Anne instantly realized that she was on speakerphone and said, "Dad, I'm fine. Kathryn said I am capable of going back to normal life. I just have to avoid extreme exercise."Sarah sighed, "I finally understand why you keep refusing to come and live with me. So it was because of the children all along. They aren't there anymore. Why do you have to be so stubborn?""Mom, I will move in once I resolve everything.""How?" Sarah asked."I haven't thought of anything yet. I'm still in shock..." She said gloomily.Both Sarah and Nigel were worried when they heard the exhaustion in Anne's voice."Anne, don't stay in that place and move to the apartment I got you," Nigel said. "I already told you back in the hospital that the apartment is ready. You can move in anytime you want.""I will move in later. Right now, I'm staying right here and don't even think about hiring a nanny to cook for me. I can take care of myself. Don't worry about me. That's it. I'm going back to sleep." Before th
She froze, before asking, "did you see the kids?"Tommy simply raised his glass.Desperately to know what had happened, she grabbed her glass and took a sip."How unsettling it is for you to drink the wine that's offered to you at a strange man's place..."She scowled. "Are you going to talk or not?""I saw them. They were eating with Anthony. A heart-warming scene, truly." Tommy sipped on his wine, before setting the glass down. "Don't worry. They are his kids. He's going to treat them well. If I'm being honest, they are better off than relying on you, who can barely make ends meet.""I know..." Anne did not need him to remind her of that."Did you talk at noon?""How do you know?""Anyone could find out," he said calmly, "judging from the look on your face, it didn't go well?"Anne stabbed at the meat on her plate with her fork, thinking back to what a disaster lunch had been."Can you talk about it?""I wanted to fight for the custody of at least Chloe, and... leave the
She soon realized that she was in a bedroom and judging from the interior design, it belonged to Tommy.Though she was reluctant to remain in Tommy's room, she had no way of getting out.She quietly opened a small gap to the door and saw Damian walking into the living room."Why didn't you answer my call?" Damian questioned."I missed it."Damian decided to ignore the truth to that explanation since he had something more important to discuss. "Do you know that the Archduke Group is all talking about Anthony's kids? How did he end up with kids? When? Did Bianca get pregnant? Why don't I know anything about this?"'So, that's why he is here,' Anne thought."I just found out myself. He has triplets, two sons and a daughter. They are around two years old, but Bianca isn't their mother. It's Anne Vallois." Tommy sat down on the couch."What? What the- Anne Vallois?" Shocked, Damian said, "When did she even sleep with Anthony? She was supposed to be overseas two to three years ago, r
"Alright. I can't argue with you. I'll leave." Damian walked towards the door and left.Anne walked out of the room when she heard the main door closing."Did you hear my dad? He said you're a monster," Tommy teased."Yeah, so keep a distance from me. Don't give me any chance to seduce you, too," she said impatiently."How far?" Tommy approached her.Anne watched him warily and backed away at the proximity until her back was against the wall. She tensed and held out her arms to stop him, but he proceeded to grab her by the wrists.He bent down and Anne was startled into screaming, "Tommy Marwood, don't you dare!"He stopped with his face a few centimeters away from hers and asked, "How's this for distance?"He could just kiss her if he moved any closer.She tilted her face to the side with a scowl. "I'm going home. Let go..." She escaped him and pulled her arms away in frustration. "What's wrong with you?""Keeping a distance from you."She shot him a confused look and said,
After getting out of the car, she almost ran into others when she hurried toward the restaurant. She ignored the person she bumped into and the pain on her body as her eyes darted around."Ma'am, we are closed," the restaurant manager whom she bumped into said."Where are they? This isn't possible. He said here!" She mumbled in disbelief. "Where are the private rooms? Are there customers in the private rooms? Do you know Anthony Marwood? He's definitely here!""With three children?" The manager asked.She froze, before nodding frantically. "Yeah. Three children! Where are they?""Mr. Marwood reserved the whole place and brought them here for barbeque, and then they left," the manager said with a smile. "It's a surprise that Mr. Marwood would be seen eating barbeque. Maybe he's here because his kids like it, which is proof of how good our grill is!"Anne did not care about how good the food was and was instantly in despair.Why did she have to follow Tommy and return home so late
Was Antony requesting that she exchanged her pride for the right to see her children?'It's fine,' she thought, 'I will do anything to see my children.'She reached a trembling hand toward him and he grabbed it, forcing her to look up and stare into his dark, brooding eyes."Your lips are twitching?" He hummed huskily. "Hum?""I'm sorry. I misunderstood..." She blushed.Anthony did not intend to be intimate with her at all, but his blood boiled at the sight of her flushed cheeks. However, he did not want to let Anne off easily.He let go of her arm and said, "Upstairs."Anne realized what he meant and beamed at him. "Thank you!" She got up and ran out of the study room.Anthony stared at the opened door with a dark expression.When the bedroom door opened, Anne found the triplets fresh out of shower and playing on the bed with the maids.When the triplets saw her, they widened their eyes in disbelief and screamed cheerfully."Mama!"They fumbled to get out of bed and Anne w
