"What answer?" Stefan asked coldly."We'll know once the heroine is here," Madelyn said cryptically. "Renee?" Stefan snorted. "You'll be disappointed then. She won't come, and I won't let her come either." At that moment, Renee was still lying in the hospital, weak from blood loss. Stefan knew that Quinton and Leia wouldn't let her leave the hospital until she was fully recovered. "Why not?" Madelyn demanded. "Her son's life is in my hands, and her most beloved man is trapped in a cave. She's the only one who can rescue the both of you, so I'm sure she'll come." "She won't come. If you wait any longer, the oxygen in the cave will run out, and we'll all die here!" Stefan tried to suppress his rage, and ordered Madelyn, "Let Adie go. I won't hold you accountable as long as we come out of this disaster safe and sound." "I don't care about that." Madelyn looked up and laughed hysterically. "I didn't plan to go back alive, so it's better that I've got two more people to die with me
"What happened?" Stefan asked, his heart pounding. "The cave entrance... It's collapsed and completely blocked off—and worse, rain keeps pouring in!" The captain stammered, looking desperate. "If this goes on, the cave will fill with water, and we'll either drown or die from lack of oxygen!""What?" Stefan's eyes widened in disbelief. If that was the case, the only thing left for them was death. Lack of oxygen, drowning, hypothermia, hunger... They could take their pick."Are we dying? I... I don't want to die." Tiffany, who had been quiet all along, suddenly started to cry. "I want to grow up and keep on being my parents' daughter. I want to keep going to school and make many friends. I don't want to die!"Adie hurriedly held Tiffany's hand to comfort her. "Stop crying, Tiffany, we won't die. My daddy is awesome—he'll definitely come up with a way to rescue us. Plus, my mommy says I'm a lucky star, so everyone will be safe as long as I'm here." "Haha! It's fate!" Madelyn watche
"The news said that this is a powerful hurricane—it's almost a category three. Also, the center of the hurricane is only sixteen thousand feet from that island, so Adie's in grave danger right now!" Leia clenched her fists in agitation, wanting to rush to the island to rescue Adie. "There's no time to lose. Adie needs us!""I know that!" Quinton sighed in frustration. "I've sent Chase there to check things out. We can't panic at a time like this… If Ren finds out about this, she'll want to go there, and we can't afford that.""But we can't keep hiding it from her!" Leia tried to calm herself down by rubbing her hands, but it didn't work. "No, I can't sit here and do nothing. I've got to save Adie. If anything happened to him, I wouldn't be able to face Ren." Leia was a woman too, and although she didn't have children, she knew how important a child was to their mother. If something happened to Adie, it would crush Renee, and Leia didn't want to see that happen."You'd only make thin
Meanwhile, Renee had unplugged the infusion tube and left from the window ages ago. She was making her way to the island where Adie was. She knew that the others wouldn't let her leave the hospital in her current condition, but there was no way she could stay there and leave Adie alone during a hurricane. Both Adie and Abby meant more than her life to her, and she had to protect them no matter the cost. However, Renee was only human, and humans were weak in the face of natural disasters like this. The speedboat she had rented for an exorbitant price had almost been overturned by the strong winds several times, and her compass started to malfunction halfway through.She could only rely on her instincts moving forward. The downpour drenched her and soaked her bandages, tearing her recently healed wound. She almost fainted from the pain. 'My son needs me… I have to hold on!' Renee told herself, biting her lip so hard to stay conscious it started bleeding. She looked up at the sky and yel
Although Adie was just a child, he was not afraid of death. The only thing he was afraid of was his parents separating if he died. "You don't know how hard it is for Mommy. She gave birth to Abby and I and raised us alone, and even though she encountered so many obstacles, she resolved them all on her own. She's the greatest and kindest woman I've ever met." Adie recalled the time he spent with Renee and Abby on Sun Island wistfully, and felt sorry for Renee. "Daddy, I can swear that you're the man Mommy loves the most. Don't be mad at her. Just forgive her, okay?""I was never mad at her, silly. I'm the one who made a mistake. I should be begging for her forgiveness instead... because she's the woman I love the most too!" Stefan's eyes glistened with unshed tears. Even though he and Renee kept breaking up and getting back together with each other, he had never stopped loving her. He tried to distance himself from her because he didn't want her to get hurt again, but he hadn't expecte
