Millie refused Pierce immediately.Pierce pressed his lips together and said nothing further. After spending some time with her, he left to attend to matters at Atkinson Group.Millie initially found the pace of time in the detention cell hard to bear. But with the items Pierce had sent her, it became easier for her to pass the time.As Pierce was worried that the bed was too hard, he had even arranged for an extra mattress and a couch to be sent to her cell.Millie looked around the room filled with items and fell into deep thought.She called over a female officer, whose name was Karen Oakley. "These things aren't allowed here. Why did you let him send them in?""It was the Commissioner's decision. You're listed as Officer Atkinson's family member, so we can offer some accommodations as we see fit. He really cares about you!" The officer's eyes sparkled as she spoke.After all, who wouldn't admire someone as outstanding as Pierce?"If that's the case, please remove all these.
The next morning, Millie woke up to find that Pierce had already left. The warmth on the bed lingered, suggesting he hadn't been gone for long.Karen arrived with breakfast, smiling at Millie in a way that made her scalp tingle.With narrowed eyes, Millie asked, "Why… Why are you smiling like that?""Last night, you and Officer Atkinson…""Don't overthink it! Nothing happened between us!""Huh? Nothing happened last night? We even told him we turned off the surveillance cameras so he wouldn't have to worry!" Karen exclaimed."What? You went that far?" Millie was stunned."That's not the point. Are you serious that nothing happened? Is Officer Atkinson… still capable in that department?" Karen was now criticizing Pierce with her hands on her hips. In fact, she looked genuinely annoyed.Millie was exasperated and hurriedly pushed her out of the cell."By the way, you'll be meeting with the victim later," Karen said before leaving.Millie had long known that she would eventual
Celia exclaimed, "She had a grudge against Mrs. Leach. So, she pushed her, a pregnant woman over five months along, to the ground. Then, she asked me to bear false witness! When I refused, she sent someone to kill me. "Just now, while I was on my way to have my statement recorded in the police station, a car tried to run me over. Thankfully, I was lucky and managed to survive. Officers, you have to protect me! Millie wants to kill me. She's trying to kill me!""Miss, please come inside," urged a police officer."No… Don't touch me! You're working with Millie. You're trying to kill me too!" Celia continued screaming hysterically outside the station.Her incessant screaming drew a massive crowd. People surrounded the entrance, blocking it completely. Some even recorded videos and uploaded them online.In no time, Millie was labeled as the culprit behind the child's death. Her name became synonymous with infamy, and the public deemed her guilty and deserving of death. There were wid
Night fell over the hospital.In recent days, Stefan canceled all his engagements and stayed by Wanda's side. He never left her side for even a moment. Their relationship grew closer during this time, which gave Wanda a sense of comfort.After enduring so much pain, she had finally gained Stefan's affection and deepened his hatred for Millie. To her, that was enough.Just then, Stefan's secretary entered the room and whispered something into his ear. His voice was low, so Wanda couldn't hear it."What's wrong?" She noticed the change in Stefan's expression and felt a pang of worry."It's nothing. I need to handle an issue at the company. I'll come back to see you later," Stefan replied."Go ahead. Come back to me when you're done," Wanda said softly and understandingly. Stefan tucked her in and smoothed her hair gently."Wanda…" His voice faltered for a moment. "Have you ever done anything to betray me?"Wanda froze."Have you ever schemed anything against me?" he asked agai
Stefan's phone rang as a call from Pierce came in."What do you want to say now? You must have heard the call records by now," Stefan said impatiently."Wanda was clearly hinting at something through the call. With the huge commotion she caused at the studio, Celia would naturally know how to respond accordingly. Of course, they wouldn't say much over the phone to leave any evidence," Pierce explained."You're too biased toward Millie. You don't even know her or her true character! You're blind to everything she does," Stefan retorted.Pierce continued, "Six months ago, Celia's family encountered financial troubles. Her brother got married, and her mother fell seriously ill. They urgently needed money. This financial gap was filled when her father received a workplace injury settlement."The compensation was worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Coincidentally, the person running that company happened to meet Wanda at a banquet in Arbelton."Stefan snorted and countered, "So, d
Millie was brought into the interrogation room once again."Do you remember a man named Alex Thorne?" Karen showed her a photo. Millie recognized him immediately—he was the man who had nearly assaulted her. "Yes, I remember him.""Can you recount what happened that night?"Millie described the events in detail.Karen nodded and said, "It seems what Celia said is true. Were you aware that Celia and Wanda had been in touch?""I didn't know before, but now it's not hard to guess.""So, you had no idea at the time?""No."Karen nodded, seemingly piecing things together. Only one witness was left to question—Wanda.And so, Wanda was summoned for questioning."Mrs. Leach, do you still insist that Ms. Jordan pushed you?" Karen asked."Yes, she pushed me!" Wanda gritted her teeth, confirming it repeatedly."Mrs. Leach, defamation and false accusations are crimes. Every word you say must be truthful and accountable," Karen said sternly, her gaze sharp.Wanda's heart skipped a bea
As soon as Stefan left, Wanda opened her eyes and began analyzing the entire situation.Celia had proven unreliable. What should have been the perfect opportunity to destroy Millie fell apart when she turned against Wanda.Narrowing her eyes, Wanda thought she should have anticipated this. If she could bribe Celia, someone else could do the same too. Pierce likely offered her even more.Fortunately, she kept all of her interactions with Celia neutral, so there was no evidence of wrongdoing.Wanda promised to give the company that compensated Celia's father some form of monetary reimbursement or a lucrative business deal within a year. For now, there was no visible connection between that company and Wanda.Celia had been her top priority when she targeted Millie's studio and poached all her employees.Right away, Celia was enticed by the high salary. But instead of having Celia come over to work under her directly, Wanda instructed her to stay at Millie's studio to monitor her.
