Chapter 230

[ 840 words ]

Emilia’s POV

The second I got home, I went straight to the bedroom and started throwing things into my suitcase. Clothes, toiletries, whatever I could grab. My hands moved on autopilot while my mind replayed Sebastian’s face across that dinner table.

“Emmy, maybe think about this for a second,” Eve said carefully in my mind. “Don’t make decisions when you’re upset.”

“I’m not being impulsive,” I shot back, yanking open another drawer. “He canceled our trip for her. So what’s stopping me from going somewhere on my own? Does Sebastian Simons think I’m so pathetic I can’t function without him? That I’ll fall apart the second he’s not around?”

Eve sighed, the sound echoing in my head. “Alright, Emmy. But if you’re really going, at least pack some warm clothes. Where you’re headed isn’t Hawaii.”

I stopped halfway and looked down at my suitcase. It was stuffed with sundresses, sandals, and a bikini.

“Oh, for crying out loud,” I muttered, yanking it all back out.

Twenty minutes later I’d repacked with actual winter gear, sweaters, a coat, boots, scarves, and was out the door. I drove straight to the airport and bought the first ticket I could find to Hokkaido.

If Sebastian wanted Abigail, fine. I’d give him all the space he needed.

Hokkaido in winter was breathtaking. The snow was pristine and untouched, like someone had draped the whole island in a clean white blanket. The air was sharp and cold, but it felt good. Cleansing, even.

I checked into a hot spring hotel in the city center, one of those traditional places with tatami mats and private onsen baths. For the first time in days, I felt like I could breathe.

“See?” I said to Eve as I unpacked. “I’m perfectly fine on my own.”

“Mmhmm,” she replied, unconvinced. “Just don’t do anything stupid.”

“I never do anything stupid.”

I spent the rest of the day wandering the hotel, soaking in the onsen, and trying not to think about Sebastian. It almost worked.

By evening the snow was falling hard outside. I was curled up in front of the fireplace in my room, hands wrapped around a cup of green tea, when I heard a commotion downstairs.

Frowning, I set the cup down and walked to the door. The hallway was empty, but the noise was coming from the lobby. I crept to the railing above the reception area and looked down.

My stomach dropped.

There were about a dozen men in black coats and sunglasses crowding the front desk. They looked like they’d walked straight out of a yakuza movie. One of them was holding up a photo, my photo, speaking rapid Japanese to the terrified hotel owner.

“Have you seen this woman?” the man asked in accented English. “Her name is Emilia Taylor. She’s from Silverlake City.”

Oh, you have got to be kidding me.

“Emmy, we need to leave. Now,” Eve said urgently.

For once, I agreed with her.

I ducked back into my room, grabbed my suitcase, and slipped out through the side corridor. My heart pounded as I crouched behind a stack of storage boxes, listening to heavy footsteps thunder past.

“She was here! The owner said she checked in this morning!” one of them shouted. “Find her!”

I held my breath until the footsteps faded, then crept back toward the lobby. It was quiet now, the men gone. The owner was slumped behind the desk.

I approached carefully. “Excuse me. What did those people want?”

The moment he saw me, his face went pale. “You! You need to leave! Now! Don’t bring trouble to my hotel!”

“I will, I promise,” I said quickly. “Just tell me why they’re looking for me.”

He hesitated, glancing nervously at the door. Then he leaned in and said in a low voice, “They said your husband sent them. They’re yakuza, miss. Dangerous people. Your husband must be a very powerful man.”

Before I could answer, he practically shoved me toward the door and slammed it behind me.

I stood there in the snow, suitcase in hand, staring at the closed door.

Sebastian.

Of course it was Sebastian.

“He flew all the way to Japan to find you,” Eve said, and I could hear the smugness in her voice. “That’s kind of romantic, don’t you think?”

“Romantic?” I hissed under my breath. “He sent the yakuza after me, Eve. The actual yakuza.”

“Well, you did run off without telling him where you were going.”

“Because he chose her over me!”

“Did he, though?”

I gritted my teeth, pulled my coat tighter, and started walking. If Sebastian thought I’d just sit around waiting for him to find me, he had another thing coming.

I pulled out my phone and looked up the tallest mountain in Hokkaido. If he wanted to find me, he could work for it.

“Emmy, this is a terrible idea,” Eve warned.

“You said I should pack warm clothes,” I shot back. “Might as well use them.”

And with that, I headed for the mountains.

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