The Untouchable Ex Wife by Mizuki Sei

Chapter 1231
Stefan knew that he could no longer keep the incident a secret. He stared at Renee, his gaze contemplative. 'What do you think
of Quinton?" He asked finally.
Renee thought about it for a while, then said objectively, "I know that Quinton did a lot of crazy things. He isn't a good guy, but
he's not an evil villain either. He usually made extreme choices because he was forced to- he just wanted to survive. Carmine
Pawnshop only made it because they had to resort to a lot of illegal things, but these were usually done in the open sea which
was under no one's jurisdiction. Hence, the police couldn't do anything about it."
"Well, you certainly know how to find excuses for him. I suppose that since you can empathise with a villain, you're probably
hiding your own dark side, " Stefan said with a smirk, raising an eyebrow lazily.
Renee was speechless for a while, then sneered, "Yes, my brother and I are villains with dark sides, but you're not so good
yourself either, Mr. Hunt. You tricked a woman to get what you want and win, so you obviously have a dark side too."
"You think I tricked and fooled Joanne? She says I saved her."
"Saved her?" Renee scoffed incredulously and rolled her eyes. "Do you know how close my brother and Joanne were? They
grew up together and were like siblings, and my brother adored her greatly. If you didn't appear, she would be happy."
"A good relationship? Siblings?" Stefan shook his head as if he was mocking Renee's naivety and ignorance. "I can only say that
the Night Demon is very good at acting... Clearly, you haven't seen his dark side yet."
Renee bit her lip anxiously. Something inside her was saying that she had
found the key to the whole story. She wanted to save Quinton, so she quietly said," That's why I'm asking you now... Tell me
about my brother's dark side."
Stefan tilted his head slightly as he observed her. He let out a soft sigh and explained, "Your brother did treat Joanne well, in fact,
one could say that he would have given his life for her. However, his relationship with her had long surpassed a normal sibling
relationship... it became a pathological possessiveness. As a result, Joanne led a very oppressed and painful life. When she met
me, she had tried to run away several times, but that crazy Quinton would always catch her and take her back, using various
ways to tame and punish her..." 1

Stefan trailed off and went silent. He didn't tell Renee the details because he wanted her to process this information slowly.
However, despite his restraint, she still looked shocked.
"What did you say? A... pathological possessiveness?" Renee shook her head in disbelief, her eyes wide. "How is that possible?
Quinton treated Joanne well, just like how he treats me! They supported each other since they were kids, and were like a ray of
hope for each other. Maybe they were a bit too close, but it couldn't have been like that. Your twisted mind must have
misinterpreted it."
"Don't ask for the truth if you can't handle it." Stefan adjusted his tie and frowned slightly. "I didn't want to tell you this either but
you pestered me repeatedly about it. You wanted to get to the bottom of this. If you can't take it, then just give up and walk
away."