In the basement, Sophie slowly opened her eyes."Where… is this place? Am I… still alive?" she thought.She couldn't see things clearly as her vision was blurry. She could only see the spots of light above her head, and she found the light dazzling.Her pupils shrank to protect her eyes from the light. It took her a while before her vision became clear again.Yet, she could still see nothing.She tried to sit up to see where she was but found out that she couldn't move her body.She had no strength at all.These powerless, helpless, and hopeless feelings reminded her of everything that had happened before she fell unconscious.Her baby, Mandy, and… Mitchell.She couldn't forget the scene where the man had left with Mandy in his arms and how she was left in that cold pool of blood!She immediately lost hope, thinking it was better for her to die since her baby was gone. Mitchell had abandoned her, too.Sophie wondered what was the point of staying alive."Beep… Beep…"A lou
"I'm back."In her bedroom, Sophie Warner stared at the message on her phone, lost in thought. It was from an unknown number.Normally, she would have dismissed it as a message someone had sent by mistake. But for some reason, she found herself inexplicably intrigued.A sudden knock on the door interrupted her thoughts."Ms. Sophie."It was the housekeeper, Wrenn Torres.Sophie set her phone down and said, "Come in."Wrenn entered the room, carrying a tray with a cup of honey tea. With just one glance, Sophie understood what Wrenn was there for.Sophie's husband, Mitchell Warner, often experienced throat discomfort, so he regularly took honey tea as a remedy for it.Sophie lowered her gaze slightly, concealing the emotions swirling in them.Wrenn asked, "Is Mr. Mitchell staying in the guest room again? Ms. Sophie, forgive me for speaking out of turn, but there are certain matters where you should take the initiative as his wife."You can't let those cheap women snatch Mr. Mi
Mitchell's expression remained unchanged. His tone dripped with sarcasm as he asked, "Is this your new tactic? Retreat to advance?""No, I'm serious."Though Sophie had uttered the words in a moment of impulse, she didn't regret them.Back when she had first found out that she was going to marry Mitchell, she had been overjoyed, thinking that she would spend every moment of her life with him.But who could have imagined that in just three short years, she would be considering divorce?Perhaps she shouldn't have harbored such fantasies from the start."Are you?" Mitchell's gaze swept over Sophie disdainfully, filled with mockery and stark disbelief."You willingly sacrificed your virginity to force me into marrying you. Now you're tired of it and want to be with someone else? Even if we divorce, I'll be the one who brings it up! You have no right!""Fine. I'll wait for you to bring it up."Sophie slowly got up from the floor, adjusted her shirt, and headed out. As she reached t
Before Sophie had the chance to fully grasp what was happening or understand the meaning behind Mitchell's words, she was swept up in a tumultuous wave.It hurt. Yet, she secretly felt a sense of joy in her heart.She slowly reached out, embracing him tightly.Had he finally accepted her? Did this mean he had forgiven her?But soon, she had no energy to think further.…When Sophie woke up again, it was already the next day. As she recalled the passionate night before, her cheeks flushed slightly.Just then, she heard an unfriendly voice. "Are you awake? Eat this."She turned to see that Mitchell had already risen from bed and was fully dressed. He tossed something over to her."What's this?" Sophie asked in confusion. Her expression froze when she read the label on the box.Morning-after pills?"Why?"Hadn't he already forgiven her? Why did he want her to take these pills?"Isn't it obvious?" Mitchell's gaze was icy, and his tone was filled with contempt.Sophie was mome
There was a sharp, piercing sound of a blade cutting through flesh. Sophie's body went limp, and she collapsed to the floor."Cherie!" Mitchell exclaimed as he held the unconscious Sophie tightly in his arms, a hint of panic crossing his usually impassive face."Shane!" he growled as he glared at the assailant menacingly.The assailant trembled, too frightened to even flee.Shane Hopkins, Mitchell's assistant, reacted quickly and led a team to apprehend the assailant.While the scene descended into chaos, nobody dared to approach Mitchell. He was so intimidating that the crowd instinctively parted to make way for him.He strode out of the building with Sophie cradled in his arms. "Get her to the hospital now!"In her dazed state, Sophie thought she heard a tremor in Mitchell's voice and the long-forgotten term of endearment he used for her—Cherie.She tried to see his face, but she could only make out his jawline before she blacked out.…When Sophie regained consciousness, s
As Sophie stirred awake once more, it was already late at night. She shifted her head and found Kendall slouched beside her bed, with no one else in sight.Sophie couldn't help but smile bitterly.Though she had long anticipated this outcome, she couldn't shake off the hope that perhaps, after accompanying Wyola, Mitchell would come to see her.And that perhaps she hadn't just imagined him calling her "Cherie".Mitchell was the only person in the whole world who called her that.Back when the Warners had taken her in, everyone had mocked her for being an unwanted orphan who didn't even have a name.Sophie wasn't her real name. She had been named on a whim on the day she had been adopted.She had often been bullied and ridiculed by the children at school, and she would sneak away to the attic to cry alone. One day, Mitchell had found her. "Since you don't have a name, let me give you one. I'm 'Mitchell', so let's call you 'Cherie'."From then on, he had affectionately called h
