After Jeremiah spoke, he signaled to the bodyguards at the door to come in and carry Zoey out. Zoey wanted Jeremiah to take her, but thinking about what had been done to her, she felt too ashamed to insist. Jeremiah silently watched her leave, then took off his jacket, wiped his hands with it, and tossed it into a nearby trash can.…Meanwhile, in Tirion, everything was covered in a blanket of white snow. The river was encased in a thick layer of ice. Yvette leaned against the seat and gazed out the window. The warmth inside the car caused a thin layer of mist to form on the glass, making the view outside blurry. Curious to see what it was, she turned her attention back to the gift in her lap.Then, she took out a small, palm-sized, exquisitely crafted box from the bag and opened it. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight. Inside the box was a beautifully made silver ring. It was the same ring she had personally engraved with both of their initials when they had been youn
The two men waited in the car until nightfall.It would be easier for Xavier's subordinates to steal the ring when it was dark.After Yvette went inside, she casually placed the gift bag on the table and went to Viola's room, giving Hannah a break. Since Gideon had started treating Viola, the latter's mental state had improved significantly. If this continued, she might live for several more years.None of them noticed someone sneaking into the house. Shortly thereafter, the box containing the ring was brought to Xavier. Mark opened the box and studied the ring. "This ring looks cheap. It's hard to believe Mr. Jeremiah would give something like this as a gift."Xavier didn't believe Jeremiah would give something so cheap either. "Check if there's anything else."Mark examined the ring closely and noticed letters engraved inside—"XL & YS"."These seem to be initials. XL and YS—aren't those yours and Mrs. Lane's initials?" Mark asked with a smile. "Mr. Lane, could this be a s
Xavier quickly walked in. Pretending not to see Yvette, he placed the gift bag down.Yvette asked suspiciously, "What are you doing with my stuff?" She walked downstairs and glanced into the bag, noticing the box was still there. "Did you look at it?" she asked again.Xavier stood still. "No. I can't see."Yvette didn't believe him. He had clearly taken it outside and probably had someone else look at it for him. "Do you want to know what's inside?" Yvette tried to trick him.Xavier's sleek eyebrows were slightly arched. "No."Yvette didn't get angry. She sat down and opened the bag herself. "Your brother's gift is quite valuable. It's a gold pendant. I decided to keep it. Is that okay?"Xavier silently listened to her deliberate deception, unable to call her out on it. Even though he thought there was no need to be jealous of what Yvette had done as a child, he begrudgingly responded, "Fine."Seeing his expression, Yvette understood that he knew what was inside. Not only had
Xavier wanted to explain that nothing had ever happened between him and Daphne. However, since he was still pretending to have amnesia, he replied, "I don't." He closed his eyes. "Let's sleep."Yvette shifted slightly out of his embrace, feeling uneasy as she tried to fall asleep. Since she had to go to the hospital for a prenatal checkup tomorrow, she needed to rest well tonight.…Meanwhile, Zoey finally felt some peace as she lay in her hospital bed at Tirion Hospital.Lawrence had already sent people to investigate who had assaulted her. However, the Yandell family had made many enemies since their return, making it difficult to pinpoint the culprit.Yara was still angry about the incident during the engagement party. However, she rushed to see Zoey as soon as she heard what had happened. "Zoey, are you okay?" she asked.Zoey couldn't bother to give her the least bit of respect. "Do you even need to ask? Are you blind?"She had previously been willing to show Yara some respe
Zoey now finally understood why Lawrence had married Yara, and why the latter cared more for her than Gemma. She thought Yara was merely trying to curry favor with her at first, but everything made sense now. She also understood why Gemma, who was already over 50 years of age, had only one daughter.Looking at the shredded paper in the trash can, Zoey stood up and frantically flushed the pieces down the toilet in the bathroom."I am the daughter of a businesswoman, not the daughter of some useless artist."To her, dancing was merely a form of artistic expression. Even becoming a world-renowned dancer was not as practical as being a businesswoman. Besides, with Gemma's means, she could use her money to make anyone a famous dancer. Rather than Yara, who was now just a housewife, Zoey believed only Gemma deserved to be her mother.Having sorted out her thoughts, Zoey called Yara back in. Her face returned to its usual pretense of warmth. "Mom, I've thought it through. From now on,
Despite thinking that, Noah still had to keep up appearances. "You're the one who's dead. Daddy isn't dead!" Then, he cried, saying, "You're a bad person."Xavier, already disliked children, especially the one in front of him. He felt impatient just listening to Noah cry. "Stop crying," he warned."No!" Noah continued to fake crying. There wasn't a single tear in sight.Xavier couldn't see that Noah was pretending to cry anyway. Worried that Yvette might get angry when she came out after her checkup and saw what was going on, he repeated, "Your father isn't dead.""But you cursed Daddy!" Noah cried louder.Xavier grew even more exasperated. "Stop crying. I was just joking."Noah was surprised that his bastard father would lower himself like this. He glanced at the wall clock and realized that it was almost time for Yvette to return from her checkup. It seemed that this bastard father was actually afraid of Yvette. He decided to use this to his advantage."You're an adult. Adul
Yara was standing impatiently on the snow. When she finally saw Yvette, she came to a slight pause. Her gaze quickly shifted to Noah with a hint of confusion. Who was this kid?While Yara didn't know Noah, the latter had already investigated her and immediately identified her as his maternal grandmother. Anger flashed in his eyes as he clenched his fists."This hag almost got Mom killed! I must teach her a lesson," he quietly promised himself.Yara noticed the resentment in the child's eyes and was puzzled. Why would such a small child look at her with such hatred?Not giving it much thought, Yara quickly approached the trio.Yvette instinctively stood in front of Noah. "Noah, you and Xavier should go inside. I need to take care of something."Xavier heard the unfamiliar footsteps but didn't know who they belonged to.Noah wanted to avoid causing trouble in front of his mother, so he said to Xavier, "Mister, let's go back inside.""Okay." Xavier nodded. Once inside, he asked No
Yara's face turned beet red as she stared at Yvette in disbelief. The once-obedient and gentle daughter had actually dared to strike her. Yvette's hand trembled as she lowered it. "Madam Yara, I suggest you watch your mouth. If there's a next time, it won't just be a slap," Yvette warned, her voice shaking but firm.Yara stood frozen, her mind reeling from the shock. She recovered quickly, though, and lunged at Yvette, intent on retaliating. However, several bodyguards swiftly intervened, pinning her down on the snowy ground. The once-dignified socialite was now a picture of disarray, her luxurious image shattered."Let me go! Let me go! How dare you stop me from hitting my daughter?" Yara screamed.The bodyguards wouldn't possibly let her go without Xavier's orders to release her.Yvette couldn't help but find the situation ironic. Normally, Yara would never admit Yvette was her daughter, but now, just to justify hitting her, she claimed their relationship with conviction.Cl