The maid said, "The lady worked hard on that meal. Throwing it out would be such a waste, right?"Zach shot her a stern glance. "Just do what I say," he said curtly.Trying to hide her nervousness, the maid nodded and headed downstairs to clean up. Meanwhile, the other maids got busy preparing another meal.After sipping the fruit juice Zach gave her, Madelyn slowly awakened and gazed at the ceiling."How do you feel?" Zach asked.Madelyn paused. "I'm moving out tomorrow."His expression became stern. "You know I won't let that happen. Why can't you just deal with this? I promise you'll be left alone. It'll just be me.""You're pushing me to the edge," Madelyn fired back. "I might do something we'll both regret. I could kill you, Zach."Zach gently caressed her forehead. "Once you're better, you can chase any dream you want. You want to paint? I'll set up a studio just for you." Zach's voice had an unusual softness tonight, as if he was a different person."You still don't get
Madelyn could not find any recent updates on the Arnold family online, with the latest information being four years old, making her suspicious. She felt uneasy, questioning her own paranoia. At this point, she could possibly even walk past Ethan on the street without being able to recognize him.She was concerned that Zach might seek revenge on the Arnold family, given his history of holding onto grudges. After Ethan took over Azure Corporation, causing Zach's professional setback, she believed Zach might want payback, even if Ethan was not at fault.With Cecilia back and Zach's smart planning, they seemed poised to become dominant in Ventropolis. Zach had big dreams.Zach watched Madelyn in her room through his tablet. He asked a maid to serve the dinner they prepared. Madelyn did not eat much. The maid acted cautiously, as if scared to upset her. As she was settling in for bed, she overheard voices outside her door."Who's the woman in that room?" one voice whispered. "I've never
"Not even the lady of the house is allowed to enter the study freely," the maid said.Madelyn thought, 'As long as the paintings are safe. Some are mementos from Mom.'Quickly heading downstairs, she found the master bedroom on the second floor empty. However, in Zach's room, she discovered her treasured paintings, all protected under white cloth. Emotions surged as she touched them. She picked them up, wanting to move them back to her room, but as she tried to leave, one of the maids blocked her way."Miss, I told you; you can't touch these."Madelyn replied coolly, "Like I said, these are mine. I'm just taking back what's mine."Another maid, clearly annoyed, snapped at the other maid, "Why're we even talking to her? She seems out of it, probably lost her mind or something. Let's just get the paintings."But before the maids could act, two bodyguards in black suits quickly came up the stairs. They stopped the maids and then said to Madelyn, "The boss said you can decide what to
Frida sipped on the tea brought by the assistant, "I heard that Madelyn's back, and you kicked Yvonne out of the Southern Haven Villas. Is that true?"I asked you to take care of Yvonne for me and is this how you treat her? Don't forget who helped you to get where you are today."Zach walked straight to his desk and threw the documents in his hand on the table. "Mrs. Young, of course I remember your kindness and am very grateful for your help. However, I believe that you didn't come all the way here just to tell me these things."Zach took his seat and adjusted his tie with his slender fingers, looking relaxed.Frida sneered. "Mrs. Young, huh? You're married to my daughter. Have you no respect for your elders? You should be addressing me as your mother-in-law!"She put her cup of tea down as she spoke. Then, she stood up and walked over to Zach before handing him a red and gold invitation card. "This is the guest list I've prepared for the banquet next month."Zach smiled arrogan
Madelyn's phone rang as soon as she said those words. After seeing the caller ID, she hesitated for a moment before answering. Then, she spoke in an annoyed tone, "You said you were going to give me three days, and the time hasn't come yet.""If you want to go to her grave, I'll come with you in the afternoon after I'm done with my meeting." Zach replied."I don't need you to go with me. I can go alone.""It's either you don't go or let me come with you. Your choice," he responded, his voice immediately turning cold.She did not really have a choice, did she?So, Madelyn reluctantly agreed, "Then I'll wait for you downstairs later."She did not want to cause any unnecessary trouble.The sky was sunny and bright in the morning but suddenly turned cloudy by afternoon, as if there might be a heavy rain later. So, Madelyn brought an umbrella with her, just in case.The bodyguard drove as Madelyn sat in the rear passenger seat. The journey lasted for more than an hour before they fi
Madelyn crouched down to look at the bouquet of flowers that had not withered yet, and it looked just like the one she was holding. She wiped her fingers on the tombstone and realized that it was clean, and the weeds around it seemed to have been cleared a few days ago too.She figured that it could not possibly be her father because he had moved to Sinagora with Jasmine very long ago.Who could it be then?There was no picture on the tombstone and only her mother's name, Alicia Wood, was engraved on it.Alicia was indeed the most beautiful woman of her time, otherwise, the upper-class circle of Ventropolis would not have crowned her as the prettiest lady.And Madelyn had inherited every part of her mother's beauty.Zach stood at the side while smoking in the wind. Madelyn only stood up after he had finished his third cigarette. "Mom, very soon... we'll meet again," she said.'I finally met you after so long,' she whispered."Let's go home," she told Zach.A thunder sounded fr
"Manager, we know that's the CEO of the Jardin Corporation, but isn't he engaged to Ms. Young? Who's that woman inside? Is he cheating on his fiancée?"The manager saw Kevin walking toward them and immediately scolded the waiters, "Shut your mouth and do your work. Otherwise, you can leave!"Madelyn loved the fish here. Zach had already removed the bones for her and put a piece of fish fillet on her plate before she picked her utensils up.He then took away the bowl of soup the manager had just served and threw it in the trash can without hesitation."I can't eat so much.""It's fine. We have a lot of time tonight. Also, even if we can't finish it, we can take it home and have the rest as a midnight snack."Madelyn ate half of the fish and finished two bowls of fish soup. However, Zach had not eaten at all.The two of them had a pleasant and peaceful time together."I'm done. The rest is yours." Madelyn put down her knife and fork."Don't waste food. There's some left on your
Madelyn brushed off the dust from her body and comforted her, "Let me see your hand. Does it hurt?""Not at all."Madelyn pinched her cheek and said with a smile, "You're such a good girl. Where's your mother? Why are you here alone?"The little girl giggled. "She went to the restroom, but she realized there was no toilet paper inside, so I came to bring her some.Madelyn's voice sounded very warm and kind. Also, it was evident that the little girl liked her very much too."I see. It's dangerous for a little child like you to be here alone. Let's wait for your mom inside, okay?""Oh, sure thing."Madelyn thought of her baby girl who had left this world before being born. 'If she were still alive, would she be as cute as this little girl, calling me Mom?' she wondered.What happened to her baby was going to haunt her for the rest of her life.But... she would never have another baby again.After some time, Zach came outside. Madelyn stood up and met his gaze before getting int