No Escape from Love

It was the media reporters. A flood of reporters pushed their way through the doorway, their cameras flashing wildly the moment they stepped inside.

"Get out! All of you, get out!" Elena shrieked in utter despair. "Who let you in? This is a violation of my rights! Get out!"

But her desperate cries were drowned out by the relentless clicks of camera shutters. Compared to the overwhelming noise of the media frenzy, her voice was nothing more than a whisper-one that no one cared to hear.

The next time I saw anything about Elena, it was all over the internet.

The headlines painted her as a shameless homewrecker who was caught in the act and publicly humiliated by the rightful wife. Every sordid detail was laid bare_ her personal information, her past scandals, and a long list of other dirt that people eagerly dug up.

Overnight, she became a public disgrace—a pariah that everyone despised.

I had my grievances with Elena, but they were never deep enough to warrant hatred. My issues with Julian were always a result of his own cowardice and hypocrisy rather than anything she did.

So, I didn't feel the same resentment toward her that she had for me. I didn't dwell on the matter.

She had tried to sabotage me more than once, but in the end, she brought about her own downfall. This was nothing more than karma playing out. As I scrolled through the endless posts about her, I felt nothing.

But then I noticed something strange. My name, along with Julian's, kept coming up in discussions about the scandal. For a moment, my stomach clenched.

The internet had no mercy. I had just barely survived one storm of online scrutiny, and all I wanted now was peace.

But as I kept reading, I saw that every post dragging me into the mess had a counter-comment debunking it. I checked the accounts that were posting these rebuttals out of curiosity. Most of them were brand-new, with no names or real identities attached.

This had to be Alex's doing. Even now, he was still looking out for me.

I put my phone down, deciding not to pay any more attention to the situation.

...

Meanwhile, Elena had become a

ghost of her former self. She could

feel the stares, the whispers, the mocking smirks of strangers

wherever she went.

She kept her head down, clutching the scarf wrapped tightly around her face as

she hurried through the streets.

Her destination was Julian's home.

The Blake family had long since lost their

reformer prestige after suffering

repeated blows. The luxurious

mansion was gone, replaced by a much more modest residence. noveldrama

When the doorbell rang, Julian walked to the entrance, visibly irritated. His tone

was laced with impatience. "Who is it?"

The moment he opened the door, he was met with Elena's pleading eyes.

"Julian, please... save me," she begged.

Julian had already seen the news. The instant he laid eyes on her,.

disgust flashed across his face

moved to slam the door shut

without hesitation.

But Elena threw herself against it, refusing to let him shut her out.

"You can't do this to me!" she cried and said in a trembling voice, "I have nowhere else to go. Please, help me!"

Julian let out a long, frustrated sigh. "And what exactly do you expect me to do?"

"Get me out of the country using your connection," she pleaded. "I can't survive in Grandview anymore. I need to leave. It's my only chance."

A sharp laugh escaped Julian's lips.

"You've got some nerve, Elena." He scoffed. "You know damn well what state my family is in. How exactly do you expect me to help you?"