It didn't matter what tricks Uriah tried to pull in Yoreland. Nothing would work.

Back in Yoreland, Uriah was on the verge of losing his mind. He'd obtained the video of Skye beating Leslie, and just as Helena had described, Skye had been vicious.

When the police took Leslie away, she was unconscious.

And Tegan had been there, watching silently through the whole thing. The thought made a vein throb in Uriah's temple.

He snatched his phone and dialed Tegan's number, only to be met with a cold, automated message. She had blocked him.

The blizzard raging through Yoreland made travel nearly impossible, and his own serious injuries kept him confined. Seething, Uriah made another call, summoning reinforcements. His intentions were crystal clear.

When it came to Leslie, his stance was uncompromising.

After making the arrangements, he dialed Miriam's number.

Miriam, however, was stranded at the airport due to the blizzard. A string of flight rescheduling notifications had her temper already flaring. When Uriah's call came through, she exploded. "I'm already absent from work! What more do you want?"

God, couldn't a person catch a break? The realization that she would miss her own wedding tomorrow sent a sharp pain through her side, and her patience for Uriah evaporated.

"I'm sending you my location. Get your ass over here in the next thirty minutes," Uriah snapped, his own temper frayed from a day of frustrating setbacks without his assistant.

Miriam wasn't intimidated. "Are you out of your mind, Uriah? I quit!"

"Get my ass back to you? Why don't you go fly a kite?"

"We're both just people! Drop the high-and-mighty act. The feudal system died out centuries ago. Are you still trying to train servants?"

Uriah was speechless.

"I worked for you, Uriah. I wasn't

your handmaiden! Fetching your net

coffee doesn't make me your slave!"

she scoffed irritated by his inability to grasp the situation.

After her tirade, Miriam hung up. Still fuming, she cursed at the disconnected call, "I hope you lose your wife for good this time!"

Considering his track record of

handling issues between his sister and his girlfriend, if Tegan didn't stand her ground this time, Miriam would lose all respect for her and feel she deserved all the griefshed ever gotten.

On the other end of the line, Uriah's face was ashen after Miriam's verbal assault.

Helena, perched nervously on the sofa nearby, whispered, "Is Miriam crazy? How could she talk to Uriah like that?"

Throughout the day, Uriah had tasked Helena with duties Miriam usually handled, but she was completely inept. Her fumbling had only soured Uriah's mood further.

Now, Helena desperately wished

Miriam would return. But hearing the

fury in Miriam's voice over the

phone... anyone would have thought she was the boss, not the assistant She must be insane to speak to her employer that way.

Uriah's breathing was ragged. "She's more than crazy."

Miriam clearly had no intention of staying in Portis City. Once he returned, he was

curious to see what kind of wealthy husband she had managed to snag.