I instinctively shielded Noah from Irvin's hostile glare, worried Irvin might try to harm him.Noah had changed a lot since I last saw him. He was no longer the timid, socially anxious boy I remembered. Even so, he was still my little brother in a way. I couldn't allow him to get hurt when he was supposed to be under my care.Irvin was visibly upset when he saw how protective I was of Noah.For years, I had firmly stood by his side, no matter what happened. He had never imagined that one day, I would stand against him—and to protect another man, no less."Emilia, you—" He started to speak but abruptly stopped.His immediate reaction was to get angry, but then he realized he was in the wrong.So, instead, he softened his tone. "I'm not going to do anything to him, Emi.""If that's the case, enjoy your meal. We'll be having ours," I replied curtly.Then, I led Noah over to the private room I had reserved.Mark had advised me to ease the tension between Irvin and me. Once I did,
Julianne wanted Irvin to stand up for her. She wanted him to deal with us on her behalf.In the past, Irvin would have undoubtedly scolded me. If I had upset her, he would have punished me without hesitation. If things were the same as before, he would likely react the same way now. But they weren't.First of all, he was trying to win me back. So, he wouldn't dare treat me like he used to.Secondly, some things fell apart when under scrutiny.Irvin wasn't a fool. Despite everything, he was still as sharp as a tack. Now, he no longer blindly believed everything Julianne said. Once he actually thought about it, he was able to see things clearly.The things I said had stirred conflicting emotions in him. His eyes reflected his complicated feelings as he gazed at Julianne. Hence, he didn't scold or deal with me on her behalf. Instead, he immediately pulled her away from the scene.Irvin was a proud man. He also greatly valued his dignity. He couldn't stand people staring at him cri
Sure enough, my bet was spot on.Julianne was admitted to the hospital the next day. She had fallen terribly ill on the day she was supposed to be sent abroad.Given how she had been hospitalized yet again, it was likely she wouldn't be leaving anymore.Irvin immediately called me to explain and told me not to be upset. He also promised that as soon as she recovered, he would send her abroad right away.Truth be told, I wasn't angry at this. In fact, I was rejoicing that she would be sticking around.The old me had longed for Julianne to be sent abroad. I had sorely wanted Julianne to be as far away from her life as possible. But the current me didn't want her to go abroad at all— because I was planning on sending her to prison!Julianne hated me and couldn't stand seeing me happy. She would likely try everything to get rid of me. She had already failed once, but it didn't mean she wouldn't try a second time or even a third. I was certain she would keep trying until she succeeded
"Let go of me!" I shouted."Don't be afraid, Emi. And please, don't be like this. I won't let anything happen to you. I've already made all the necessary arrangements. So all you need to do is lure the kidnappers out," Irvin cooed, trying to reassure me.It didn't matter what he said. It also didn't matter how much he promised I would be fine. He knew I would still be frightened. He also knew that he shouldn't be forcing me to do this.When the kidnappers had told him to exchange me for Julianne, he had refused at first. He had firmly and decisively rejected them. But then, they sent him a video recording of Julianne. And no matter how hard he searched, he wasn't able to determine the location in the video."Lianne's situation is dire, Emi. The kidnappers will only show themselves if they see you…" He tried to reason with me.I was obviously against his plan.Irvin wouldn't be forcing me to do this if Julianne hadn't looked like she was in peril.He genuinely wanted me to forgiv
Meanwhile, at an abandoned factory in a remote mountain area, Julianne watched the video Travis had just recorded of her.Dissatisfied, she tugged at her clothes to make the tears in them bigger. Her upper body was now almost completely exposed. She also ripped the slit in her skirt all the way to the waistband. Then, she mussed her hair to make it even messier.Now, she looked as though she had been sexually assaulted."Shoot it again. What nonsense did you just film?" Julianne ordered while holding the phone out to Travis.She didn't look like she had been roughed up in the video. So, why would Irvin believe she was in terrible danger? She had to convince him that her life was in danger. Otherwise, he wouldn't trade me for her.Just as I suspected.Julianne hadn't been able to hire a hitman to take me out. Plus, she was worried she would be implicated if she did. Yet, she was still unwilling to let me live my life in peace.So, she went about hurting me from a different angle
