After leaving the hospital, Holly wrapped her arms around Bryce and placed her head on his chest.She didn't need to say anything for Bryce to know that she was grateful for him.She was even more touched by his kindness to Yoel than she was by his kindness to her.Bryce ran his hand through her soft, long hair. "It's just a small thing I did. Is it really worth being so grateful for? You're not even this moved by what I've done before."Holly said nothing. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his jaw.She didn't have to speak to get her point across.The driver drove the car to her side and opened the door.Holly hugged Bryce again, not wanting to leave. Then, she got into the car.After sending Holly off, Bryce went back into the hospital ward.He washed up and lay in his own bed after turning off the lights.Without Holly around, the men didn't have much to say to each other.Silence filled the room.Not long after, Yoel pulled his blanket aside to go to the washroom.Br
After leaving Yoel's ward, Arthur got into the car and went to Gabelman Group.He went up to Bryce's office. There was no need to beat around the bush with his own son.He said, "I think something's off about Yoel. He asked me if I'd agree to your marriage with Holly if she weren't his daughter. Why would he ask something like that out of the blue?"Bryce said stoically, "Because you were too ruthless before, and he's being cautious.""I was not ruthless. I was being realistic. It was for your own good.""I don't need to rely on anyone.""The world of business waits for no one. It has its ups and downs. It's best to have a safety net. Having a rich father-in-law means that he can help you in times of need. "You're young. You'll know better when you're older."Bryce didn't want to hear generic things like that anymore.He put the documents in his hands on the table and rapped his knuckles on the smooth wood. He said nonchalantly, "Is that all?""Your grandfather will be celeb
Holly felt sad about it. If she hadn't reunited with Yoel, Arthur never would've talked about her and her family.Yoel was a famous painter and the second largest shareholder of Larsen Enterprise, so he was well-known in Jardington. People in the upper social class were realistic. They would tend to trample those who were lower than them while flattering those who were greater.The crowd wouldn't stop complimenting Yoel and Holly. Since there wasn't much they could praise about him, they moved their focus to Holly, saying how beautiful and elegant she was. Given their identities, any adult would feel great to have their children praised by the crowd.They kept flattering Holly like there was no tomorrow, and Yoel kept smiling gracefully.Arthur felt proud as he listened to the compliments as well. He laughed and said, "My daughter-in-law is beautiful and talented. She can do anything and is the perfect fit for my son."He had totally forgotten how much he despised her previous
The document felt warm since Levi had carried it in his pocket for a while.Levi unfolded it and passed it to Arthur. "This is the DNA test conducted with Holly's hair and Yoel's skin cells. They aren't biological father and daughter. "As for why they teamed up to lie to you, it's scary to think about it. Please think this through."Arthur's face fell, and he took the document. He didn't have the patience to go through the details, so he went straight to the end of the papers and looked at the result. Seeing that it had a negative result, his heart skipped a beat. It felt like he had missed a step on a tall building.Even if he had gone through a lot in his life, he still couldn't accept this sudden news. When he thought about how awkward he felt in front of Yoel and Holly recently, he became more and more angry. He was so furious that his face twisted, and he was getting goosebumps. Arthur was about to blow his top.Then, Levi pretended to be kind as he reminded him, "If you
Yoel didn't think too much about it and left after washing his hands. Then, the staff locked the door from the inside and took out a disposable cup. He took a sample of the urine and poured it into a bottle that he had prepared in advance.Meanwhile, the staff who was pretending to be from a gas company managed to trick Annie, who was looking after the house. He also successfully stole Holly's toothbrush.The two samples were secretly brought to a DNA testing facility for a quick test.Since Bryce's legs were injured a few years ago, the Gabelman family hadn't had such a grand event for so long. That was the liveliest birthday banquet that they had ever held in recent years, and it was also the saddest banquet Arthur had ever taken part in.…After waiting for a full day, Arthur couldn't take it anymore. Before the results came out, he called Bryce to his office. After he closed the door, he tossed the wrinkled papers in his hand at Bryce. "Do you know about this?"As if Bryce
"Impossible! I want to do another test." Arthur walked to his phone to call his assistant.Bryce grabbed his hand and said, "Stop torturing Holly."Arthur looked up at him and asked, "What's wrong? Are you scared now?"Bryce faintly smiled. "Why should I be? After all, Holly really is Yoel's daughter. I just don't want you to affect her mood."Arthur scoffed. "You only care about her, but have you ever cared about my feelings? You've been messing with me recently! Is it okay when I'm the one being humiliated?" He would get infuriated whenever he thought about how they had treated him previously.Bryce's gaze flashed with mockery. "Mr. Gabelman Senior, don't you think you've brought it upon yourself?""Everything that I've done was all for you! We should always humbly accept other people's assistance and listen to others' advice. You don't understand me now, but you eventually will when you've reached my age."Bryce couldn't be bothered listening to him yapping. He grabbed the