"Millie…" Pierce murmured. He suppressed the fervor in his eyes, restraining the impulse to pull her into his arms. He approached her cautiously.Millie looked at him, feeling a complicated mix of emotions. She wanted to smile at him, but for some reason, her vision went dark. Her body went limp as she collapsed.In that instant, Pierce felt his heart skip a beat. Dropping the umbrella, he caught her with both hands.He rushed her to the hospital, where the doctors diagnosed her with mild nervous exhaustion. It was nothing serious. In fact, it was understandable since she had spent days in such a stifling environment.Millie had also contracted a viral infection and ran a fever for two days, so she remained hospitalized. Pierce stayed by her side without leaving, all while continuing his investigation into the stillbirth. Finally, he made some progress. He focused intently on the screen before him.The footage showed Millie bumping into someone at the hospital entrance, scatteri
Millie gently closed the box.Suddenly, a single tear slipped down, landing silently on the surface. Only then did Millie realize that she had been crying. She wasn't sure if she was mourning the love she once had or if her tears were for something else entirely.No wonder Pierce had told her to look at it in private. He didn't want to see her shedding tears for another man."It's all in the past. Why send this now?" Millie murmured.She wiped away her tears and picked up her phone. "Tobias, do me a favor. Auction something for me. Donate every last cent of the proceeds to charity. Not a single penny should be kept."She then ended the call and looked at the small box again. At least this way, it would be put to good use…Afterward, Millie headed to the study to check on Pierce. He watched her closely, his deep eyes unreadable.Millie pretended not to notice and said, "You keep working. I'm just going to sketch for a while."Pierce pressed his lips together as if he wante
Millie followed Pierce back home. As she stepped into the familiar space that belonged to just the two of them, her heart felt heavy with emotions.It had been two months since she had last been here, yet everything remained unchanged. Even the wardrobe had been stocked with new seasonal outfits.In those two months, Millie had lost a lot of weight. So, Pierce instructed the kitchen to prepare nourishing meals for her. He was determined to bring her back to full health.Pierce remained bedridden for another half month before he could finally use a cane to walk around a bit. His right leg was still severely injured, and every step sent searing pain through his body, making his face go pale and his forehead damp with cold sweat.Millie couldn't bear to watch him suffer and urged him to rest. But Pierce was stubborn and walked until his legs trembled, and he could no longer stand. Only then would he sit down."Does it hurt?" Millie worriedly asked."It doesn't. I just need to pr
With that, Millie turned around and left without hesitation. But just as she was about to step out of the room, Stefan's voice called out behind her once more, "Millie, I owe you an apology for everything. I never really said it before. It's late… but at least I'm finally saying it. "Millie, I'm sorry. I was the one in the wrong." Stefan's voice was soft, weakened by his injuries. It sounded as though those few words had drained all the strength from his body.Millie's body stiffened, and her hands were tightly clenched into fists at her sides.Stefan was apologizing at long last.Millie wanted to turn around to see if he was truly sincere or if this was just another one of his manipulations. However, she held herself back. Unimportant people didn't deserve even a second glance.Millie didn't say anything. She didn't say whether she would or would not forgive him. She just walked away.Stefan's face turned even paler. He knew that after everything he had done, he would never
Millie didn't want to see Pierce struggling alone, bottling up all his pain like a wounded lion licking its wounds in solitude.Upon hearing her words, Pierce simply tightened his embrace around her. "Mills… I'm scared…""I know. I understand," Millie whispered, gently patting his back."I'm afraid I won't be able to lift you anymore, and I'm afraid I won't be able to run or jump. I'm scared I won't be able to fight the bad guys and protect you anymore." Pierce's voice was soft and barely above a whisper. His sorrow was almost imperceptible, but it could be because he still hadn't fully released his emotions.Millie started, "You still have me. If you can't carry me, then don't. If you can't run fast or jump high, then I'll slow down and walk beside you. I can be your crutch and your support for a lifetime, okay?"And listen, Pierce, you may not be able to fight on the front lines anymore, but you're still there in spirit. We can move to the back lines to provide funding and strat