The next day, at the hospital, Sophie gripped her phone tightly, biting her lip. She had been unable to reach Mitchell since the night before.It was almost 8:00 pm. If she didn't show up at Horizon Hotel on time, Gertrude would surely not let her off the hook.But to obey her orders and have a child with Mitchell…At that thought, Sophie smiled bitterly.Even if she set aside her dignity and stooped so low, what could she do to a man who despised her and would rather have an illegitimate child than have one with her?Since Gertrude had said that she would handle everything, Mitchell would surely show up at Horizon Hotel later. When they met, Sophie would talk to him properly about getting a divorce.Determined, Sophie changed into regular clothes and headed to Horizon Hotel.When she arrived, Room 1088 was empty. There were still 15 minutes left until 8:00 pm. She quietly waited in the room.Perhaps due to her injury, Sophie felt dizzy and feverish. She stood up, intending to
The message was from the same unknown number as before.Agitated, Sophie stared at it. Three years, it said. The time frame was too coincidental. Could it be...An incredulous thought flashed through her mind.Could it be her?No… No way. Sophie kept reassuring herself, but the fear in her heart continued to grow.Where was Mitchell now? Had he received the message too?Her hands trembled as she dialed Mitchell's number. However, all she heard was a tone indicating that the line was busy. The call wouldn't connect.Why couldn't it connect?Normally, she would have stopped calling after the first unsuccessful attempt. But this time, she kept calling Mitchell over and over again like a madwoman.Yet, the call never went through.The fear that had been building up inside Sophie reached its peak.Suddenly, her phone vibrated again, and a notification popped up. Someone had sent her an email.The attached image showed a man lying peacefully on a bed with a faint smile on his
In the basement, Sophie slowly opened her eyes."Where… is this place? Am I… still alive?" she thought.She couldn't see things clearly as her vision was blurry. She could only see the spots of light above her head, and she found the light dazzling.Her pupils shrank to protect her eyes from the light. It took her a while before her vision became clear again.Yet, she could still see nothing.She tried to sit up to see where she was but found out that she couldn't move her body.She had no strength at all.These powerless, helpless, and hopeless feelings reminded her of everything that had happened before she fell unconscious.Her baby, Mandy, and… Mitchell.She couldn't forget the scene where the man had left with Mandy in his arms and how she was left in that cold pool of blood!She immediately lost hope, thinking it was better for her to die since her baby was gone. Mitchell had abandoned her, too.Sophie wondered what was the point of staying alive."Beep… Beep…"A lou
There wouldn't be any country's laws that allowed such a drug to be released.However, upon hearing such horrifying side effects, the woman didn't hesitate at all before she said, "Use it on her."Although the man in a white coat was the one who proposed the idea, he was stunned by the woman's ruthless attitude."Once this medicine is used on her, there's no turning back… What if—" He tried to dissuade her.The woman coldly interrupted him, "Just use it. I'll take the responsibility if anything happens."Listening to the words, the man in a white coat stopped speaking and nodded. "Understood."He was just following orders. The result and the patient's life weren't his responsibilities. It was such a pity, though. Looking at the woman's pale yet charming face on the operating table, he could only sigh. He didn't even know what he was lamenting about.The woman got what she wanted and left.It was also dark outside. Followed by the sound of the door opening, the wall lamps we
Harold sounded worried on the phone.There was an immediate change in Mitchell's expression when he heard Harold's words. "What do you mean by 'missing'?""Earlier tonight, Ms. Sophie suddenly rushed out and drove away. I thought she might have something to settle. But after waiting all night, Ms. Sophie didn't return. I tried to call her but the call couldn't get through," Harold explained the situation briefly.Mitchell's restless feeling had reached its peak at this moment."Got it." He hung up the phone and left the hospital.In the emergency room, Mandy was still in a coma, having no idea that Mitchell had left.Although she was the one who had planned everything, she stabbed herself forcefully to make it seem more convincing. Besides, she stabbed herself a little longer before Mitchell arrived to show that she had suffered from excessive blood loss. Although her life was not in danger at the moment, her condition wasn't good either. On the other side, Sophie was in a mo
