"Hmm… You didn't have the time to look for my master, but you had the time to meet Stefan every night. You had the time to bicker with Mr. Baldwin and chat with Mr. Osborne. You were really busy... so much so that you forgot about my master," Eloise snarled, wrapping her fingers around Renee's pale throat and strangling her. "Did you know that my master came up with countless methods to kill himself while you were with Stefan? His wrists were full of cuts, and no matter where I hid the razor blades, he'd find them. He used to be so strong, but now he's weak and fragile. Do you even know what he's been through?"Renee's eyes widened in surprise, and she slowly stopped resisting. She stared up at Eloise solemnly as she strangled her, and her vision soon started to blur. "Hmph, I won't let you die so easily," Eloise let go of Renee and said coldly. "I brought you here to atone for your sins." Renee coughed as her lungs filled with air again. Gasping, she asked Eloise, "How... do yo
Eloise looked at Renee suspiciously, not believing that someone could be that foolish. "Are you really willing to give up your eyes for him and help cover for us?""Willing or not, I owe it to Jovan." Renee sighed and added, "I don't have to let them know if you don't trust me, but you'll just have to figure out how to deal with them when this becomes a bigger mess." Renee wasn't bluffing Eloise—she genuinely wanted to resolve this. She'd always felt guilty because of Jovan's sacrifices, and when night fell, that uneasiness would play on her mind. She always wondered if he was living in despair or had fallen into his enemies' hands… or if he was dead. Thinking of all those possibilities hurt her and gave her restless nights. She no longer wanted that kind of life; she wanted to repay Jovan."How are you going to tell them that you're safe?" Eloise asked carefully. "I'll post on Facebook..." Smiling, Renee explained, "People in danger wouldn't think of posting something on social me
"Okay, I'll post your status later. Log in to your account first." Eloise fished out her phone and let Renee log into her social account.After taking Eloise's phone, Renee logged in to her social account and gave her full cooperation. She could've easily called for help, but didn't feel like doing so.Eventually, Eloise grew to believe Renee, much to her surprise. "I didn't imagine that you would really give up your eyes. No wonder my master loves you so much… A woman like you really is worthy of the sacrifices he's made.""Is that a compliment?" Looking at Eloise, Renee smiled. "I'm not a good person—I just hate the idea of owing someone." "Maybe he wants that... but I won't let him be a fool any longer." Heaving a long sigh, Eloise continued, "It doesn't matter who owes who, he's the only one suffering here. If this surgery is successful, I hope he'll be more ruthless and force you to be with him. That was how he used to do things."Eloise had been trained by Jovan's parents s
Sadness engulfed Eloise at the sight of Jovan, and tears silently rolled down her cheeks. "You've changed so much because of that woman, Mr. Hunt. You weren't this pessimistic in the past...""No, I didn't change because of her. This is how I am, and I just became more like myself after I met her." Jovan's blank gaze seemed to soften at the mention of Renee. "You're wrong!" Eloise argued frustratedly, "You once said that love was the most meaningless thing in the world, that it would only tie you down and weaken you! You had actually defeated Stefan back then, and if you had just been more ruthless, you would have been heading Hunt Enterprise, but… you became a fool for that woman, and gave up your blood and eyes to Stefan. He's out and about now, but we have to cower in a corner and lick our wounds. Even something simple like looking at the moon is unobtainable, and it just makes me so mad!" Jovan slowly clenched his fists, unable to deny it. Eloise was right—in the past, he was
"Maybe fate feels that you've suffered enough," Eloise said vaguely."Can you tell me more about the donor? Is it a man or a woman? Is the donor a Hunt too?" Although Jovan was elated, he was still cautious. Nothing in life was free, after all."Well... that..." Eloise trailed off, not expecting Jovan to be concerned with who the donor was. She thought about it for a while, then casually lied, "It's a poor female student. When she saw our advertisement, she submitted her check-up report, and we found her suitable." If Jovan learned that the donor was Renee, the very person he risked his life to protect, there was no way he'd agree to the surgery. "Oh, a poor female student..." Jovan didn't doubt it—there were many people who were forced to give up their bodies or organs just to survive. "Pay her well if she really agrees to do it. In fact, I'm willing to be responsible for her and her family for the rest of their lives," Jovan declared righteously. Although he wasn't generous by na
Jovan immediately picked up on Eloise's hesitation and asked, "What's wrong? Is it inconvenient?" "No, it's just that… Is it really necessary that you meet her?" Eloise initially wanted to come up with an excuse to reject his request, but he would surely get suspicious if she kept saying no. "Of course," Jovan said earnestly. "She's going to bear the suffering I've been going through for the rest of her life if she gives her eyes to me. She'll practically be giving me a new life, so of course I have to meet my benefactor." "Okay, I'll arrange a meeting for the both of you then..." Eloise felt it was best that she let Jovan meet Renee for a while before the surgery to erase any suspicions. "I'll ask her to come to the manor at ten o'clock tomorrow morning so the both of you can talk.""You've done well, Elly." It was the first time Jovan praised Eloise openly. He turned his face towards the sky and took in a deep breath, feeling like freedom was already in his grasp. "I'll be abl
