After Leia and Renee walked out of the ward, Leia pulled Renee to a corner near the stairs. "That ring... It's Stefan's, right?""Yes." Renee nodded tiredly, unable to run from the truth any longer. "I'm sure you've gained some information, right?" Leia knew that she could no longer hide it since things had turned out this way. She could only tell Renee everything she knew. "I'd been wondering if someone had done this on purpose after something went wrong with Quinton's accident. So, I went to the medical staff and interrogated them.""What did they say?" Renee asked cautiously."That nurse claimed that the main surgeon received a call before Quinton's surgery telling him to do the surgery well or something like that. The caller was Shirley, so I went to find her and confront her. She claimed that it was Stefan's order..." Leia told Renee everything. "I thought Shirley was just trying to create problems, so I wanted to get more evidence first, but… it seems that the evidence came
Justin was wearing a thin shirt, and shrugged half-heartedly. "We came at the same time.""You're ridiculous. Weren't you bored sitting here for five to six hours?" Even so, Renee still moved aside a little to give him some space.Justin gladly sat down next to her and smiled. "Didn't you do the same thing though?""It's because there's something troubling me. Time passed by very quickly.""Well, we're the same. Watching you is like watching the most beautiful scenery in the world—hours passed in the blink of an eye.""Stop that!" Renee playfully pushed him and sighed. After a while, she said slowly, "This afternoon... Umm, I'm sorry. I was so anxious that I accused you for no reason. I wasn't targeting you; I would have scolded a dog too if it came at that time."Her explanation amused him. "It's fine. Anyone in your position would've done it." He didn't want her to blame herself. Despite everything, he still wanted to marry her and bring glory to his family. It was fine if she
Renee did not broach that topic, feeling embarrassed to do so."Let me guess... Is it Stefan?" Justin instantly guessed from the look on her face, but there was one thing he couldn't figure out. "If he wanted to harm Quinton, why would he go to all that trouble to hire Owen? It doesn't make sense." "Who knows? Maybe he wanted to make me let my guard down and then use a crueler way to get rid of my brother. If my brother's gone, both the Everheart family and my brother's status in Water Dock will no longer be a threat to him," Renee suggested. She generally didn't like to see the bad in people, but she had seen how complicated and wicked people could become with time."It could be, but I think you should ask him about it. He's rather straightforward, so I'm sure he won't deny it if he was the one who did it," Justin said slowly.Renee stared at him for a while, then smiled oddly at him. "You're... weird."He grinned back at her. "I'm being nice, okay?" "That's what's puzzling me
Stefan's shock surprised Owen. Raising his brows, Owen asked, "You didn't know about it?"Stefan was speechless, a solemn expression on his face. A waiter immediately came forward with a new glass for Stefan, and carefully filled it with wine. "You really didn't know?" Owen found it strange. "Shouldn't Miss Everheart inform you if something happens to her brother? You two seemed pretty close." "Close? Hardly," Stefan scoffed and drank his wine grumpily."Stefan, you can't be that blind. It's obvious you both have feelings for each other, but you both keep trying to hide it!" Owen always traveled, so he wasn't aware of the news in Beach City. He also didn't know that Stefan and Renee were once married to each other, and as an outsider, he only noticed that the two had feelings for each other. "We did have history, but I had an accident, and I forgot all about my past with her. All the people around me claimed that she did a lot of things to harm me, and even she admitted that I
"Have you got a minute? I want to ask you something." Renee sounded very cold on the phone."Come to Tipsy Grove." Stefan ordered the driver to stop the car at the door of Tipsy Grove and waited for Renee. Renee arrived not long after. When she saw his car, she knocked on the car window.Joel Montana, Stefan's driver, opened the door and said to Renee, "Miss Everheart, there you are. Mr. Hunt, uhh… had a bit too much to drink tonight. Should I drive you guys to a hotel or..." It was late, and Joel felt a hotel was suitable given Renee's relationship with his boss.Renee glanced at Stefan, who was clearly drunk. She then sighed heavily. "Drive us to Hunt Villa.""Okay. Please get in the car, Miss Everheart. I'll get you guys there." Joel asked nothing more. All he needed to do was to drive his boss to his destination. Renee took the shotgun seat. She did not converse much with Stefan, who just kept his eyes closed. Nobody knew if he was actually sleeping or if he was just drunk.
"Fine, you promised." Renee immediately took out the silver ring from her bag and asked, "Is this yours?" Stefan stared at that diamond ring with his eyes narrowed, then said softly, "Yes, I always keep it with me.""Really..." Renee's heart ached with the realization, but she still refused to accept the truth. "Why did I find it beside my brother's pillow in the ward if you always keep it with you?""Beside your brother's pillow in the ward?" Stefan frowned, suddenly looking alert. However, his expression was complicated and unfathomable. Renee caught his surprise, and a sliver of hope appeared in her heart. She quickly asked, "Why? You don't know why this ring appeared beside my brother's pillow, do you? Did you lose it? Or did you give it to someone else?"She was trying to give him a reason to deny it. Whatever he said, she would believe it.Unfortunately, he whispered after a long pause, "I didn't give it to anyone else or lose it. I was the one who placed this ring beside
"You don't think I will?" Renee's eyes turned fierce as she gripped his throat tightly. She could easily break his neck if she wanted to."No, I don't think you can." Stefan laughed coldly, his gaze challenging."Fine, I'll grant your wish if you want to die that badly." Renee gritted her teeth and dug her fingers into his skin, gripping his throat hard."Ugh!" Stefan's face instantly turned red, and veins bulged on his forehead and neck. After a while, his eyes started to roll back into his head. "Hard—Harder. I'll have no regrets... if I die in your hands." Using his last bit of consciousness, he whispered to Renee. Blood started oozing out of Stefan's mouth, and if Renee used a bit more force, he would be dead.But at the last moment, she could not bear to do it. She let go of him and sneered, "Killing you would be too generous. I'll ruin you one day, just you wait and see." After that, she got up and left."Ren..." Her figure gradually turned blurry, and Stefan fainte
Seraphina stopped pretending after hearing what Stefan said. In fact, she was waiting for this after leaving the ring there."Yes, I left the ring beside Quinton's pillow on purpose to distance you and Renee. Go ahead if you want to punish me, but I don't regret what I did." She then lifted her head and closed her eyes, waiting for his decision."You…" Stefan did not expect her to admit to it, and he was fuming. He didn't know what to do with her. He couldn't bear to punish her given their past and all her sacrifices for him, but he couldn't pretend it had never happened. "I have nothing to do with that woman; you should know that all I care about is you. However, what you've done will only make me hate you more." Stefan swallowed, and the pain in his throat brought a frown to his face. He was still very weak, but his dangerous aura filled people with trepidation. "Hmph, all you care about is me?" Seraphina scoffed, acting like she had heard the most preposterous joke. "Stop fool