Chapter 4

Marcus wiped away the blood on his forehead before crouching down in front of me tentatively.

"I'm sorry for coming back late, honey. I—"

I responded by using all my strength to deliver a slap across his cheek. "Where the hell is your conscience, Marcus Lambert? Your daughter has gone missing, and yet you never returned home for days! Are you saying that your daughter's life isn't as important as that plaything of yours?"

Marcus' expression crashed instantly when he heard the way I addressed Sylvia.

"Must you be so vulgar? What do you mean by 'plaything'? Where the hell are your manners, Joanna?"

Marcus was clearly biased toward Sylvia. From that moment onward, I knew I couldn't assume he had a conscience anymore.

"They lost my daughter! Why would I still be polite to them at a time like this? She wants to marry you, right? Tell her to give Cher back to me, and I'll get a divorce with you right away! I'll let her become your wife!

"My darling Cher is still so young… She'll be scared…"

"That's enough!" Marcus interrupted me impatiently. "Joanna Aleshire, have you gone mad? Sylvia is just a penniless intern! It's bad enough that you keep targeting her, but to think that you're pinning such a huge crime on her! Are you trying to drive her mad?"

Gone was the gentle expression that usually occupied Marcus' face in the past. Now, his expression was twisted into one of blame and disgust toward me.

"Besides, you knew that I was super busy with work, and yet you wanted me to pick Cher up from kindergarten! If Cher really ends up missing, shouldn't you be taking responsibility as well?"

I just stared at Marcus in disbelief. I had no idea how he could say such shameless things in such a righteous tone.

At that moment, I could clearly feel that Marcus' heart now belonged to another woman. Cher and I were no longer his priorities in life.

Marcus must have realized how inappropriate his words were, for he crouched down and took my hands gently. Then, he began coaxing me.

"Honey, I promise you that Cher is fine. She's very safe right now. Trust me, okay?"

I withdrew my hands instantly, my gaze pinned on Marcus' face.

"You and Sylvia are the ones who took her away, right? Since she's safe, why can't you give her back to me? Sylvia doesn't want me and Cher to live our lives in peace just because she's pregnant with your baby, right? Is that why she came up with that scheme just to steal Cher away from me?"

Marcus let out a deep sigh. "The fortune teller was the one who claimed that Sylvia needed a child by her side in order to be able to give birth smoothly.

"My mom threatened to take her own life if I didn't do as she said, but at the same time, I was worried that you might not be able to accept this decision. I didn't have a choice. That's why—"

"In that case, aren't you worried that I might die because I thought Cher went missing? Did the fortune teller also tell you that you might become a widower?"

Truth be told, there was once a time when I was blinded by love. But I was never an idiot. Only an arrogant and idiotic man like Marcus would think that Sylvia was a pitiful and innocent woman.

I refused to believe that Sylvia wasn't involved in Cher's kidnapping.

Since Marcus was the one who cheated on me, I never planned to target Sylvia at first. But she shouldn't have targeted my daughter.

Marcus cycled through a few expressions upon hearing my response. In the end, he managed to respond, "Jo, I know I've hurt you badly. But it's been so many years. You should at least be considerate to me.

"My mom refuses to accept you after all these years. Still, she yearns to have a grandson to continue the lineage. Your physique isn't suited for you to be pregnant with another child. Once Sylvia gives birth to the baby, I'll give her a sum of money and fly her out of the country.

"What happened between me and Sylvia is purely an accident. After my mom found out about the pregnancy, she threatened to take her own life just to force her to keep the baby. I don't love Sylvia at all, okay? I've always been in love with you from the start till the end.

"You no longer have to endure the pain of childbirth anymore, Jo. Not to mention, we'll have a son of our own. My mom will slowly accept you as a member of the family. Isn't this a win-win situation for us?"

Although Marcus still looked the same, I felt that he was no longer the same Marcus I knew.

I just looked at him before bursting into laughter. As my laughter stretched on, I began crying.

"But Marcus, I can't wait for that long…"

Marcus roared back impatiently, "Are you done with your shenanigans? My mom wants a grandson, but you can't get pregnant at all! I've compromised so much for your sake, Joanna! Can't you just compromise for me just this once?

"Why can't you tolerate the imperfections in life as much as everyone else? It's only a few months! You're being really selfish here, Joanna!"

I completely broke down at that moment. All I could do was shriek at Marcus. "But I'm diagnosed with cancer! I don't have much time to live!"