Noelle still didn't like Dynalis. Even though there were countless tourists visiting every year, and the scenery here was indeed beautiful, she still didn't like it.At this very moment, she just wanted to hurry back to Coppersville—back to that small rental apartment that only belonged to her.But as soon as the plane landed, the Swanson family came to her.Well, Matilda was in critical condition. Although Craig had been working hard to find a compatible kidney for her transplant, there had still been no success up to today.Moreover, Noelle was her biological daughter, and from a medical standpoint, she was the best candidate for the transplant.Noelle was almost forcibly pushed into the car.After seeing Craig, she scoffed coldly. "What? You guys are forcing me into an operation now?"Craig looked at her, then gestured for the others to leave.Then, he looked at Noelle. "What do you want?"Noelle looked into his eyes and said, "I told your wife clearly before. If you give m
After Craig listened to Sandra's words, his expression changed instantly, and his eyes widened as he looked at Sandra, seemingly unable to believe that such a cruel idea could come from her mouth.Sandra realized this and hurriedly said, "I… I just want Mom to live. You saw for yourself how much she's been tormented by the illness. I really can't bear to see her like this."Craig didn't say anything.Although he, too, resented Noelle for not saving her and had cursed countless times wishing for her death, Sandra's words still shocked him deeply.Sandra didn't say anything more and just looked up anxiously at him.Just then, the nurse's urgent voice came through, "Why is everyone here? Hurry! The patient's condition isn't looking good!"Craig's face instantly changed, and he rushed out.Matilda had already been pushed into the emergency room, and when Craig arrived, all he received was the doctor's notice of her critical condition.Craig could only sign the document with trembli
Noelle seemed to be followed by someone.Her job was to stay at home and paint, so she didn't have many opportunities to go out, but once or twice a week, she would go out to buy some groceries.Normally, her outings were at random times, so it wasn't likely anyone would be following her.And because of that, whenever she turned around, she didn't notice anything unusual, so she didn't really pay attention to it.Until one day, when she was heading to the supermarket, a motorcycle suddenly sped toward her.The motorcycle had a clear intention, and it was heading straight for her. Noelle was startled and took several steps back, just as someone else happened to be walking by.The motorcycle zipped past her and drove off into the distance.The howling wind seemed to still echo in Noelle's ears, and her whole body froze as she was too scared to move.What stood out most to her was the look in the man's eyes when he had glanced at her. It was as if he was going to tear her life apa
Before he could finish speaking, Noelle suddenly kicked his crotch.She was hard with that kick. Besides, that was every man's most vulnerable spot. William quickly let her go, and he started cursing, "Fuck! How dare you fucking attack me? I'll fucking kill you!"With that, he jumped her again. This time, he left no mercy as he straightaway tried to strangle Noelle."Bitch! You fucking ingrate! I'll kill you today!"He was still berating while applying more force on his hand, which hindered Noelle's breathing. Soon, her face turned red, and she started to scratch William's arms as an attempt to break free. However, she could only injure him at most."I know you've always been ashamed of me, thinking I'm not as capable as your biological father, right? But how good can your rich father be to you? He won't even acknowledge you, and now, he even wants you to die and give his wife your life!"William's words made Noelle's already fading consciousness suddenly snap back into clarity.