Pierce didn't tell Millie everything—such as the fact that Stefan had initially wanted to kill him. He spared Stefan some dignity, not wanting Millie to hate him forever.Millie stayed in the hospital to care for Pierce for two days when there was finally a change in Stefan's condition.Before he even regained consciousness, he was already calling her name. Robin anxiously rushed in to find Millie, and she hurried over."The patient's wound has gotten infected, leading to complications. We need to start emergency treatment immediately!""How could this have happened? Wasn't he supposed to wake up?" Robin was beside himself with worry."Millie… Millie…" Even in his fevered delirium, Stefan kept murmuring her name.Millie went over to him. His hand, which had been weakly grasping at the air, finally caught hold of something—her fingers. He clung to her tightly."I'm here, Stefan," she softly uttered.It was as if her words held some kind of magic, as Stefan immediately calmed d
Every word Pierce spoke was firm and impactful. Each word hammered on Stefan's heart mercilessly.Pierce owned up to his mistakes. But what about him? Could he do the same?All this while, he had been shifting the blame to everyone else. He blamed Pierce for stealing Millie away. Then, he blamed Millie for not forgiving him. He even blamed Wanda for seducing him, and the list went on…He had blamed so many people, holding onto their faults while conveniently brushing aside his own. When it came to himself, he always found a way to justify his actions. He completely ignored that he was the true cause of everything.Stefan's grip on Pierce's collar loosened. He took a few steps back in a daze and stumbled on his own feet, causing him to nearly fall to the ground."Those criminals… They're planning to strike again. I agreed to help them," Stefan said."Why are you telling me this?" Pierce responded."She said… She said that if you died, she wouldn't live either." Stefan's voice was
Millie gave Pierce a profound look that contained a myriad of emotions. Pierce could have been selfish and not tell her any of Stefan's good deeds. He could've even stopped her from visiting Stefan. Yet, he didn't do that.After giving Pierce one heavy nod, Millie went over to the adjacent hospital room.Stefan was seriously injured too. His health wasn't as good as Pierce's to begin with, so he still hadn't woken up yet.Robin was in his room, sitting beside him. He kept silently wiping away tears at one side."This is my only nephew. If anything were to happen to him, how would I face his late parents?" Robin mournfully said."Does Grandma know about this?" Millie inquired."I don't have the heart to tell Mom about this. She's old and frail. I don't want her to have a breakdown," Robin replied."I'll keep him company, Robin," Millie said.Robin hesitated for a moment and ultimately nodded. He believed that Stefan would want to see Millie upon waking up. So, Millie staye
"Don't move around. You're still very weak. The doctor said to give you some oatmeal porridge when you wake up. Your digestive system is still quite weak, so you need to eat something that goes down easily."A familiar voice sounded in Millie's ears."G-Grandpa? Why are you here? Where's Pierce? Pierce? Pierce…" After a moment of silence, Millie mumbled, "I forgot… Pierce is dead. Not even his body remains.""What nonsense are you speaking, child? Isn't he lying right beside you?" Bill interjected.Millie visibly froze for a second. Then, she whipped her head around to look. As Bill had said, Pierce was indeed right beside her. Layers of gauze were wrapped around his body, and he seemed to be heavily injured. However, his vital signs were steady, and his heartbeat was rhythmic—he was no longer in a critical condition."Pierce…" Millie tumbled out of bed without a care for the pain in her limbs.Bill quickly went over to support her and combined their beds together."H-How is t
Millie broke down emotionally. She was done with Stefan's constant self-righteous justification. He always blamed everyone else and deemed himself free of any wrongdoing. He acted as if the whole world had wronged him, while he had never wronged anyone.He painted himself as the pitiful and innocent victim, twisting logic to justify everything he did.Millie was done acting her part. She would let things play out however they should. There was no longer anything tying her to this world. If anything happened to Pierce, she wouldn't live either. Just the thought of being imprisoned by Stefan for three years was worse than death.And so, she locked herself in her room and refused to come out. Every day, the housekeepers delivered her meals. She had no appetite but still ate well.Millie also no longer cared whether Stefan had drugged her food or not. If she turned into a mindless lunatic, maybe that would be better than this painful clarity.…Days passed one after another.One