"An angel?" Dazed, Adie forced himself to open his eyes. He saw light pouring in from the blocked entrance, and to his surprise, the person he had been longing for stood there. "Mommy... The angel is Mommy!" Adie's eyes widened in delight, and he waved at Renee excitedly.At that moment, Renee had dug through the entrance and was completely exhausted, but her energy seemed to come back when she saw Stefan and Adie. "Thank God you're here, Adie!" Renee cried out in relief, and crawled into the cave. She met Stefan's gaze and smiled tearfully. "You're here too. So, you're not that cruel after all." Initially, she had been disappointed because she thought Stefan had run off with Briar, but when she realized he had actually braved the hurricane and the flood in the cave to save their son, her feelings for him came rushing back. However, this wasn't the time to think about that."Give Adie to me. We have to leave right now, or the cave might collapse!" Renee stretched her hands out to tak
Renee's heart clenched the moment she heard those words. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she carried Tiffany in her arms, resting her hand on the little girl's pale face. "Don't be scared, you're safe now."However, Tiffany shook her head and kept crying. She tried her best to raise her hand to point at the cave. "Save my mommy… please!" Her small body trembled and she was scared, but she still hoped that someone could save Madelyn.Stefan checked Adie's breathing and realized he had fainted from exhaustion. He gently laid Adie on a boulder to rest, then turned to Tiffany and said, "You're too kind. That woman wanted you to die with her, but you're still begging to save her. You're very silly!" He had seen Madelyn's insanity the night before, and didn't feel it was necessary to save her."Is there another person in there?" Renee asked in shock. When she entered the cave just now, she hadn't seen anyone else. She had assumed that Adie had gotten rid of the kidnapper, but surprisingly
Stefan looked away as he said emotionally, "He doesn't want us to fight anymore... He wants me to take care of you and protect you, and he wants our family of four to live happily ever after!" He had been given a second chance at life, and he wanted to treasure it. He didn't want them to take unnecessary risks."I know Adie—he would want me to go in there and rescue her. Plus, if that woman really was crazy, Adie wouldn't be alive right now, and the girl wouldn't be asking me to save her. I think there's more to this story, and she's not as wicked as you think she is. We can talk about it after I save her!" Renee said, about to crawl into the cave."Why are you so stubborn?" Stefan grabbed Renee's arm. "Think of the kids! This girl doesn't want to lose her mother, but do you think Adie would want to lose his? You should at least think of his feelings.""Adie..." Renee looked at Adie hesitantly, her heart clenching as she stared at the unconscious boy. Stefan was right—one careless m
"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
"What bad timing!" Mateo's indifferent voice came from behind Amber.Amber turned around and saw Mateo with a team of armed soldiers. Terrified, she quickly put some distance between her and Liam. She stammered an explanation. "Matt… It's not what you think. Liam and I came here to look for people. Ms. Everheart and Ms. Osborne are gone. Liam couldn't find them and guessed they might be in the orchard. He wasn't familiar with the orchard and asked me to guide him."Mateo looked livid, but still cracked a gentle smile. "Silly, you don't have to be scared. I know you're prudent. He must have forced you to come here. I don't blame you."He extended his hand and beckoned Amber toward him. "Come here. You're my fiancee. You should stand with me.""I…" Amber bit her lip—Mateo was right. She kept her head low, about to walk to him.But in the next second, Liam firmly grabbed her wrist. "You can't go!" Liam held Amber's wrist tightly and shot Mateo a challenging look."When did Amb
