[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-bound-to-my-enemy":3,"chapter-bound-to-my-enemy-bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-119":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Bound to my Enemy",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1600057,2067,"Chapter 119.","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-119",119,"\u003Cp>As we drove, I stared at my phone in my lap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn’t call Zane, not yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I heard his voice right now, I might break completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, I pressed Lucas’s name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It rang once then twice, he picked up on the third ring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elaine?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He never just said my name like that unless something was wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Lucas,\" I breathed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His tone changed instantly at hearing my voice. \"What happened.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m fine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s not what I asked.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We were in a crash,\" I said, trying to keep my voice even. \"On the bridge near Halstead.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, \"We?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Aaron was driving.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another silence, longer this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where are you right now?\" he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In a car. Someone stopped and picked me up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You got into a stranger’s car?\" His voice rose despite himself. \"Elaine, what the hell...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t have a choice.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are you bleeding? Hurt any wher?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m okay.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s not an answer El.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the seat. \"It’s just scrapes. I’m fine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He exhaled sharply through his nose. I could picture him running a hand over his face the way he does when he’s trying not to lose it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What happened to Aaron? Isn’t he supposed to be protecting you?.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What do you mean you don’t know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They boxed us in,\" I said, my voice starting to crack no matter how hard I tried to hold it steady. \"Two cars, they hit us our car almost went over the bridge. Aaron told me to run and I did and I....\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My chest tightened, breathing getting difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t see him after.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucas went quiet in a way that scared me more than if he’d yelled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You left him there?\" he asked carefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He told me to go.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know he did, that’s his job.\" His voice softened a fraction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The guilt rose so fast I had to swallow hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I should’ve stayed,\" I whispered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No.\" His tone sharpened instantly. \"Don’t do that, if he told you to run, you run. You don’t second-guess that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pressed my lips together, staring out the windshield. Meanwhile my heart felt like it was still back on that bridge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are they following you?\" Lucas asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t think so.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Think or know, you need to be careful sunshine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t see anyone.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s not the same thing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I almost laughed at that. He sounded so much like Zane in moments like this, it was unsettling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where are you going?\" he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Back to the house.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Does he know?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re going to tell him?.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another breath, slower this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How bad was it?\" Lucas asked quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I looked down at my hands, there was dried blood under my nails. I didn’t even remember cutting myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The car spun,\" I said. \"It hit the guardrail and was hanging, I thought we were going over.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t speak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I could hear them getting out,\" I continued. \"They seemed so calm, like it was arranged\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Professionals ,\" he muttered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I jumped into the water to throw them off.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You what?\" His voice cracked. \"Elaine, are you insane?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It was freezing,\" I said numbly. \"I couldn’t feel my legs for a second but I’m fine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He swore under his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You could have easily drowned.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s not the point El.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We fell into silence for a few seconds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then I asked the question that had been sitting at the back of my throat since this started.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How’s Ivy?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He exhaled slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She’s stable now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Stable how.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Her fever broke this morning. They’ve got her on antibiotics, though she pissed you haven’t come.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guilt layered over guilt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tell her I tried pleas.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know you did.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Does she need to know about... any of this?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No,\" he said firmly. \" she’s not going to.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I nodded even though he couldn’t see me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She asked for you,\" he added, softer now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My chest tightened again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ll come tomorrow,\" I said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re not stepping anywhere until this is handled.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Luc....\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I mean it.\" His voice went hard in a way that made my throat close. \"You almost died today.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I looked down at my soaked jeans, the dried mud, the blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t,\" I said quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And that’s not because they didn’t try.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The driver slowed as we neared the turn I’d given him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m almost there,\" I told Lucas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Stay on the phone until you’re inside.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I will.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hesitated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m serious, El. If I hear one thing about you pulling something like this again...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know, I lnow\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You don’t,\" he shot back. \"You think you do. But you don’t.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m fine, Lucas\" I repeated softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You sound like shit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I almost smiled despite everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m just cold.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Go inside. Change. And call me when you see him.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I will.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And Elaine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m glad you dived into the water.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My throat burned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t think about it,\" I admitted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Good. Don’t start now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The car stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I opened the door, stepping out onto unsteady legs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ll call you,\" I said to Lucas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You better.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The line clicked off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The driver didn’t ask questions when I told him to stop a little before the main gate, even though it looked like he wanted to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he just nodded once and said, \"You sure you’re good from here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, not even close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah,\" I lied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shut the door and stood there for a second as his taillights disappeared down the road. The cold air cut straight through my now drying clothes and into my bones. My shoes squelched when I moved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The estate gates were still another stretch ahead... long driveway beyond that. Too long to walk like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I started anyway. Each step made my knee aceh . My hair had dried in stiff pieces against my face, and when the wind hit it, it tugged painfully at my scalp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time I reached the outer security lights, my hands were trembling so badly I had to tuck them into my sleeves.\u003C\u002Fp>",1014,"2026-06-06T09:39:37.420Z",1,"novelbin.me","da90a9cd17f86358eba896ece00f5d7023e5d0d77bc6089df884aa105c045e21","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-120","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-118",266,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbound-to-my-enemy-cover.jpg"]