Linda was really panicking—for now, she must leave with Henry before coming up with a plan.However, Henry was not moving, and his eyes remained fixed on Tina, wondering what she was up to.And seeing that, Linda trembled even more, hugging his waist and leveling him a pleading look. "Please, Henry, I'm begging you… Get me out of here! I really don't want to see that animal…"Tina smiled coolly at Linda then. "Oh, Linda, what are you so scared of?"Linda wheeled on her and snapped, "I'm scared of Zach! He might force himself on me again! It was you, wasn't it?! Because he failed the last time he tried, you're now having him try it again?""Who, me?" Tina's smile simply broadened and turned toward Zach.Zach could hardly hide the pain in his own eyes.How could he not, when the woman he loved so much was hurting him repeatedly?Looking Linda straight in the eye, he asked, "I forced myself on you, you say?"Linda did not even look at him and kept playing the victim, burying her
Tina smirked, watching as Linda tried to shift the blame to her despite the evidence against her. "Now, as for whether this was faked too, we can have professionals appraise—""Shut up!" Linda screamed, cutting Tina short, her eyes red as she glared at Tina furiously.She absolutely hated that bitch! It was just one dead daughter! What was the big deal?! It was not like Tina could not have more if she loved daughters! She could have one with John or some tramp for all Linda cared—she could even have as many as she liked! Why did she have to keep obsessing over one?!Fighting back her panic to stay calm so she did not fumble, Linda continued her act. "You won't win! Henry will never believe you!"It had been years since she had become Orange, and it had always worked on Henry—he would believe her no matter what she said, as she was flawless in his mind.Even if she was forced to claim that she had been raped seven years ago, Henry never turned his back on her.There was no r
Linda kept crying, "I promise it won't ever happen again! As long as you stay away from Tina, I'll stay away from Zach! And once Grandma's mourning period is over, we'll get married!"Her words left Henry's heart skipping a beat, as he realized that when he saw the video of Linda getting intimate with Zach, he was only angry that she lied to him—and not that she had cheated on him.In fact, he did not feel jealous at all from seeing Linda willingly melt into another man's embrace.But if that were Tina… No, he did not even dare imagine that. Forget letting it happen—just the sight of Tina being near another man was unbearable.That was when he remembered what Yancy said about changing hearts, and Henry's eyes appeared troubled as he turned toward the sobbing Linda again."You're just satisfying your needs, you say?! You never loved me, you say?!"Zach's fingers clenched around his phone, as he had always believed that Linda was really in love with him.Even now, he forgave her
"What did you say?"Zach's words were a clap of thunder that left Henry reeling in shock, and he turned sharply toward Zach with eyes as cold as ice.In his surprise, his arms seemed to go limp, and he dropped Linda on the floor just as he lifted her."Argh!" Linda promptly cried out in pain in an attempt to draw Henry's attention back to her.However, seeing that Henry took no notice, Linda stopped being bothered by the pain, keeping her head lowered and her shoulders shaking.As no one could see her face, they could not tell if she was fearful that Zach would expose her or if it was something else.Then when she looked up at Zach moments later, tears welling up in her eyes as she bellowed, "That's slander! Why are you slandering me?!"She stared straight into Zach's eyes, while giving him a look that only they knew.She was betting on Zach's love for her—because he loved her so much, he would not bear to hurt her.And Zach did see the look in her eyes, his gaze troubled as h
"Zach Foster!"Linda's eyes were wide with rage, not expecting Zach to go that far.He swore that he would never hurt her!"Linda Cook!!!"Henry suddenly bellowed.And it was the first time he had ever called her by her full name!Linda's lips trembled as she turned toward Henry, and she was shocked to see the doubt in his eyes."Henry…" she murmured, her tears raining to try and curry Henry's sympathy.Even so, he was just glaring icily at her, and she felt a chill creeping up from her toes, extending throughout her body.She knew very well that Henry was absolutely regretful after learning that he had the wrong idea about Tina since two years ago, and that his presumptions had led to him neglecting Sophie.He felt that he owed Sophie so much and could never make amends for her death, and it was a boulder that kept weighing down on him.Over the past two years, he had spent countless nights at that bastard's grave.And whenever he saw anything that reminded him of children
Zach did not bring his evidence, even though he had taken precautions against Linda when he had gone to see her the other night.He kept his evidence safe in case anything unexpected happened. He had lied to Tina about bringing it along and presenting it to Henry, because he just wanted to reveal to Henry that he and Linda were sleeping together all along.He presumed that Henry would snap because he loved Linda so much—a man of his position would never stay with a woman who cheated on him.And once Henry dumped Linda, Linda would have no refuge.And since she did not love Rory, she would hand Rory over to him.However, Henry's reaction was something that Zach did not expect, and Zach himself had trouble deciding if he loved Linda or not.Nevertheless, Linda felt a lifeline when she heard Zach.This was a chance!Looking up at Tina, who was clearly shocked, Linda screamed in grief, "Tina! So you were really working with Zach to set me up! Calling me heinous without proof, mur
