Riley was right; Maxim was indeed a wonderful person. It was impressive how someone in such a high position could remain humble and not get carried away. It was no wonder so many people admired him.Maxim was also handsome, with looks that were undeniably top-notch. It was impossible for her not to feel something for him. He had always been so good to her—staying by her side when she was sick, keeping her company when she couldn’t sleep, even cutting fruit for her. To be honest, over the years, only a handful of people had treated her this well. How could she not be moved?But she was also well aware of how unsuitable she was for Maxim. She wasn't a model citizen, always skirting the edges of society, and who knew when she might just disappear? Maxim, on the other hand, was different. He had a solid reputation, and even if his family life wasn't perfect, at least he lived in the light, while she did not.Feeling a bit down, Tatiana carefully set aside the divorce agreement. It wa
Maxim remained silent, not responding to Tatiana's words. He stiffly accepted the document she handed him and opened it, confirming it was indeed what he had suspected—a divorce agreement. He wondered why he had felt a bit uneasy that morning, thinking it was just due to lack of rest. But now he realized it was because of the impending situation that would unfold that evening. The room fell silent for about a minute. Watching Maxim's expression, Tatiana couldn't tell if he was takingher seriously. After some internal debate, she finally spoke up, "If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. Or if you think something is definitely wrong, let me know so I can have Riley revise it for tomorrow." "Why?" After another half-minute of silence, Taitana finally heard Maxim’s voice directed at her. Another pause followed. "Because I think we’re not suited for each other. From the start, our marriage was just a mutual arrangement, right?” As she spoke, Tatiana got
After saying that, Riley took off her gloves and neatly placed them aside before walking over to Tatiana.As the two of them walked further away, the others working in the garden exchanged glances and murmured among themselves."Isn't it just that she knows a bit more about gardening than we do? It's ridiculous that she caught the lady's attention. I knew from the moment Riley arrived that she was trouble, and it seems I was right.""Exactly! She thinks just because she knows a thing or two, she can flirt with the master. Before long, she'll be trying to use her looks to catch the young master's eye.""I see her as nothing but a gold digger. Someone needs to teach her a lesson; otherwise, she won't even know her own worth.""I agree, a little lesson would do her good."After their conversation, the two women exchanged knowing glances, harboring a strong animosity toward the newcomer, Riley.Meanwhile, Riley was unaware of the brewing trouble. She simply followed Tatiana into her room
“What else could he say? He wants us to handle this case well and to wrap it upquickly. Isn’t that putting me in a tough spot? The suspect has killed three people, and we still don’t even know if it’s a man or a woman.”Mason felt a deep frustration about the situation. In all his years on the job, he had never encountered a case this difficult.“I see,” Delaney said, observing the troubled look on Vance’s face. After a moment of thought, she spoke up, “Vance, I need to tell you something. Please don’t get upset when you hear it.”"What do you mean, what’s going on?"Vance frowned, wondering what could possibly be so important at this moment."It's just that I might have to go back soon. I probably won't be able to continue following this case. But don’t worry, I’ll definitely sign a confidentiality agreement before I leave, and I won’t say anything about this afterward.""Going back?" Vance frowned. He had intended to talk about Delany, but now he found himself at a loss for words
The crisp sound echoed as the cup shattered on the computer.Riley stood frozen for about two seconds before her instincts kicked in, and she shot a fierce glare at Sophie.Sophie was startled by the intensity of Riley's gaze, but recalling what had just happened, she forced herself to say, "I just did it by accident. Who told you to put the cup right next to it?""An accident? I saw you do it! How can you call that an accident?""Thud—"The sound of the cup being slammed down on the table echoed in the room."What are you going to do? You said it was an accident, so is this really necessary? We can just pay for your computer, okay?"Sophie, who had initially looked down on Riley, now seemed a bit intimidated by her fierce expression."Do you think that will help? Didn’t I just tell you how important this computer is? I told you not to touch it!""Bang—""Ah—”A loud thud echoed through the room as Sophie stared in shock at the large patch of blood suddenly staining her forehead. Jus
Soon enough, Maxim put the incident out of his mind.In the office, Maxim set down his pen and rubbed his eyes with one hand. After staring at documents all night, he was feeling quite uncomfortable.Finishing the last sip of his unsweetened coffee, Maxim decided it was time for a break. He stood up and walked over to the massive floor-to-ceiling window, gazing down at the bustling traffic below.After just a few minutes of watching, Maxim received a message from Scott. Thinking something might be wrong, he opened it only to find that Scott was informing him that two unscrupulous housekeepers had been let go by Tatiana.Seeing the title "Madam" in the message reminded Maxim that he hadn't visited Tatiana in quite a while. Work had been incredibly hectic at the company, leaving him no time to go back. However, thinking about Tatiana made him shake his head. He decided that he would make an effort to visit her today.After wrapping up her current matters, it was time for Tatiana to
