"Shut up!" Nina snapped, her voice trembling with anger. "How can you say something like that? I can't believe I misjudged you so badly!"Nash did not flinch, taking her slap head-on. His cheek reddened, but his lips curled into a cruel, cold smile as he turned back to face her. His eyes were icy, devoid of any warmth. "If this makes you give up on me, then it's a good thing. I'm not the right man for you."Nina trembled and she was heartbroken and devastated. She had never met anyone as cruel as Nash."If your goal was to make me sign, congratulations. You've succeeded. I want this divorce as much as you do!" Nina grabbed the pen and signed her name on the divorce papers. She then flung them at him. "Get out. Get out of my house right now!"Nash's expression remained unchanged, unaffected by her rage. The lawyer quickly gathered the signed papers."It's done, Mr. York," the lawyer said, addressing him.Nash nodded, got up, and walked out without another glance at Nina.As t
She began to imagine how grand her wedding with Nash would be. She envisioned herself as the happiest bride in the world. Just then, Miranda heard footsteps and assumed it was the helper. "You don't need to take care of things here. You can go," she called out.However, the footsteps did not stop. She frowned, growing impatient. "I said you don't need to..."As she looked up and saw who it was, her eyes widened in shock. She quickly removed the face mask and stood up straight. "Dad.""Miranda," the man said, his eyes smiling as he looked at her. "It's been a long time. You've grown into a fine young woman."Miranda stood up and ran to hug him. "Dad, you're finally out. I've missed you so much!"The man was in his fifties and slightly taller than Miranda. He was still looking strong and fit. Patting Miranda’s head affectionately, he said, "You've been through a lot these past few years." "It's nothing compared to what you've endured, Dad. Besides, I'm a star now. With the fam
For her, there was only one way out.---Nina had no idea how she survived the night. It was excruciatingly long and torturous. She lay on the sofa, wide awake the entire time. When she finally became fully alert, it was already the break of dawn.She was exhausted and feeling completely drained.Dragging her weary body to the bathroom, Nina washed her face and looked up, only to be startled by her reflection. She thought she was seeing a ghost. Her eyes were bloodshot, her face haggard and colorless, resembling someone gravely ill.She touched her face in disbelief, questioning how she had come to look like this. Was a broken heart enough to completely bring her down? Could she not live without Nash?The answer was no.Hadn't she already contemplated severing ties and divorcing him long ago? It just so happened that he initiated it this time. She had to move on and live a better life, a hundred times better than before.Nina made up her mind. One night of sadness
Her life was fortunate in many ways. She had a harmonious family and many people who cared about her. Her misfortune lay in her love life. Perhaps her life was too stable, and there had to be some turbulence, which manifested in her romantic failures.Her words made Wilfred laugh. He sat by her side, watching over her, his brown eyes exceptionally gentle. "You didn't exactly risk your life for me, but you did give me life," he said. He decided not to hide and face the truth with her. "You'll understand when you remember."He had saved her multiple times, and she believed he would not harm her, despite his complex identity. Now, the only person who stayed by her side was Wilfred."Do you have friends?" she asked."No.""None of you have friends?""I don't need friends," he replied."What about your parents?""I don't know who they are.""You must feel so lonely, without friends or family. Life must be dull," she said, suddenly feeling pity for him.Fate had not been enti
Wilfred's expression was complicated. If she knew what he had done, she would not say such things. He did not dare touch her hand, let alone tell her about the darker parts of his life.Wilfred did not refuse her this time, letting her hold his hand. They sat quietly for a long while. The beads in Nina's hand seemed to deepen in color, the red tint becoming more prominent. She noticed this and asked, "Are these beads changing color?"Wilfred's eyes darkened. "Are they?"Nina held the beads up to the sunlight, confirming the brightening red. "I thought the beads might darken over time from wear, but this red seems to be getting brighter. These are your beads, right? Haven't you noticed?"Wilfred instinctively clenched his wrist, then smiled. "Maybe they're fake. I never had them tested."Nina's gaze fixed on Wilfred. "Would you wear fake beads for so long? I'm not saying they're fake, just that it's strange to have blood inside them."She sniffed the beads. "They smell of
"It’s my first time," Wilfred said.Nina raised an eyebrow. "Not bad for a first attempt. Let's see if you have a natural talent."Half an hour later, Wilfred emerged from the kitchen. There was no smell of smoke, which meant he had not blown up the kitchen. But when he set the dishes on the table, Nina was taken aback.She stared at Wilfred in horror.Wilfred, sensing her confusion, calmly explained, "This is chicken heart, and this is chicken liver… both are internal organs. This part is the chicken breast, and the legs have the most tender meat..."Listening to Wilfred's descriptions felt like a lesson in anatomy rather than a meal. She could almost picture Wilfred performing a dissection on the chicken while cooking. Instead of feeling hungry, she felt nauseous.Seeing Nina not touching the food, Wilfred asked, "What's wrong? Does it not look appetizing? I tried to keep it all intact.""It's not that..." Nina replied. "You didn't have to keep it so intact. Do you have anythi
