Chapter 006

Last night?

Indeed, Renee had said a lot.

Unable to bear seeing Carl in such painful restraint, she had given in.

In the height of passion, enduring his almost torturous teasing, she had sincerely poured out her heart.

She thought then that perhaps Carl would forget everything by morning.

But she would remember it all, at least knowing she had once been so close to him.

"Carl, I like you."

"I've liked you for a long time, ever since you came to my defense the day I entered the Grey household. I've been secretly admiring you since then."

"I know you won't care about me, but I... really... love you."

Renee was sixteen when she entered the Grey family. Susanne had dressed her up like a doll being presented as a gift.

Back then, Susanne didn't understand the understated elegance of wealthy women's fashion. She just wanted her daughter to look like a pretty doll entering the Grey household.

Instead, Renee became the laughingstock of the entire family.

They said she looked like a pheasant pretending to be a phoenix.

Susanne, timid and afraid of conflict, couldn't even stand up to the servants.

That's when Carl appeared.

Tall and imposing in a long black coat, he stood under the portico, tapping ash from his cigarette. Exhaled smoke veiled his face, with gently falling snow in the background.

Dangerous and aloof, yet undeniably handsome.

A single glance from him scared the servants into silence.

He was twenty-three then, fresh out of college, already the feared Mr. Grey of the city.

He looked at her and said simply: "Not bad."

Those two words stayed with her for a long time.

So long that even years later, she could still recall his scent from that day.

Later, there were occasional encounters.

In the spring garden, she was on the verge of tears over dropping in class rank.

Leaning against a pavilion, smoking, he glanced at her problem: "You're just dumb. Give me the pen."

By the summer pool, she was learning to swim and got a leg cramp.

He jumped in to save her, scolding her lack of coordination.

On an autumn street, she was being harassed and couldn't outrun her pursuer.

He got out of his car, put his arm around her shoulder, and walked away.

Her admiration grew through these fleeting encounters across the seasons, carefully nurtured.

However...

Renee had said these words in her past life too.

Her heart had been sincere and passionate, blossoming in his desire.

But in the end, it only brought her slander and contempt.

And her daughter's tragic death.

Since Carl had never cared about her love, why should she care now?

Renee kept her eyes lowered, afraid to meet Carl's gaze.

"You misheard. I didn't say anything."

"Not calling me Uncle Carl anymore?"

"Uncle Carl."

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the car turned icy.

Renee glanced at Carl next to her. He was playing with a cigarette between his fingers.

Their eyes locked, and he snapped the cigarette in half, letting the tobacco fall.

The warning was clear.

Renee's heart tightened, feeling as if she were being crushed to dust.

"Pull over," Carl said coldly.

Jackson immediately steered the car to the side of the road.

Since they were still on the Grey family's property, Carl could stop anywhere he pleased.

After the engine was turned off, Carl looked at Jackson, who got the hint and left the car without hesitation.

Renee tried to do the same, but Carl's firm grip on her waist pulled her back.

"Trying to play dumb? Renee, I was drugged, not dead."

His voice was low, more sarcastic than angry.

Renee, suffocating in his menacing presence, could only grit her teeth and struggle.

But she was no match for him.

As soon as she raised her hand, he caught it from behind and pressed her against the leather seat, which sank slightly under the pressure.

Their position made Renee uncomfortable.

Any movement only resulted in a tighter grip.

"Let go of me!"

But the man behind her, just like last night, exuded heat and seemed intrigued.

Renee was forced to lie face-down on the seat, with Carl's weight on top of her.

Embarrassed and angry, both her wrists were held in one of his hands.

With his free hand, he brushed aside her hair, revealing the marks she had tried to hide - all left by him the night before.

Carl's fingertips traced the marks as he said with icy intent: "Since you've provoked me, you can't expect to get away so easily."

His fingers pressed harder, slowly trailing down her neck.

Along her spine, inch by inch.

Renee bit her lip in humiliation, remembering the eight years of torment she had endured in bed with Carl in her past life.

He didn't love her, but that didn't stop him from controlling her, possessing her like a personal object. There was no love, but also no letting go. Thinking about this made Renee's body tremble uncontrollably, just as it had in her past life.

Carl's hand paused. A dark tide surged in his eyes, instantly extinguishing his interest. He pushed her away. Renee curled into a ball, desperately trying to control her fear.

Carl lowered the car window and leisurely lit a cigarette. The tobacco smell filled the car as he smoked. His blood-red jade ring gleamed menacingly in the darkness. Under the streetlight, he smiled, looking particularly gloomy. His gaze was lazy, like a blunt knife scraping against Renee's skin.

Gradually, as the tobacco smell filled the car, Renee calmed down. She clutched her clothes and sat up."What will it take for you to leave me alone?"

Carl tilted his head back, exhaling a pale gray mist. He glanced sideways at her, with the look of a beast awakening in the night. He caressed Renee's cheek with the hand holding the cigarette. His fingertips slid from her temple to her eye, tracing the tear mole beneath it.

The touch was smooth and dry, it should have been comforting. But now it felt like a snake's tongue licking her skin, causing her breath to catch. Carl looked down at her from his dominant position.

Her eyes were so deceptive.

Last night they had been full of love. When he had been rough with her, tears had slid from that mole, making her look pitiful and irresistible.Who would have thought she would deny it all today?

No matter.

He wasn't a good person either.

In the next moment, Carl seized Renee's chin, forcing her to look up at him.He traced her dry lips with his thumb. The nearly spent cigarette was just millimeters away from burning her neck.

His eyes held an indomitable wickedness.

"Leave you alone? Renee, when you drugged me, you should have known this wasn't over."

"..."

Renee choked. She knew that no matter what she said now, Carl wouldn't believe her.It would only make him punish her even more severely.

At this moment, Renee felt as if the gears of fate had started turning again.

But she had worked so hard to escape.

……

Half an hour later, Carl's car came to a stop outside his private residence. As Renee exited the car, she felt nauseous once again. She wasn't sure if it was the effect of the medicine or her emotional turmoil.

She pressed her stomach and turned to leave.

However, before she could go, Carl grabbed hold of her and forcefully pulled her towards the house. Renee froze for a moment, then immediately began to struggle, demanding, "Let go of me! What are you trying to do?"

Cornering her by the door, Carl sneered, "Even though you took the contraceptive pill, it's not foolproof. You'll stay here for a month to ensure you're not pregnant before you can leave. If you are pregnant..."

His eyes were cold as ice, displaying no mercy. Renee felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen, the memory of her daughter Sarah dying in a hospital bed flooding her mind. Trembling, she asked, "And if I am? What then?"

"Abort it," Carl replied, his tone flat, as if discussing something trivial.

It was in this moment that Renee finally realized the foolishness of her previous beliefs, understanding that he had never married her out of love for their daughter.

She had mistakenly believed that her presence caused him to dislike their daughter, when in reality, he had desired to get rid of the child from the very beginning.

Renee's stomach churned, and she felt sick to her heart.

"Ugh..." She started to retch.