Somehow, Jim thought that his son…bore a striking resemblance to this woman.Still...He sighed. Jim remembered that although Harvey’s mother was from Banyan City, like this woman, she was poor, skinny, and mute. The woman standing in front of him was the opposite of all that, obviously so.Jim walked toward Luna and Bonnie to greet them. He then lowered his voice and explained, “My son is a fan of detective novels. I saw that the police and firefighters had left, so I brought him here to have a look. Don’t worry, though. If we find anything, I’ll make sure to pass it to the police if I can’t return it to you.”This did not raise Luna’s suspicion. She held the bag that Harvey gave her and smiled at them. “I’m sure you mean no harm. However, this is a crime scene of arson. The fire was put out not long ago, so the air is still filled with the smell of burnt chemicals. Your son is just six or seven years old. It’s not safe for him to be here. It’d be bad if he accidentally hurt him
All the messages inside Lily’s phone were from Malcolm.“What’s the situation with her and Joshua? I need an update.”“Find an opportunity to force her back.”“Have you earned Joshua’s trust? Why are you not replying?”“If needed, proceed with Plan S.”…As soon as she saw the messages, Luna felt as if her heart was squeezed by an invisible hand. It made her uncomfortable.It was apparent that this phone was used specifically for Lily and Malcolm to communicate. The messages started the moment Lily arrived in Banyan City, and it had not stopped since.When Luna first started reading the texts, she thought that Malcolm’s intentions for contacting Lily were out of genuine concern.However, later on…The information that Malcolm asked from Lily became more and more detailed. From the beginning, it was about Luna’s working hours and the amount of time she saw Joshua. Later on, he wanted to know the amount of time she spent with her children and Joshua.On top of that…He even i
As for the Landry family, Luna thought maybe it was just a coincidence and that Malcolm had never brought them up in front of her.She should not have suspected him, the man who had saved her life, much less think that he had other intentions for instructing Lily to spy on her. Maybe he just cared too much about her…Thinking this, Luna let out an exhale and turned off the phone. Then, she got up and asked Bonnie to send her home.While on the way back to Orchard Manor, Luna took out her phone to check the news in order to keep her mind off her discovery.The first thing she saw on the news was the fire at Blue Bay Villa the night before. After that, the news portal showed photos of both Aura and Lily, while the news anchor reported in a calm tone, “According to what we know, the culprit behind this arson was none other than Joshua Lynch’s ex-fiancée, Aura Gibson.“She set this fire out of anger that Joshua had gotten together with other women after their breakup. Fortunately, a
Granny Lynch’s memorial went on for three days.The whole city mourned her death.On the day of the burial, the sky started to pour.Luna held an umbrella next to Joshua as she stared quietly at Granny Lynch’s tombstone.Next to Granny Lynch’s tombstone were two smaller ones for Luna’s stillborn children.The most recent child had been premature, and on top of that, so much had happened during that time that the tiny fetus passed away too.Joshua put both the unborn children in the same plot and swore to always look after Luna so that she would never have to endure this pain again.Right next to the children’s tombstones was Lily’s.These few days, while Luna searched through Lily’s possessions, she learned that Lily stopped providing any details of her to Malcolm because…Lily’s sick brother, who had been living with the Quinn family, had passed away a few weeks ago.Lily was only 19 years old. After her brother passed, she had no family left.Joshua pitied this lonely girl,
As soon as she heard the words, ‘recover memory,’ Bonnie paused and lowered her head. “Recovering one’s memories…is it really a good thing?”Luna nodded. “At least it will be, for Neil.”After he lost his memories, Neil had always felt like an outsider despite having returned to their side. He no longer dared to joke around with Nellie like before, nor did he nag Nigel to put down his laptop and take care of himself like he used to.Every time Luna saw how careful Neil became around his brother and sister, she felt her chest tighten and hurt. If it were not for her and Joshua’s mistake…this would not have happened.This time, if the specialists that Joshua found could truly recover Neil’s lost memories…Then even if he could not return to the cheerful, carefree boy he once was, he would not have to keep a distance from his brother and sister anymore.The glimmer in Bonnie’s eyes faded when she heard this. “You’re right. Children’s memories—even if lost—are always happy ones, so i
Seeing that Bonnie had volunteered herself, Luna’s first reaction was to grab her.As Bonnie’s friend, Luna knew better than anyone that Bonnie had no intention of regaining her lost memories at all.Otherwise, according to Bonnie’s wealth and power, she would definitely have sought out a doctor to help her regain her lost memories. It had been so many years since she lost her memories, yet she did not do so.Therefore, it was clear she did not want to relive those memories at all because she knew they were not good ones.All of a sudden, Bonnie was willing to step forward as a volunteer to help Luna and Neil.Luna grabbed hold of Bonnie’s arm and shook her head. “That’s okay, Bonnie.”Even though Luna longed for Neil to regain his memories, she did not need her friends to sacrifice for that.To her surprise, Bonnie shook Luna’s hand off, let out an exhale, and strode toward the specialists. “My situation is very similar to Neil’s. Six years ago, my memories were wiped with medi
