[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-bound-to-my-enemy":3,"chapter-bound-to-my-enemy-bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-143":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},1600081,2067,"Chapter 143.","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-143",143,"\u003Cp>I turn back to Ivy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Maybe later?.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her face drops instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can’t right now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why not?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I have to talk to the boys first.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She groans again, this time louder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They’ll be there later!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So come shopping wirh me!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ivy...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She clasps her hands together dramatically while giving her best puppy eye face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Pretty please?.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I laugh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re unbelievable.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Come on I have missed you!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I missed you too.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So come with me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can’t now ivy:\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why not?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Because I need to talk to Lucas and the others about something really important.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How long will that take?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She narrows her eyes suspiciously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re being weird.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No I’m not.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You are.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m just busy right now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"With what?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uhmmm business stuff.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tilts her head, studying me carefully like she’s trying to solve a puzzle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she sighs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But later?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Later,\" I promise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Promise promise?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You swear?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I swear..... cross mt heart, hope to die.\" I say while chuckling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She brightens instantly again and throws her arms around me for another hug.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You better not disappear again,\" she mumbles into my shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I won’t sweetheart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I squeeze her tightly for a second before she pulls back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay,\" she says, clapping her hands once. \"I’m going before the mall gets too crowded.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Take it easy,\" I warn automatically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, mom.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I mean it ivy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She walks backward toward her car, waving at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ll call you later!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She slides into the passenger seat while her driver closes the door and the car pulls away from the driveway a moment later, heading down the long road toward the gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stand there watching until it disappears past the trees as a quiet breath leaves my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good. At least Ivy won’t be around for whatever happens next... because the conversation I’m about to have with purs brothers... Probably isn’t going to be pretty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The front door opens before I even reach it. The house keepwr who has worked in this house longer than I’ve been alive, freezes when she sees me standing there. For a second her eyes widen like she’s just seen a ghost, then her whole face lights up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elain!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I can say anything she’s already pulling me inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Look at you,\" she says, grabbing my face between her hands the way she used to when I was fifteen and coming home late. \"You look thin.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I do not.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You do.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I really don’t.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She pulls me into a tight hug anyway, squeezing me like she’s making up for the weeks I’ve been gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I heard you were back in town,\" she says when she pulls away. \"But no one told me you were coming here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Neither did I,\" I say honestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She laughs softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well, your brothers are going to lose their minds when they see you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I smile a little\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where are they?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In the living room.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course they are... some things never change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I walk past the wide hallway toward the main living area. The sound reaches me before I even get there.....loud music, explosions, and the rapid clicking of controllers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Definitely video games, I think to myself as I round the corner into the living room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant TV on the wall is flashing bright colors from whatever game they’re playing. Two figures are slouched on the couch in front of it, controllers in their hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah and Caleb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah is leaning forward, completely focused on the screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Come on, come on....\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb shoves him slightly with his shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re about to lose.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m not about to lose!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You always lose.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s because you cheat!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don’t cheat, you just suck at iot.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stop just inside the doorway, watching them for a second.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>God. I missed this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb glances up first and the controller drops out of his hands immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...El!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah turns at the same time and dor a split second neither of them move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Holy...!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah launches off the couch like it’s on fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elaine!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb isn’t far behind him as both of them reach me at the same time and pull me into a hupg that nearly crushes my ribs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where the hell have you been?\" Noah demands into my hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah,\" Caleb adds, squeezing tighter. \"You disappeared!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I missed you guys too,\" I laugh breathlessly\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They finally let go enough for me to breathe and Caleb grabs my shoulders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Look at you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah steps back, shaking his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You look the same.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You say that like it’s disappointing.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I just expected more... .\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There’s been plenty more,\" I mutter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s when I notice Lucas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’s sitting at the dining table just beyond the living room area, a stack of papers spread in front of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He must’ve heard us because he’s looking up now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elaine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something about the way he says my name makes my chest tighten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucas walks over, slower than the others did, then he pulls me into a hug.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A quiet one but tight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You should’ve told us you were coming,\" he says.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sighs but lets it go, pulling back to look at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You okay?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah. I’m good \"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You sure?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb nudges Noah with his elbow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"See? She’s alive.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Barely,\" Noah mutters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he suddenly pauses and his head turns toward the front windows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Wait.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he walks over and peeks through the curtains... i already know what he’s going to see.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Three black SUVs parked outside with armed security standing nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His posture stiffens as he looks back at me slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elaine?.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb notices the change immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Noah gestures toward the window and Caleb walks over and looks too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Oh.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucas is already watching me now and Noah turns back fuly\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why do you have a small army outside our house?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhale slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s not a small army.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s definitely an army.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s just security.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For what?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caleb crosses his arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah, what’s going on?\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1004,"2026-06-06T09:39:37.420Z",1,"novelbin.me","9966beab8e987aafc609f2c1e6e26ef9634a3fa046a42d396019abd1c0b24b61","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-144","bound-to-my-enemy-chapter-142",266,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbound-to-my-enemy-cover.jpg"]