Wilfred flinched, clearly not wanting to be touched. This only made Nina more suspicious. "Why are you still bleeding?" she demanded. His injury had been there for a while. Even if it had not fully healed, it should not still be bleeding unless he had a new wound. Wilfred tightened his sleeve, but the few drops of blood were hard to ignore. Forcing a smile, he made an excuse. "I cut myself while cooking. It's nothing serious."Nina was not convinced. "You've handled surgical tools for years. How could you accidentally cut yourself? You can't fool me! This doesn't look like a cooking injury. What really happened?"Wilfred remained silent. Seeing his reluctance, Nina took his hand and saw the hastily wrapped bandage around his wrist. It was not well done, likely because he had to do it himself with one hand. "It's just a minor injury," Wilfred said softly. "You've seen worse on me. This is nothing."He hoped she would drop the topic, but Nina's suspicions only deepened. "Did
Her gaze shifted back to Wilfred. He looked at her with a casual, unbothered expression. This was no longer surprising to him. Nina understood that the place Wilfred had come from was far from legitimate or transparent. As he said, they lived in darkness, away from the light.Even so, Nina was still deeply shocked, unable to fathom how people could live such different lives. "How could you give me your blood?" Nina's voice was filled with reluctance. "I would have woken up eventually. You didn't need to cut your wrist to help me. It's harmful to you. I don't need you to do that."Wilfred smiled, as if this was the easiest thing he had ever done. "It's just a bit of blood. It won't kill me.""You can't say that. You mustn't do it again!" Nina firmly opposed. "With me, you are a person who deserves respect, not an animal, and certainly not someone who needs to sacrifice themselves for anyone else. You are free. Don't bind yourself."Nina wanted to convey that he did not need to
And just like that, the conversation fell into a brief silence. Meanwhile, on the other side, Hunter received a call from Yelena. “What did you just say?” Yelena told him that her hand was broken, and on top of that, Liam seemed to be getting suspicious. She wasn’t sure what to do, so she called Hunter for advice. “I don’t really care what happens to you, but at the very least, take care of yourself.“Otherwise, if something else goes wrong later, I’ll have to step in and clean up the mess. Don’t you think so?” Hearing this, Yelena was a little taken aback. “It’s not just about my injury. The real problem is, I’m scared of what he might do now.” Sure, she had taken the two hundred thousand dollars, but she had to stay alive to spend it. At this rate, she wouldn’t even make it through in one piece. “I already told you—protect yourself. If you need anything else, I’ll try to provide it. But right now, I need you to do something for me.” Hunter had been look
“Yes, it’s in that mountain area. If you’re worried, you can go check it out yourself. But as for anything else, we don’t really have much more information.”Compared to everything else, this was the most baffling situation.“You make a good point. But given the current circumstances, I think it’ll be difficult to pull off.”Vera was speaking with the private investigator. Deep down, she was more worried than anything else.“Don’t worry,” the private investigator reassured her. “Aside from what we discussed earlier, nothing else seems too extreme. Plus, we’ve already looked into it pretty thoroughly.”By the time he finished speaking, his expression had grown more complicated.“Alright. I understand.”After hanging up, she anxiously looked straight ahead. If she had been mentally prepared before, now she was starting to feel uneasy. “What’s going on?” Caleb asked while driving, glancing at her. Vera hesitated, debating whether to tell him or not. But seeing the strange
“I only had one surgery today,” Caleb said as he drove, his voice calm but firm. “Now that it’s done, I want to know why this happened.” After that, he said nothing more. Vera sat in silence, her heart uneasy as the car pulled up in front of an upscale club. Even though her hand was already bandaged, she still felt a sting of pain every time Caleb showed concern. “So this is what it feels like to have someone care,” she thought to herself.Back when Vera had been stepped on, her only concern had been the contract—whether the deal would fall apart and if her suffering had been for nothing.If it had been anything else, she probably wouldn’t have cared as much.But Caleb’s concern made it impossible for her to brush aside.It kept lingering in her mind, refusing to let her feel indifferent.“Don’t overthink it,” Caleb said, his voice firm. “Whatever happened between Luna and me doesn’t change the fact that this concerns me too—and I owe it to you to make things right.”