Theo offered a smile, albeit bitter, and said, “Since I’ve failed so terribly in my relationships, I can’t fail in being a good son either.”Luna bit her lower lip and was about to say something when suddenly, a loud alarm sounded through the treatment room.The three of them immediately turned to see what was going on.Inside the treatment room, the specialists were busy recalibrating the medical equipment. Meanwhile, on the bed…Bonnie laid motionless on the bed, her entire face pale.Luna’s eyes immediately widened in shock, and she stormed into the room. “What’s going on?”The specialists tested the machines nervously and replied, “Everything’s fine; she’s still alive. It’s just that…“Somehow, she’s suddenly not moving anymore!”Luna lowered her head to stare at Bonnie’s pale face and closed eyes, snapping, “What kind of treatment did you give her?”“Luna…” Just as Luna was about to unleash her wrath on the specialists, Bonnie opened her eyes weakly and said, “Please don’
Luna noticed that Bonnie was acting strange and glanced at her, frowning. “What’s wrong?”Bonnie bit her lower lip and immediately stormed into the house, pushing the door open. Her sudden appearance startled the two people within the house, making them turn around unanimously. The woman kneeling on the floor inside the house was none other than Ms. Jennifer, the woman whom Anne had given them information on.The man sitting on the sofa…was the one which Luna and Bonnie had met at the ruins of Blue Bay Villa the other day!At this moment, he was sitting gracefully on the sofa and grazing his left thumb with his right hand. His left thumb, where a jade ring should have been, was empty.At this moment, the two of them were staring impassively at Bonnie. Bonnie gnawed on her lip, swept her glance across the room, and furrowed her brows. “Are you two the only ones here?”The man’s voice she had heard from outside…was the exact same one as the man from six years ago.Everyone, i
At that, he looked at Gwen. "Actually…"Steven found himself unable to finish his sentence. After a long while, he shook his head and smiled. "Forget about it.""Steven…" Gwen looked at him, and her tears fell.Her heart was not made of stone. How could she not know Steven's feelings toward her?She was silent for a long while. In the end, she stood up and slowly walked over to Steven with arms opened wide. "Give me a hug."Steven hesitated for a while, but he still stood up.They hugged."Gwen." Steven hugged her thin figure. "I have to meet you earlier in the next life so I can compete fairly with my brother."Gwen nodded with tears streaming down her face. "Okay."They thus hugged once more. Minutes later…"He's gone," said Stefan.Tears kept falling.They hugged for a while longer before pulling apart. Gwen looked at Stefan with her tear-stricken face. He had tears on his face as well.She bit her lips and reached out to wipe his tears. "A—Are these tears…yours or his?
The next day, Rachel flew from Merchant City to Sharnwick City to diagnose Anne's condition. Theo tagged along as well because he had another identity, Rachel's boyfriend."According to the report, Anne's condition is slowly recuperating." Rachel was relieved after assessing the report. "Although she is very weak, she is going to get better with lots of rest."There is nothing wrong with her vocal cords too. It could be a psychological thing that makes her lose her voice. A knot in her heart that causes it." She looked at Luna, then at John. "Considering all factors, I think that knot is Luna."Rachel continued, "John, I know Luna is the root cause of all these bad things. Being away from Luna, Joshua, and other people is going to guarantee a safer life for you and your family. But have you thought about it from Anne's point of view? Other than you and Sammie, she has her own life and her circle of friends. Never has she blamed Luna for what happened, yet you forced her to leave Lun
It was almost a miracle for Anne to willingly leave the house just to visit him!Robyn, meanwhile, sobbed at the sight.The nurse who accompanied Anne to the ward was puzzled. What was going on with these people?She snuck her phone out of her pocket and took a photo of this surreptitiously. Then, she sent it into the nurse's group chat with the caption, [What a strange family I met today.]The nurses in the group chat began gossiping about this. One of them tagged a fellow nurse named Daisy and said, [Hey, isn't this the guy who saved the old man you're looking after? What a hero!]Daisy was, at this moment, walking into Andy's room to help him change his wound dressing. She saw the message but was not able to type on her keyboard to respond, so she recorded a voice message instead. "Yes, that's the man. What's wrong with his family? What are you guys talking about?"As soon as she finished her sentence, she lifted her head and finally realized that Andy was not there.Instead,
