Madeline let Ryan throttle her as he wished as her gaze remained unfazed. “Kill me. I might as well die if I can never see Jeremy again. There’s no difference between the two anyway.”She smiled bitterly. Ryan had already sanded her sharp edges away over the past few days, so she no longer had the strength to fight back. Ryan could not bear to accept such words coming from Madeline at such a time. “Why must you force me, Eveline? Why do you have to force me?” A look so angry it seemed wretched and horrifying overtook Ryan’s handsome’s features. He pressed Madeline against the cold floorboards and pounced on her like an unrestrained tiger, ripping her clothes apart brutally. “F*ck off!” Madeline resisted with all her might. Yet Madeline’s hands were in a deadlock in Ryan’s hold and one of his hands was forcing Madeline’s head to meet his thin lips as he leaned down to kiss her. Madeline turned her head to avoid it but was not completely successful. Ryan’s lips touched h
Ryan stared at Madeline with displeasure for a few seconds before he suddenly yelled for a maid, “Have Doctor Brown get here, quick!” The maid nodded and acknowledged, then frantically looked for Adam who was currently in the underground lab. Upon entering the room, Adam was met with Madeline bleeding from her hands and legs as she sat on the corner of the bed. There was a large patch of blood on the mattress. The sight of it was bone-chilling. “Dress her wounds.” Ryan pressed a hand on his forehead and left the room with an exasperated expression. Adam immediately reached for his medical kit and frowned as he stared at Madeline who was mentally exhausted but also taut. “I told you to stop acting so rashly, didn’t I?” Adam deliberately lowered his voice and glanced at the door from the corners of his eyes. “Why can’t you and your husband just stop being so stubborn?” Madeline’s gaze shifted as she looked at Adam’s indifferent expression. She did not know who this ‘husband’
Unease crept into Jeremy’s heart at the sight of Ryan’s malicious smile through his phone screen.He could tell that whatever Ryan wanted to tell him through the video call was definitely related to Madeline. “What did you do to Linnie, Ryan?” Jeremy found it hard to keep his calm. He questioned fiercely only for the man to reply with a chuckle. Ryan then turned the camera to the floor. “Talk, Ryan!” Jeremy grew frustrated. Ryan watched Jeremy’s reaction in satisfaction. The more distressed Jeremy was, the better he felt. Ryan ignored Jeremy and walked toward the room Madeline stayed in. Then, he pointed the camera at the bloodied mattress. Jeremy felt his heart being torn into pieces at the sight of the large pool of blood-red. The color of his irises seemed to be dyed the same color now.“Do you see this, Jeremy Whitman? Don’t you think the bright red on this mattress looks absolutely stunning?” Ryan provoked Jeremy. “It’s all blood from your beloved woman.” He watche
Jeremy returned to the study table and continued to scan through the surveillance footage, but he found himself unable to focus.His mind kept feeding him images of Madeline being forced to a corner and fighting back against Ryan with all that she had. She would always end up with wounds and be drenched with blood before Ryan would let her go.“Linnie.”Jeremy paced before the French windows with unease as he wore the ground below him down with his maddening frustration.He left the house and stopped his car where the surveillance footage showed Ryan’s last known location.Jeremy was about to survey the area when he suddenly received an anonymous text with a simple sentence: [Rest assured, she’s alright for now.]There was no doubt that the ‘she’ in the text referred to Madeline.Jeremy’s frantic heartbeat slowly settled. Still, he was confused as to who had sent the text. Was it the same person who did emergency aid on him and sent him to the hospital from the warehouse?…
Hearing the voice she had been dreaming about for every moment of every day, Madeline looked up to stare at the phone in Ryan’s hand. Her eyes widened in shock as she tried to look for the source of Jeremy’s voice. However, Ryan had turned the phone and Madeline was met with the back of the phone. ‘Is it you, Jeremy? ‘Is this your voice?’Madeline got up to her feet and walked over to check, but Ryan grabbed her by the wrist before she could make it any further. He pulled her toward him.He turned Madeline around so that her back was against his chest. Then, he grabbed her jaw to force her to stare into the phone screen.Madeline struggled frightfully to escape Ryan’s grasp, but Jeremy’s features suddenly entered her line of vision.“Jeremy…” “Linnie!” Jeremy’s voice echoed clearly into Madeline’s ears. Madeline stared at the frantic and unsettled man. She felt the corners of her eyes beginning to grow hot. She knew why Jeremy seemed moments away from going mad. She tri
Madeline summed up all her strength to avoid it, but she still could not as she had not eaten anything for an entire day. Furthermore, she sustained all sorts of torture from Ryan. “F*ck off!”Madeline roared, but Ryan was gripping the back of her head to prevent her from running away. Ryan got away with planting his lips on Madeline’s cheek in the end.The act pierced a thousand arrows through Jeremy’s heart as it broke.Strands of Madeline’s short hair ended up covering her face amidst her struggle, yet it did not stop Jeremy from seeing that his beloved was crying.“It hurts, doesn’t it, Jeremy? If you don’t want Eveline to suffer anymore, then transfer all of Whitman Corporation’s stocks to my name and publicly announce that Whitman Corporation has gone bankrupt.”Ryan’s eyes were filled with aggressiveness as he demanded.Madeline’s wet and tear-stricken face snapped up, her gaze looking firm. “Don’t listen to him, Jeremy! He won’t let me go even if you fulfill all of his