"Come here. Get closer."Levi obediently walked to Arthur's desk. Arthur grabbed the three documents and slapped them on Levi's face. "These are the DNA tests that Bryce had done with Yoel's hair and toothbrush and Holly's hair. They were even stamped by the police. Take a look at them for yourself."Levi was stunned by how the tables had turned so suddenly. He bent down to pick up the papers and went through them. When he was done looking at the details, he was confused. "How is this possible?"Arthur chided him, "Stop playing tricks like this in the future. I hate it the most when you two fight!"Levi tried to explain himself. "Dad, you've misunderstood me. I just didn't want to see you be fooled by Holly and Yoel. I wasn't planning to do anything to Bryce."Arthur looked upset. "Holly is Yoel's daughter, and that's the fact. Don't play any tricks behind my back next time. Get out." Arthur's gaze was filled with frustration.Levi had always listened to Arthur and didn't dar
The more Bryce looked at Yoel and Holly, the more he thought they looked like father and daughter. However, Yoel tampered with the DNA tests repeatedly, and Bryce found that suspicious.He clenched his fist and brought it to his lips before clearing his throat softly. Holly finally realized he had returned, so she put down her book and stood up. Then, she quickly walked to his side. "You're back.""Yeah."She helped him take off his coat and habitually undid his tie. That was a habit she had picked up in their three years of marriage. Since she was used to it, she didn't think too much about it.However, Yoel felt uncomfortable when he saw it. He wanted to pamper her and give her lots of love. He didn't want her to serve others. Even if Bryce was her man, he still didn't like it.Realizing what was on his mind, he faintly shook his head. Yoel had never been a father before, and he didn't expect himself to be so immersed in the role in such a short time. It was natural for a fath
Sitting by Bryce's bed, Holly softly held his slender fingers as if such a move would keep him safe.She must have been exhausted or emotionally spent, as she soon fell asleep by the bed. She then suffered a nightmare, in which Bryce stood in front of her, covered in blood from head to toe. Forcing a smile, he said to her, "Holly, I can't stay by your side anymore. You need to take care of yourself and be strong."After that, he turned into wisps of smoke and vanished right in front of her eyes. She frantically reached out to hold him, but she was clawing at the air.She waved her hands madly to take hold of him and run after him. Her voice was hoarse from all the yelling. "Bryce! Bryce Gabelman!"Her shouting was futile. Jolting awake, she gasped for air. Her forehead was drenched in sweat, and her eyes were wet from crying.She noticed that she was lying in the caregiver's bed. Someone—perhaps Bryce—had carried her to the bed.Bryce managed to get out of bed and lay by her
"You're injured. Don't stay on the floor—it's cold. Get up now!" Holly cautiously pulled Bryce up from the ground.He was speechless at her response. Any other woman would have happily accepted the ring and put it on.Perhaps, the woman he loved was different from the others.Going on one knee, Bryce refused to get up. He tenderly stared at Holly. "I'll get up after you agree to remarry me.""Get up now, and I'll agree to it."Defeated, he stood up, held her hand, and tried to put the ring on her finger when he was overwhelmed by a wave of dizziness. He lost his balance and collapsed forward onto her.Holly quickly held him and asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"Bryce's lips parted. He wanted to reassure her that he was fine, but he couldn't utter a word. Soon after, his fingers that grasped the ring went numb. The large diamond ring dropped to the ground, spinning and clattering until it came to a stop.Panicking, Holly patted his cheek. "What's going on?"However, Bryce didn't
Looking at the man in Holly's embrace, Abelin turned his attention back to his phone. He asked inquisitively, "Who are you?"The person on the other end of the line was filled with anger. "I'm Bryce. I called her phone, but it was switched off."Abelin replied honestly, "She lost her phone.""Where is she right now?" Bryce questioned indifferently.After Abelin told him the villa's address, Bryce hung up.Abelin once again glanced at his phone before looking toward the dazed-looking Holly. "Holly, I think this man might not be Bryce."Holly shook her head. "You don't need to comfort me.""I just got a call from Bryce. He's on his way here."Holly thought he was lying and refused to believe him. When Abelin wanted to pull her away from the corpse, Holly got triggered and pushed him away. "Don't touch him! He'll be in pain!"Seeing Holly in such a dazed and abnormal state, Abelin felt a sense of pity for her.A tall figure emerged from the door about 45 minutes later. He was we