Liam could only see through Amber's true thoughts if she showed her true self to him. "No, I do like you. I love you the most, and I want to marry you. But you neither like me nor want to marry me. You love freedom and Ms. Everheart. You love and yearn for the kind of life ordinary people like. So, I could only choose to give you up and let you get what you want. What else do you want me to do?" Amber was generally shy and reserved, but when Liam drove her anxious, she rambled a lot."Whatever I want is my business. You don't need to sacrifice yourself to grant my wish!" Liam held Amber's shoulders, acting like a kind senior. He tried to persuade her in earnest. "Marriage isn't a joke. Think it through. Do you like and know Mateo well? You won't be happy after marrying him, given the savage culture around here. And can you divorce him easily?""Matt will be nice to me. Even if he changes his mind, he'll still be nice to me because…my father is Benjamin," Amber replied.She chose
Being a sensitive woman, Amber immediately noticed Liam's displeasure. She kept her head lower and explained carefully, "I want a chance to choose again… I want to choose another person to fall in love with. You know that Matt and I grew up together. We're childhood friends. He likes me and always protects me without asking for anything back. I feel that it's happier to marry a person who loves me instead of marrying someone far beyond my reach."For the first time, she expressed the exhaustion she felt from her relationship with Liam. She no longer wanted to be the one who kept fawning over him. She wanted to give up and relax by being the one who was loved and adored in a relationship."Tsk!" Liam snorted arrogantly. "You don't know Mateo. He's not a nice guy. He's just good at pretending. Maybe it's just his means to get what he wants, but you assume that he loves and wants to protect you."Liam hadn't made that statement to purposely put Mateo down. After standing against Mate
Liam focused on holding Amber's hand and leading her through the orange grove. At the same time, he carefully scanned the ground and trees to find any related clues left by Renee and Leia."I don't care what others say, because I didn't do anything wrong," he said indifferently. "I hope you'll feel the same. I don't think you need to stop being my friend after choosing to marry Mateo. Am I not the friend you like the most?""That's different," Amber said.She followed Liam passively. At first, she couldn't adapt to it. After walking briefly, she felt better and found it easier to do. "Although I'm not good at my studies, I know men and women should keep a polite distance. You can't take my hand and sound righteous at the same time," she mumbled."Why not?" Liam retorted firmly. "When I was young, I always held my sister's hand wherever we went. I'm holding your hand because this fog is thick and the ground is slippery. I'm afraid of being separated from you. Just walk with me. St
Liam walked ahead of Amber, then turned to glance at her. He faked a smile and asked, "What's the matter? Are you worried that I might take advantage of you?" "No, of course not!" Amber quickly shook her head and pushed her scarf up. It had fallen a little. "I just find it improper," she answered softly.She looked like a typical woman from Southeast Aeos, petite and with a small face. Her skin was tanned, and her facial features weren't very distinct. She was charming and reserved, exuding a girlish pureness. She had put on her country's special traditional clothes. The thick clothes, embroidered with various patterns, wrapped around her petite body and gave her an exotic impression. From afar, she appeared like a colorful oil painting. "Hey, it's not improper. If I wanted to do anything to you, I would've done that long ago. I don't have to wait until now." Liam sounded relaxed and prudent to ease Amber's anxiety."Don't worry. I've always regarded you as my younger siste
Amber hurriedly turned Liam down. "You can't help with my affairs. I can handle it.""Well, tell me why I can't help you," Liam pressed. "I… I want to sew a wedding gown. And there are a lot of details that I need to add." Amber became competitive for no reason, and added stubbornly, "Your words aren't absolute. Yes, your business is important, but so is mine!""Oh, you want to sew a wedding gown. I can help you with that…" Liam said, relaxed. "Maybe I didn't get to tell you that I went to a small country in Southeast Aeos when I traveled around the world. I got to know a great sewing master. The pictures he sewed looked real like paintings! I found them interesting, so I learned from him. My sewing skills are probably better than yours. I can help you with that.""Really? You can sew?" Amber was full of surprise and admiration. Her eyes lit up. "I can't sew well. I want to learn from a great master too! If you can do it, can you teach me?""Of course!" Liam promised. "Can you he