She rubbed Chloe's butt and said, "Mama will help you rub the pain away.""Papa did that, too!" Chloe said."Is that so?" Anne did not feel reassured.If Anthony truly cared for the children, he should have avoided such a thing to happen to begin with. The children were still so young and only a heartless person would raise their hand on them.'What a vicious woman she is!' Anne thought. 'She is going to become a mother someday. Is she not afraid of karma at all?'"Is Bianca spending the night here tonight?" Anne asked."No. She made me cry and left without apologizing!" Chloe pouted.Anne held her children close to make them feel safe until they fell asleep.Even when she was asleep, Chloe still kept her hold onto one of Anne's fingers.Charlie was lying next to her and Chris was right next to Charlie, the four of them laid side by side like they used to, but Anne could not sleep until the situation was resolved.She studied her children's faces for a while, before getting u
Anthony narrowed his eyes dangerously at the threat.As courageous as Anne was when she made the threat, she was equally terrified afterward.She could do anything for the sake of her children and no one could ignore her; not Bianca, and not even Anthony could deny her as their mother. No one could bully her children.She returned to the room and collapsed beside her children, before holding their soft bodies close to her, whispering, "Mama will protect you from all harm..."In the middle of the night, Anthony went into the children's room and saw Anne asleep with the triplets, their little legs sprawled across her legs with their heads on her arms.Anne, too, was deeply asleep, not aware that her top had lifted to reveal her stomach.Anthony walked closer to pull her trousers down until he saw the scar left from the C-section.He had never imagined that Anne would give birth to his children. Judging from the location of the scar, it was not hard for one to tell that the doctor
At first, Corentin was stunned. Then, he said, "Who have I killed? Ash, you've misunderstood. I've changed now. It's true. Hurry up and come down. The ravioli is getting cold.""Don't come over! I'll jump if you get any closer!" Ashlynn shouted hysterically."Alright, alright. I won't go over!" Corentin did not dare to take another step further. "Ash, I'm telling the truth. I didn't kill anybody. Come down, and I'll explain to you. It's all a misunderstanding.""Actually, I've felt it was strange since the beginning. It's just that Anne's reassurance dispelled my suspicion about you." Tears filled Ashlynn's eyes, but they did not stream down her face. She looked at Corentin and said, "But I know everything now. I don't have evidence, but you are Salvatore Yeager. At first, I thought you would change for the sake of the child. In the end… In the end, you didn't even spare the child's grandparents. Salvatore, are you even human? Why would a monster like you exist?""Ash, come down, a
After Ashlynn was discharged from the hospital, she called Anne when she was alone in the room."Anne, are you alright? I heard you were taken by Tommy and were later saved by Anthony.""Mmhmm. I'm fine. I've gotten home safely.""That's wonderful," said Ashlynn.Anne could tell that Ashlynn was not feeling alright, so she asked, "What's the matter? Are you not in a good mood?""I've found out about my parent's passing," said Ashlynn.Anne was stunned. She found out? "I'm sorry, Ashlynn. I've kept it hidden from you.""It's fine. I know you're being considerate to me and the child." Ashlynn took a pause before asking again, "Was Tommy killed by you guys?""No. He fled the cruise ship back then. When we found him, he was already killed by somebody. His body was pulled up from the sea.""Corentin was there as well, wasn't he?""That's right. Did he tell you that?"Ashlynn's eyes looked emotionless. "Have you guys ever suspected Corentin?"Anne immediately got so nervous tha
Corentin hugged Ashlynn. "I heard that Tommy's dead, so your parents' murders have been avenged. Now, they can only rest in peace. Calm down."Ashlynn collapsed in his arms as she cried. Then, she started to feel waves of throbbing pain in her belly, and her face turned pale.Corentin noticed something was not right with her, so he hurriedly roared at the driver, "Go to the hospital now!""Hurry up!" Jeremy urged. He held Ashlynn's hand and realized that it was freezing. "Ashlynn, you have to be alright. You still have me! Hang in there, Ashlynn!"Ashlynn looked at him with tears in her eyes. She was extremely saddened. She could not understand why things would end up like that. Did she not deserve to have parents?When Ashlynn woke up, she was already at the hospital.She subconsciously touched her belly, but Corentin grabbed her hand. "You're showing signs of miscarriage, so you need to recuperate."Ashlynn scanned around the room and asked, "Where's Jeremy?""He's outside. H
"I know…" Jeremy looked up and saw Ashlynn standing at the entrance. He was so shocked, and he immediately stood up. "Why…are you here?"Ashlynn stood there dazed. She looked at Jeremy, then the person who spoke earlier. "What do you guys mean when you talk about my parents' soul resting in peace?""Nothing. We were talking about someone else."Ashlynn could tell from their faces that they were clearly panicking. She was not deaf. She heard what they said clearly.Her face turned pale, and she immediately searched for her phone. She did not have it on her, so she rushed to the car."Ashlynn!" Jeremy ran after her and stopped her. "What are you doing?""I'm going to call Mom and Dad.""They are traveling. Don't disturb them."Ashlynn looked at him. "Jeremy, tell me honestly, why aren't Mom and Dad coming home? Don't lie! I have always felt it was strange. Why haven't they come home when I'm already so far along? Something is wrong, isn't it? Did something…really happen to them?"
