Nina was stunned. She held out her hand, showing the string of beads she always wore. "What did you say? This was your mother's keepsake?""Yes," Micah said, staring at her wrist."Impossible," Nina protested. "How can you be sure it's your mother's? It's just a string of beads. There could be many like it.""This is the only one," Micah said firmly.Nina stared at him in shock."You don't understand emerald, do you?" Micah began. "This region is known for emerald. No two pieces are alike in the world. Your beads are unique, which is why I'm questioning your identity. Are you really just Nina?"Nina clenched her fists and took off the beads, placing them on the table. "These weren't originally mine. They were given to me by a friend. He gave them to me..."Wilfred had given her the beads. He hadn't explained why, which was odd. These beads were precious to him. She remembered the words he had said when he gave them to her. "For your safety." That was all.Looking at Micah, she
Nash's eyes darkened. Last night, his condition flared up, so he couldn't be with her. He apologized, "I'm sorry.""I don't want an apology," Nina said, letting go of him.Nash pulled her back, "We were both angry last night. I was afraid we'd fight, so I waited for you to calm down before coming to you."Nina, in his arms, gazed into his eyes. He couldn’t hide the truth in his eyes. Relationships would need time to adjust and he didn’t fully understand what was on her mind.Nina spoke, "Next time I'm mad, you need to comfort me. It doesn’t matter if it works right away. You need to try. When I ask you to comfort me, it doesn't mean I'll instantly forgive you. But if you don't even try, it shows you don't care about me. Over time, I'll start to think you don't love me."Nash was taken aback, "Is that how it is?"Nina sat down, "You didn’t know? Women may not say it, but they have a lot on their minds.""Lesson learned," Nash replied. "I don’t have much experience. If I do someth
"Missing? How could Arin suddenly go missing?" Nina's heart tightened with worry.Sean sobbed, "I don't know. I don't know. She said she was going into the mountains to hunt wild boar. She never came back. She's missing...""What on earth was she thinking, going to hunt wild boar?""She wanted to cook. Arin said there wasn't enough meat at home and she wanted to bring back a wild boar and cook something nice for you. Miss Nina, what should we do? Where can we find my sister?" Sean's tears and snot mingled as he cried.Nina, trying to stay calm, found the situation strange. She asked, "Where are your parents?""Dad and Mom went into the mountains to look for her, and they haven't come back yet.""Then we should go look too." Nina remembered something, "Right, we need more people. Let's get help.""Miss Nina," Sean continued to cry, "I just saw Captain York take some people out. Is it too late?"Nina went outside to check and found that more than half of the village's vehicles we
Her expression hardened. Instead of retreating, she stepped forward boldly, stopping a few paces ahead, and said coldly, "Come out, I know you're nearby!""Mmph... mmph..." A muffled sound came from behind a large tree.Arin emerged, her hands bound, her face pale, struggling desperately with tears still in her eyes. Behind her was a man who sneered at Nina, "I've been waiting for you. If you don't want her to die, come here quietly and don't make a sound."Nina laughed, "You've gone to great lengths to catch me. If you'd just told me you wanted me, I would've come without all this trouble.""In the village, it wasn't easy to catch you. We had to use some tricks," Wes sneered.The previous assassination attempt by Wes had failed. If they had gone into the village, they would have been swarmed and killed before they even found Nina. He had timed Captain Nash's departure perfectly and knew that Arin and Nina were close. This allowed him to capture Nina successfully.Nina looked a
Wes's expression changed. "How do you know? Who told you?"Nina squinted, pretending to know more than she did. "I know a lot. Otherwise, why would the person behind you want to kill me?"Wes scoffed, then realized something. "It was Mr. Micah who told you, wasn't it? You really have a way of deceiving him."His hostility towards Nina increased."But why don't you talk about how ruthless your young lady is?" Nina retorted."Don't you dare speak ill of her!" Wes pressed the knife against Nina's neck, his voice menacing. "You're about to die, and you still have so much to say. Do you think I won't kill you?"Nina's breath caught, and she dared not move.Following Wes out of the forest, she noted how familiar he seemed with the terrain."You're very familiar with this place," she remarked. "You must have walked through here many times."Wes sneered. "I grew up in these mountains. This forest is nothing. I know every inch of it.""How much longer do we have to walk?" Nina asked.
