After leaving Hope's infirmary, Otto returned to the mansion. The moment he entered, Calbert immediately went up to him and asked about Yvonne."Did you see Yvonne? I heard that her situation is quite serious."Seeing Otto distracted, Calbert shoved him. "Are you alright? I'm talking to you! Don't tell me that Yvonne has …""No." Otto immediately shut down the terrible thought in Calbert's mind. "She's still there, lying in bed. Her situation is just bad. Everyone is trying to get her infection under control."Calbert was a little perplexed. "What were you thinking then? Your expression frightened me!""I saw Stephen." Otto furrowed his brows. "The night of Ms. Miller's accident, he almost strangled me. But today, he actually asked me for forgiveness. He even thanked me for saving Ms. Miller.""This is good, right?" Calbert looked in disdain. "Are you a masochist or something? Do you want Stephen to treat you badly?""No. It's just a little unsettling." Then, Otto waved his ha
"I don't think what I said was malicious in any way, right?" Otto immediately grabbed Elvin by the shoulder when he saw that the boy was about to leave. He bent down. "I don't think I've ever offended you, right? Or did I do something to make you unhappy?"Elvin was already upset and annoyed, and now he had to deal with a relentless adult. His expression was extremely ugly.Otto immediately thought of Stephen. They looked really alike."You're still a child. You can't run around." Otto coaxed gently, "I don't care whether you like me or not; I have to take you back.""I don't want to go back.""Why?""No reason." Elvin tried to shrug Otto's hand off, but Otto was way too strong for him. He glared at Otto. "I'm not a child. I can look after myself."Otto didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "How old are you?"Then, he pulled Elvin along. "If I let you go now and if anything were to happen to you, your mother would never forgive me.""Will Mommy get well?"Otto stopped in h
Late at night, the infirmary of Hope Health Services was quiet.Otto put on the medical coveralls and entered the ICU. He walked over to Yvonne. Although he was mentally prepared, his chest tightened when he saw her wrapped in bandages. The floodgates of guilt opened. "Ms. Miller, I'm sorry. If I had realized how strange the truck had been earlier, you wouldn't have—"Yvonne shook her head, stopping Otto from apologizing. She didn't blame him.Otto was heartbroken. "Why did you ask for me? Tell me. I'll do the best I can."Yvonne smiled a little upon hearing his words. She had been in a coma for the past few days due to a high fever. She looked exhausted even when she smiled, but this was the best she could look."I … want … to … leave." She forced each word out of her throat with determination.Otto was stunned. "You should be staying in Hope to recover. Why—""Take … me … away." Yvonne seemed a little flustered. She raised her hoarse voice a little.Then, she coughed viol
Seeing how conflicted the nurse looked, Stephen pressed on. "Did something happen to Yvonne?""Ms. Miller …" The nurse hesitated. Stephen lost all his patience. "If you're not going to tell me, I'll go and have a look for myself!"Seeing Stephen about to enter the elevator, the nurse braced herself and yelled, "Ms. Miller is no longer at Hope Health Services.""What do you mean?" Stephen looked at the nurse before walking up to her. His gaze was extremely dark, as if he were out for blood. The nurse was so frightened that she shuddered. "Ms. Miller went missing two nights ago. Everyone has been searching for her for a day and night, yet no one knows where she went."The nurse gulped. "We don't know where she could have gone in her state. Jim is so worried that he almost had a heart attack."Hearing that, Stephen decided to turn and leave. Soon, he found Jim at the office. Calbert and Otto were there too.When Calbert saw Stephen barge in, he immediately went up to him. "What
Stephen had been unconscious for an entire week in bed. He had become much more emaciated.The children hadn't left his side since the day he had passed out. At first, Britney had cried for Stephen, asking him to wake up. After Elvin had yelled at her a few times, she had slowly come to accept reality.On the surface, Elvin seemed like he was much calmer than Britney, but he had secretly shed tears too. He had also talked to Stephen late at night when he couldn't fall asleep.Even though Elvin ignored Stephen most of the time, he had already long accepted the fact that Stephen was his father.He just wasn't willing to say it out loud. He didn't think it would be too late to properly address Stephen as his father once Stephen and Yvonne got remarried. Yet, Yvonne was missing. All that was left was the evil man, who lay unconscious in bed.Elvin couldn't handle all these changes. But as an older brother, he thought he had to put on a strong act in front of Britney.At that mome
That night, Elvin excitedly called the doctor over, but after a check-up, they realized that Stephen hadn't woken up.Everyone assumed that Elvin had probably imagined it, especially since he was still young. But Elvin strongly believed that Stephen was about to come around. He also thought that Stephen must have heard what he said. The deal between them would soon be fulfilled.…Calbert's search for Yvonne didn't yield any results. He felt a little dejected."Yvonne has been hurt so badly. Where could she have run off to? Why has she vanished from the face of the earth without leaving any trails? This is really strange."Calbert had been complaining on the couch for a long time. When he saw that Otto was busy on his phone, he was instantly displeased.He reached his leg out and kicked Otto. "What are you busy with? Is there anything else more important than searching for Yvonne?"At that point, Calbert finally realized that Otto had been really busy recently. He wasn't focus
Otto was a little bewildered. He turned around to see Stephen holding himself up against the wall, glaring at him.The corridors were dead silent.Stephen pressed on. "Where is she?"Otto said nothing.Stephen stumbled forward, step by step, until he was right in front of Otto. He used his remaining strength to grab Otto by the collar."Where is she? Tell me. Where is she …" Stephen started to choke up. He sounded extremely helpless."Otto, I won't blame you for secretly sending her away, but I beg you, tell me where she is."Stephen was as flustered as a little child who had lost their precious doll. As long as he could find Yvonne, even if he had to sacrifice his life to Otto, he would do it without any hesitation.Otto had never thought that the high and mighty Mr. Anderson would become so lowly for a woman.He thought about what Yvonne had instructed him. He was once more determined."Mr. Anderson, I'm sorry. I can't tell you."Stephen's heart sank. He tightened his grip
Time passed by in a blink of an eye.Astertown was filled with greenery in the summer. The hot wind smelled of dried leaves.In the hot city, the only cool place was up in the mountains.A mansion lay quietly halfway up the mountains among the woods. It was paradise. The breeze blew by, creating a symphony of leaves rustling. A woman was sleeping soundly in the rocking chair.She was in a long, sleeveless dress. The burn scars on her hand and body were visible, making the harmonious scene look a little scary.At that moment, the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog lying by her side, who had been sleeping, suddenly perked its head up. It looked at the living room with caution.Soon, a man entered.The dog immediately wagged its tail and barked at the man.The man couldn't stop the dog in time. The woman sat up. They looked at each other and smiled."Ms. Miller, I'm sorry for disturbing you.""I've been sleeping for a long time. It's good that you came. If not, I won't be able to sleep a
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander