His Destructive, Toxic Love

"Mr. Casper just got caught up in a mess he should've avoided, but it'll blow over soon enough."

Eliza felt a sudden rush of panic.

What kind of mess had he gotten himself into? And just how soon was 'soon'?

Her heart raced with worry as she clung to Dillon's shirt, "Are you sure he's not in any real danger?"Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

"The folks from the President's office assured me he's safe."

"But can we really trust them?" She had watched too many shows where someone like Casper, stuck in the middle, ended up only one way. Dead.

Her heart clenched with anxiety.

The Christianson family was powerful, a force not to be trifled with. But could they really trust the President to be on the right side?

No, she still needed to see Casper.

"Can I see him?" Her fingers trembled slightly.

Dillon hadn't been able to see Casper either, leaving him unsure of what to say, "Ma'am..." he glanced at the phone she was gripping, "...it's hard to tell right now."

If Casper didn't reach out to them, there was no way they could get in touch with him.

With the President closing in, chances were slim that Casper would make contact at such a crucial moment.

No one could be certain.

"Ma'am, all we can do is wait."

Wait?

But she didn't want to wait. She couldn't just sit around doing nothing.

She needed to know what was going on with Casper. How was he handling things with the President?

"Isn't there any other way?"

Dillon shook his head.

Silence stretched between them.

Eliza kept her eyes glued to her phone, willing it to light up with some news.

But the night dragged on, and nothing happened.

Yesterday, she had tracked down the exact location of the Christianson family mansion, and today, she was determined to go.

As she moved to leave, Dillon caught her wrist and pulled her back inside, "Ma'am, where are you headed?"

"I need to see Casper." She had to know how he was.

Dillon thought it was too risky, "Mr, t

Casper is being held at the Gold

Mansion. If you want to see him, we

have to wait for him net

Eliza knew this. Dillon had repeated it several times.

But Casper hadn't reached out yet.

How long was she supposed to wait?

"I can't wait any longer."

contact us."

"Ma'am, Mr. Casper would worry, please try to stay calm."

Eliza was determined to see Casper today, no matter what.

As if by some stroke of fate, her phone buzzed on the table.

It was a message.

Eliza quickly picked up her phone to check. It was a meeting location.

Her heart spared as she showed the message to Dillon, "Look, this has to be from Casper, right? He's set up a meeting. Let's go see him now

Dillon glanced at the location in the message.

It was indeed from Casper.

11

The meeting spot was the Christianson family's back door, a quiet entrance used by the staff.

No crowds, no cameras.

After confirming, he whispered, "Let's go, I'll come with you."

"Okay."

Eliza was excited.

They snuck out, dodging anyone

who might be tailing them like they were in a spy movie, and after

several detours, they reached the spot Casper had mentioned

DUMS

"Will we really see him here?" Eliza was desperate to meet him.

Dillon scanned the area, then checked his watch, "We should."

As soon as he said that, they heard the click of a lock turning on a small door.

Eliza's heart thundered in her chest.

She focused intensely on the door, yearning to see the person she hadn't laid eyes on in a year.

As the door slowly creaked open, her eyes widened in anticipation...