Wanda's heart raced when Stefan suddenly snapped at her. She tried to stay calm and not show any worry."No, Stefan. I've never tried to trick you. I'm honest with you. Don't you know that by now?" Wanda said firmly.Stefan took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "Maybe I was wrong to suspect you. You've always been good to me. It's just been a tough time at work. I'll get over it," he said, rubbing his forehead and heading upstairs.Wanda was still concerned and decided to investigate further. What she found was shocking.Millie wasn't just Pierce's lover—she was actually Mrs. Atkinson now. Even more surprising, Pierce knew all about Millie's past problems with the cargo ship and still married her.Stefan thought Millie was still hung up on him, but seeing her move on so quickly and marry someone else was too much for him to handle."Why does she get to marry into a rich family after everything that happened, while I'm still stuck trying to get Stefan? It's not fair!" Wanda tho
Wanda cried out, "I didn't mean anything by it. I just mentioned it casually. I never said it was you. Why did you slap me?"Everyone in the room stared at Millie in surprise.Millie's face went pale. Her reaction seemed even more shocking now that Wanda's comment had revealed the truth.She didn't want to look at the others, especially Bill, because she was afraid of his reaction."I'm sorry… I didn't mean to. I made a mistake. I didn't want to hurt you. I just reacted when you slapped me…"Wanda cried like she was a child being scolded.Millie was so angry that she almost slapped Wanda again, but an elderly person stepped in."I can confirm that Wanda didn't mention you. I was the one who brought it up first. It was your slap that made the truth come out."Honestly, I used to feel sorry for you, but now, seeing how you're acting, it's clear you're not just a victim. You're being unreasonable."The elderly's words made Millie look bad instead of helping her."You shouldn't b
"I'll go check on it," Pierce said with a serious look and went straight to the study.Even if Bill wanted a divorce, Pierce wasn't ready to give up on Millie.Just as Pierce was about to go, the study door opened. Millie felt a rush of nervousness and looked at Bill anxiously."I'm going to make those old ladies stop spreading rumors," Bill said angrily. "How can they gossip like that? Don't they have a family of their own?"Our Millie is the real victim here, and they're just making things worse! It's awful."Millie's mind was spinning. Hearing Billy say, "Our Millie," she realized he still cared about her.Her eyes filled with tears, and she tried hard not to cry.Seeing her tears made Bill even more upset."Don't cry, I'll make sure you get justice," he said kindly."Grandpa, they're not completely wrong. I'm not good enough anymore, and I don't belong in the Atkinson family. If this gets out, people will judge the family," Millie said sadly.She knew she hadn't done anyt
Millie had managed to keep her family together despite all the difficulties. Even though people criticized her, she held her head high and refused to give up."I will protect you," Pierce promised firmly.He was furious with Stefan for neglecting Millie just to celebrate Wanda's birthday. Pierce wanted to make things right for Millie.Within half an hour, things started to change at the nursing home. The elderly people who had been gossiping were taken away by their families. Their relatives came to apologize, promising to make sure such gossip wouldn't happen again.Millie was touched."You don't need to do this. The news has already spread. There's no hiding it now.""Even if the whole world is talking, I want to silence their chatter," Pierce said quietly but seriously.He thought to himself that as the president of Atkinson Group, he should be able to protect his family just as he had protected many others in the past."Thank you," Millie said with a warm feeling inside. He
Millie didn't hesitate when she heard Agnes' words. She raised her hand and slapped Wanda across the face.Wanda tried to fight back, but Agnes was prepared and had someone hold her down tightly."She can't seem to think straight. Just beat some sense into her!" Agnes said sternly. She came from a family of martial artists, and her decisiveness and fierce spirit were evident.Millie slapped Wanda again. "Don't you know why it happened? Was your birthday so important that you didn't care about my well-being? You must have been so pleased with yourself back then, right?"I haven't owed you anything these past three years. You knew he was my boyfriend, but you seduced him anyway! People like you will eventually pay the price. And if karma doesn't get you, I will!"Millie continued slapping Wanda until her hand was red and numb from the pain. Wanda's mouth bled, her hair was disheveled, and she was too weak to cry out anymore.On the other side, Pierce had Stefan pinned down, leaving
"Mrs. Leach Senior, I would have been willing to trade my life for Stefan's if I were there that day," Wanda said pitifully."I know how much you love him, so just sign this," Agnes responded, unimpressed by Wanda's hypocrisy. She had seen and experienced too much in her life. Wanda's little tricks didn't stand a chance."If you don't sign, it proves that you love the Leach family's wealth, not Stefan himself!"Wanda glanced at Stefan, who stood silently, frowning. If she didn't sign, Stefan would surely begin to doubt her. But if she did sign, and things didn't work out between them in the future, she'd walk away with nothing."Wanda, if this is the only way Grandma will give her blessing, then sign it. I love you, and I always will. Time will prove that I'll never let you down," Stefan reassured her."Of course, after you marry Stefan, I won't let you down either. You'll have a monthly allowance of fifty thousand dollars, deducted from a trust fund. It can't be withdrawn as cash
