The Divorced Military Queen Awakens (by Sadie Baxter) novel Chapter 579

**TITLE: Military 579**
**Chapter 579: Blood Ties**

“Meet?” Joaquin scoffed, the sound escaping his lips like a sharp blade. “Showing up in front of you would be like stepping straight into a trap. The moment I make an appearance, a swarm of officers will descend upon me.” His eyes glinted with a mix of disdain and amusement, as if he relished the danger.

“I assure you, I won’t bring the police into this,” Julius replied, his voice steady but laced with urgency. “What I need is a face-to-face conversation. I have to grasp what it is you truly desire.” There was an intensity in his gaze, a determination that belied the gravity of the situation.

“What if I were to say that I want Quinn Bridger’s life?” Joaquin murmured, his tone almost teasing, as if he were toying with Julius’s emotions.

Julius felt his grip on the phone tighten, the plastic casing groaning under the pressure of his knuckles turning white. “If you so much as lay a finger on her, I will end you,” he warned, his voice a low growl, a promise of violence.

A low, sinister chuckle echoed through the line, thick with a twisted sense of pleasure. “Ah, you do love her, don’t you? Just like a son should love his mother. But tell me, how deep does that love truly run? And what about hers for you? When the moment of truth arrives, will she always choose you? Every single time?”

“What exactly are you trying to imply?” Julius asked, his brow furrowing in confusion and concern. The tension in the air was palpable, thickening around them like fog.

“You worship her as if she is your only source of light. So what? To her, you might never be the one who comes first. Look at the chaos surrounding us. She risked everything—her life, the baby—to save a friend. Did she even stop to consider how you would manage if she didn’t come back?” Each of Joaquin’s words felt like daggers, aimed with precision at the vulnerable spots Julius desperately tried to protect.

Julius’s heart raced, each statement striking deep into his psyche, forcing him to confront painful truths.

“Maybe I’m not her top priority,” he admitted, his voice low but resolute. “But that changes nothing. She is, and will always be, my one and only choice.”

He knew the love he felt for her was unbalanced, a lopsided affair. Yet he accepted this disparity with the same grace a penitent might accept his cross, willingly bearing the weight of his feelings.

From the very first moment he had encountered her, he recognized that her heart was a vast expanse, divided into territories of affection—romance, yes, but also friendship, duty to her country, and compassion for every soul in need.

So when danger loomed, she would leap into action, rushing toward strangers without a second thought. And he, whose love was narrow and confined, barely wide enough to encompass her, had chosen to stand beside her, embracing that radiant generosity.

Because it was her he cherished, he resolved to adapt, to endure, and even to transform himself if that was what her boundless heart required of him.

Joaquin let out a brittle laugh, the sound sharp and cutting. “What a noble declaration, Julius. You’re my son; don’t tell me you can bear to watch the woman you adore prioritize everyone else over you. Imagine she spots a stranger in dire peril and rushes off to save them instead of staying by your side. Would you still stand by your words?”

Julius’s expression darkened, his face taking on the hue of a brewing storm. “Have you finished? If your intention is to provoke me, you’ve miscalculated. I’m calling to convey a singular message: I need to meet you.”

Joaquin exhaled a derisive snort, a sound devoid of warmth. “And why, pray tell, should I grant you an audience? At this moment, I am not in a position to simply stroll into public meetings.”

This time, he vowed to be her shield. Whoever dared to threaten her life would be erased, without hesitation or mercy.

Quinn awoke to the warm sunlight streaming through the blinds, her eyes fluttering open to find Laura Wentworth perched anxiously at her bedside, worry etched into every delicate line of her face.

“Quinn,” she whispered, her voice barely above a murmur. “How are you feeling?”

Laura managed a guilty smile, though it did little to mask her concern. “Me? I’m perfectly fine. You threw yourself in front of me. If anything had happened to you or the baby, I would have never forgiven myself.”

“We’re both okay, see?” Quinn reassured her, lifting her hand in a calm little wave, trying to alleviate the tension in the air. “All disasters averted.”

Laura’s nose reddened, a hint of tears shimmering in her eyes. “Just promise me, if something like this happens again, don’t play the hero for my sake. I’d rather endure the pain myself than watch you or the child suffer.”

Quinn chuckled softly, her laughter like a balm to Laura’s worries. “What, are you already planning on getting into trouble again?”

Laura rubbed the bridge of her nose, letting out an embarrassed laugh that echoed lightly in the room. “Bad omen, I know. I’ll head to church soon and pray for a little good luck.”