Chapter 8

Willow bumped into Jeffrey in the parking lot.

Jeffrey seemed surprised to see her. He thought for a short while before walking over toward her. His eyes were deep as he asked, "Are you really leaving Nebula?"

Willow hummed softly. "Yes. I'm leaving."

She threw the box into the boot of her car and closed it. Then, she turned around and said faintly, "Thanks for your help the other night."

Jeffrey looked closely at Willow's face. There was a faraway look in her eyes that concealed everything and revealed nothing. This was the Willow that he knew. Her fragile beauty that night had been nothing but a dream.

His eyes dimmed considerably. Then, he nodded with reservation. "It was nothing," he responded coldly.

Nonetheless, Jeffrey continued standing there as he watched Willow's car disappear out of the parking lot, seemingly in deep thought.

…

Willow finally arrived back at Grandview Manor around 8:00 pm later that evening. As soon as she got out of the car, she caught a whiff of osmanthus flowers in the breeze that welcomed her. It was quite a refreshing scent.

Blair came out to greet her and asked, "Mrs. Ziegler, will you be having dinner alone today? Or would you like to wait for Mr. Ziegler instead? The food is already all prepared. We'll just need to warm it up a little."

Willow thought about it for a moment. Then, she answered faintly, "There's no need to prepare my meals anymore from today onward."

Blair paled in shock. She wanted to ask why, but Willow had already walked through the manor and was heading straight upstairs.

It was brightly lit on the second floor. Willow slowed down as she fixed her gaze on the beautifully decorated corridor, She then took slow, heavy steps forward. Every step she took reminded her of Julian—their past, their experiences, their hardships, and the pain that he caused her.

"Julian, if you want power, then let me assist you.

"Julian, these hard times will soon pass, right?

"Julian! My stomach hurts… It hurts so bad…"

"We're sorry, Mrs. Ziegler, but after a close-up examination, we've found out that the chances of you getting pregnant are close to zero. Perhaps you'd like to consider adoption instead?"

…

It was just about 30 feet from one end to the other, but it felt as though Willow had re-lived her life all over again. The end of the corridor also felt like the end of her feelings for Julian.

The night breeze blew gently around her, making her face feel icy to the touch. She pushed open the door to the bedroom and flipped on the light switches, basking the whole room in a warm glow.

For the past four years, her life had revolved primarily around Julian. She had been with him as he seized power to stand at the top. Although Julian gained everything, Willow realized that she lost more and more of herself as time passed.

Luckily, she was finally going to be free from it all.

Willow walked into the walk-in wardrobe and brought out a few large suitcases before she began to pack. She packed the regular clothes she wore often, along with the pricey jewelry that she owned. She wasn't going to leave them behind for Julian.

After she was done packing, Willow got up and happened to glance up at the oil painting that was hanging on the wall.

She had painted it. It was a painting of Julian in his younger days. He looked young and full of life.

But there wasn't any love left between them anymore, which meant there was no need for this painting to exist anymore.

Willow found a tube of lipstick in her purse and began to scribble on the canvas with it. Bright streaks of red were dragged all over the painting, turning it gory and frightening to look at.

In a matter of seconds, the painting was completely disfigured. Julian's face had disappeared under the red streaks of lipstick.

However much love Willow had poured into the painting when she made it back then, she now replaced them all with an equal amount of hatred.

The oil painting wasn't the only thing that suffered her wrath. Even their wedding photos were also slashed to ribbons with a knife.

This was the end of their relationship. Just like their brightly smiling portraits that could never be pieced together again.

The knife dropped from Willow's fingers. Her arm just wouldn't stop shaking. She then fell to the ground and covered her eyes with her hands as tears pooled in them. She had wasted all of her youth. Everything tasted bitter, just like that night when she'd felt the excruciating pain in her belly.

Willow didn't even look back when she finally left.

The master bedroom felt empty without its mistress. The only thing left as a memento of her existence was the diamond ring on the bedside table, sparkling coldly in the darkness.

…

Blair couldn't stop Willow. The only thing she could do was watch helplessly as Willow left in her car and sped off into the night.

When Blair finally snapped out of it, she immediately called up Julian.