"I'm your father! Let go of me quickly! I'm going to the hospital! I'm going to die!" William bellowed. He still wanted to struggle, but Noelle stabbed the scissors deeper into his neck."You are lying. I don't believe it.""It's true! I didn't lie to you, Luna! They originally wanted me to tie you up and orchestrate a car accident for you," William told her the plan."They said that you were unwilling to perform a transplant on your mother, but you signed the body donation form, so as long as you died unexpectedly, she would get a transplant opportunity!"I was a little selfish. I just thought that you were going to die anyway, so I could at least get my pleasure…"Before William could finish speaking, Noelle suddenly stepped on the wound on his abdomen. Blood quickly gushed out from the wound, and the bone-chilling pain made William scream endlessly.What scared him the most was how Noelle was staring at him. Her hands were shaking due to fear, yet the coldness in her eyes wa
Noelle slowly rose to her feet. However, she didn't rush to leave. Instead, her gaze lingered on the wound on William's abdomen before slowly drifting downward.William sensed that something was wrong. But before he could do anything, Noelle suddenly lifted her foot and stomped down hard on his family jewel."It's best if this thing rots away!" said Noelle vehemently.That was the last thing William heard before the searing pain overtook him, plunging him into unconsciousness.Noelle didn't spare him another glance. When she stepped out, she collided head-on with someone."What the hell, you—" scolded Helen Myrtle, the woman next door.She had been spying on Noelle for a month and had noticed that Noelle's "boyfriend" hadn't shown up during that time. Naturally, she felt no fear toward Noelle—who had clearly been dumped.Just as Helen was about to lash out at Noelle, she noticed the bloodstains on Noelle's clothes, her disheveled hair, and the hollow look in her eyes."Holy shi
Hendrix could hardly believe it when he first heard Dan say that Noelle had been arrested. In fact, he even thought it was absurd.In his memory, Noelle had always been far more rational than most people. Moreover, the very idea of her being involved in a stabbing incident seemed utterly ridiculous.But there was no denying it when he got into the car and read the detailed news article on his tablet. As soon as he saw the victim's name, William Kaplan, he no longer felt the slightest bit surprised at Noelle's surprise.The police had learned from the surveillance footage that it was William who had followed Noelle, and he was carrying another weapon that the authorities had found on the scene.Later, they discovered signs of strangulation on Noelle's neck. When she turned herself in, both her clothes and hair were a mess. All the evidence pointed to her acting in self-defense.Even so, with William now unconscious from excessive blood loss, a part of the responsibility still reste
However, before Sandra's lips could even touch Hendrix's, the latter shoved her away. He used so much force that she stumbled back several steps before finally steadying herself.She looked up at him. "Rix…""It seems you really have a poor memory." Hendrix gazed at her coldly. "I'll give you one more chance. Are you going to tell me or not?"Sandra sat down on the floor and looked up at him without a trace of fear in her eyes.Hendrix suddenly laughed. "Fine. Have it your way."With that, he turned to leave.As soon as his back was turned to her, Sandra suddenly said, "It was my father who planned all of it."Her words made Hendrix stop in his tracks. Slowly, he turned around.Sandra looked at him with red-rimmed eyes. "He did it because my mother's condition is really bad, but Noelle refused to go through with the kidney donation. So, my father had no choice but to do it."Hendrix didn't reply, but his expression darkened instantly. He couldn't help but clench his hands into
Amy spun around instantly and saw Hendrix walking toward her.Even though their relationship was purely transactional—and even though Amy knew better than anyone that catching feelings for a client was the worst mistake she could make—she still had to admit something.Even without Hendrix's status, his looks and presence alone were enough to make any woman blush and her heart race. Being able to call him her boyfriend, even if only on the surface, gave Amy a kind of prestige wherever she went.Seeing that Hendrix was about to reach her, Amy was about to greet him when Hailey suddenly stepped ahead of her."Hi! Are you Amy's boyfriend?" she asked.Hendrix narrowed his eyes at her. "And you are?""I'm her friend. We were out shopping together today. What a surprise to run into you like this!" Hailey said with a grin. "Amy's always bragging about you. Now, I finally see why she's been hiding you from us."As she spoke, Hailey moved to slip her arm through Hendrix's. She was wearing
Lately, Amy had been living in the lap of luxury. Hendrix not only bought her jewelry and designer bags but even a sports car—a bright red one, with the emblem of an angry bull on the front.When Amy drove it out, she immediately attracted the envy of countless people. They spoke words of admiration and praise for Amy. But behind her back, they were practically grinding their teeth in envy.Of course, Amy could see through their little games, but she didn't care. Even if they cursed her behind her back, she acted like she never heard a word of it.To be honest, if they had been in her shoes, they probably wouldn't have been able to seize the opportunity. They would have likely been kicked out due to overstepping the first time Hendrix made them sleep on the couch.So, some things were just meant to be hers.Besides the jewelry, bags, and car, Hendrix had also given her a black card with no spending limit. Now, when she entered those stores, she no longer had to carefully check the
On the contrary, Hendrix seemed to care a lot about Noelle. Otherwise, he wouldn't have rushed over like that. Even Amy could feel the passion in the way he looked at Noelle—it was intense and almost burning. There wasn't a trace of the indifference he had shown back at the party.So, it was very likely the two of them were acting. But for what reason?Amy couldn't figure it out, but she knew one thing—she might have just uncovered a huge secret. And this secret could very well…Amy was still thinking when the door suddenly opened in front of her. Startled, she instinctively took a few steps back, staring in shock at the person before her.Hendrix was standing there, looking at her."I didn't say anything!" Amy blurted out without hesitation. She even held up her phone, as if offering it for inspection.He gave it a glance, then quickly looked away and said, "Come on out. We've got a business deal to discuss."…"Who sent this to you?" the tanned-skin man asked.Only then did D