Pity engulfed Eloise when she saw how despondent Renee was. "Listen, I don't want to do this either but the problem is there aren't any suitable eyes for Mr. Hunt except yours. It's our only option." "Don't worry about it. I told you that it's what I owe to Jovan, and I'm willing to return the favor.""Fine, you both will meet tomorrow morning then," Eloise said and breathed out a weary sigh. Renee had a restless night, her mind plagued with worries, and on the other side of Beach City, the same thing was happening to Stefan.Xavier had told Stefan that he couldn't get through to Renee's phone, so Stefan had tried calling Renee too. When he couldn't reach her either, uneasiness filled him. However, he soon saw her Facebook status—a photo of her holding sunflowers and smiling tenderly with the caption 'You're the only one I love'.Stefan knew that was what sunflowers meant, but he couldn't help but feel like it was Renee confessing her love for him on the Internet. Why had she p
"Yes, she's here." Eloise pulled Renee to the balcony. She wasn't worried that Renee would try to escape or expose her true identity to Jovan; she would have done that long ago if she really wanted to."Where is she?" Jovan asked Eloise eagerly."She's sitting in front of you. Just take your time and talk to her..." Eloise patiently explained.There were two lounge chairs and a small tea table on the balcony. Both Jovan and Renee sat across from each other, tea and fruits on the table between them."Please leave us alone, Elly," Jovan ordered Eloise, who was standing nearby."Just ignore me, Mr. Hunt. I won't disturb you." Eloise wasn't worried about Renee, but she was scared Jovan might realize something, given how smart he was. Letting them meet was already very risky."It's not about whether you'll disturb me or not, I'm just not used to having a third person around if I'm going to chat with someone.""But...""Are you going to disobey me?" Jovan's tone was calm but menacing
Renee grinned, satisfied after a long rest. "Why didn't you sleep a bit longer? This bed is comfortable and fluffy." While talking, she behaved like a fish as she extended her limbs and rolled around in bed childishly. In comparison to her calmness and ease, Justin behaved gingerly and did not dare to move as he lay in bed."Do you have any idea what had happened? We aren't dreaming. We're lying in the same bed," Justin said.He was certain that Renee was not fully awake. It explained why she was that composed. Otherwise, any normal woman would get out of bed with a start and keep screaming if they found herself lying in a man's bed."I know!" Renee said. After having a great time rolling around, Renee faced Justin with her head on her arm while lying on her side. "I wanted to drink wine to say sorry to you guys last night, but your family drugged the wine. You drank the same wine when you tried to stop me. We were controlled by the drug and were locked up in this room. T
Renee instantly understood what Justin meant by that. It turned out that the incident was just a part of the Baldwin family's plan. If she left, the Baldwin family would not easily let her off the hook.Justin still cared about her at a time like that, which moved her. "Thank you. You're great." Renee cried; she had no idea how to repay him. "You don't have to thank me. I'm not so great, either. I just hate that they always pester me." Justin purposely sounded relaxed. He finally calmed himself down as he casually grabbed some bandages to bandage his wound. Then, he lay in bed.He slept on one side of the bed and said to Renee, "It's late. You should rest early. This bed is large enough. If you don't mind, you can lie in bed too."The bed was large. It was more than enough even if Renee and Justin lay there."I…" Renee hesitated briefly before she finally got in bed. She trusted Justin. If he wanted to do something indecent to her, he would have long done that. He would no
"I don't know how to tell you. I'm sure you can understand." Renee could not bring herself to say more because it was a humiliating privacy. She might as well keep it to herself."Let me guess…" Justin's gaze grew sharp as he went straight to the point. "The man in your story is Stefan, isn't it?" Silence washed over Renee as she kept her head bowed. It was a silent approval.Justin burst into reckless laughter, which was scary. He looked down at his cut wound and laughed pathetically. "This is why he could make you fall in love with him, and I couldn't. I'm too cultured compared to him.""Don't say that, Haze!"Seeing how defeated Justin was, Renee became uneasy. "It isn't written in the stars for us. Plus, I've fallen in love with Stefan a long time ago before I even got to know you. I also rely on him physically and psychologically. I can't control my feelings. It's not something we can change. We…" "Stop!" Heartbroken, Justin pushed away everything in front of him and s
