"How can that be?" Shirley demanded, her eyes wild. "You lost your sight, but got more love in return! If you could see, you'll know how much Mr. Hunt loves you. I also want to be like you… I want Xavier to love me more.""Stefan and Xavier are different people." Renee tried her best to dissuade Shirley. After all, once it was done, she couldn't regret it. She didn't want Shirley to be forced into this, or she wouldn't be at peace using her eyes. She might as well give up the idea. "How is it different..." Shirley sounded agitated. "Xavier isn't worse than Mr. Hunt. His love wasn't any less than Mr. Hunt's back then, but I got so anxious that I lost him. Now I want to win him back, and I think it's worth exchanging my heart for his love.""You're out of your mind!" Renee massaged her temples exhaustedly. Her body was already weak after the abortion, and now her mind had to suffer too. "I'm tired. Please go home if there's nothing else you want to say. I want to rest." She leaned ag
Stefan smacked away Xavier's hand coldly and glared at Xavier and Owen fiercely. "Is this all an act so Shirley doesn't have to give up her eyes?" "Are you kidding me?" Xavier huffed exasperatedly. He had always admired Stefan, but now he found him shameless and insensible, attacking everyone without reason. "I know I can be a jerk sometimes, but even I won't go that far. Why would I ask Shirley to come here to take the test then? You're not thinking straight!"Owen quickly chimed in, "And I'm just a doctor. I don't want to meddle in anyone's relationship. If it's a match, I would have told you. There's no need for me to pretend."Stefan closed his eyes and covered his face, looking troubled. He felt like he had lost the courage to face the world… and Renee. "What should I do? What about… Ren?" Stefan asked hoarsely. When things were dire, he was optimistic because he felt things would definitely get better. However, having his hope snatched away was too painful. He had thought tha
Stefan watched Owen leave the study with a frown, then glanced at the stack of thick medical reports on the floor. Anxiety gripped him, and after a brief hesitation, he bent over to pick them up. He scanned through the documents. Although there were many medical terms, he could understand some of them. It was reported that the fetus had stopped developing, and Renee had a painless miscarriage. She was also suffering from heavy metal poisoning and nerve damage. Stefan's face became deathly pale and his mouth went dry."What… How?" Stefan couldn't believe his eyes. His hands were trembling, and his eyes turned bloodshot.Xavier was upset by Stefan's accusations, and had secretly decided he wouldn't be his friend anymore, but when he saw Stefan's reaction, he felt worried. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and barked, "Hey, what's going on? Is it good news or bad news?"However, Stefan looked like he hadn't even heard Xavier. The reports fell from his hands, and he kept muttering, "N
Stefan stormed up the stairs, livid."Mr. Hunt, there you are. How are the test results? Can I help... Ah!" Stefan pushed Shirley away rudely. He had no patience to be polite or talk to anyone—all he wanted to do was see Renee.Meanwhile, Renee was lying in bed, suffering both physical and psychological pain. Her slim body was curled into a tiny ball, and she was as pale as a ghost.Stefan sneaked into the room quietly, holding his breath as he neared the bed. As he watched her tremble and writhe in pain, tears filled his eyes. He didn't dare to speak because she might pretend she was okay if she knew he was there. She would force a smile even if she was in pain.What a failure of a husband he was.His wife had been suffering so much, but he didn't even know it. When she laid on the cold surgery table to remove their child, he hadn't been with her."Ugh!" As the anesthesia wore off and the pain of the poison returned, Renee's stomach and body ached. It was a gnawing pain that g
Renee did feel that her pain had diminished a little, though she didn't know why. As the days went by, Stefan stayed by her side as her eyes and her support, describing the world to her every day. Meanwhile, Owen was working hard to find treatments to detoxify Renee. "The most important thing now is to find the components of the poison, then, I can make the antidote for it..." Owen frowned anxiously. This might be the most difficult case of his career. "We're running out of time. Did you find out anything about the poison?" Stefan grasped his hands together, his gaze fierce. "We can only find the person who poisoned her if we want to know what poison it was. I'll get the news very soon." Then, he glanced at his wristwatch. "Give me half a day. I'll tell you the answer by tonight." He got up and left the study in a hurry.Elijah had started the car and was waiting for Stefan outside Everheart Manor. "Mr. Hunt, I found her. Should we go there now?""Let's go." The car drove fast
Stefan didn't complain as he kept his head low and climbed up the rugged and winding cliff. He would not hesitate to climb the cliff as long as he could find the answer. He'd even kneel with every step up the cliff if he was asked to. The climb wasn't an easy one, and it would usually take more than an hour, but since Stefan was only given half an hour, he ran to the top. There was a small flat area on the top of the cliff, and the only thing that could be seen was the blue sea ahead. The woman was standing at the edge of the cliff, and dug her nails into her palms when she saw Stefan. "Mr. Hunt, I'm sorry. I've ruined your peaceful life with Ms. Everheart. I… I actually came here to end things. I want to atone for my sins." Tess' face was full of tears, and she looked very pale. In just a few days, she'd become haggard and thin as if she was being poisoned too, but it was just her guilt and stress weighing on her. Stefan calmed his rapid breathing and asked Tess calmly, "Don't ste