Linda's tears were falling like a string of broken pearls. "Believe me… I didn't do it… You know me. How could I be so heinous?"There was endless grief in each word, as she was betting everything on this killing stroke to win Henry's trust.As long as he believed her, he would not even bother to seek evidence or believe Zach's evidence when it was shown to him.But things were different this time.In the past, whenever Linda used to ask Henry to believe her, he would never hesitate to say that he did.Now, however, his visage was cold and he did not answer, only quietly and quickly bandaging her wrist.Linda's heart sank as she watched.However, she soon pulled herself together—she could not just take this lying down!Zach had yet to show his evidence, and she must not give up until the very last moment!As if losing her sanity, she suddenly withdrew her hand to stop Henry from bandaging it, even tearing it wide open with her remaining good hand.At the same time, she levele
Zach hurried after Henry and Linda, staggering as he did.His mind had gone blank when Linda cut herself with such determination.He certainly knew why Linda had said those words to Henry and why she had slit her wrist.But when he saw those cuts that reached bone on her wrist, the scales of his rationality and sentiment ultimately tipped toward sentiment.He really loved Linda and could not stop himself from worrying.At that moment, he had only one thought—that he did not want Linda to die.After everyone was gone, the door shut on its own, while the ambulance's siren soon faded into the distance.Tina slowly dropped to a crouch, not bothered to clean Linda's blood from the floor.All she could think about was Henry telling Linda that she believed him and could not help clenching her fingers around Sophie's bone. "Mommy's not giving up, and I won't fall again. I'll avenge you, Sophie… Definitely."Even if it killed her.-Linda was barely alive when she was rushed to the
John did not hide his selfish nature when he was around Tina.In the end, he was really not that confident in himself—not after Tina had been in love with Henry for so many years, and John himself knew all too well how difficult it was to get over a person after loving them for so long.Still, Tina knew what John was getting at. "I'll never forgive Henry Barnes for the rest of my life, nor return to his side."There is no question that Linda was the one who murdered Sophie. But without Henry's involvement, she would never have had the chance."What she did was horrible, but he's just as unforgivable."That was why she loathed Linda as much as Henry.And the way she saw it, Sophie's death would always stand between her and Henry—there was no chance for her to turn back to him in this life.Seeing the determined expression on her face, John understood that the chief reason that Tina hated Henry so much was because of Sophie's death, and she refused to forgive him.But what if Sop
As Henry turned toward Tina, he could imagine how much despair she would have suffered that night, having to wipe blood off Sophie's gravestone.And she had loved Sophie so much that she bought that specific plot of land for Sophie's final resting place, just so that Sophie could be reborn into a better family in her next life!"Tina, can you check on the stew?" John came up with an excuse for Tina to leave, as there were more things that he did not want Tina to remember.Tina nodded quietly and entered the apartment without another look at Henry, while John shut the door as he watched.Then, turning toward Henry again, John asked, "Now, let's talk about Linda's legs. Did you know why Tina pushed her?"Henry could not even answer at that point.Just the two things mentioned earlier was more than what he could take—his heart was almost in pieces and bleeding for Sophie, and for Tina even more so.And yet, John continued, "It was all Linda. She found that Tina was severely depress
Henry's eyes widened—that was the day… Sophie was buried?!What the hell was he doing?!He felt a chill creeping up from his toes and wobbled backward until his back hit the wall.He never thought about that, because he did not know Linda had every intention to murder Sophie.And now that John laid bare the truth before him, he remembered what he did.Rory had won third place in some jogging event at her kindergarten, and she harmonized perfectly with Linda at Rose Garden.While Rory was coaxing Henry sweetly to celebrate it for her with a grand party, Linda appeared disapproving that he was spoiling Rory, but then offhandedly mentioned they should do it on the weekend.And on the day of the party, Linda had deliberately called Tina to invite her to the party, even asking Tina to bring Sophie along since Henry had not seen Sophie for a while.At the time, Henry was completely skeptical of Sophie's death and missed Sophie since it had really been a while since he saw her.He wa