Jeremy felt his body grow cold at Madeline’s words.He watched through the swaying camera as Madeline harshly pressed the sharp end of the clip against her wrist.The clip was hardly a lethal weapon, but Madeline was using all her strength.A red line quickly marred her left wrist as bright red began to trickle out of the wound frightfully.“Linnie!” Jeremy yelled heart-wrenchingly as the pain of having his skin peeled alive spread to every inch of his body. He knew that Madeline must have been tortured to the point of hopelessness or she would never do such a thing. Ryan was taken aback by Madeline’s actions. He stared dazedly at Madeline as the woman faltered. His heart ached, but at the same time, anger bled into his eyes. “Why? Am I so incomparable to Jeremy?” Like a ragdoll, Madeline looked pitiful with her messy hair and clothes. However, her eyes were still clear and untainted. “You’ll never compare to him.” A light smile graced Madeline’s lips as she spoke weakl
Jeremy watched Adam ready the syringe and inject the substance into Madeline’s bloodstream. The next few seconds felt like an entire century to him. Madeline remained unconscious the entire time. Unable to do anything but watch, Jeremy’s consciousness began to fade. He felt the unforgettable stab of pain spreading through his senses once again. “Will she be in life-threatening danger?” Ryan asked plainly. Jeremy was waiting for such a reply as well. He watched Adam who was squatting by the floor. He started to keep his medical kit before he started to speak, “Her major arteries are fine. Or I wouldn’t be able to do anything at all otherwise.” Ryan then turned the camera to himself. “You heard him, didn’t you, Jeremy? Follow my demands earlier or you’ll never get to see Eveline again.” Ryan then hung up the call. Seeing the screen change, Jeremy’s mind immediately replayed the piece of information he had just hurriedly glimpsed of just now.He turned around franticall
Gina, who was standing at the door, saw this scene and was about to walk in when she was stopped by her husband.“Stop causing more trouble. Do you really want your son to be a bachelor for the rest of his life?”“Who said I'm going to make trouble? I’m going to tell them that I agree to this marriage now, okay?”Her husband was startled. “You’re agreeing to this?”Gina was about to answer when out of the corners of her eyes, she suddenly caught a glimpse of the lights in the room. It was followed by cheers and applause from inside.Ava pulled herself out of Daniel's embrace. She was surprised to find Madeline and Jeremy, her parents, and even Tom and Maisie slowly approaching them with smiles on their faces.Ava stared blankly at Madeline. Then, she finally understood that they had all worked together to arrange this.Only she and Daniel’s parents were kept in the dark.Daniel had never thought of leaving her at all. He just used a different approach to let her know that she w
Upon hearing this, Gina slowly stopped.She never thought that Ava still had some respect for her in her heart.This really surprised her.However, she soon heard Madeline stand up for Ava. “Ava, you respect them, but have they ever respected you? Respect should be mutual.”“But Danny will always be their son. If Dan and I insist on getting married, his parents won’t be happy about it for the rest of their lives,” Ava said with a helpless sigh. “I really don't want Dan to be caught in the middle of this matter.”“But Ava…”“Maddie, don't persuade me. You should know best that when you truly love someone, you don't have to stay with them. As long as they’re safe, healthy, and happy, that's enough, isn't it?”There was a smile of relief on Ava's face as if she had already made a final decision in her heart.Madeline wanted to persuade her a little more, but nothing seemed appropriate at this moment.“Ava, are you leaving, then? Are you going to stop looking for him now?”“I've
Daniel's parents, who were secretly observing Ava in the distance, gradually became more and more restless in the car.“Hmph, how dare she say that she has a deep relationship with Dan? It's been so long and she still doesn't know where Dan has gone,” Gina rolled her eyes and complained.Daniel's father glanced at Gina. “Stop being so mean. Right now, the most important thing is to find Dan. Ava isn’t a bad person. In the beginning, you disliked her because she didn’t have parents, money, and power. Now, her parents are alive and well, her mother is extremely rich, and her father is a specialist doctor and professor. What else are you dissatisfied with? Do you really want your son to stay single his entire life?”Gina was not happy when her husband was complaining about her. “Didn't you object at the beginning as well? I agreed with the relationship after that, but your father refused to agree to save his reputation. Why are you blaming me now?”“Stop talking.” Daniel's father in