Agnes had met countless people after living for so long and could easily see through the thoughts of the younger generation at a glance. But she couldn't quite read the young man in front of her.Pierce was reserved and calm, with an air of darkness about him. He was proud and aloof, not someone to be trifled with. Despite having been a police officer, which should have given him a sense of righteousness, Pierce carried an ambiguous presence, straddling the line between good and evil.She wanted to know if Pierce truly liked Millie."Mrs. Leach Senior, why are you asking this?" Pierce responded."I had hoped that Millie and I could become family, but that's not going to happen now. The Leach family has wronged her, but I care about her deeply. I want to know if she's found a good person.""I'm her husband, and I will be loyal to her as long as we're married. I'll do everything in my power to treat her well, to protect and care for her.""What if you get divorced?""Then I won't
Seeing that Millie was hesitating, Agnes was about to kneel to beg her. She was truly desperate. Stefan was all she had left after losing Gracie years ago. She couldn't bear to see Stefan fall into ruin.Agnes started to lower herself to the ground in the bustling airport.Millie quickly stopped her, overwhelmed by the gesture. "I promise. If it comes to that, I'll help Stefan through it.""Good child, you're such a good child," Agnes said with tears streaming down her face. "That foolish boy, if only he had half your sense."After an emotional farewell, Millie left the airport, feeling a sense of melancholy. She took a cab back and heard on the radio that the Leach Group had cut off all ties with the Atkinson Group, officially ending their cooperation. The news sent shockwaves through the city, as the two most powerful families in Arbelton were now at odds, forcing others to choose sides.Both families would suffer significant losses, but Stefan didn't seem to care. Millie felt a
Millie swiftly took some photos and handed the phone back to the guy."The photos you took look great, miss," one of them couldn't help but praise."Thanks for the compliment," Millie said with a smile.That person was so mesmerized that they stood there in a daze, unsure of what to do. Even when Millie had already walked away, he still hadn't snapped out of it."What's wrong? Do you like her?"Nathaniel Yates finally came to his senses. "N-No. Cut the nonsense. I just appreciate her photography skills."Meanwhile, Millie had gone over to sit by the water and noticed some fish in the lake. It reminded her of the last time she went fishing with Piercy. She was so lost in thought and didn't even notice that Nathaniel was secretly taking a photo of her from behind.He was using an instant camera, so the photo developed quickly.As Nathaniel stepped forward, Millie suddenly heard the noise behind her. She immediately turned around and saw an unfamiliar man, which startled her.
Millie quietly left the room so that Pierce could bid his gun a proper farewell. Then, she went downstairs for breakfast. However, breakfast felt tasteless.Pierce went downstairs after half an hour.Though he didn't have work that day, he dressed in formal attire to make the handover look more proper.The gun was wrapped in a paper bag. He casually set it aside as if nothing was wrong and began eating breakfast."It tastes delicious, you should try some," he casually uttered, serving Millie some food.Millie saw through Pierce's act but chose not to say anything.After that, Pierce remained silent the entire way to the CBP. The atmosphere in the car was heavy.Soon, they arrived at the police station, and Jason came out."Pierce…" Jason whispered, his voice slightly choked. He knew what it meant for Pierce to return the gun this time.Pierce looked at Jason's uniform and couldn't help but give him a firm pat on the shoulder. "Do your best. I have high hopes for you."Jas
Millie had once loved Stefan wholeheartedly, leaving herself no way out. But now, her love for Pierce was only six or seven on a scale of ten. She kept reminding herself that she shouldn't give anyone the chance to hurt her deeply again.Millie had even planned her retreat. If they broke up, she would be the one to walk away the most effortlessly.Once bitten, twice shy.Millie was well aware of her problems. Both she and Pierce had their fair share of flaws, and nobody was perfect. That was human nature."Pierce, you're way too extreme," Millie said."I know," Pierce answered.The most terrifying part was that he knew his flaws too well, yet he had no desire or intention to change.Pierce had suffered for his whole life. As an illegitimate child of the Atkinson family, he'd lost his mother at birth, and his father never loved him. The only place he ever felt a sense of belonging was with his grandfather. He was inherently a cold and unfeeling person, and the first time he bec