"Do you not trust me?" Noelle asked.Hendrix was momentarily stunned, then he slowly frowned. "What did you say?""Do you not trust that I can protect myself or that I can help you? Or do you think I'm just a burden?""Of course not," Hendrix immediately denied it, his expression growing darker. "How could you think that of yourself? If I thought that, why would I bring you here?""Since it's not that, then why don't you want to—""Because I don't want you to be in any danger," Hendrix said in a low voice. "Clearly, we could have used other methods, couldn't we?""But right now, this one is the fastest and most convenient, right?"Hendrix couldn't answer.Noelle smiled. "See? You're admitting it, too. And honestly, you don't have that much time, either. So, weighing the pros and cons, doesn't it make the most sense to choose the most efficient option right now?""No," Hendrix said through gritted teeth.Yet, he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong.After meeting his gaze
"I know things aren't that simple," Noelle said quietly.Her sudden change of topic caused Hendrix to furrow his brows slightly.He wanted to say something, but Noelle continued, "If it were that simple, you wouldn't have agreed to let me use this method to lure Dylan out from the start. This isn't Coppersville, and more importantly, the people around you now are only driven by self-interest."So, it would be impossible for them to help you find Dylan and make him lose everything. That is—unless he makes a move against you first. But in that case, Dylan would definitely be extra cautious. He might even hide for years or decades."As Noelle spoke, Hendrix suddenly laughed. "So what? You think I can't wait?""I know you won't wait." Noelle looked up at him. "I know you're not as indifferent as you appear to be about what happened to the Swifts. If I don't do this, you'll definitely think of other ways, right?"And I also know that those ways of yours would be even more dangerous tha
The text message Hendrix had received just now was from Noelle. It contained the motel's address and the room number she had booked.The two of them hadn't seen each other at all these past few days—not even a phone call. Noelle wasn't sure if Dylan had sent anyone to watch them, and even the slightest trace of contact could become the reason everything fell apart.Noelle knew she wasn't clever enough to cover every detail flawlessly, so instead she put on a performance so convincing, even she almost believed it.She understood that in Dylan's mind, he always believed himself to be a noble man. The belief came from the way his family had raised him and the public image he maintained.Dylan and Hendrix were completely different. Hendrix had never cared about what others thought of him. Even in public, if he disliked someone or found them disgusting, he wouldn't bother pretending otherwise. The fact that he didn't humiliate someone outright was already the limit of his courtesy.Wh
Amy figured that maybe Hendrix had somehow found out what she had been thinking earlier and wanted to kill her now to keep her quiet. After all, no one who could survive in that circle was really normal.She knew how this worked. To people like him, women like her weren't even human. If he was in a bad mood and decided to use her to vent, that would be totally normal to him.She licked her lips, just about to try explaining, when she realized that he wasn't even paying her any attention. He got out of the car without a word and walked straight inside.That reaction left Amy completely thrown. For a moment, she was at a loss for what to do.Should she follow him? But what if he really was planning to do something to her? If someone like her died here, no one would even notice.But if she didn't follow, and he wasn't planning anything, wouldn't she be missing a golden opportunity?Amy felt completely torn.As she watched him disappear into the motel, she threw all her concerns away
This was the second time Amy had seen Hendrix. The last time, he had picked her out of a group—and today, he did the same.More importantly, Amy was now wearing the jewelry he had bought her. That piece alone had cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and he hadn't even blinked at the price.From that alone, Amy was certain that she had won. She had stood out among the prey and become the object of his favor. The only thing she wasn't sure of was how long his interest toward her would last.In the social circles of Nuvark, women like Amy had their own internal rankings—a list sorted from most to least desirable targets. Hendrix wasn't on that list, but Amy knew that he was easily one of the top players in the game.She could tell that just by how Erwin and the others treated him. So, the fact that she hadn't hesitated and went straight for the win was the right call. And now, all the others could only look at her with envy and jealousy.The uniquely styled sports car sped down the
Then, Dylan hesitated a little. "Are you pitying me?""No, no!"Noelle quickly shook her head. "I just feel like I dragged you into this. It's like because I almost married you back then, Hendrix has been targeting you ever since. If not for that, you'd probably still be doing fine back home, and the Swift family wouldn't have ended up like this. So, I feel guilty."Her voice grew more hoarse as she spoke.Dylan stared at her for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed like he had just heard the funniest thing in the world, completely delighted."So, now you finally see Hendrix for who he really is?" he asked. "I told you before—he's never treated you right. Otherwise, why would you have taken Rosie and run to another city in the first place?"And back then, if it hadn't been for me, you never would've been forced to marry him. So, Noelle, have you remembered now? The one you actually love is me."Noelle stared at him, stunned.Dylan stood up at that moment, closin