"Teacher, don’t you have another class this afternoon? Want to grab lunch together?" The message was accompanied by a cute cat emoji.The sender was Talon, one of her students. He was lively and always smiling. Since they were around the same age and shared many common interests, they had become friends.Seeing the message, Tatiana thought for a moment. Since she had no idea what to eat anyway, she decided to reply with a yes. After agreeing on a meeting spot, she set off to meet Talon for lunch."There you are, teacher!" Talon spotted her from a distance and ran up to her, greetingher enthusiastically."I see you! So, what are we eating? I’m not sure what I want, so I’ll let you decide.""I heard a new restaurant opened near the school, and I haven't tried it yet. How about we go there? My roommate said the food is pretty good," Talon suggested.Without a second thought, Tatiana nodded in agreement. Talon's roommate was a girl with great taste; if she said something was good, it
With that thought in mind, Tatiana dug up the phone number of Jayden's agent that she had saved a long time ago. Once she found it, she dialed right away.“Hello, who is this?”The agent had just stepped out of a meeting with the company, trying to argue against Jayden being put on ice. It was clear he wasn’t getting anywhere with the higher-ups, and soon Jayden would be sidelined. He had watched him grow into the person he was today, so it was hard for him to accept this outcome. Her heart ached, and now, the person calling him was about to feel the brunt of his frustration.“...”“Not going to say anything? If you don’t have anything to say, I’ll hang up.” The agent frowned, thinking that the caller must be out of their mind. Who calls and doesn’t say a word? Is this some kind of joke?Just as he was about to hang up the phone, the voice on the other end suddenly spoke up, "It's me."The voice was clear and crisp. He had only heard it from one person before. As soon as Tatiana
As she walked toward the body, Tatiana replied, "Exactly. This time, the person he's imitating just happens to be a cannibal."As she spoke, Tatiana looked at the corpse on the autopsy table. The body was almost unrecognizable; aside from the flesh that had been cut away, she could hardly see what the person's face looked like."Have we figured out who this person is? Did someone come to report it today?" she asked."It's an elderly man who discovered it while passing by that alley. We're still investigating who this woman is, but we should have results by this afternoon at the latest," Vance said, moving closer to Tatiana."Can you tell who the imitator is yet?" he asked."There are many famous cannibals in the world. I'm still looking into it," Tatiana replied.Using a specialized tool, Tatiana flipped the body over and examined it closely. "Dismembered, raped, and partially eaten," she noted grimly.She looked at Vance and murmured, "Many of these twisted cannibals operate this wa
Asking herself this question wouldn’t yield any answers. After half an hour of lost thoughts, she couldn’t fight off the sleepiness any longer and slowly drifted off.The next day, Tatiana still had her mind on last night. She intentionally stayed in bed late before finally heading to the living room, thinking that by now, Maxim must have already retreated to his study to focus on his work.However, to her surprise, as soon as she stepped out, she found Maxim sitting in the living room. She was taken aback. "What are you doing in the living room? Shouldn't you be working in the study at this hour?"Perhaps Tatiana's tone was too filled with surprise and confusion, as Maxim glancedat her and kindly reminded her, "Did you forget that my work on that project is already done?"Hearing this, Tatiana finally remembered that Maxim had indeed completed his work earlier. She slapped her forehead, cursing herself inwardly for her poor memory. How could she forget something like that?Althou
Feeling the sting, Tatiana finally snapped back to reality. She rubbed her forehead and looked at Maxim, saying, “Why did you flick me?” “Who told you to zone out? Do you remember what I just said to you?” Maxim didn’t need to guess that she hadn’t been paying attention, so he reluctantly repeated himself. To his surprise, Tatiana replied, “I was talking to you, but you didn’t hear me. You were busy chopping vegetables, and I was worried you’d cut yourself, so I didn’t want to distract you. I just wanted to help, but I didn’t realize the water was hot and ended up burning myself.” After saying that, she felt like she had only added to Maxim’s troubles. With a pout, she said, “Fine, I’ll just leave you to it. Take your time.” With that, Tatum waved her little hand and walked away. Watching her retreating figure, Maxim couldn’t help but feel helpless. He lowered his head and continued chopping vegetables, but the love in his eyes and the smile at the corners of his mouth
While Tatiana was absorbed in the movie, she didn’t notice that Maxim, who had previously worn a serious expression, broke into a smile the moment he felt her lean closer. The film was a classic, and as it wrapped up, Tatiana finished the last of the fruit on the platter. The softness of the couch made Tatiana reluctant to move, so she just stayed seated. "Are you not getting up? Do you plan to skip dinner tonight?" Maxim asked, looking at the person still lounging on the couch with irritation. "Um..." Tatiana's originally cool tone took on a sweet, childlike quality due to her lazy demeanor, and Maxim found himself surrendering. With no other choice, Maxim said, "Alright, if you want to keep sitting, then go ahead. Do you need any fruit?" "Yes, please." Handing the fruit platter to Maxim, Tatiana looked up and smiled at him. After Tatiana finished a small plate of fruit, Maxim insisted on taking her to the supermarket. The two of them pushed a shopping cart together.
