"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
Time seemed to have stopped at that moment."Mommy!" Tiffany screamed, trying to crawl to the cave."Don't go there!" Renee quickly stopped Tiffany. "It's too dangerous. Your mommy… Maybe she's already…""No, I want to save Mommy. She's still alive, I'm sure of it!" Tiffany shook her head stubbornly, her face wet with tears. "Mommy is still waiting for me to save her. I can't leave her behind. It's my fault… If I hadn't said all those things, Daddy wouldn't have given my brother up… It's all my fault. I want to say sorry to Mommy. I want her to forgive me!" Tiffany kept crying as she spoke, her love for Madelyn clear. However, it was too late. The landslide had covered the entire cave, and Madelyn's chance of survival was very slim. Holding a compass, the captain looked around before glancing at the cloudy sky. He turned to them and urged, "Mr. Hunt, Ms. Everheart, we have to go. If we don't leave now, we might not be able to get out of here!" Renee bit her lip and carried Tiffa
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt
"I…" Renee paused. For a moment, she had no idea how to answer that question."Don't put yourself in a difficult position. Just follow your heart," Justin said calmly. "If you want to stay, my family will still welcome you readily. If you want to leave, I'll come up with a way to help you leave smoothly."After listening to Justin, Renee answered honestly, "Maybe it's better for me to leave, though I know this choice will hurt you."She could choose to stay to protect Justin's dignity and give Austin a good explanation. It would be more relaxing and steadier for her. However, Renee knew that it could only last briefly. She would cause Justin greater harm. She might as well be decisive and stop the damage in time. "Don't say that." Justin cracked a bitter smile and said with relief, "I've stopped taking things too seriously. If you like me, you won't stop loving me even if we're apart. Similarly, you'll think about another man if you don't like me, even though you're always b
Austin was having breakfast in the dining room. When he saw Justin and Renee walk over intimately, he finally believed that they had slept together. They seemed like a real couple."Good morning, Grandpa Baldwin!" Renee obediently greeted Austin just like before. She acted normally."Good morning." Austin nodded, unable to suppress his smile. After sizing them up, he calmly said to Renee, "We know how apologetic you are after you toasted to us last night. We'll forget about the past. You're still a part of my family." "Grandpa!" Justin interrupted Austin; he was very protective of Renee. "She's a woman, and we're not married yet. Please don't say that. A woman's reputation is the most important thing.""You…" Austin wanted to refute Justin, but their conflict was just resolved so it would be bad to pressure them more. He shook his head and said, "Fine. You two always have a bland romance. Finally, you've made some progress. I'll let you two decide what to do next.""Got it, Gr
"Hey, Haze! What are you doing? Get off of me!" Renee struggled in confusion."Hush!" Justin gestured and stopped her.In a while, someone unlocked the door of the room."Mr. Baldwin, let me help you and Ms. Everheart change your clothes." A kind middle-aged woman walked into the room casually. When she found them sleeping together intimately, relief washed over her. "Oh, you guys are still sleeping… Fine, I'll leave you be." Then, the woman exited the room.After that, Justin stopped hovering above Renee, looking awkward. "I'm sorry. It happened all of a sudden. If I hadn't done that, they wouldn't let us go. I just did a small thing to resolve the issue." Justin was fully aware of Austin's thoughts. Although Austin was still angry at Renee, he was satisfied with her and wanted to see her get into a real intimate relationship with Justin. If that did not happen, Austin might tie them up together since the drug had failed. Justin could only act with Renee to avoid the in
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