I didn't answer, just sat across from him.
"Let's order first."
He stared at me for two seconds, then called the waiter. Heordered me a light vegetable salad and pumpkin soup, just getting himself juice.
The food came quickly.
"You're not eating?" I asked.
"Not hungry." His eyes never left my face. "Anthea, tell me what happened."
I looked down, pushing vegetables around my plate with a fork.
"I... told you before about my past with Silas." I forced the words out.
"You said you dated, that Olei was your son." Julian nodded.
I spooned some pumpkin soup into my mouth. The warm liquid sliding down my throat gave me the courage to continue.
"But we weren't just dating at first." This time, the words came easier.
"What do you mean?" Julian's frown deepened.
"Six years ago, my dad's investment failed. His company went bankrupt. He owed their family a huge debt." I stared at the soup. "To save my dad's life and pay the debt, I was sold to Silas to have his child."
Julian's hand froze, glass suspended in midair.
"You mean... surrogacy?" He sounded incredulous.
"Yes." I nodded. "From the beginning, I was just... a breeding tool."
I could feel Julian's gaze burning into my face.
"The day I gave birth, his fiancée—a woman named Vanessa—took the baby as soon as she was born." I continued. "Then Silas's father kicked me out of the country."
"So for the past six years you've been..." Julian's expression turned complex.
"After his father died six years later, I finally dared come back." I looked up. "I never thought I'd become Olei's teacher, never thought I'd see him again, much less fall for him again."
Julian's face darkened like he'd been punched.
"So your disappearance this week was also because of that bastard?" He slammed the glass down.
"He... imprisoned me." My voice was quiet. "I found out he'd been watching me, following me. So he locked me up."
Julian's pupils contracted sharply.
"That bastard, how could he do that?" He clenched his fists, veins bulging on the backs of his hands. "Did he hurt you?"
"No." I shook my head. "He let me go this morning."
I finished and looked down at my soup again.
"Stalking, surveillance, unlawful imprisonment—those are crimes!" Julian said angrily. "I can help you put him in court, make him pay for everything he's done. And I've recently found evidence that his company's been doing plenty of illegal shit behind the scenes. If I can get proof, he'll spend the rest of his life in prison. Then you can rightfully get custody of Olei."
I looked at Julian's determined, confident expression, but unease rose in my chest. Putting Silas in prison should be what I wanted most, shouldn't it? He'd hurt me so many times. He deserved punishment. If he went to prison, Olei would come back to me. We could live like a normal mother and son...
But why did my heart feel this inexplicable sadness and reluctance?
