Phoenix, Arizona, USA"I received a report on your health, Mom. Haven't you been improving lately?" Mikael crossed his legs as he sat beside his mother—right at the edge of Josephine’s hospital bed.The weekend had arrived, and that meant it was time for him to travel to Arizona and spare some time amidst his busy schedule to visit Josephine. This had been his routine for almost six months now, but over the past two months, he had been too busy, often skipping his visits to Arizona."Yes, everything is going quite well," Josephine nodded with a smile. "Sometimes I get sick of our conversations, Mike. When are we going to stop talking about my heart condition? I’m tired of this illness.""Of course, I’ll stop talking about it once you’re fully recovered, Mom. So, work on getting better soon." He replied.The only reason he came to Arizona was to check on his mother directly rather than relying on the daily hospital reports that were sent to his phone every morning."I was cured five ye
Phoenix, Arizona, USA“This Christmas will be wonderful if you’re willing to come back to Manhattan and celebrate it with us, Claire.” Josephine looked at her with hope in her eyes. “It’s our first Christmas with Cecilia, and we wouldn’t want to miss it.”Claire listened to Josephine’s words and then glanced at Cecilia, who was peacefully sleeping in her bed.It’s over. Everything was finally over…Three months had passed since she arrived in Arizona, and Cecilia had completed the last stage of her treatment. After this, she would be allowed to go home and would only need to come in for bi-weekly check-ups to monitor her condition and progress.Claire had not yet planned to return to Canada, knowing their journey in Arizona was far from over. Cecilia wasn’t fully healed, and they still had to undergo countless tests to ensure everything was fine. But with Christmas just two days away, Claire knew Cecilia had never experienced a Christmas without snow.Arizona didn’t have snow, and the
Williams Mansion,Manhattan, New York, US. 3 PMJust like her last memory of Manhattan, that’s what she saw now.A lot had changed in downtown New York, but everything still felt the same—every corner of this city remained the part she missed the most.It was hard to believe that after so many years, she was walking again through the snow-covered streets of New York, finding that there were still many things she recognized in the city.She had lost—the ego and all the reasons in her mind that refused to come to New York had been defeated by her feelings, which couldn’t resist Josephine’s request, along with John’s plea and Cecilia’s enthusiastic gaze.In the end, her decisions and all her plans completely changed, and here she was now, looking at the beautiful view of Manhattan through the car window as they were being driven to the Williams family mansion.The long journey from Arizona didn’t feel tiring at all as she listened to every word from Cecilia’s lips—every expression of ama
Manhattan’s Luxury RestaurantManhattan, New York, US. 8 PMThe Christmas Eve celebration that Josephine had planned was, unsurprisingly, extravagant—almost exactly as she had predicted.So, really… it shouldn’t have surprised her as much as it did.John and Josephine had reserved a hotel in the heart of Manhattan. They were having dinner on the rooftop of the luxury hotel, which offered breathtaking views of Manhattan at night—complete with city lights and all the beautiful Christmas decorations that New York is known for.Snow had been falling since the afternoon, but thankfully, they were inside a warm and cozy restaurant, so Claire didn’t have to worry about Cecilia getting cold. The hotel rooftop had glass walls, making it seem as though there were no barriers at all between them and the outside world. In the middle of the room, there was even a glass ceiling, allowing them to see the night sky directly.“This is such a memorable Christmas Eve, and John and I agreed to have dinne
Mikael’s Car Manhattan, New York, US. 1 PM“I know her,” Linda’s voice, accompanied by the smoke from her cigarette, was the only thing that caught Mikael’s attention after he chose to close his eyes and lean back without saying anything since the car left the grand Williams mansion.“Claire Thompson, the charming one,” Linda spoke again. But still, she failed to pull Mikael’s attention away from what he was doing. He was listening to her, fully aware of her words because her voice was the only thing breaking the silence aside from the sound of the car engine and the tires squeaking on the snow, yet he gave no reaction. And he wasn’t obligated to.“What a surprise to finally meet her in person,” Linda clicked her tongue. “I’ve heard her name everywhere, every time I was with you. Hell, you even called out her name when you climaxed with me.” Linda’s hand brushed along Mikael’s inner thigh, prompting an annoyed grunt as he pushed her hand away.“Damn you, Linda,” he hissed sharply.“O
Williams MansionManhattan, New York, US. 4 PMEverything went well—far better than Claire had expected when she received a surprise this morning.Well, Mikael’s arrival and… his woman had caused quite a bit of tension. Claire had even considered all the worst-case scenarios that could happen if Mikael was there while Cecilia was also at the mansion.But that didn’t happen...Cecilia stayed quietly in her room with the maid, while Mikael left right after their late breakfast as if he deliberately didn’t want to linger after realizing Claire was also there.Josephine had mentioned that Mikael never celebrated Christmas with her, but suddenly, he showed up with his woman—the same one Claire had seen five years ago. And without any explanation about their relationship, Claire could already conclude that they… were very close.Ignoring Mikael’s influence was incredibly difficult. She had tried hard over the past five years, but she had to admit that there were moments in her life when tho
New York StreetManhattan, New York, US. 8 PM“She's still there," Nancy pointed toward the TV screen displaying the CCTV footage.The news of Claire losing her daughter had quickly spread throughout the café. A manager had approached to help while other staff members searched every corner of the café, even those rarely accessed by customers—storage rooms and the kitchen. Some even searched outside, checking the souvenir shop across the street, the place Cecilia had initially wanted to visit.But they found nothing.Cecilia wasn’t there, and now Claire was tracking her daughter’s last appearance on the CCTV footage.Then… something happened. Cecilia ran out of view of the camera. She disappeared from the recording. There was no trace of where she had gone. She had run towards the café door, following a man who called out to her—waving her over before picking her up and carrying her out of the café."Oh God," Claire closed her eyes, trying not to break down in hysterical sobs, even tho
Mikael MansionManhattan, New York, US. 11 PM“Mikael, I need you.”The words Claire had spoken at his apartment door kept echoing vividly in Mikael’s mind—repeating as if purposely driving him even crazier after everything he had been through today.“You came to me just to sit in my living room? Are you serious?”Unable to hold it in any longer, the words slipped out of his mouth—pulling Claire from whatever thoughts were consuming her.Everything was clear from the look in her eyes… empty—like all hope had drained away.“I need money,” Claire whispered softly. Her face was filled with despair as if she was facing a burden too great for her to bear alone.Her sentence was shocking.Of course, Mikael hadn’t expected that to be the first thing she said after her prolonged silence.However, Mikael didn’t show any reaction. He took a drag from the cigarette between his fingers and exhaled deeply. “How much?” He raised an eyebrow—trying to suppress the pounding in his chest that was on th