Anne stared at John for a long time before forcibly smiling and told him in sign language, "Robyn didn't return after so long, so I got worried and came by to check on her.""Daddy, Aunt Robyn, are you two hugging?" Sammie asked, blinking innocently as she raised her head in curiosity.John and Robyn turned pale at this.It was understandable for such a young child like Sammie to misinterpret them as hugging, but what would Anne think of this?John leaped off the bed and staggered toward Anne. "Anne, it's just a misunderstanding…"However, he was still so weak that his legs could not hold up the full weight of his body at all, and he almost crumpled to the ground.Quick-witted Robyn managed to catch him before he could fall, but this gesture appeared once again rather intimate to both Anne and Sammie. Sammie furrowed her brow and asked rather indignantly, "Are you hugging again? Daddy, how can you hug Aunt Robyn like this when you've never even hugged Mommy and me like this befor
When the nurse pushed Anne to John's ward, she overheard John and Robyn fighting from the door. The fight was about how John was anxious to return home because he was worried about Anne and Sammie.However, as someone who used to work as a nurse, Robyn knew John should not leave the hospital after being shot by a gun. At least, he needed to stay in the hospital and be observed for 24 hours to make sure that he was fine before leaving the hospital. If an infection happened, John's body would crash easily and he would become weak just like Anne.In the ward, John frowned and talked with a serious tone, "I'm really fine. Get me my clothes so I can go upstairs to thank Miss Andie and go back home immediately. If Anne knows that I'm hurt, she is going to worry. She will easily be suspicious since you haven't gone back home for a long time. What if she worries about me and brings Sammie to the hospital to look for me? Can you bear yourself even just thinking about it? She's weak and Sammie
Sammie's soft and cute babyish voice melted Stefan's heart immediately. It had been quite some time since he actually put a smile on his face. "Hi, there. What's your name and how old are you?"Sammie tilted her head to look at Stefan's handsome face and smiled sweetly, "I'm Samantha but everyone calls me Sammie."Then she did not forget to introduce Anne to Stefan too. "This is my Mommy. Her name is Anne."At this point, Stefan had given all of his attention to Sammie and did not notice Sammie mentioned that her mother's name was Anne. He pinched Sammie's cheek and said, "Your Mommy is not feeling well. You have to be a good girl and take care of her, do you understand?"Sammie nodded seriously and said, "I will.""Alright, sir. I will bring them to where they want to go," the nurse saw Anne signing to her anxiously. She smiled and said, "Don't worry. I will take good care of them."The promise from the nurse gave an assurance to Stefan that they would be well taken off. He smil
This was the first time Anne brought Sammie out. Ever since she escaped from death, she became a different person—a recluse and was afraid of the sun. This situation became even worse after she became mute.The last time she left the house was two weeks ago when she had to go for surgery.However, she worried about John. In the morning, Robyn told her John was hurt and needed to stay in the hospital to rest. However, she had a hard time believing what Robyn said.After spending so many years together with John, Anne reckoned she was the one who knew John the most. If it was a minor injury, John would never want to stay in the hospital. He cared too much about her and Sammie, so he never dared to let her worry about him. Therefore, it just did not sound reasonable if John would stay in the hospital because of a small injury.Furthermore, Robyn had not returned home since the morning, which was nearly three hours since she left the house. After much consideration, she decided to call
Tara fell silent upon hearing this. She bit her lip nervously and shot Gwen a tentative glance. "I didn't mean to offend you, Gwen…" "I know." Gwen let out an exhale and interrupted Tara before she could finish, "I know you meant no harm, but I can't deny that this is something I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around. In the future, neither of you—even you, Luna—should bring this up again." Her love life was such a mess that not even she could unravel the ties, much less expect other people to understand. Tara pursed her lips and did not reply. Luna stared at Gwen in silence for a while before finally saying, "But you have to face this eventually, Gwennie. After all that you've been through with Luke, all of us hope for nothing but the best for the two of you. Even if you avoid it now, you'll have to face the truth eventually. Otherwise, are you planning on spending the rest of your life in this complicated relationship with Luke? Can you bear the thought of not being
Stefan was mildly amused by the look on her face. He extended his arms out in a gesture of defeat and said, "I never intended on ratting you out to Joshua. You three spoke about these secrets in my presence." With that, he shot Andy a rather helpless look. "Don't you agree, sir?" Andy was surprised to be called out all of a sudden. "Of course!" Although Gwen and Luke had been together for a long time, Luke had never much cared for maintaining good relations with his future father-in-law. He always thought his relationship with Gwen did not concern anyone else outside of the two of them. Combined with the fact that Andy had done some hurtful things to Gwen in the past, Luke grew even more disdainful of his future father-in-law. Because of this, he had never given Andy as much as a second glance throughout their relationship and rarely ever addressed him directly like this. The truth was, Stefan had already called out to Andy once before, during their rescue mission the day befor