I Married My Ex's Billionaire Father-Chapter 276: Save Lyse

Bella had not slept.

Not a minute.

Her mind had replayed Ken’s warning through every hour of the night:

She is next.

Those words had wrapped around her ribs like steel, squeezing tighter each time she imagined Lyse alone, unsuspecting, already heartbroken and vulnerable, walking blind into Ophelia’s web.

So when dawn crept in through her room’s blinds, Bella was already up, dressed, hair half-tied, coffee untouched and cold on the table. She didn’t waste time. She grabbed her jacket, her phone, and her keys, and headed straight out.

Ken had asked her to "call the number in his drawer."

He had not asked her to bring Levi into it.

But Bella knew something Ken didn’t:

Levi Van Doren would do anything, anything for Lyse.

And Lyse trusted him, even when she pretended she didn’t.

So Bella, operating purely on instinct and desperation, pointed her car in the direction of the Van Doren corporate tower, praying she wasn’t about to make things worse.

The Van Doren building was always intimidating, but this morning it looked especially unwelcoming, sleek steel, massive tinted windows, and a rotating glass door that hissed like it wanted to spit out anyone without a net worth above eight figures.

Security was tighter than she expected. Bella pushed through the entrance and strode toward the reception desk on sheer adrenaline.

The receptionist, a polished woman with sharp eyeliner and a sharper expression, looked up. "Good morning. Do you have an appointment?"

"I need to see Levi Van Doren," Bella said, breath unsteady but voice firm.

"Appointment?" the woman repeated.

"No. But it’s urgent."

The receptionist’s smile didn’t budge. "Mr. Van Doren’s schedule is full. I can have you send an email to his PA—"

"No."

Bella planted both hands on the desk. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"This is about Lyse."

That finally cracked the woman’s composure but only for a second.

Then she straightened. "I’m sorry. Without an appointment—"

"I’m not leaving." Bella crossed her arms. "You’re going to have to drag me out."

She said it loud enough that the two uniformed security officers nearby shifted uneasily.

The receptionist sighed. "Ma’am..."

"I’m waiting right here," Bella declared, marching to one of the chairs in the lobby and dropping into it with theatrical stubbornness. "Tell him Bella Harding is here. It’s important that we meet."

The receptionist didn’t look convinced, but she typed something anyway.

"Please wait."

"Oh, I will," Bella muttered under her breath. "I’ll wait until he retires if I have to."

Minutes stretched.

Then an hour.

People came and went. Lawyers, investors, assistants balancing tablets and stress but Bella stayed glued to her uncomfortable lobby chair, legs crossed, jaw set, tapping her nails against her thigh.

If Levi didn’t come out, she’d break into his office. She wasn’t above it.

Do it for Lyse, she reminded herself. Don’t let your pride get loud now.

She checked her phone for updates from Tom, nothing.

From the detectives, nothing.

Her frustration simmered dangerously close to boiling over.

Then...

Movement.

A cluster of executives walked out of the elevator. And at the center of them—

Levi.

Tall. Impeccably dressed. Expression unreadable as always. His suit jacket rested perfectly across his broad shoulders; his tie was straight; his handsome face was carved from quiet intensity.

Bella stood up so fast she nearly tripped over her own bag.

Levi didn’t see her. He was walking briskly toward the revolving door, phone pressed to his ear, issuing clipped instructions.

"Levi!" she called out.

Security immediately sprang into action.

"Ma’am—" one guard said firmly as he stepped toward her. "You need to leave."

"No!" Bella dodged to the side and pursued Levi. "Levi Van Doren!"

The other guard grabbed her arm. "You can’t go past this point."

"Get your hands off me!" she snapped, struggling. "Levi!"

The guard tightened his hold. "Ma’am, step back or we’ll escort you out."

Bella had one card left.

One card Ken would absolutely murder her for using.

She inhaled and shouted at the top of her voice:

"KEN STUART SENT ME!"

Everything froze.

Levi turned.

Just turned.

His eyes, usually impossible to read flared with something sharp and startlingly intense.

He held up a hand toward the guards.

"Let her go."

They released her immediately.

Bella straightened her jacket, shot them a glare for good measure, then marched toward Levi, who had already stepped aside from the cluster of executives watching the scene unfold.