After Old Master Graham read Daniel's message, he was so angry that his eyes were wide open.‘He just got out of the hospital and he ran away for a woman?‘He even said that if he can't marry that woman, he won't get married in the future?’Old Master Graham would never allow such a thing to happen.However, when he thought about it, he still felt a little nervous.If Daniel really did not get married because of this, would this not be the end of the Graham family?‘I can’t let this happen.’After Ava ran out, she went to find Daniel in all the places she could think of. However, after spending the entire morning, she still could not find Daniel.She tried to call Daniel, and although the call was connected, it was always unanswered.As time passed, Ava felt very tired. She sat down on the chair by the roadside and watched the street where people came and went. Then, a deep sense of loss welled up from the bottom of her heart.‘Dan, have you decided to just give up?‘Are we
“I'll be right back!”Gina hurriedly ran back. Suddenly, she turned back and stopped Ava, who was about to follow her.“Don’t follow me! You’re not welcomed at our house.”Despite Gina's warning, Ava could not stop herself from looking for Daniel.She did not know what was going on. How could Daniel suddenly be discharged by himself? He had obviously been in a coma on the hospital bed. He did not wake up this whole time.On the way there, Ava called Daniel, but Daniel did not answer.Ava did not know if Daniel had his phone with him, but in short, she could not get into contact with him.She wanted so badly to stand in front of Daniel right now, but there was traffic on the way.When Ava followed Gina into the door of Graham Manor, she heard Gina's sharp voice. “What? Dan’s gone? Where did he go? D-Didn't he just wake up? What the hell is going on?”“Look at this and you'll know what's going on." Daniel's father sounded like he was reproaching someone, then he seemed to hand s
Ava stared at the empty ward for a while. Then, she returned to her senses and immediately went to look for Daniel.However, after looking around for a while, Ava could not find Daniel, which made her feel a little nervous.At this time, Gina also came in.She saw that the ward was empty, and Daniel, who was supposed to be lying on the hospital bed, had disappeared.“What’s going on? Where’s Dan? Did the doctor take Dan away?” Gina looked at Ava and asked with an unfriendly expression on her face.Ava was used to Gina's attitude, so she did not bother to argue with Gina. Instead, she replied, “I want to know as well.”“How could you not know? You came before me.”“Dan wasn't in the ward when I came,” Ava said and turned around. “I'll go to the nurse's station and ask.”“Wait.”Gina grabbed Ava, her face was dark.“Ava, let me tell you this. Dan has suffered a lot and gotten a lot of injuries because of you. Because of you, both Naya and her mother have been sent to prison. It
Since Julie was about to think that way, it showed that she was a reasonable person.“Lily.” Julie walked up to Lillian and squatted down, giving her a friendly blessing. “Lily, I really like you. I hope you can be happy every day, and I hope you’ll be able to speak soon.”Lillian was a sensible child. She raised a sweet smile and nodded vigorously, indicating that she acknowledged Julie's blessing.Julie stood up and faced Fabian. Right now, there was a little more admiration in her eyes and a little less of her unwilling persistence before.If one liked someone, one did not necessarily have to stubbornly fight for it.Julie did not say anything and just smiled at Fabian.Fabian did not say anything more either. He bent over and picked Lillian up in his arms. Before turning around, he gave Julie a friendly smile.“Miss Charles, you can still come to me if you need help in the future. After all, I still owe you a favor.”Julie smiled and shook her head. “You stopped owing me an
“I did,” Fabian admitted frankly.Julie thought she would feel embarrassed because of this, but she did not know why she still felt very relaxed. Even so, she still felt a little embarrassed.In order to not make Julie feel embarrassed, Fabian smiled and said, “I wanted to help you get out of that situation, Miss Charles, but I didn't want to cross the line. I also didn’t expect someone to have taken a video and put it on the internet. Lily and I have caused you much trouble. I'm really sorry about that.”Fabian paused as he spoke, then, he glanced at Lillian softly.“But Miss Charles, rest assured, there’ll be no such trouble in the future.”Julie was stunned for a moment when she heard the words, and she inexplicably felt a strong sense of loss coming up from the bottom of her heart.She looked at Fabian suspiciously, and sure enough, the words she heard next made her feel remorseful.“Miss Charles, I’ve found a more suitable school for Lily, and it’s closer to where I work so
The scene of Mr. Martinez causing a ruckus and Fabian coming to the rescue with Lillian at the end was all recorded and posted on the internet.This person was still a little conscientious and had censored Lillian's appearance, but Fabian's figure and face were clearly visible in the video.Patty recognized the person in the video as Fabian at a glance.After seeing the comments below, Patty was even more anxious.“Julie, how could you fall in love with a single father?”Julie frowned. “Yes, I won't deny it. I do have a crush on Mr. Johnson.”“What?”“Tsk tsk… Julie, do you really like this single father?” The look in Mrs. Gill's eyes was very subtle. “Someone dug up all his information, and it turns out that this man is Yorick's younger brother. Back then, Yorick stirred up all kinds of troubles and did whatever he wanted in F Country. His sister, Lana, was also notorious in our circle.”“What? He's Yorick and Lana's younger brother?” Patty was even more nervous, for fear that