, oddly enough. His fury dimmed a little, replaced by something more uncertain. "So you were lying," he muttered. ''Then tell me, Mindy-where have you been these past few days? " It finally clicked. I gave him a slow, deliberate look. Something between a smile and something sharper. "T've already left the Mankin family. What I do, where I go-what does it have to do with you?"