The call was quickly answered."Where are you?" Millie asked."I'm still on a business trip," Pierce replied."Then turn on the video. I want to see your face."There was a brief silence on the other end of the call. Millie knew Pierce was lying. "Are you still not willing to tell me the truth? Jason came to the house, asking to take back your gun. What's going on? What happened in the days you were away?""I'll tell you when I get back home." Pierce's voice was a bit muffled.He then hung up the call and removed the bandage from the corner of his eye.The wound was right beside his eyebrow. Since he had dark eyebrows, the scar shouldn't be that noticeable. He could only cling on to this wishful thinking.With that, Pierce returned to the villa.Millie hadn't seen him for days. She felt that he had lost a lot of weight and looked even more exhausted after the trip."How did you get injured again?" she asked.Pierce initially thought it would take her a long time to notic
Jacob eventually calmed down and said, "Do you still insist on doing this when you know it doesn't exactly benefit us?"Pierce replied, "I wouldn't dare to deceive you, neither do I dare to contact you in private. But this doesn't affect our operations, which was why I dared to do so. I want to find someone, but I can't no matter how hard I've tried, so I had no choice but to ask for their favor.""You… Are you still doing it even though we won't get anything good out of this?" Jacob asked.Pierce fell silent and clenched his fists. "Yes. I will resolve whatever problems I've caused. After that, I'll kill them in my own way."Jacob threw his cup at Pierce upon hearing this.With Pierce's skill, he could have dodged it. However, he chose to stand straight.The cup hit him right at the corner of his eye, causing him to bleed."You…" Jacob angrily stood up. "W-Why didn't you dodge?" he asked in a shaky voice."I did something wrong. It's right for you to punish me," Pierce simply
Gideon really admired Pierce's calm and composed demeanor."What's the matter?" he asked."I need you to help me find a lady who went missing. I have to know if she's still alive or not," Pierce answered. "I need her, dead or alive. I can't do this on my own, but with your help, it'll be much easier."He had used every legal method he could think of. But desperate times called for desperate measures, and there was only one option left—to enter the underworld."You're making such a big scene just to look for this one person? What? Is she like your lover or something?" Gideon asked."She's an enemy, the kind that I want dead more than anything."The way Pierce paused after each word made him sound eerily intimidating."Is she also like us, from the underworld?""No, she's just a nobody."Gideon felt chills running down his spine. Having dealt with Pierce for this long, he thought he knew his true nature well enough—a righteous police officer who always played by the book. But ri
Pierce felt like he was drowning, but if someone were to pull him out of the water right now, he would survive.Sometimes, Millie couldn't imagine what would happen if she left Pierce one day because of her disappointment in him. Would he still be able to move on?Pierce survived by clinging onto his sheer will. At first, it was the fixation on avenging his sister's death. But now, it was all because of Millie."What are you going to do now?" she asked."I can't tell you just yet, but I promise it won't take longer than three months."Since Pierce wasn't planning to elaborate, Millie didn't bother to keep on asking either.For the past few days, Millie had been carefully taking care of the wound on Pierce's neck. Even though a small patch of new pink flesh had grown over his wound, it still looked pretty hideous. Fortunately, Pierce always wore suits with collars that were high enough to cover his neck. Millie would always start tearing up whenever she saw his scar.She said,
Pierce was aghast. Mills! His poor Mills!Everyone around Pierce had accused him of committing a crime, but he didn't do it. He had been trying so hard to find out the truth, but in the end, he still got nothing.Did he really betray Millie? Did he really taint himself by sleeping with Sarah?Even if he truly believed that Piercy didn't do anything, he still couldn't find any evidence to prove it.Sarah and Piercy were nowhere to be found either.How was he supposed to prove his innocence? He felt like a trapped beast that couldn't find its way out.Just then, Millie made a subtle twitch. It startled Pierce, and he immediately withdrew his arm around her and pretended to remain unconscious.Millie didn't sleep well at all. The first thing she did after waking up was to check on Pierce. The monitor showed that Pierce's heart was racing.She then brought out a warm towel and gently wiped his face.She began, "Your hair has grown so much longer, but you didn't even properly
Millie rushed forward and saw the disconcerting look in Pierce's eyes.Pierce hadn't rested for two days, so his nerves were stretched to their absolute limit. His eyes were completely bloodshot too.The moment he saw Millie, he grabbed her like he was a drowning man who finally got his hands on a life buoy. His large hands clamped down on her arm with such force that it felt like he was going to crush her bones.Pierce howled, "Tell him to come out, please! He listens to you. Ask him to come out, Millie. I don't care if he takes over this body. I just need him to tell me the truth! Did I betray you? Did I mess around with another woman? I'm begging you…""Pierce, calm down please." Millie tried to soothe him."How can I calm down? I want to be with you, but if I really did betray you, then at least let me die knowing the truth! What am I supposed to do now? How long does he plan to torture me?"Pierce shoved Millie aside, frantically searching around the room. He even lunged at