Levi ended his phone call with a curt, "Reschedule it."

His gaze snapped back to her. "Why did you come here?"

Her heart hammered. "We need to talk."

"Not here," he said quietly. "Walk."

He guided her out of the building with a firm hand on her elbow, not ungentle, but firm and didn’t release her until they were outside, standing beside the curb where cars hummed past.

"There’s a café across the street," he said.

They crossed together, neither speaking, both wrapped in tension so thick it seemed to warp the air around them.

The café was small, warm, the smell of coffee grounding Bella for the first time all day. Levi chose a corner booth strategically tucked away from curious eyes.

He didn’t sit until she did.

"Talk," he said.

Bella swallowed hard.

"Ken needs your help."

Levi’s jaw worked. "Absolutely not."

Bella blinked. "Levi please"

"No." His voice was cold, final. "I am not interested in whatever game he is playing."

"This isn’t a game. Edward—"

"I know about Edward," he snapped.

She froze.

His eyes narrowed. "Word travels fast among people with a lot to lose. Edward Sandton’s death is already crawling through the city."

Bella exhaled shakily. "Then you know how bad this is."

"What I know," he said tightly, "is that Ken has managed to involve himself in yet another scandal. And he has sent his minion to drag me into it."

"I’m trying to save Lyse."

Her voice cracked slightly.

Levi stilled.

Bella leaned forward. "Ken isn’t calling you because he wants help. He’s calling because Lyse is in danger."

His expression flickered, barely but enough to tell her she had hit the right nerve.

"Ophelia Welhaven framed him," Bella continued. "She’s trying to clear every obstacle between her and the Welhaven fortune. Ken is only step one."

Levi tensed, but stayed silent.

Bella inhaled sharply. "Lyse is step two."

Levi went utterly still.

"Lyse..." he began slowly, as if tasting the words, "...what does she have to do with any of this?"

"That is why you need to see Ken," Bella whispered. "To save Lyse."

Levi’s fingers curled against the table as he stared at the woman seated before him. Nothing she was saying made any sense, why would Ophelia Welhaven want to harm Lyse?

"She is dangerous and every moment we spend wasting can be fatal," Bella said bitterly. "Edward’s. Dead."

"That proves nothing," Levi said, but his voice lacked certainty. "Nothing you are saying makes any sense."

Bella leaned back, trembling. "Levi... she killed Edward. And she framed Ken. And she is sure to go after Lyse next. She wants every piece of Maeve’s legacy for herself."

"What i fail to understand is how this affects Lyse." A hint of frustration crept into Levi’s voice.

"Because Ken is her father!" Bella errupted

A long silence stretched between them.

The café noise faded around them, from chatter to white noise.

Levi stared at the table, then at the window, then finally at Bella.

She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"This isn’t about your pride. Or your feelings. Or the history between you two." Her voice softened. "This is about Lyse. She doesn’t know what’s coming. She doesn’t even know who her enemies are."

Levi’s eyes darkened with something painful, fear, maybe.

Regret.

"Levi," Bella whispered, voice trembling, "please. Ken trusts one person in this situation. And right now, that person... is you."

Levi stared.

No flicker of emotion.

No change in expression.

Just utter, unnerving stillness.

Bella swallowed hard and pressed one final button, the one she knew would shatter his resistance.

"Do it for her," she whispered. "Do it for Lyse."

Something broke in Levi’s eyes, something fierce, protective, instinctive.

He closed his eyes for a moment.

Then

Slowly

He nodded once.

A decision.

A vow.

A storm forming.

"When?" he asked quietly.

Bella exhaled shakily. "As soon as possible. Tonight, if he’s allowed visitors."

Levi stood abruptly, tossing money onto the table though they hadn’t ordered anything.

"I’ll make it happen."

Bella blinked. "You will?"

He fixed his tie, composure sliding back over him like armor. "If Lyse’s life is at risk, I won’t sit on my hands."

Relief washed through Bella so hard she nearly sagged.

He turned to leave.

"Levi."

He paused.

"Thank you," she whispered.

His jaw tightened, and for a brief second his eyes softened.

"Don’t thank me," he said quietly. "Just keep Lyse safe until I get there."

Then he walked out.