Upon hearing that, Ivy's expression changed dramatically. "What nonsense are you spouting now?"She looked around at her followers, her panic turning into rage. "Someone, gag her! Shut her up!" Then, an even more malicious thought struck her. "No, cut out her tongue. I want her to never speak again."Her threats and frantic behavior revealed her insecurities. The more she tried to silence Nina, the more evident her guilt became. If it weren't for the things Micah had told Nina, she wouldn't have been able to provoke such a reaction.Nina let out a cold laugh.Ivy looked at her with satisfaction. "What? Are you scared? Beg me for mercy, and maybe I'll consider leaving you in one piece!"Nina retorted, "You won't answer me directly and now you want to silence me. Feeling guilty, aren't you? Even if you kill me, a lie won't become the truth.""Shut up! Shut up!" Ivy had hoped to see Nina grovel. Faced with death, she should be afraid like everyone else who cowered under Ivy's po
"When? That depends on how many more days Miss Ivy decides to let you live," Wes said coldly. "You'd better watch yourself!"With that, they left. Nina was not locked up and she could walk freely within the place. A few Yaren women walked past her. She greeted them, but they did not respond, walking silently with their heads down. In today's world, they were not much different from being servants in a historical drama. Nina couldn't figure out what this place was for.She went to check where they had left and saw that the entire compound was locked, with high-voltage wires on top. There was no way to get out. She could only move around within the compound, which was quite large. It took her about twenty minutes to walk around the perimeter, all lined with high-voltage wires.Crash—Nina heard the sound of something breaking, followed by the sound of a whip."Ah—don’t hit me! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to break the bowl. Please, Mrs. Quintana, forgive me!""Forgive you? How many t
Arin ran back, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw her. "Arin, where did you go? We were worried sick.""Where's Captain York? I need to find him," Arin said, her eyes red with worry."Captain hasn't come back yet. Where's Nina? She went to find you, but you're alone.""Nina was taken! We need to find Captain. He's the only one who can save her," Arin said, pacing frantically. "Where is he? I need to tell him quickly.""Nina sent someone to get him when you disappeared. He should be back soon."As soon as Arin heard the sound of a car, she knew Nash had returned. She rushed out to meet him, seeing his serious expression as he got out of the car."Captain, Nina's been taken! You need to save her!"Nash's expression darkened. "Who took her?""I don't know," Arin cried. "I didn't ask enough questions. They were after Nina. She's in danger. We need to save her..."Arin's clues were sparse, but Nash had a pretty good idea who might be involved. There were only a fe
But instead of feeling touched, Vera’s first reaction was nausea. A wave of discomfort surged up from her stomach, and Vera’s face paled. She bolted for the bathroom. Caleb followed quickly. “Are you feeling sick?” “I don’t think so. I’ve been eating normally—nothing too heavy or weird lately.” Vera clutched her stomach, just as confused as he was. Then, a possibility flashed through her mind. Caleb clearly had the same thought. Without a word, he turned and walked into their bedroom, returning moments later with a pregnancy test. Vera looked at him, stunned. “When did you buy that?” He responded matter-of-factly, “Better safe than sorry.” Vera was momentarily speechless. Five minutes later, she stepped out of the bathroom, her hand instinctively resting on her stomach, her expression a mix of shock and disbelief. It was positive. They had only been married for three months. How did this happen so fast?Caleb, on the other hand, remained composed—at le
Of course, Vera wasn’t about to dump all her responsibilities on her assistant. That would be exploitation. She called her assistant into her office. “You’re twenty-five this year, right?” Her assistant blinked, confused. Wasn’t her age common knowledge? Why was Vera suddenly bringing it up? A thought struck her. Was this an arranged marriage situation? Her face immediately filled with silent refusal. “Miss Vera, I’m still young. I’m not thinking about marriage anytime soon.” Vera tapped her pen against the desk. “I’m not telling you to get married.” “Oh.” “I just want to offload some of the smaller daily tasks to you. You don’t have to run every minor document by me.”Her assistant instantly understood. A raise. After confirming she was on board, Vera gave her a salary bump and had her hire a few more assistants to distribute the workload. “If I don’t have time to handle everything, you guys will take care of it. If something’s too complicated, jus
Vera could sense danger the moment the conversation turned in this direction. Her father had never questioned her about married life, and she was lucky enough to avoid nosy relatives. But just because she hadn’t experienced it firsthand didn’t mean she hadn’t seen it happen to others. Without hesitation, she abandoned the half-folded pastry in her hands. “I... uh, need to use the restroom.” Before she could escape, Mrs. Smith caught her wrist. “You and Caleb aren’t getting any younger,” she said matter-of-factly. “You should start thinking about kids—make sure you’re putting in the effort, hmm?” Vera left the kitchen visibly drained. Mrs. Smith was a wonderful mother-in-law, the kind who treated Vera like her own daughter. Despite knowing Vera came from a well-off family, she had still gifted them a house as a wedding present. Of course, Caleb already owned a place, but his mother had insisted. “That’s your house. This is the home I’m giving you as a weddi
