Cathy’s actions shocked Felipe to the core. It was something Madeline and Jeremy had never thought to expect at all. “Do you know what you’re doing?” Felipe turned his head to stare at Cathy who stood behind him. “Of course I do. You’re the one who doesn’t.” Cathy’s tone was calm, solemn in a way that depicted her determination. “Let them go, or I’ll take revenge for my two dead children right now.” Felipe’s expression soured, but he refused to give the order. Cathy pressed the muzzle deeper into Felipe’s flesh. If she pulled the trigger now, the bullet would pierce through Felipe’s heart. Neither Madeline nor Jeremy had expected Cathy to be here, but they could tell that she was on their side. “Come with us, Cathy.” Madeline did not want to leave Cathy here to stay by Felipe’s side in fear that she would suffer the punishment given out by this man. Yet Cathy merely smiled faintly. “It’s alright, Evie, Jeremy. You two should go, but I’m staying here.” Despite not unders
She had heard everything he said. She could feel the regret and remorse oozing from Jeremy, as well as his internal conflict when it came to forgiving himself. Staring at his back that was mere inches away, Madeline no longer felt that they were miles apart. Leaning over, she lifted her arm to hold Jeremy from behind. Deep within his own self-blaming throes, Jeremy was stunned when he felt Madeline suddenly pulling him into a hug. Warmth seeped into his chest. “I know you can’t forgive yourself for the things you’ve done to me, but I mean it when I told you I don’t hate you anymore. “Let’s just live happily together for the rest of our days, Jeremy.” Madeline’s clear voice drifted into Jeremy’s ears, falling into his heart like melodic notes. He turned to face her, his chiseled features against Madeline's ethereal and small face. The two pairs of eyes locked. They were engulfed in comfortable silence. His slender finger traced her brows as he got lost in her beauty.
Cathy felt a piercing pain shooting through the area around her heart. As she looked down, her phone slid out of her weak hands. Plop. The phone fell onto the pavement by her feet as blood slowly dripped onto the screen. From the phone came the frantic shouts of a man. “Cathy! Cathy! Answer me, Cathy!” Felipe’s hand on the steering wheel shook as he sped to the police station. Dashing through the crowd, he was met with a pale girl sitting in a pool of blood. Felipe’s heart felt like it had sunk into an ice cellar as his blood turned cold. “Cathy.” He pushed the people in front of him to get to the girl as he knelt on one knee and pulled her unconscious body into his arms. “Cathy! Wake up, Cathy!” Cradling her, he shouted her name frantically. Yet it was to no avail. Felipe’s vision blurred, not knowing when his eyes had grown watery. All he knew was that his heart hurt. It was numbing and suffocating. Nothing the people around said went through his ears for all
He raised his bloodied hands only to find that the mint-green hairband he had kept carefully with him was now dyed red. With trembling fingers, he raised the hairband to his lips. “Don’t die. Please, you can’t die.” He murmured under his breath as his eyes reddened further. “You promised you’d pester me forever. You can’t go back on your word now.” Felipe’s voice shook as he repeated himself, unable to put the panic within him to rest. Just then, the operating room’s door opened to reveal a doctor in a white coat. Felipe immediately ran toward him. “Professor Quinney, how’s Cathy?” The professor shook his head. “I’ve got the bullet out, but since it hit her heart, I can’t bring her back to life. I’m sorry, but Miss Cathy has passed.” Frozen in place, Felipe felt his world crack as he stood rooted to the ground. “How did she just get shot out of the blue? Could it be the Stygian Johnsons?” The doctor sighed, his heart clenching at the loss of such a young life. Felipe
Felipe felt his heart pause as he took the item from the box. He would never forget this red string. When he met the little girl with the dimpled smile years ago by April Hill’s beach, she had been the ray of light that pulled him out of the dark. She even gave him a rainbow shell. In return, he gave her a red piece of string. That day of that year marked his innocent meeting with the energetic and warm Vetty. It was love at first sight. When he grew up, he found out that the girl was Madeline. That was why he did everything in his power to make Madeline his. However, why was the string he had gifted Madeline in Cathy’s hands? Not to mention that it had been kept so safely. Felipe’s mind was filled with questions that could not be answered. Not that meeting Madeline by the seaside back then mattered to him anymore. The moment Cathy was shot, it dawned on him who he truly had feelings for. Perhaps he should have known the moment Cathy jumped into the river because
“Where is Cathy, Felipe?” Madeline pressed on, but Felipe had already left.Watching him drive away, Madeline decided to search the manor for traces of Cathy. She even went to the basement, but Cathy was nowhere to be found. Confused, she went to ask the servants, but none of them were certain themselves. Madeline arrived at Cathy’s room and found a photo collage open on her bed. It was filled with pictures she had taken from the past. It looked like it had just been flipped through. Had Felipe been looking at it? Curious, she took up the photo collage only to find a piece of paper squashed under it. “Certificate of cremation?” Madeline’s heart lurched. Reading it, she saw Cathy’s name, followed by Felipe’s signature at the very bottom. Cathy was dead?! … Jeremy thought that Madeline was resting in the hotel the entire time he brought Lillian out for a walk, so he was surprised to not see her when they returned to their room. He put his daughter to sleep and was
“Master Whitman, our men have just gotten to April Hill. We’ve asked around, and from an old man, we can confirm that there had been a family with a daughter by the name of Cathy.“The father of the family ran a small business, so their family was rather well off. However, he and his wife met a tragic end during one of his delivery trips. “His relatives took his house and threw his daughter out.”The person confirmed.“Master Whitman, it’s confirmed that after the death of her parents, the daughter who was thrown out was indeed Miss Cathy. They gave me an image of Miss Cathy when she was young. I’ll send it to you now.”With that, Felipe’s phone received the image.On the display was an old picture, one that caused the tears brimming in Felipe’s eyes to fall.It was the same smile he had engraved into his memory—the very one that haunted his dreams for the past decade. Felipe wanted to smile, but his vision became blurred from the tears. His arm drooped limply, and the red
“Eveline was right. None of the Whitman family men are good men. If any one of us were even half the man Grandfather was, perhaps the women who love us so much would not have been so deeply hurt.”He raised his frosty and fierce gaze. “I’ve already turned over a new leaf, Felipe. What about you? Will you not own up to your mistakes? You would go and surrender yourself if you have even the slightest bit of conscience left in you. Or you can wait until I hand the police the evidence they need.”Jeremy warned solemnly as he gave Cathy’s tombstone one last look, his deep gaze filled with hurt. Then, he turned to leave. Dazed, Felipe stood in the wind with Cathy’s ashes held preciously in his arms. A deep swirl of emotions flashed in his eyes. “Don’t worry. I promised you, so I’ll make sure it happens. Wait for me.”He left with the wind blowing in his face and her urn in his hands.…Madeline took care of Lillian in the hotel until Jeremy returned at nightfall. She prayed that