As Henry dropped to his knees, his blood freezing up, he realized had really been harboring Sophie's murderer all along.Remorse and regret struck him everywhere all at once.He looked up at Tina, wanting very much to tell her that he did not know.If he had known that Linda had taken the kidney meant for Sophie maliciously, he would not have protected Linda even if he was still under the impression that Linda was Orange.But he also realized that it was not as if he did not have the chance to find out.It was all because of his suspicion toward Tina that he denied her any chance to speak up.Or perhaps she had already given up on him at that point.Tears were welling up in Tina's eyes as she realized what Henry meant to say.Time seemed to turn back to the day when Sophie died, and she was once again mourning Sophie.It had been over two years, but she could never get a good night's sleep at the notion that Sophie was not avenged and therefore could not rest in peace."I've
Henry did try to force Zach to give up the alleged evidence he had against Linda and even put him through pain that only professionals could endure, let alone a normal person.But since Zach did not give up, he simply presumed that Tina bore a grudge and framed Linda, all because Linda had stolen the kidney meant for Sophie, allowing Rory to survive while Sophie died.If the truth was what Tina had claimed, however—that Rory was not even a match for the kidney transplant meant for Sophie—then that could only mean that Linda had meant to murder Sophie in the first place.Everything she said—that she loved Rory too much and did not want to lose her, and that she felt guilty from picking her own child out of selfishness… Those were all lies!On the other hand, tears were welling up in Tina's eyes as she felt as she was brought back to that day."Linda never meant to let Sophie live from the start. And she didn't just steal the kidney meant for Sophie—when Sophie's condition turned te
Tina glared icily at Henry as she snapped, "What's the point of kneeling here?! You don't even get to apologize as long as you have yet to avenge Sophie!"Henry's burly figure clearly cringed from Tina's words.His lips parted but he had no idea what to say, because he had a hand in Sophie's death too.If he had not told Eric Sandler to prioritize Rory if there was a donor match, Linda would not have been able to steal the kidney meant for Sophie, and Sophie would be alive.Even if he did not know, he was still the reason Linda succeeded, and that made him the chief culprit of Sophie's death."Tina…" He tried to speak despite the difficulty, only to stop.However, Tina knew what he was going to say, seeing the look on his face, and was absolutely seething as she stared daggers at him. "Are you going to tell me that Linda has already suffered for it?! That she's lost her legs and now a hand—""No…."Tina's outburst certainly reminded him of the dastardly things he said to defend
The instant Tina tapped on the notification, she found Henry kneeling outside her door, motionless.She swiped through her phone and saw that most notifications were from Henry, with the first of many being sent at three in the morning.That meant Henry had driven straight to her place after leaving Rose Garden and knelt outside her door for almost four hours.But Tina remained unaffected.Remembering the video John had sent earlier, she had a hunch that Henry was outside after he became aware of Rory's true nature.She soon tapped out of the notifications and kept chatting with John since she found herself in a good mood first thing in the morning.When John said he had yet to have breakfast, Tina could read between the lines and did not play dumb, telling him that she would cook extra portions for him when he came over.John replied: [Already on my way.]Tina could not resist a smile. [Drive safe. See you soon.]After putting down her phone, she went about her daily routine—
It was an especially long night, and every passing second was especially gruelling as Henry stayed on his knees outside Tina's door, like his heart was being stabbed.-When Tina woke up, she noticed that John had just texted her a minute ago.[Are you up?]Tina smiled ever so faintly as she replied: [Mornin'.][There's a video you should watch.][Okay.]While waiting for the video to be sent to her phone, she noticed many notifications from her alarm system.It was the first time this had happened since she moved in, and she was about to tap on it when John's file was downloaded.Tina tapped on the video first and immediately recognized that it was taken outside Rsoe Garden when she tapped on it.A familiar car was outside Linda's villa—it was Henry's.Tina's gaze cooled as she looked on.Yesterday was Sophie's death anniversary and also Rory's birthday.And given how much Henry doted on Rory, it was not hard to see that he went to the Rose Garden after visiting Sophie's
As Henry's car soon disappeared in the night, Rory was left behind and too exhausted to give chase.She lay sprawled on the ground, watching as Henry left her, and her body's warmth slowly faded.Her gaze was endlessly horrified and helpless.Was he really going to leave her?-After leaving Rose Garden, Henry drove straight to Tina's apartment, having paid a hefty sum to buy the adjacent units to hers after finding out that she had moved there.He drove into the car park but stayed downstairs.The apartment complex was very quiet as it was three in the morning, but his heart could not quiet down at all.After all, he had been horrified since the moment he exposed Rory's two-faced nature.It was so obvious, but he just did not see it!He really was too overjoyed from the reunion when Linda showed up, passing herself off as Orange.The delight of the lost and found was just too much, and he cared even more for Linda when she told him that Mama Orange was dead, and how much su