Abelin wanted to follow through with the protocol, but Holly refused.Realizing they weren't locals, the police decided to let them be. Thus, Abelin sent Holly and the corpse back to a villa their family seldom stayed in.Upon arriving at the villa, Holly did nothing but hold onto the bloodied man dazedly. Her heart felt heavy and chaotic. She was filled with regret and self-blame.Did she regret breaking up with him? The answer was no. Instead, she regretted not being firm enough with her decision. If she had been more resolute and didn't give him any hope of reconciling, he wouldn't have flown to Calria to find her. Correspondingly, he wouldn't have gotten into a car accident and died.Death was such a dreadful word. Bryce was gone, forever disappearing from this world. Holly would never hear his voice or see his smile and face. It was all gone.She would never see him again. She would rather he had lived, no matter who he ended up with in the future. She just wanted him to
The driver pressed the pedal, made a U-turn, and accelerated. When Holly arrived at the address Tobin sent, she saw two deformed cars at the crash scene. However, she didn't find anyone there.Holly's heart skipped a beat. She could only call Tobin repeatedly. However, the call didn't go through.Bryce and the others didn't own a car, only renting one after they got off the plane. Thus, Holly didn't know which car belonged to them.The driver continued driving a bit further until they came upon a collision between a car and a truck. The car's front end was completely obliterated. The driver was cut in half at the waist, and the person in the back seat was so badly mangled that his face was unrecognizable.A loud roar echoed in Holly's mind as it went blank. Her gaze fell on the man's blood-soaked suit. This was the deep-colored suit that Bryce always wore. The man had long legs. The wrist that was hanging out of the car wore a Patek Philippe Celestial watch.Holly remembered the
The moment Bryce reached Calria and got off the plane, he received a call from an unknown number. He took the call with furrowed eyebrows. "Hello. Who are you?"Zenia fumed. "I'm Zenia. Holly and Abelin's wedding is today. Your woman snatched away the man I loved!" She hung up the call after that.Bryce didn't believe her. He tapped into his messages, and several wedding photos came into view. Although the images were not high resolution, one could at least make out the newlywed's features.The groom wearing a suit had striking facial features, and Bryce recognized him as Abelin. Meanwhile, the woman was dressed in a fitted floor-length gown and wore a white veil. Under the thin veil, Bryce could make out her defined features. The woman was none other than Holly.Bryce felt like he had been struck by lightning. His mind went blank, and the hand holding the phone turned cold.He could feel his heart sinking and his blood going cold. Instantly, he felt he got toyed and betrayed
Michelle was gravely ill, with her vision and hearing failing. Thus, they should be able to deceive her.While Abelin let out a sigh of relief, Merope threw daggers at him. She couldn't believe he was stupid enough to let go of such a good opportunity. She wondered why someone as smart as her would have such a dumb son.As it was almost time for the wedding ceremony, Merope wheeled the sickly Michelle out. Michelle's complexion seemed better than a few days back, perhaps due to the joyful event or the effects of terminal lucidity. Her dull eyes were shining when she saw Abelin and the fake bride on the red carpet.Michelle pursed her lips and asked Merope, "Is he really getting married to Holly?"Merope replied unwillingly, "Yes.""Bring me over to have a look," Michelle ordered. When Merope wheeled her over to the fake bride, Michelle took her reading glasses from her pocket with trembling hands.Abelin held his breath as Michelle eyed the fake bride up and down. He was fear
Merope pleaded earnestly, "Abel, your grandmother is on her last breath. Please try to fulfill her last wish for her."Abelin didn't seem to reject this plan as much as before. "Wedding arrangements are already in place, and I've notified a couple of cousins. I'll try to make the entire wedding as genuine as possible."Merope was overjoyed. "Why did you suddenly change your mind? Is Holly the bride?""No. I found a woman who looks quite similar to her. Grandma is old and has blurry eyesight. I doubt she'll recognize her."Merope rebuked, "Your grandma isn't blind!""Well, that's all." Abelin then hung up the call.…Three days later, many relatives gathered at the Gabelman residence. The brightly decorated courtyard was filled with people. Abelin hired a professional wedding team in advance, making sure the officiant, red carpet, circular arch, fresh flowers, and bridal bouquet were all in place. A professional violin team was also playing the wedding march.Although it was a
Abelin called Priscilla's bodyguards, and they arrived at the Calria police station together.The bodies were stored in the morgue. Since they weren't Calrians, the police couldn't find any information on them or confirm their identities.However, they were sure that the two bodies had something to do with Priscilla because one of the bodyguards left a long scratch mark on one of the culprit's arms. At that moment, the mark was rotten due to being submerged in the water. The skin was peeling, and it was a horrifying sight.Clearly, the person behind the culprits was worried they might get caught and expose their employer's identity. So, someone was sent to silence them right away. It was easy for someone like them to kill a person.After giving a statement, the police told Abelin that they were going to do an autopsy on the bodies. Once they had news, they would call him again.After coming out of the police station, Abelin got into his car and called Bryce. "The two guys who hu