Hearing Tegan's words, Uriah's expression froze, his eyes instantly flashing with biting anger. "Is this because I didn't take your side and indulge your tantrums whenever you clashed with Leslie in the past?"

Tegan fell silent.

At his words, Tegan's expression darkened.

She stared at him with icy detachment, not saying a word.

Uriah tightened his grip on her wrist. "Just let Leslie out first, okay?"

"If you don't like being around her, you don't have to deal with her anymore. You two never have to see each other again, all right?"

Tegan scoffed. "Never see each other again?"

"I'll send her to Novaderma," Uriah said. "She'll never return to Portis City. Does that work for you?"

Sending Leslie away seemed to be his ultimate concession.

His tone was heavy with suppressed frustration.

It was glaringly obvious that all these compromises were just to get Leslie out of custody as quickly as possible.

"Are you implying that I was the one who provoked her?" Tegan asked.

"Can we drop this for now? Tegan, she was beaten half to death by your friends. She was unconscious when they dragged her away."

His patience was clearly wearing thin.

A sarcastic smile touched Tegan's lips. "I hid all the way in Yoreland. I went out of my way to avoid you people."

"And now you're telling me we'll never see each other again? While acting like I'm the one who went after her?"

"Uriah, this is Yoreland. Yoreland, do you understand? We aren't in Portis City anymore."

Back in Portis City, he had constantly accused her of making a scene.

Now she had fled all the way to Yoreland, and he still believed she was the one provoking Leslie?

Tegan yanked her hand free from his grip and shot him a frigid glare.

But just as she turned to leave, Uriah grabbed her again. "Get her out first."

"If she really did cross you, I'll make her apologize."

Tegan was speechless.

Her eyes narrowed. In a flash, she spun around and delivered a stinging slap directly across Uriah's face.

The air in the room went dead silent.

Uriah stared at her, his breathing ragged.

"She kidnapped me," Tegan said. "She threw me into a place where death was a certainty."

"If it weren't for Stella, I would have died in that cave."

"And you're telling me to accept an apology?"

Was this something a simple 'sorry' could fix?

How did he even have the nerve to suggest that? "Leslie committed a felony you think you can just just way that away with a flimsy apology?"

"She wouldn't do that. There has to be a misunderstanding here. Just get her out first and you two. hash it out face-to-face."

"Go straight to hell," Tegan snapped.

With that, she slapped him a second time and walked away without looking back.

Just as Uriah moved to chase after her, Finley, who had gone to grab frostbite ointment, stepped firmly into his path.

Immediately, a chilling tension radiated between the two men.

"Move," Uriah growled.

"Your obsession with Leslie is

completely devoid of boundaries et

Uriah I'm honestly, starting to doubt if you two are even biologically related."

Finley mocked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Uriah's already grim expression darkened further at the remark.

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?"

"Nonsense? Tell me exactly what you think you're doing right now," Finley retorted.

"Is Leslie really just family to you? Or to her, are you just acting like a protective

sibling?"

Faced with Finley's blatant accusations, Uriah's rage boiled over.

He glared at Finley with predatory intent.

Finley scoffed. "Your relationship with her is completely distorted, you know that?"

He emphasized the word 'distorted' heavily.

And he was speaking the undeniable truth.

"Normal siblings grow up fighting and bickering. But you? You grew up coddling her

in your arms, didn't you?"

Take him and Skye, for example. They had been at each other's throats since childhood.

As for why Yvonne and Ronald didn't fight, it was simply because Ronald always kept Yvonne firmly in line.