After that, Tess closed her eyes and spread her arms, falling backwards off the cliff."No!" Stefan lunged forward and grabbed her arm.Tess opened her eyes and looked at him in shock. She sobbed as she shook her head. "Mr. Hunt, I'm a sinner. Why did you save me? I should die. Let go!""I believe that you didn't harm her on purpose, so you can't resolve this by ending your life..." Stefan frowned and forcefully tried to pull Tess up. Sweat rolled down his face as he hissed, "Come back and make up for it!""No, I can't... I really can't. If I don't die, she won't let go of my family. My family will become worthless to her if I'm dead, and only then will they be safe!" Tess had decided to die before she climbed up the cliff. She wanted to fix her mistake, so she had called that woman over so Stefan could confront her. Then Tess would die, and everything would be okay again. "Cut the crap! I can't hold you any longer… Come up!" Stefan had no energy to talk as he struggled to pull
"Of course I know who you are." Stefan's gaze was cold, his tone vague. "I thought you were dead." Previously, Seraphina had threatened Renee with a video of Renee accidentally pushing Briar off a cliff. Thanks to that, Renee and Stefan had lost so much time with each other. Stefan had thought that Briar was dead given the surging waves below the cliff, but he was ultimately relieved to see her.Briar cried under the mask. She looked at Stefan and asked, "How did you feel when you saw that I'm alive?""I was thankful." Stefan didn't hesitate. "I'm thankful that you're alive and that I can still talk to you." "Do you mean it?" Briar was surprised. "I thought you hated me and wanted me dead." "Yes, I do hate you. Ren and I wouldn't have wasted so many years if not for you, but... I'm thankful that you're still alive. It means that Ren doesn't have to carry all that guilt. She doesn't have to turn herself in," Stefan said honestly.Briar staggered back, feeling like she had just be
Amber grabbed some tissues beside her and carefully covered the scratch between her brows. She kept calm in hopes that she could make Luneth let down her guard. She knew very well that Liam, Renee, and Leia would be doomed if she didn't stop Luneth from telling Benjamin and Macsen about this incident. Although her face hurt badly from the teacup, it was nothing compared to their safety. "I'm sorry, Gem… I didn't do it on purpose. I was too angry and scared!" Luneth realized how aggressive she had been, and apologized to Amber in sobs. At the same time, she complained piteously, "You know how hard it was for me to get a child. Grady is very dear to Macsen and me. We don't even speak loudly to him or beat him up. But today, someone pressed him to the ground and beat him up. There's such a large hole in his head! The doctors told me that we needed to take good care of his wound. If it gets infected or he gets tetanus, the bacteria or virus might invade his brain and turn him mentall
Luneth was staying in the southeast of the fort. Her house was a uniquely styled traditional cottage. Upon arriving, Amber could hear a woman crying from afar. Many servants, doctors, and women were standing in front of Luneth's room. Amber walked toward Luneth's servant Jayna Bowie, and asked carefully, "Hello, is Aunt Luneth around?" "Ms. Jenkins, come another day. Mrs. Klein is crying sadly now. She's furious. I'm afraid you might be harmed if you go in," Jayna advised kindly.Those standing in a row at the door were trying to comfort Luneth. However, they were quickly rebuked and became too timid to approach her."It's fine." Amber was aware of her aunt's temper. Smiling, she kept moving forward. "I heard Grady got hurt. As his cousin, I need to see him. Plus, Aunt Luneth always treats me nicely. She won't be angry at me.""Ms. Jenkins, you don't know how serious this is. There's a big hole in the boy's head. The doctor said it might affect his intelligence. Mrs. Klein beca
After that, Amber looked at Liam, who kept silent the whole time. She tried to make Liam say something nice. "See, Liam? I told you, Matt's a great guy. He was just joking with us in the orchard to scare us. I'm sure he'll take our sides and protect us. Don't worry.""Is that so?" Liam glanced at Mateo and faked a smile. "Well, I should thank him properly."The air between them grew awkward, but Liam didn't care. He wanted to make Mateo uneasy and force the latter to expose his true self.Amber was simple, but Liam was no fool. Mateo's acting was smooth, but he couldn't trick Liam.Moreover, Mateo was the one who came up with that scheme. He wouldn't let anyone expose it—he wanted to be the one to do it."Okay, aren't we going to get a drink? Let's go. I'll make the chef cook us something nice." Mateo enthusiastically held Liam's shoulders and dragged him forward. At that moment, he turned icy. "If you're a man, stop involving Gem if you want to fight against me. Stop showing of
