"You're…" Agatha was so surprised that she almost let slip.Out of reflex, she quickly covered the phone and turned to Heidi. "You may go. I have some emergency matters I need to deal with."Heidi had just perked her ears up. Still, she had no choice but to go. "Alright, then. If you need help, let me know at any time. I'll immediately come to you.""Okay," Agatha responded, but she looked eager for Heidi to leave.Once Heidi left, Agatha placed the phone next to her ear once more. She asked urgently, "The grave you built? Why did you build an empty grave? What do the child and that empty grave have to do with you? Also, where are you right now?"The other person didn't answer her series of questions. Instead, he asked in retort, "Who are you in the Carrington family?""Answer my questions first!" Agatha was anxious. She desperately wanted to see the person on the other end of the line."I have to make sure of your identity before I consider whether I want to reveal myself."
Mark walked past Jane. He said, "Come with me."Jane didn't budge. "I don't think I have anything to talk to you about.""If you don't want to regret it, you'll come with me," Mark said as he pushed the glass door and entered the café. The bell attached to the door rang.Jane stood rooted to the spot. She hesitated for a while before turning around. Since she was already there, she could just hear him out and see what sort of news that cripple could bring her.They were the only two people in the café, besides the owner.Mark seemed to know the owner. With one look, the owner immediately understood and served them two iced coffees.Jane felt uncomfortable sitting in her seat. After the owner left, she grumbled softly, "What kind of shithole is this? It's so dirty. Can I even drink this?"Mark sneered. He leaned back with his iced coffee. "Sorry for not thinking this through. I didn't think that you would still care about any of this since you now have to rely on someone else to
Jane subconsciously asked, "You want me to help you?""It's just as you said. I have nothing at the moment, so I need help. You're the perfect person to do it." Mark's gaze was calm, yet chilly. "You and I have the same goal. My hatred toward Yvonne isn't any less than yours."Even at that moment, the incident that had happened at the abandoned factory was still fresh in his mind.Yvonne had taken everything away from him and crushed his dignity. That cruel truth had been like a dagger stabbing his heart.Had Yvonne thought that he would give up on revenge just because she told him the truth? Impossible! His hatred had only grown!He hated what the Miller family had done to him, and he hated Yvonne's setup! If it hadn't been for a series of causes and consequences, he wouldn't have ended up in this wretched state!After he had left the burning factory, he had carried not only Jennifer Johnson's hatred but also his own. The grudge between him and Yvonne had to be settled.As th
At that moment, Stephen's private plane landed.The moment he left the arrival hall, he saw Julian and James nearby. He furrowed his brows.James knew all too well that Stephen looked annoyed because of him, but he was long used to it. He smiled at Stephen politely. "Congratulations, Mr. Anderson. You bagged another deal."Stephen ignored him. When he was next to Julian, he reached out to take the stack of documents from the latter.James's enthusiasm didn't die down because of this at all. He quickly went after Stephen and placed his arm around Stephen's shoulder. "Stephen, you should rest. Your body isn't made of steel. You can't just keep going on like this."Stephen ignored him and left the airport.James continued, "Stephen, life is short. You can never earn enough money. It's time you started enjoying your life."Sometimes, I really don't understand you. You don't fool around with women or have any fun at all. Why are you earning so much money then? Don't tell me you rea
Stephen sat in the back and signed some documents. From where he was seated in the front passenger seat, Julian snuck glances at Stephen in the rearview mirror from time to time.Stephen didn't look up once. "If you want to say the same nonsense as James, you can stop."Julian smiled. "No. I just wanted to let you know that the kindergarten is having its summer break next week. Ms. Britney has been asking when you will take her out to play for the past two days."Summer break?Stephen paused what he was doing for a while. Time had passed by so quickly."Mr. Elvin seemed quite tired since he has been participating in all those competitions recently. He's still a child. Focusing too much on competitions won't do him any good. Don't you think…"Julian asked tentatively, "Shall we arrange for a trip? Ms. Britney will be happy, and Mr. Elvin can relax a little too.""Okay."Julian was relieved upon hearing Stephen agree to it. "Alright! I'll make the arrangements!"…The moment
When Stephen left Elvin's room, he received a call from Emerald Group.The other party reported on Yvonne's whereabouts and her current position."Ms. Y will be taking the two o'clock flight back to the country. She will be accompanied by Mr. Carrington's mother, Edith Jenner.""Alright. I understand."After hanging up, Stephen put his phone down and looked out of the window at the night sky. His eyes gleamed with conflicted emotions.Yvonne was finally willing to return!…Yvonne watched as Edith packed her bags. Two hours had passed, and Edith was still pacing about in the room.Just by looking at her back, Yvonne could tell that Edith was quite nervous.When Yvonne heard the doorbell ring, she went to open the door. She led Otto to Edith's room. At the door, she said quietly, "Mrs. Jenner has been packing for more than two hours."Otto didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He called out, "Mom."Edith frantically turned around, accidentally knocking over the stack of clothe
The next day, Otto dropped Yvonne and Edith off at the airport.Otto had been worried all this while. He tugged at Edith while Yvonne was distracted. "Do you still remember what I said?""Of course, I do." Edith felt helpless. "I'm not so old that I have trouble remembering things yet. You, on the other hand, nag like an old man."Edith pried Otto's hand off her. "I have to catch up with Yvonne. She'll be worried."Otto had a bad feeling as Edith quickly went up to Yvonne. He furrowed his brows. It seemed like he needed to find time to keep an eye on Edith.…When the plane landed at Northerna City Airport, it was already the evening of the following day.Yvonne was once again back in Northerna City after being away for more than a year. It felt like a whole other lifetime to her."Is this the place where you were born?" Edith asked.Yvonne came to her senses and hummed in assent."If you have some free time, can you take me around?" Edith asked eagerly.Yvonne looked a li
The next morning, Yvonne smelled the aroma of food the moment she headed downstairs."Come and have breakfast." When she heard Edith call out to her, Yvonne walked over to the dining room. A feast had been laid out on the table.Yvonne was stunned. "D-Did you make all of this?""Yes!" Edith wiped her hands on the apron and said with a smile, "When I was with the Carringtons, I often asked the chef for tips and learned from him. "I don't know if you would like any of the food I make, so I made a variety of them.""You've made too much food." Yvonne walked over to the table and asked curiously, "You were one of the Carringtons' daughters-in-law. Why would you need to make your own food?""Grandma is a picky eater. I don't know why, but she liked my cooking, so I used to cook quite often," Edith explained with a smile.Yvonne furrowed her brows. Agatha must have just done it to make things difficult for Edith. Edith's family was quite wealthy too. When she had married Otto's
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