That undeniable possessiveness flickered in Caleb’s gaze—subtle yet impossible to ignore. It was the kind of look a powerful man might give his beloved in an old Hollywood film. And right now, the photographer felt like the unlucky bystander who had accidentally stumbled upon an intimate scene. His voice wavered slightly, caught up in his own imagination. “Mr. Smith, lift your eyes toward the camera.” Caleb’s sharp gaze flickered over, intense and commanding. The photographer instinctively pressed the shutter. They continued with several more poses, reviewing the shots as they went. Vera loved them all, but her favorite was still the vintage-inspired one. “How long until we get the final prints?” she asked. “Two to three days at most,” the photographer replied. “I’ll have them shipped directly to you.” Then, after a slight pause, he hesitated before making a request. “I actually have a personal favor to ask—would you both be open to letting us displa
Vera was tempted. They had already taken plenty of wedding photos—several sets at the island, more at the wedding itself. But this wasn’t just any photo studio. It was privately booked and known for being one of the most prestigious studios in the city. Appointments here were nearly impossible to get. The fact that Caleb had managed to secure a session meant he had gone to great lengths to make it happen. If they were just going to take ordinary wedding pictures, it would be a waste of an opportunity. Still, she wasn’t sure what kind of shoot she wanted. The photographer, understanding her hesitation, pulled out a sample album. “You can take a look at our past work. These are some of the styles we’ve done.” Flipping through the pages, Vera saw an array of stunning concepts—each picture more breathtaking than the last. Then, one particular set caught her eye. A Golden Age Hollywood theme.It was classic, nostalgic, and beautifully atmospheric. “Ca
After the wedding, Vera considered taking some time off for a honeymoon. But the thought quickly faded when she realized Caleb had been practically living at the hospital. With a sigh, she dismissed the idea. She was used to it, but to say she wasn’t disappointed would be a lie. Her assistant picked up on it. “Mrs. Smith, don’t you want to go on a honeymoon?” she asked one day. “One of my friends just got married, and she’s been obsessively researching destinations. “She even said a marriage without a honeymoon is already half a failure.” Vera froze mid-page, suddenly losing interest in the documents she had been reviewing. Her assistant hesitated, then offered a suggestion. “Why don’t you go visit Dr. Smith at work?“You seem… distracted. Maybe seeing him will help.” Vera snapped out of her daze, suddenly aware of how preoccupied she had been lately. It was embarrassing to admit, but she had been zoning out far too often—especially after coming hom
Whenever they did this in the past, Caleb always maintained some restraint. But tonight—he didn’t hold back at all. He took her from the bedroom to the bathroom, then back to the bed, his searing kisses trailing every inch of her skin. The next morning, even as she woke up, Vera could still feel the lingering traces of last night’s intoxicating pleasure. As expected, she ended up taking the day off. It wasn’t until two days later that she finally returned to work. *Everyone at the company had already prepared for this. The moment Vera walked into the office, she was greeted with knowing smiles and teasing remarks. “Congratulations, Mrs. Smith!” “Newlywed bliss, huh?” “Three whole days off? Someone had a good time.” It didn’t take a genius to figure out what she had been up to. Obviously, her married life was going exceptionally well—so well that she had completely abandoned work for it. Under the weight of their mischievous stares, Vera barely k
Yelena still hadn’t accepted Hunter, but he wasn’t giving up either and was relentlessly closing in on her. Knowing Yelena’s soft heart, Vera figured it was only a matter of time before she gave in. She let out a sigh. Her friend’s love life wasn’t something she could interfere with. Besides, Caleb had already given her a little inside scoop. “She came to the hospital for a follow-up a few days ago,” he had mentioned casually. “Hunter was the one who brought her.” Vera had clicked her tongue at the news. Yelena always seemed quiet and reserved, but apparently, she was full of surprises.*Time flew by in the blink of an eye.By mid-month, Caleb had rented out an entire vineyard and spent several days transforming it into the perfect wedding venue.When the day arrived, the celebration took place right there.The vineyard was sprawling and elegant, every bit as grand as any luxury hotel—if not better. Even the wine cellar remained untouched, stocked with years-
“Did you plan this from the start?” Vera narrowed her eyes, feeling like she had just walked into a carefully laid trap. “Mm.” Caleb smiled, then leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. Because yes—he had always been planning this. The biggest change in Vera’s life after the island proposal was the ring now sitting on her finger. It wasn’t just any ring. It was custom-made, something Caleb had specially ordered. She only found out by accident when she glanced at his phone one day and saw the purchase record. It had been ordered two months ago. Vera did the math and was stunned. He had been preparing for this long before she even started getting impatient. Her heart swelled with emotion. And as soon as Caleb’s parents heard that their son had finally proposed, they wasted no time pushing them to get the marriage license. *One day, Vera overheard Caleb’s mother lecturing him. “Your dad and I weren’t expecting much from you. With how much ti