While Tatiana was absorbed in the movie, she didn’t notice that Maxim, who had previously worn a serious expression, broke into a smile the moment he felt her lean closer.The film was a classic, and as it wrapped up, Tatiana finished the last of the fruit on the platter.The softness of the couch made Tatiana reluctant to move, so she just stayed seated."Are you not getting up? Do you plan to skip dinner tonight?" Maxim asked, looking at the person still lounging on the couch with irritation."Um..." Tatiana's originally cool tone took on a sweet, childlike quality due to her lazy demeanor, and Maxim found himself surrendering.With no other choice, Maxim said, "Alright, if you want to keep sitting, then go ahead. Do you need any fruit?""Yes, please." Handing the fruit platter to Maxim, Tatiana looked up and smiled at him.After Tatiana finished a small plate of fruit, Maxim insisted on taking her to the supermarket.The two of them pushed a shopping cart together. Looking at the
"I have a high tolerance for you, but I also hope you won't keep showcasing your limited intelligence in front of me. It only makes me look down on you more, and it’s utterly pointless."With that, Tatiana turned on her heel and walked away, not bothering to glance back at Delany. There was really nothing more to say to someone like her.As Tatiana walked down the street, she initially planned to head home. However, she remembered Tara and realized she hadn’t seen her in the hospital earlier. She took out her phone and sent Tara a message. It didn’t take long for Tara to reply, confirming that she was back at school and not in class. Tatiana decided she would go visit her. Tara was happy to hear that.Putting her phone away, Tatiana hailed a taxi and headed over.Meanwhile, Tara had just finished her meal and put down her empty plate. She left the cafeteria, planning to wait in a small garden behind the school for the hot pot delivery to arrive.Just before Tatiana arrived, Tara s
Vance was taken aback by Tatiana's words. The Tatiana he knew always seemed aloof, quiet, and regal, but hearing her comfort Emily made him realize she wasn't the person he had imagined.Tatiana, however, was too focused on the girl in front of her to notice Vance's daze. As Emily began to lower her guard, Tatiana smiled warmly."What's your name?" she asked kindly.Emily looked at Tatiana's face, shyly smiled,and replied, "I'm Emily, just an ordinary sophomore here. I know the girl who saved me; her name is Tara. She just came to our school not long ago. Funny enough, we're from the same city. I went to high school there too, but I ended up here for college after the entrance exams."Emily had initially thought Tara had always studied in that city, not realizing she had moved there for college. But she felt there was no need to explain that. Instead, she asked, "So, your parents don’t know about what happened? I haven’t seen them come to check on you."When the topic of parents cam
As Tatiana read about his background, she learned that he had a very reclusive and troubled adolescence, suffering from various illnesses and often being abused by his mother. Even after marrying and having children, he was plagued by depression, which eventually led him to commit his first murder.From there, the list of victims continued to grow. As Tatiana read through the details of how the killer had murdered these individuals, she looked down at the case file in her hands. She was now certain that this murderer was mimicking Luca's methods—specifically, the pattern of rape andmurder.However, Luca had truly developed a mental illness due to his sickness. As Tatiana looked at the photos related to the case, she couldn't determine if this murderer was indeed him. It seemed like a highly skilled impersonator; so far, there had been no details discovered about the actual person involved—everything pointed to Andre. At this rate, it felt utterly useless.Putting down the case in
As she pondered this, Tatiana thought about what it would mean if she chose to help them. She would be working alongside Vance. However, it was clear that the higher-ups wanted Delany to stick with Mason too. Tatiana didn’t like the idea of having someone she didn’t get along with hovering around her. With that thought in mind, she decided to call someone on her phone, hoping to have Delany reassigned to another location for a while. It wouldn’t hurt to make that change.Once she settled her thoughts, Tatiana finally focused on the heavy case file in her hands.The next day, Tatiana called Vance to let him know she would be stopping by in the afternoon. The reason for the afternoon visit was simple: she had a meeting with Maxim in the morning to sign contracts with a company. It seemed everything was progressing smoothly.However, when she saw John walk in, her brows furrowed in confusion. She couldn't understand why he was here at this time.Maxim was clearly a bit surprised,