What Separates Me and You Chapter 25 Destroy What She Cares Most About The tall , slender figure stood at the entrance with his back facing the sun , so Josephine could not see his face clearly. Her grip on the plate in her hands tightened . subconsciously . She did not know why he would suddenly come looking for her . Shouldn't he bel enjoying his time with Sierra now ? " Are you done messing around ? " he asked , sounding no different than how he usually did . She had been missing for more than half a month , and all that amounted to him was her messing around ? Mrs. Casio was stunned and stood frozen on the spot , her gaze traveling between . the two . " Who are you to Josie ? " Mrs. Casio questioned spontaneously . " I'm her husband . " Mrs. Casio's jaw dropped in bewilderment . This was not what she expected . She had thought that Josephine's husband was a slacker who bummed around doing . nothing . Or a paunchy man who ordered her around , thinking he was all that . Never had it occurred to her that he would be such a handsome young man with al commanding air to him . " Josie said you didn't want her anymore . Why have you come looking for her ? " Lewis turned slightly to look at Mrs. Casio . " Is that what she told you ? " Mrs. Casio paused . She didn't know how she should answer that . Things did not seem to be as she thought . " Well … " Lewis put on an amiable smile . " She ran away from home after throwing a tantrum . I'm sorry she's given you trouble ." " Oh , so that's how it is . " Mrs. Casio smiled in acknowledgment and heaved a sigh of relief . " That's better . I'm relieved . I was worried about the ba- " Mrs. Casio was cut off by a loud , clattering sound . Josephine had lost her grip on the plate in her hand , and it crashed to the floor , shattering into smithereens . Josephine hurried over to Mrs. Casio and signed . " I'm sorry , I did not mean to do that . The fact was , she had done it on purpose . Had she not dropped the plate , Mrs. Casio would have spilled the beans on how she was pregnant . Mrs. Casio did not understand her signs , so she could only smile awkwardly . " It's alright , I'll clean it up . You should go back with your husband now that he's here for you . " Josephine lifted her gaze to look at Lewis . He reached for her hand and led her out . Both of them kept quiet on the way home . Lewis drove them back to the mansion . Time was always fleeting when one was happy . Once again , Josephine was back in the cold , soulless mansion . The place was lavish and spacious . However , its lack of warmth and its loneliness was a stark difference from the cozy diner . Lewis ' expression was dark the entire way home . When they finally reached the mansion , he suddenly reached out and grabbed Josephine's jaw , emanating a frosty air all around . " Very gutsy these days , aren't we , Josephine ? Running away from home now , huh ? " His grip on her jaw was like a vise . It felt as though he was letting out all his fury through his fingers . Josephine's jaw ached so much that she felt it might shatter at any moment . She stared at Lewis ' eyes through her suffering , observing the storm that was brewing in them . Clenching her fists , she stared at him for quite a while . Just as she was about to sign something , he threw her on the couch . The ceiling above her seemed to spin , and for a brief moment , all she saw was black . He went up to her and held her arms behind her . " Who taught you to do that ? " A bitter smile tugged on Josephine's lips as she stared at him emotionlessly . A wet . sheen crept up her eyes . She tugged forcefully , freeing her arm . " Nobody taught me to do it . You don't care where I am anyway , so why can't I leave ? " She signed . Though she couldn't speak , her expression and actions spoke volumes about how angry and aggrieved she felt . Lewis ' gaze bored into hers without a word . " You like Sierra so much , so I'm giving way to let you be together . Isn't that good enough ? Why have you brought me back ? " Josephine signed . She rarely got into an argument with him , nor had she ever complained . She had always been obedient and docile , akin to a kitten . Whatever he said went , and he never had to take her feelings into consideration . All he had to do was give her a pat on the head , and she would be more than happy . It was only today that he found out that she was capable of being angry too . He took a while to process this new piece of information . " Were you acting out of spite ? " Josephine was stunned , her hands pausing mid - air . For a moment , she did not know . how to answer that . She did not know if she had acted out of spite , but the thought of him neglecting her . and disliking her child stifled her so much that all she wanted to do was to escape this suffocating hellhole of a place . Right then , her phone vibrated . She took it out and had a look . It was a message from . Avery . She glanced at Lewis . He had his eyes on her phone too . Before she could react , he'd already snatched her phone away and tapped on the text message . " Josie , I've been locked up , and the cafe's been raided . I feel so bad for my paintings . But I did all I could to keep your paintings safe . I've mailed them over to you . Remember to check that you receive them ! " After Lewis read the message , he shot Josephine another glance . The anxiety in her eyes was palpable . He scoffed . " Are you ignoring my words now ? " The slight smile on his lips radiated a sort of danger in Josephine's eyes . She shook her head vigorously , trying to explain herself . But Lewis had chucked her phone to the coffee table by the couch and strode out . the door . As though anticipating his next move , she ran and caught up to him . There was a small storage room outside the mansion meant for parcels . Lewis went straight there and kicked at a pile of parcels . Right at the bottom of the pile was a box that held the paintings that Avery had mailed Josephine . For a moment , Josephine's pupils constricted . She rushed over and crouched down on the ground , protecting the box with her body . " Move aside ! " She shook her head with tears in her eyes , begging him to spare her the paintings . Those were not only Avery's present for her , but they were also her hard work and effort . They were a symbol of the friendship they shared . Lewis ' expression was dour . He grabbed Josephine by the wrist and flung her aside . Powerless against him , all Josephine could do was clutch desperately at the box . It was all to no avail . Lewis picked the box up and headed out to the yard . He threw the box roughly on the ground as though it contained nothing but mere trash . Josephine intended to rush over to it , but Lewis ' hold on her was unyielding . He produced a lighter and with a flick , flames danced from his hand . Josephine's eyes widened at the sight of the flickering flames before her . She opened her mouth but couldn't produce a single sound . His grip on her hands cut off the only means of communication between them . He turned to look at her . " You care so much for these paintings ? " Tears rolled down Josephine's face , her eyes begging silently for him to not burn . them . A cold and ruthless smirk graced his features . It seemed like the more she cared for something , the more he was intent on destroying it . He wanted her to watch as . everything she held dear shattered and fell apart before her very own eyes . All that could remain in her line of sight was him , and him alone . His hold on the lighter loosened gradually , and along with it , the flames fell on the box , creeping across its surface and slowly setting it on fire . Josephine suddenly started struggling . When it proved futile , she bent down to bite Lewis on the arm . The sudden jolt of pain nearly caused him to loosen his hold on her . But with a swift twist of his body , his arm went around her waist and pulled her back . The dancing flames reflected in Josephine's eyes grew brighter with each passing moment . Eventually , the flames were all that could be seen in her eyes . She watched helplessly as the box burned down to reveal the paintings . The flames . licked them up bit by bit , and slow but surely , they burned down into ash . A gust of wind blew across the yard , elongating the flames and picking up the bits of ashes off the ground . The black fragments fluttered around in the air around them . Lewis did not let go of her the entire time . Her silent struggles and prayers seemed insignificant and fell upon deaf ears . She reached out her hand , but all that she managed to touch were the fragments of ash and paper floating in the air . She slumped feebly into his arms . In the end , he let go of her , and she sat heavily on the ground . The pieces of paper still circulated around her , as though mocking her . Just like Lewis , they seem to think that everything she cared about was too cheap to be taken into consideration . She did not even have the chance to catch a glimpse of the paintings before they were all wiped clean off the surface of the earth before her eyes , as if they had never existed in the first place .