Michelle stared at Holly before breaking into a weak smile. "I never thought… I'd be alive… to see both of you again."She couldn't catch her breath after speaking.Holly wanted to help ease Michelle's breathing by patting her chest. Yet she was so weak that Holly dared not even touch her.She hurriedly said, "Please don't tire yourself from speaking anymore, Granny Michelle."Michelle coughed and said breathlessly, "Don't call me that anymore. Just call me 'Granny,' like Abel does."Holly hesitated before calling gently, "Granny."Michelle let out a heavy sigh. A strange gleam flickered in her cloudy eyes.The door was opened. A tall man dressed in black casual clothes walked in. He was handsome and sported a crew cut. It was Abelin.He paused momentarily when he saw Holly. Surprise surged within him, compelling him to say something cheerful. Yet he hesitated—it was rather inappropriate, after all.Abelin contained his surprise and asked casually, "Why are you guys here?"
Holly was quick in feeding liquid food to Michelle and changing her adult diapers. She had no complaints at all and did a better job than the caregiver they hired.Michelle refused to let anyone else take care of her after two days with Holly.She grew fonder of Holly as she lay on the hospital bed, watching her.Michelle had taken a liking to Holly ever since she was still a young girl. Holly was Michelle's ideal granddaughter-in-law—gentle, obedient, diligent, good in studies, and even painted well.Holly would have become her granddaughter-in-law if it weren't for that incident.Upon hearing that Holly was there, Zenia rushed over to the hospital to tend to Michelle. But she didn't know how to attend to someone as she grew up being pampered.Zenia either burned Michelle's lips when she fed her or hurt Michelle when she was trying to massage her legs.Michelle kicked her out in a fit of anger.Zenia questioned Merope angrily, "Is the marriage between me and Abe that you've
Holly's mind raced. "Granny is on her last breath. I'll just take it as repaying Abel's kindness."Bryce felt heartbroken. He fell silent before saying, "You should take care of yourself."Holly said, "You, too. Don't overwork yourself, and rest earlier at night. Don't drink too much when you're out socializing. Don't smoke, either. Remember to dress up warmly in the cold weather."A soft smile graced Bryce's lips. "You're just too kind-hearted. Kind people tend to suffer."Holly chuckled. "I wouldn't have taken care of you without a single complaint for two years if I wasn't nice. Didn't you like me because of my sense of loyalty? Everything happens for a reason."Bryce teased, "Oh, wow! You're talking philosophy with me now."Both of them conversed through the international call. They only ended the call reluctantly when their phones were heating up.Holly missed Bryce dearly as she lay on the spacious bed. She missed his hugs, his scent, and his kisses. She also missed the wa
Holly filled the thermos flask with her homemade oatmeal before going to the hospital.Just as she placed the thermos flask down, Abelin called her out. They walked over to a secluded corner.Abelin looked down at her tired face. He was heartbroken. "Why are you here again? Aren't you supposed to head back today?"Holly was calm when she replied, "I promised Aunt Merope to take care of Granny until her final breath."Abelin said, "There's really no need for you to repay me back. Everything I did was voluntary. I would feel indebted and sorry for you if you exhausted yourself like this."Don't listen to my mom, either. She went through some tough times when she was younger, so her mindset was somewhat twisted. Just take whatever she says with a grain of salt and don't take them to heart."Holly thought for a bit. "I'll take care of Granny for another week. Then, I'll head back. Is that fine?"Abelin said, "Just go back tomorrow."Holly replied, "I'll stay for another week."Abe
Abelin rolled the car windows up before quietly driving away.When Holly finally turned around, he was no longer there.She picked up her phone to call Abelin. As soon as she dialed his number, she hung up. Instead, she opted to send him a message. "Drive slowly."Holly then followed Bryce back into the hotel.…As soon as they entered the room, Bryce took Holly's hands and examined them carefully. Her once delicate fingers had now turned rough. There were even hangnails on the sides of her nails.Bryce pinched her fingers and said, "Were you doing manual labor here? Your hands are so rough. They weren't like this back when you were doing restoration on a daily basis."Holly pulled her hands out. "Granny has late-stage cancer. I've been taking care of her for the past few days. I'll take care of my hands once I'm back."Bryce's gaze turned cold. "You could've just put on a show. I wasn't expecting you to really do it for real."Holly said, "She's rather pitiful."Bryce said,
Moses weighed his options. Nina was a feisty woman.If he gave her his card, she would simply throw it back at him and tell him to fuck off.However, his inexperience in pursuing women didn't mean that he couldn't handle social situations.After considering things for a while, he said, "I'll give her flowers, then teddy bears, jewelry, and then my card.""Yeah. You can do whatever you deem fit. Nina's much easier to pursue than Holly. You can tell everything that Nina is thinking just by looking at her face. "Holly, on the other hand, keeps her emotions hidden. I have to read her mind."Moses felt annoyed. Bryce married Holly without even dating her. What did he have to complain about? He had it easy, but he was acting like he had it tough.But he didn't tell him that. After all, Bryce was Nina's brother. He would be his brother-in-law in the future. Thus, Moses couldn't offend him.He asked, "What does Nina like to eat?"Bryce smiled. "Well, she eats everything under the sky
After the movie, Moses drove Nina home.Nina sat in the passenger seat, holding on to the unfinished bucket of popcorn, chewing quietly.Moses glanced at her adorable face, his heart thumping. "What else would you like to eat? I'll go get them for you."Nina babbled, "I feel like having roasted beef, lamb, chicken, mashed potatoes, fries, hotdogs, sandwiches, eggs, ice cream…"She listed over a hundred types of food.Moses smiled.What Bryce said was true. Nina really loved eating. It was extraordinary that she wasn't putting on any weight at all."It's not good to have such calorie-dense stuff at night. I'll take you out to have them all tomorrow."Nina was reasonable. "Alright."The car stopped outside Gabelman Manor.Moses opened the car door and walked her to the gate.When they were almost there, Nina suddenly said, "Close your eyes, Moses. Don't open them until I tell you to."Moses closed his eyes obediently.Nina stood on her toes. She wanted to kiss his eyes, but
Arthur dragged Nina home.Once they were inside the house, he flung her onto the couch.Arthur placed a hand on his hip and said to Sherry, "Look at what your daughter has done now. She's dating Moses Cott."Sherry was wearing a yellow silk nightgown. She walked down the stairs slowly, saying indifferently, "So what if she does? Is there a law saying that she can't date him?"Arthur frowned. "Are you even her mother?"Sherry smiled coldly. "I'm more responsible than you are."Arthur sneered. "Moses had leukemia when he was younger. The treatment makes the other cells die, and it affects his fertility. How could he make Nina happy with a body like that?"Sherry raised an eyebrow. "Children are good at recovering. Moses' illness was treated a long time ago. He's pretty healthy. He just might have fertility issues. "Besides, it doesn't make him any less of a man. Even if he can't have children, they can just not have kids. It hurts so badly that it's not worth it anyway."Arthur
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