Was death the best relief to Pierce? Just like this time, he was determined to risk it all just to take his enemies down with him.It was glaringly obvious how deeply he cared for Millie. But despite the ache in his heart, he still managed to joke about it so casually.This stubborn man. Couldn't he understand that a woman's heart can be easily moved if he showed a little vulnerability? He was so stubborn, especially when it came to his words!…Millie stayed by Pierce's side and looked after him in the military hospital.Pierce was so severely injured that he couldn't even get out of bed for the first few days.Millie saw the festering wound—it was a terrifying and gruesome sight.Back then, she'd retched at the sight. Later on, she noticed that Pierce would secretly change his dressings without her. He always made up excuses to get her out whenever his wound needed to be tended to.Once, Millie had left her phone in the room while she went downstairs to get the medicine.
"Grandpa, what's the deal with Pierce being an illegitimate child?" Millie couldn't help but ask.Bill asked back with a chuckle, "Haven't you asked Pierce about this?""He hasn't brought it up, and it feels awkward for me to ask.""Then why are you asking me?""I want to know.""Pierce should tell you about this himself. It's not the same if you hear it from someone else."Millie felt defeated upon hearing this. She lowered her head and ranted, "Grandpa, don't you know him? He keeps everything bottled up. He's too good at hiding things. He'll just keep everything to himself and try to make peace with it on his own."It's fine if he can really do that, but the truth is he's just exhausting and tormenting himself mentally. Who knows how long it'll take before he comes around and tells me about this." Millie pouted after getting that off her chest. From her expression, her frustration was evident.It had already taken her half a year just to pry open Pierce's mouth and learn ev
The first thing Pierce did when he woke up was to get busy with work. He didn't even stop for a moment to rest. If Millie hadn't given strict orders for him to rest, he would have worked himself into exhaustion.Pierce could argue with anyone, but the moment he was up against Millie, he gave in immediately.Tobias couldn't help but tease, "You're amazing, Millie. I told Pierce to take a break before handling things, but he wouldn't listen. My words don't carry half the weight yours do."Upon hearing this, Pierce shot him a glare. In the past, Tobias would have immediately backed down. But with Millie present now, he seemed emboldened."Millie, you need to give Pierce a good talking to. He's so stubborn! I heard that back in the team, he always volunteered for the most dangerous missions. While others hesitated, he charged in like a madman." Tobias saw his chance to speak and took it."Why are you so talkative today?" Pierce's tone grew colder.Tobias decided that he'd said enough
"Oh, you want to know? That's my secret base. Once you give me a child, I'll take you there," Pierce said with a strange glimmer in his eyes.Millie was caught off guard by the mention of having a child. She felt her ears heat up immediately. What kind of outrageous words were those?"Keep dreaming. I'm not interested in your secret base," Millie quickly retorted. "Rest well. I'm going to the kitchen to check if your meal is ready yet," Millie hastily said and practically fled the room.Pierce watched her retreating figure, lost in thought.…Pierce stayed home for another half a month before he could finally walk on his own. His wound had begun to heal, with fresh pink skin growing over it. The doctor then came to remove the stitches. While the injury was essentially healed, Pierce was advised to avoid strenuous activities and continue recuperating.It was hard to believe that in just over a month, Pierce was almost back to normal. He was energetic and acted as if he hadn'
Millie nodded in confusion, and Pierce kissed her even harder. He then began to remove her clothes as his hand continued moving downward.At first, Millie enjoyed the intimacy, but her body slowly tensed up without her knowing why.Slowly, the fear she'd felt on the ship that day crept back in.She had been insulted, humiliated, and tied up like an animal. Her eyes had been blindfolded, and due to the loss of sight, every touch was amplified.That large hand had roamed all over her skin, using her to ease his loneliness.At the time, she had been Stefan's girlfriend and was forced into being intimate with someone else.The trauma of the event had even made her think about taking her own life.Suddenly, the fear surged to its peak."No!" Millie yelled. She suddenly turned pale, her body breaking out in a cold sweat. Out of nowhere, she found the strength to slap Pierce hard.Her hand throbbed in pain, and her fingers trembled. Her palm was now swollen and red from the force
Pierce was in the middle of explaining something when Millie's other hand gently touched his cheek."Does it hurt? I'm sorry… I didn't mean to be so rough," Millie said.Pierce reached out and gently held her hand. He opened his mouth, wanting to ask her if being with him was exhausting. He knew he was a complicated and contradictory person, and Millie had to overcome her fears to be with him. Was it a torment for her deep down? But Pierce didn't dare to ask. What if voicing it made Millie confront the question and she decided that couldn't stay with him anymore? He couldn't bear the consequences of losing Millie. He'd kept her in his heart for so long—far too long to simply let her go. Millie's heart skipped a beat as she caught the conflicted look in Pierce's eyes.What was he thinking about right now?"Pierce, you can tell me what's on your mind. Don't bottle everything up, okay?" Millie said."Okay."And then, they both fell silent.Millie felt a bit helpless.
Millie hadn't expected Wanda to be here as well. The fact that Wanda and Stefan had reconciled within a month surprised her. Rachel was insistent on Millie staying for dinner and refused to let her leave. So, Millie had no choice but to agree, partly because she was worried about Agnes. She got out of the car, and Rachel hooked her arm around her's, treating her like family. However, the two didn't go inside immediately. Rachel, clearly bursting with things to say, seemed eager to vent."You have no idea how much I can't stand Stefan's wife! She drives me crazy. Do you know why she came over today?""Why?" "She's here to ask me for a secret recipe to help her get pregnant. I wasn't in good health in my younger years, so I sought treatment from an alternative medicine doctor. We were family-planning at the time, and I wanted to make sure I'd have a boy. Lucky for me, it worked, and I had a son. "Wanda, after her miscarriage, is desperate to get pregnant again—and with a
"Weren't you asking for a remedy for getting pregnant? Why is it about improving your health now?" Rachel deliberately asked despite knowing what was going on.Wanda's face briefly flushed and turned pale."I'll go check on Mom. You two have a good chat and talk it out. After all, we're family. You don't have to hold anything back." Rachel excused herself, leaving Millie and Wanda alone in the living room.All the while, Millie remained calm. In contrast, Wanda felt diffident and restless.She began, "Millie, don't you know you should be mindful and avoid close contact with anything or anyone related to Stefan? This is his grandma's house. Why do you keep showing up around here? You claim you have no feelings for him, but look at yourself! You'd do whatever that draws his attention!"You pretend to be magnanimous, but you're in fact, the pettiest among us all! You know you can't take him from me, so you're trying to upset us on purpose, aren't you?"Millie wanted to laugh at su
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