After 28 Lockouts, I Finally Locked Him Out Chapter 17

After 28 Lockouts, I Finally Locked Him Out Chapter 17

Julian’s fingers twitched.

Eleanor stared at him, her tone filled with the bitter pleasure of revenge.

“I fought with her for five years. I know her better than you do. Clara seems quiet, but once she decides to leave, she never looks back.”

“You regret it now? Too late.”

She took a step forward, her words coming fast.

“Because Leo told one lie, you revoked her access for the twenty-eighth time. You forced her to submit to an audit in front of me. You never once took her side. Did you ever say a single word in her defense?”

Eleanor grabbed Leo’s hand and pulled him toward the door.

When she reached it, she looked back at Julian.

“You drove her away yourself. Now you can stay here alone with your house.”

The door slammed shut.

The living room fell silent.

Julian stood there, alone. The space around him felt vast and empty.

He took out his phone and dialed Clara’s number.

A cold, automated voice answered.

“The number you have dialed is no longer in service.”

His heart sank. He immediately opened his email.

His hands shook so badly he entered the password wrong twice.

In the end, he wrote only two words.

“Clara, please.”

The email had barely been sent when a notification bounced back.

“Delivery failed: recipient address does not exist.”

She had cut off every line of communication.

Julian stared at the screen, his hand slowly going slack.

The phone slipped from his grasp and fell onto the carpet.

He finally realized this wasn’t a cold war, not an argument, not something that would blow over if he just waited long enough.

He had well and truly lost her.