Julian was in the VIP ward at Everglow Hospital. He stood at the end of the corridor, close to the floor-to-ceiling windows, a tall and lonely figure as the night breeze fanned around his face.

He was on the phone with Blair, calling from the manor. She sounded anxious. "Sir, Mrs. Ziegler has just left."

A look of impatience appeared in Julian's eyes. "Where did she say she was going?"

He didn't think much about it. He just thought that Willow was perhaps in a shitty mood and had gone out to take a breather. Hadn't she just gone out drinking a few nights before?

Julian then chided Blair for blowing things out of proportion. Blair went silent for a while before finally speaking up. "She refused to say. She also brought with her half a dozen suitcases. We went upstairs to check and saw that she'd taken her clothes and jewelry.

"The bedroom's also been left in a mess. Mr. Ziegler, I think that you should hurry home as soon as possible to take a look!"

Julian felt his chest tighten. He gripped his phone a little harder as his mind began to wander.

It wasn't until a long while later that he finally hung up and hurried to the elevators. The lights shone on him as he walked past, casting a stern yet perfect shadow onto the ground. However, if one looked closely, one would see that the eyelashes were shaking.

By the time Julian rushed back to Grandview Manor, it was already late at night. He hurried upstairs to the second floor and pushed open the door that led to the master bedroom that he shared with Willow.

He'd only just opened it by a crack when he caught sight of the mess inside.

The wedding photos that used to hang on the wall above the bed now lay crumpled on the ground, its glass and frame smashed into a million pieces on the floor. The photo of them smiling happily at each other had also been slashed into shreds.

He walked farther into the walk-in wardrobe. The half that belonged to Willow looked as though it had just been cleaned out by a robber. The doors were wide open, with not a single clothing item in sight.

Her clothes and jewelry were all gone.

Even Willow's most beloved oil painting—the one she'd painted after begging him for the longest time after their wedding to be her model and muse, the one proof of the rare sweet moments they ever shared in their marriage—was utterly ruined.

Julian couldn't understand. Why did Willow keep distancing herself from him and arguing with him only after they'd finally made it to the top and had everything that they'd ever wanted?

Did she know just how many people were vying for her position as his wife?

Did she really not want any of that anymore?

He refused to believe it.

Julian stood amongst the shards of glass and called Willow's number. He thought that she was just pretending to run away from home so that he would acknowledge her presence. Unexpectedly, Willow picked up almost immediately.

He started interrogating her about the mess at home. He told her that if the media caught wind of the fuss she'd kicked up today, the public would start gossiping about them, and that would cause Nebula's share prices to drop.

He then ordered her to come home at once.

"There's a limit to everything you do, including kicking up fusses like this, Willow Harper! Think about the whole picture for once!"

The night was dark and silent, and Willow's calm voice could be heard from the other end of the line. "There won't be any sort of picture anymore, Julian Ziegler. I've already gotten someone to help me file for divorce. You'll be getting a court summons very soon."

Julian's Adam's apple bobbed. He took a long time to respond. "What do you mean?"

After a few seconds, Willow's cold voice was heard again. "Exactly what you think I mean. We are done, Julian Ziegler."

Then, she hung up on him.

Julian tried calling her back, but his calls wouldn't go through anymore. Instead, a robotic voice answered.

"I'm sorry, the person you have called is not available."

…

Julian stood rooted in his place for a very long time.

At the door, Blair cautiously approached him and said, "Ms. Burke called. She said she'd like to speak with you."

Julian could feel the veins in his head throbbing. He suddenly yelled back at her, "Tell her to fuck off!"

Willow was gone.

Willow didn't want him anymore. His Willow didn't want him anymore. She once promised him that she would be with him forever. She told him before that she would forever be by his side. She told him that she would never leave him.

Julian suppressed his anger as best as he could, breathing lowly and shallowly. Just then, he happened to catch sight of a yellowed piece of paper under the bed. It looked like it was from many years ago.

He frowned and wondered what it could be.

When he picked it up from the ground, he was instantaneously stunned when he finally had a proper look at it.

It was a test report from the Obstetrics and Gynecology hospital.

And Willow's name was on it.