Corentin came forward and asked, "Anne, are you alright?"Anne nodded."You don't look too well. What happened?""Tommy's dead," said Anthony."Have you found the cure?" asked Corentin.Anne shook her head."Unfortunately, the infected people would have to endure it a little longer."Anne suddenly thought of something, and she immediately pushed Anthony away. "Don't touch me."Only then, Corentin noticed a small patch of ulcer below Anne's cheek. "Anne, did Tommy drug you?"Anthony frowned. "I don't mind.""I do. Both of us would not be able to have contact with the children, and they will worry." Anne rejected his touch.Anthony had been touching her the whole time. It was unclear if he had been infected. Anne was very worried."It wouldn't make a difference now. If anything, I would have already been infected just now," said Anthony.Anne still refused to listen. "That's not necessary. Just don't touch me. We still don't know where the cure is, and Tommy died so suddenly
Just as Tommy finished his sentence, he heard a commotion behind him.Ivan was fighting with the assassin, and every strike he delivered was fatal. If Ivan were not skilled in combat, the professional assassin could have killed him in just a few moves.Tommy realized something was up, so he immediately wanted to grab Anne.While Anne retreated, she was pulled into a person's arms."Let me go!" She thought it was a man she did not know, so she hated to be touched like that."Anne."Anne was stunned. She looked up and felt happy to see a familiar face. "Anthony?""It's me."Tommy was infuriated as he watched the two of them looking lovingly at each other, Tommy became infuriated."As expected, Anne, you did leave a trace for Anthony." Tommy's expression darkened."You're the one who took me too lightly," said Anne.It was because she had always wanted to run away from Anthony in the past that he had the wrong impression, was it not? "So what? You want to kill me? With just t
Anne was drugged at that moment, and there were surveillance cameras all over the cruise ship. She saw a surveillance camera over her head when she was returning to the room. Therefore, it was impossible for her to sneak around in the middle of the night if she wanted to.Tommy had long been guarding against her.However, Anne still left Anthony some clues before she left him. She believed Anthony would find her very soon, but she never expected that he would do it so quickly.At daybreak, she seemed to have heard the rumbling of a helicopter above her. Then, the door swung open. Before Anne could make sense of the situation, she was picked up. "How did you get the message out?" Tommy said. He even searched Anne's body after that."Ah! Are you crazy? I don't have a phone!""Don't think Anthony can take you away just because he's here. If I'm going to hell, I'm dragging you along with me! Let's go!""You…" Anne had no strength, so she was dragged out of the room by him.He thre
Anne ignored him.If she were not afraid that Tommy would pull some tricks behind her back, she would have slept with her back facing him."Do you remember running to my home and sleeping on my bed when Anthony bullied you as a child?"I don't.""I know you do. I truly wanted to help you back then," said Tommy.Anne knew he was speaking the truth, so she did not refute him. She stared at the ceiling and said, "I think the past Tommy died a long time ago."Tommy's expression was mixed, and he asked, "Are we not able to go back anymore?""Instead of asking me this now, you should've gone to hell after you killed the people I cared about. No matter how unhappy your childhood was, you can't hurt others for your own pleasure." At that moment, Anne did not pity Tommy at all."Look at you on your high horse. Has Anthony not killed anybody before? Has Corentin not killed anybody before? Why did you forgive them for killing people but not me? Just because the victims were your friends?
Seeing that she did not move at all, Tommy said, "It won't be good for you if you don't eat."Anne thought that he made sense. If she did not eat, she would go hungry and would have no strength later. How could she fight with Tommy then? It was because she refused to eat and only drank water while hiding in her room that Tommy drugged her.After a while, she seemed to have figured it out.She picked up the fork and started eating the fish.Tommy saw her eating and asked, "How was it?""Could it be that you're the one who made it?" Anne looked up and shot a glance at him lazily."That's correct. I am the one who made it."Anne thought, 'Is this something worthy to be praised?'"It must be tough for you to do such a thing on top of everything else.""If you're worried that it's tough for me, why don't you make it with me?""I don't know how to cook.""How great. You just have to enjoy being served." Tommy clicked his tongue, but he was looking at Anne with a doting gaze.Anne