She couldn't wait longer to be saved. However, the phone in front of her was still dialing. Mitchell didn't pick up her call.He chose Mandy.Sophie suddenly tasted a bitter saltiness in her mouth.At that moment, she realized that she was crying.She raised her teary and blurry eyes. Through the mist, she saw Mitchell lifting Mandy, who was lying on the ground, outside. That cold man looked worried."Mitch, you're finally here…" She heard Mandy's weak yet joyful voice."Stop talking. Let me take you to the hospital now."She also heard the man's voice which was slow yet tense.She struggled to make a hoarse sound and silently called the man's name, hoping he could notice her behind the wall. And their child…However, that man, who had said he wanted to live happily and have a child with her, was only worried about Mandy in his arms at the moment. He lifted Mandy and hurriedly left the warehouse without even looking in her direction.She could even clearly spot her glasse
She wondered if she would die there that day. Sophie had no idea what others would think before they died. Right now, she could only think about the baby inside her. That poor, barely three-month-old baby, who didn't even have the chance to see the world.She thought it was all her fault.She wouldn't have fallen into Mandy's trap if she had been more careful. Her baby wouldn't have died tragically with her.What if there was a chance to turn back time, would she still risk anything to come and save Mitchell?As Sophie was thinking, she realized that if she was given another chance, she might have done the same thing.She couldn't bear to watch Mitchell being harmed. Even if it was just a possibility.If that was the case, she had no regrets.It was just that if she could turn back time, she hoped that the baby wouldn't choose to be her child again.She wasn't a good mother, for she had failed to protect the baby.If the baby chose someone else as the mother, that person w
"Don't worry. Didn't you just hear it? Mitch will be here soon.""Mitch… Mitchell…"Sophie suddenly felt that there was still hope when she heard Mitchell would be there soon.He would definitely save their child."Mitchell… Mitch… Please come as soon as possible…" she muttered secretly. She had never been so eager for Mitchell to appear in front of her as she was at the moment.She didn't even realize why Mitchell, who was supposed to still be unconscious, would be able to answer Mandy's call.She only hoped that Mitchell would arrive sooner and save her baby.Mandy was extremely jealous as she saw the glint of hope in Sophie's eyes. She couldn't fathom what right Sophie had that made her deserve such special treatment from Mitchell.Sophie was just a lowly orphan. She wouldn't even have had the chance to meet Mitchell for the rest of her life if she hadn't been adopted by the Warner family!Not only did she become the adopted daughter of the Warner family, but she even
In a private room in a hotel, Mitchell watched the people, who were still chatting and toasting at the dining table. Feeling annoyed, he slightly furrowed his brows.For some reason, he had been feeling uneasy since just now. He felt like something was about to happen.It happened that he had to entertain several important customers that day.When the conversation paused, he told them he was going to smoke and left the private room.Leaning against the wall in the corridor, he rubbed his forehead to reduce the uneasy feeling. He took out his phone and intended to call Sophie.For some reason, he wanted to hear her voice at that moment. However, the call wouldn't go through.Mitchell started to feel uneasy again. He attempted to call Harold but his phone was showing no signal.It turned out that he had no signal there.Feeling relieved, Mitchell took his phone and walked to the end of the corridor, where his phone finally showed a full signal bar.When he was about to call
She swayed and only managed to glance at Mandy before she completely lost consciousness...The tall man was gone when Sophie woke up.She was bound with ropes, surrounded by high piles of debris. She seemed to be kept at the back of the abandoned warehouse.Sophie heard a voice in front of her when she was still looking around. "So you're awake."Only then did she notice Mandy was standing not far in front of her.Seeing that Sophie had opened her eyes, Mandy slowly walked toward her. She squatted down in front of Sophie and sized the latter up.Her gaze stopped at Sophie's belly.Sensing that, Sophie instinctively curled her body, trying to protect her belly.It was only then that she realized the pain in her abdomen.She felt like something was about to detach from her body. This feeling filled her with sudden intense panic and unease.Sophie desperately prayed that her baby could stay strong and promised to keep it safe. "You're pregnant," Mandy suddenly said. She sounde
Sophie drove to the address Mandy had sent her. It was an old, abandoned warehouse.Sophie had no time to think about anything else, so she pushed open the door and walked into the warehouse.Mandy had been waiting inside. She chuckled when she saw Sophie walk in. "I didn't expect that you'd actually come to meet me."Sophie frowned, finding that Mandy's words were somewhat strange. She suppressed her doubts and looked around, but she saw no one else.She wasn't sure whether to be disappointed or relieved.After all, Mitchell wouldn't be in danger as long as she got to calm Mandy down."How do you want to end things between us?" Sophie asked while standing tall to look at Mandy on an old abandoned chair.Mandy suddenly asked, "Do you remember that bet I told you?""What?" Sophie couldn't fully react."I had a bet with you to see whether Mitch cared about you or me," Mandy said.Sophie pursed her lips while remaining silent.She didn't understand why Mandy would bring up th