“Oh? So this is the apology you wanted?” Vera’s forehead was covered in cold sweat from the pain, but the two women standing over her barely reacted. As if this was normal to them. As if humiliating her was just another game. “I asked you a question.” Vera remained half-crouched on the ground, her hand still pinned under Luna’s heel. Helena smirked. “Yeah, I’d say that’s good enough.” She hadn’t expected Vera to be this stubborn, but it didn’t matter. With an exaggerated sigh, she casually scribbled her signature onto the contract. The deal was officially secured. Vera didn’t waste another second. She cast one last glance at the two women. “I have no interest in getting involved in your personal drama. As for Caleb and me, that’s between us. We both made our choices.” Luna’s expression twisted slightly. “I won’t bother commenting on your relationship,” she said, voice dripping with disdain. “But don’t think for a second that this will ever earn
The moment Vera heard her assistant’s words, her expression darkened. Her previously calm tone turned firm. “If that’s the case, I understand. But I still have to go. This is my responsibility, and no one else can handle it.” If she didn’t take the lead, the other party would only grow bolder. However, the moment she glanced at the name on the negotiation list, she couldn’t help but frown. Because the person she was supposed to meet wasn’t just anyone. It was Helena Xander. Vera had encountered her before—back when her relationship with Caleb hadn’t yet escalated. Even then, Helena had openly mocked her, saying that since Caleb had been Luna’s devoted lapdog for years, he should know his place and never overstep. She had also thrown a few sharp words at Vera, telling her to recognize her own status—as if warning her that getting involved would only bring trouble. Back then, Vera hadn’t taken it seriously. She never thought she would cross paths with the
“Alright, enough of this. If you’re serious about investigating, you’ll need proper psychological evaluations,” Caleb said nonchalantly.“The best way to assess something like this is through clinical observation—watch for behavioral inconsistencies, memory gaps, or personality shifts. If you can, gather video footage of his daily life. That’s the only way to get a clearer picture. Otherwise, it’s just speculation.”Caleb made the remark casually, then swiftly issued a dismissal.“You came all the way here just to mess with me? What about your own situation? How’s that going?” Caleb’s sarcasm was dry and pointed. Hunter let out a long sigh. “What else could it be? Business as usual. Compared to others, I’m probably the only one with enough patience for this mess.” He was, of course, referring to his ongoing battle with Liam. Caleb gave him a small nod. “Alright, you should get going now. I need to rest. Don’t loiter around here.” Without hesitation, he waved his hand
Vera forced an awkward smile at Hunter before quickly retreating back into the bathroom to change. Hunter, watching her leave, couldn't help but smirk. “You’re really living the good life, huh?” he teased. “Didn’t expect you to have such luck.” Caleb rolled his eyes, clearly uninterested. “Enough with the nonsense. Why are you here? And who exactly were you talking about over the phone?” He didn’t want to entertain pointless banter, especially not about women. If he was being honest, even he couldn’t fully explain his feelings toward Luna. He wasn’t sure what was left between them—was it love, or just the remnants of something that had long turned sour? That pitiful look in her eyes earlier had shaken him. For a fleeting moment, he had wanted to pull her into his arms, to comfort her like he used to. But after so many years of being humiliated and pushed aside, he had forgotten how to even speak to her anymore. So instead, he did what was easiest—he change
Hunter spoke casually, his tone light. “Just someone, that’s all. Do you really need all these details?” Caleb was now certain of his suspicion. “Hunter, did you forget what I do for a living? I’m a doctor. If you’re asking me about this, I need to get a clear picture before I can give you an answer.” Hunter exhaled lightly. “That’s fair, but some things can’t be diagnosed right away.” Based on the information Yelena provided earlier, Hunter was only speculating about Liam. But Caleb was an expert in this area, so he specifically called to ask him.Still, explaining everything over the phone wasn’t going to work. “Forget it,” Hunter said. “This isn’t something I can explain over a call. Where are you? I’ll come over.” Caleb hesitated for a moment before glancing at Vera, who was still beside him. In the end, he gave Hunter the address to his villa. Hunter chuckled. “Haha. I’m surprised. You actually do go home to rest.” Caleb ignored the jab and tossed his p
“Call me Liam.” Before Yelena could finish speaking, Liam cut her off with a sharp, angry voice. She quickly nodded and corrected herself. “Liam, don’t worry. I’ll do exactly as you say. I’ll be good. I won’t make you angry again.” But Liam didn’t care. With a violent shove, he threw her to the ground. Yelena barely had time to brace herself before hitting the cold floor hard, pain radiating through her limbs. Liam, however, just looked down at her with a twisted grin, laughing like she was nothing more than a ridiculous joke. “You’d better learn fast,” he sneered. “And leave your hand broken for a few days—feel the pain properly.” “Alright.” Her voice was quiet, submissive. But Liam wasn’t listening. Without another glance, he turned and walked away. As she watched his retreating figure, Yelena felt a deep sense of dread rise in her throat. Liam wasn’t human. He was something far worse. Her future with him would be nothing short of hell.