Samantha and Levi were there, too. They were talking to Arthur in the courtyard.They said something that made Arthur crack a smile.Bryce held Holly's hand and walked toward them.When Samantha saw them, she whispered to Arthur, "Uncle Arthur, Holly's here. How could she have the guts to come here after fooling you so badly? She's so shameless."Arthur's smile disappeared.He turned to look at Holly, his expression steely. His gaze expressed his conflicting emotions.Bryce and Holly approached them. When they were about ten feet away, Levi smiled and said politely, "Hello, Bryce."Bryce murmured in response, nodding at him. Then, he nodded at Arthur as a form of acknowledgment.They were a family. Although they all had differing opinions of each other, they had to keep up appearances.Samantha glanced at Holly and said coyly, "When are you going to remarry Holly, Bryce? Uncle Arthur's been looking forward to it for a very long time."Her words seemed harmless on the surface,
The sky turned dark. It was time for dinner.Everyone filed into the dining room.The maids rapidly filled up the table with dish after dish.The food looked amazing.Olivia and Richard sat at the head of the table. They glanced around at the people. Olivia caught sight of Samantha, and she frowned. "Why is she here?"Samantha's expression turned sour instantly.Arthur coughed. "Have you forgotten, Mom? Samantha and Levi are engaged."Olivia chuckled coldly. "Are the women out there really so terrible that you got Levi to marry her? She has no morals or sense of etiquette. How can she be worthy of being our granddaughter-in-law?"Arthur looked uncomfortable. "I told you about it before they got engaged."Olivia looked up at him. "And did I agree to it? I probably didn't."Richard patted her hand. "Let's not talk about this anymore, dear. Let's eat before the food turns cold. Our children are hungry."Olivia put a piece of steak on Holly's plate. "Eat up, Holly."Holly smi
"What? I can't hear what you're saying. The line's really bad here. I'm going to hang up now, Grandma. Bye!"Nina hung up the call with an excuse.After that, Olivia lost her appetite. She was worried that with Moses' weak body, he wouldn't be able to make Nina happy.…The next day, Arthur knocked on Holly's door.He took out his recording pen. It said, "Here's ten billion dollars. Take the money and divorce Bryce at once."Then, a woman's voice sounded. "I'll go to the city hall tomorrow to submit the divorce papers…"Holly could tell that that was her voice.That was what Arthur had said to her last summer.She hadn't expected him to record their conversation. What a sneaky bastard.Arthur stiffened his back, his expression serious. "You took my ten billion dollars, Holly. You divorced Bryce to keep your end of the deal. You cannot go back on your word. "You will either leave him or give me the money back. Otherwise, I'll sue you. Ten billion dollars is enough for you to
It took a long time for Arthur to compose himself.He left Holly's house with a heavy heart.When the driver saw him, he immediately drove the car over to welcome him.Arthur was about to step in when he suddenly thought of something. He then asked, "Did you leave this car?"The driver was stunned. He smiled and said, "I left it for a few minutes to buy some cigarettes at a shop nearby."Arthur's face fell. He retracted his leg.He was afraid that Holly had thrown some sort of explosive into the gas tank.She was ready to fight him to death minutes before.People like him were really afraid of death.Arthur considered his options. Then, he went to the roadside and hailed a cab.This was his first time sitting in a cab.It was uncomfortable sitting in the narrow seats. There was an odd smell in the car, and the windows were broken.When he went back to the company, Arthur immediately told Henry to change the locks on the door and install a camera in the office.He was scare
Bryce stayed quiet as he looked deeply into Holly's eyes with his dark gaze.He walked a few steps forward and brought her into his embrace. He held her tightly and apologetically kissed her hair. "I'm sorry. It was all my fault. I'll get someone to check on this. If my father really was behind this, I won't tolerate it."Holly said nothing and just silently let him hold her. She endured it because they both knew that this might be the last time they hugged.She still wanted him, mentally and physically. They both loved each other, but they had to be separated because of the situation they were in. It was excruciating for the people involved. The two hugged for a long time before they finally let go.Holly turned her head and glanced at the bodyguards from afar. Then, she said to Bryce, "You should call back your bodyguards.""You'll be in danger if I do that."She calmly said, "No. You're always the reason why I'm in danger. Before I married you, I had always been alone and had
Before returning to the ICU, Abelin said to Holly, "Bryce is here, and he just helped Aunt Priscilla pay five million dollars worth of hospital bills in advance."Holly didn't feel happy when she heard that. She wanted to say something, but after a long while, she just said dully, "I'll transfer the money back to him when I'm free."He caught something in what she had said. "Have you two… split up?"She calmly said, "Previously, Arthur kept using my mom to force me to leave Bryce. When I reunited with Yoel, his attitude toward me changed temporarily. "After he learned I wasn't Yoel's actual daughter, he hurt my mom. If I don't leave Bryce, I'm worried that Arthur might send someone to finish the job."Her voice changed slightly, and her gaze became cold. "My mom treated me like her own, and I can't be a bad daughter to her for my own relationship."She wasn't crying in pain or raging. Instead, she was speaking calmly. However, Abelin felt complicated when he heard what she had
"Alright, Mr. Gabelman Senior." Henry left the room and closed the door behind him.Arthur stared at the closed door and sighed. Then, he said to himself, "Your obsession with love isn't like me at all, you brat. If you're going to be like this, how can I let you have the company without worrying? Is that woman with such a poor background that important?"He couldn't believe that Bryce would want to cut ties with him for Holly. The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. Then, he grabbed another phone to call Bryce again.…Bryce coldly glanced at the incoming call and scoffed. Then, he blocked Arthur again before keeping his phone back in his pocket.Bryce held a huge container of food in his left hand and a shoebox in his right as he made his way to the hospital Priscilla was staying in. Then, he ran into Abelin, who came out to buy some food for Holly.He passed the food and shoebox to the latter. "Holly must be starving. Here are some of her favorite foods fro
Abelin glanced at the shoebox on the ground and called out, "Wait!"Holly turned around and looked at him in confusion. He opened the shoebox and held the shoes up. "Bryce bought you some shoes. You should change into them."It was a pair of soft leather shoes. It was made from a soft, comfortable material, and it was light beige.Holly felt sad when she saw them. She held them in her hands for a long time before finally putting them on. They fitted her feet perfectly, and they felt comfortable. Then, she dumped the dirty slippers in the trash can.Abelin assigned two bodyguards to send her to the hotel. It was opposite the hospital, and Holly could get there on foot.The streetlight shone dimly, and the trees danced as the wind picked up. Holly buttoned up her coat and felt something was off as she walked. It felt like someone was following her. She turned around and scanned the area. Then, she saw a tall figure in the distant shadows.He looked tall and had long legs. His figur
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