Time passed by. Gradually, the pain knocked some sense into Justin. He no longer wanted to take advantage of Renee."Let me get you some water." Renee had no idea what she could do for Justin. After some contemplation, she got to her feet and poured him a glass of water.Finally, she studied the room closely and found that it was a wedding room as Justin had mentioned. Everything was set up according to her preferences, which she had occasionally mentioned to Justin. For example, she loved keeping some ceramic ornaments on the bedside cabinet and hanging some seashell wind chimes at the windows. The entire room was painted in beige and green, which were her favorites, too. Beige gave a sense of warmth, while green gave a sense of gloominess. All of those details became the perfect wedding room for Renee.If everything went on smoothly, she would spend most of her time there, and he would be her life companion. Unfortunately, there were no ifs in the world.Renee handed the gla
Renee covered her lips, her tone filled with disbelief. "I…cut myself." Justin leaned against the corner and frowned deeply. He was in deep pain."Why did you cut yourself?" Renee was scared out of her wits and grew more sober. In her panic, she threw herself at him and tried to stop his bleeding.Justin reacted aggressively as he waved his dagger and warned fiercely, "Get away from me! Don't touch me!" "I…" Renee paused, too afraid to act recklessly. She pointed at his wound and said, "I'm just worried about you. You're bleeding. It must hurt a lot. Why did you hurt yourself?" "It's better to be in pain!" Justin gnashed his teeth and said in agony, "The pain will knock some sense into me, so I won't act like an animal and lose control of myself.""I see…" Stunned, Renee was moved to tears. She understood why he cut himself. Surprisingly, he wanted to stay sober and not be controlled by the drug in the wine.He could have used her to satisfy his desire, and she would never b
"You're playing with fire!" Justin leaned close to Renee's ears and said fiercely, "What do you think there is in the wine? Maybe I'm not someone who will take liberty on women, but I can't promise that the wine won't make me so." "So, you're saying that the wine…" Suddenly, Renee realized the wine was not as simple as she thought. She also understood why Rose had behaved in such a mysterious manner. "Stay…away from me!" Suddenly, she became frightened and wanted to keep some distance from Justin. She knew that people could not be trusted completely, especially under the effects of chemical reactions. Things would certainly get out of control. Justin probably did not want to do anything to her, but both of them would lose their minds under the effect of the wine and do something that would fill them with regret. The only way to prevent such an incident was to avoid each other."You want to stay away from me, but it's too late now. I'm no saint. I'm just a normal guy!"Just
"I'm so thirsty!" The burning sensation of the wine made Renee thirsty. She wanted to drink some water.In the dark, she heard some rustling. The next second, something was on her lips. It seemed to be someone else's lips. She wondered if someone had secretly kissed her."Who are you?" Renee grabbed the person in front of her and interrogated angrily, "How dare you kiss me without my permission! Do you know who I am? I'll cut off your lips!""Let's see if you can do that or not." The man sounded dull and drunk, but he was also overbearing.Although Renee was drunk, she could discern who it was. She called out in the dark and tried to confirm her doubt. "Haze…?" "Yeah, it's me," Justin admitted, but he did not plan to let her go. He used a more overbearing manner and trapped her between him and the door."What do you want?" Renee panicked. She wanted to kick him away, but she did not resist when she learned that it was Justin. After she had done so many things to hurt him, s
The servant walked forward with trepidation and helped Justin back to his room. Austin's eyes were dark. He whispered to his assistant, who nodded and immediately carried out his order.After two glasses of strong wine, Renee felt dizzy and could not stand steadily. "It's weird. Is this wine this strong? I just had two glasses of it, but I feel quite dizzy." It was hard for her to exit the hall. She could not stand properly, so she supported herself against the wall."Ms. Everheart, you didn't seem well. Let me help you to get some rest." Austin's assistant caught up to her and stood behind her. He even sounded respectful. "It's… fine. I can go back to my room." Renee waved; she didn't want to trouble others. Besides, she did not want others to see how miserable she was. She had assumed that she was good at drinking and would not get drunk, but it seemed like she had overestimated herself. After two glasses of wine, she became quite drowsy. She would not easily leave if s
Renee blinked and smiled brightly at Justin, asking him, "Are you worried about me?" "No, I'm not worried about you!" Justin said angrily. "I don't want you to get killed here. I can't explain it to your brother and kids. It's hard to handle the three of them."He was not lying. Although he had befriended Quinton, Adie and Abby might make a scene there if they realized that Renee had drunk so much wine at the party. They were witty, always full of ideas.Hence, it was better not to cause trouble. Before they could make a scene and things get out of control, Justin must stop Renee. He wasn't worried about her at all. "So, you're not worried about me?" Renee's gaze turned dull as she sighed. "It looks like you didn't forgive me. So, I must drink this glass of wine." Something was wrong with Renee, or perhaps she just wanted to torture herself. It seemed like she insisted on drinking the wine. She swung off Justin's hand and gulped down the wine."You're out of your mind!" Justi