Liam was no fool. He immediately understood the profound meaning behind Renee's words and stopped saying too much. "Fine, be good. You guys are just taking a rest. I'll handle this well. Wait for my news."He knew very well that the conclusion would be the same regardless if Renee and Leia had offended Luneth's son or the child of an ordinary villager. Mateo simply wanted to use that method to control him. The only way to solve this was to defeat Mateo. However, based on the current situation, Mateo had a lot of followers in the fort. It would be difficult for Liam to defeat him.Luckily, Liam wasn't an easy target either. He had been winning people over these days. That, and he was close with Benjamin's other foster sons. If both parties were to get into a fight, he still had a chance to win.After confirming that Renee and Leia were fine, Liam left the cell. Mateo was waiting outside, grinning triumphantly. He sneered sarcastically, "What do you think? I was telling the trut
"No, I'm not!" Liam raised his hand to swear. "Trust me. They're just best friends. They're not in that kind of messy relationship. Both of them have a guy they're madly in love with.""I see." Amber watched how Renee and Leia fooled around intimately with each other in the cell. They looked like they were about to kiss! She shook her head and said, "What a pity! They look so lovey-dovey, better than many novels I read about where the women love each other.""You're hopeless!" It was rare for Liam to see such a straightforward and cute side of Amber. Amused, he poked her forehead and sighed. "Stop reading those messy novels! It's harmful."Their actions were loud and finally attracted Renee's attention in the cell."Liam!" Renee, pressed to the chair by Leia, couldn't escape. Finally, she grabbed a chance to leap up and walk to the door.Well… It wasn't a door. Rather, they were iron bars preventing them from escaping.The decoration and facilities in the room weren't bad. Be
Liam tensed up when he heard that voice. He quickened his pace and rushed through the corridor, toward the cell where Renee and Leia were locked up. Suddenly, he became flabbergasted and his face stiffened. For a long time, he couldn't regain his wits."Hey… What are you guys doing?"On a table lay barbecue, jerky, beer, and fruit platters. Meanwhile, both Renee and Leia were playing cards. Leia ran after Renee, then pressed her on the chair and said seriously, "Hey, gorgeous. You can't run away! You got the card for kissing me, so you have to let me kiss you. If not, you're trying to disobey the rules of the game!""Help! Help me…!" Renee kept resisting, amused and befuddled. "Get away from me! I'm a desperate woman who likes men! I can't kiss you! If I kiss you, I'm going to have nightmares… Oh, just kill me! Is there anyone who can save me?" Liam wasn't the only one standing at the door. Amber was also with him since she was following him. Watching Renee and Leia's antics,
"Hurry up and explain to her, then!" Amber said hurriedly. "Matt, you're close to her. You know Ms. Everheart and Ms. Osborne would never do that on purpose. Try to persuade her to let this go, and then you can immediately set them free.""I don't have a say in this." Mateo shook his head, pretending to be helpless. "You know how much Luneth dotes on her son. Ms. Everheart pinned him to the ground and beat him up. His head got injured and started bleeding. I heard it's a large cut with a lot of stitches. We can't let it go just like that.""But you can't—" Amber wanted to say more, but Liam interrupted her. He looked at Mateo, his eyes cold and fierce. "I know you set them up. Just be frank. Why did you do that?" "See?" Mateo sighed. He pretended to be aggrieved as he looked at Amber. "The guy you like is sinister. I kindly helped him, but he didn't thank me. He even accused me of setting this up… He always sees the worst in people. He criticized me in front of you and sowed di
Liam immediately noticed something wrong. He asked Mateo fiercely, "What do you mean?""Calm down." Mateo put away his gun and placed it back around his waist. "They broke the rules and barged into the orchard. Plus, they hurt Luneth's child. So, I locked them up for the time being."He appeared calm, as if he was discussing what he had eaten for dinner. He didn't feel that he had been over the line. "Go to hell!" Liam finally failed to hold himself back. He rushed over and grabbed Mateo's neck fiercely. "You can harm me, but how dare you harm them!"At the same time, Mateo's subordinates raised their guns and aimed them at Liam. The recently eased atmosphere immediately became tense again."Hey, don't!" Amber, all tensed up, braced herself to try and stop them. Even so, she was mentally exhausted."What? You want to strangle me?" Mateo was fearless. He grinned deviously and teased, "Cool it. I just locked them up, but they didn't suffer. They're fine. If you harm me, though, I
Livid, Mateo pulled the trigger without hesitation. However, he moved the gun less than an inch. The bullet passed by Liam's ear and hit an orange behind him.The fruit immediately blew up, its juices splashing on Liam's face."Aaaah!" Amber, terrified, trembled. Her eyes turned red, and she hurriedly tried to plead with Mateo. "Matt, cool it! Aren't you and Liam friends? You guys drank and chatted together in the past. You were so close to each other. How could you do this to him? Hurry up and put the gun away! If it goes off accidentally, it'll be over!"However, Mateo ignored her. His eyes were red as he glared at Liam. "Did you see the orange behind you? Let go of her now! If not, I'll blow up your head just like I did to that orange!""Is that all you got?" Liam taunted. He refused to let Amber go. He whispered to Amber, "Watch well. If he shoots me today, promise me not to marry such a man. I can use my life to knock some sense into you.""No!" Amber shook her head. Liam