Julianne was terrified.Her voice instantly became feeble as she pleaded with Travis. "Please don't do this, Mr. Walker. Don't forget, I am your savior. I paid for your medical bills and your tuition. I'm the reason you survived long enough to attend a good university."She hoped reminding him of the favor she had done for him would snap him out of his current state.Travis recalled the despair he had felt when he was lying in the hospital bed. His expression softened at the memory.Cupping Julianne's face gently, he said, "You made me feel like I was looking at an angel back then. Did you know that, Ms. Lianne?"He had been experiencing the darkest moment of his life when Julianne had appeared. Shrouded in pure light, she had rescued him from his despair.All these years, he had viewed her as an angel. Hence, he didn't dare defile her in any way. He did everything she asked, but he was also filled with regret and suffering. He was pained by the fact that she was out of his reach
My eyes were filled with disgust and murderous hatred.Irvin involuntarily shrank from fear under my gaze. He was afraid I would never love him again and refused to be with him. He was also terrified that I would hate him for the rest of my life.He genuinely didn't want it to be this way between us. But this was Julianne's life at stake.He knew any explanations would be pointless at this stage. They would just sound like feeble excuses.Yet, he still tried. "I know Lianne has wronged you many times before, Emi," he admitted. "I also know that her relationship with Mr. Walker isn't straightforward. But you saw the video yourself! You know it's real."What happened in the video was undeniable. Travis' movements and Julianne's terrified cries were proof of this. She had truly been violated."Lianne did have a good relationship with Mr. Walker, but people change, especially those in his situation. He's been backed into a corner, so it doesn't matter how good of a relationship the
I knew it was useless to beg since Irvin only cared about Julianne. But I still couldn't help but try.I was scared. I was so, so scared.I was terrified of getting hurt again. Having suffered after a near-death experience, I feared experiencing it all over again.I had stayed in the hospital for three months. But the first month after I had regained consciousness was the worst.There hadn't been an inch of me that wasn't in pain. The pain had been so unbearable that I had to max out my dosage of sleeping pills every night. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to sleep.I had always been sensitive to pain. But after that ordeal, I was now deathly afraid of experiencing it.Truthfully, I would rather die than suffer that level of agony again. That being said, I also didn't want to die. I wanted to continue living. I had finally found a glimmer of hope and was about to start over. So, I didn't want my life to end like this.I really, truly didn't."Please, Irvin," I choked out, grippi
"Ms. Quill, you—" Grace sputtered.From her expression, I could tell she wanted to say, "You really will say anything to save your pride. How will you get in if you won't follow us?"Just then, a few people walked out of the hall. At the lead was an elderly man with white hair.Upon seeing me, the elderly man's stern expression morphed into a smile. "Emilia! You're here!"I returned the smile and walked up to greet him, "Hello, Professor Weiss."I had met several influential figures during the Global Technology Forum in Lestoria. Among them, I had gotten along best with this man, Professor Richard Weiss.After exchanging pleasantries, Professor Weiss turned to Mitchell and asked, "Who is this man? What gives him the right to bar you from attending the conference and call you an academic fraud?"Professor Weiss was the biggest name in the physics field. He was someone everyone respected and dared not offend.Hearing this, Mitchell quickly explained, "It was a misunderstanding! I
"Of course!" Grace said.Moving to my side, she linked her arm with mine in a friendly gesture. It was as though we were on very good terms.She continued, "Not only is she an incredibly skilled researcher, but she's also my sister-in-law—which means she's also a member of the Hardwell family. So, Mr. Slate, any accusations of her being an academic fraud must be a misunderstanding!"Upon hearing how solemn Grace was, Mitchell couldn't help but look at me."If you aren't an academic fraud, then why would Ms. Calder say that about you?" he asked.I coolly returned his gaze. "That's a question for Ms. Calder, not me."Mitchell frowned and looked displeased. He clearly hadn't expected that answer.Grace turned to me and said, "Alright, Emi. Let's go inside together!"Her expression read, "Come on. I'll bring you in."Irvin didn't understand why I hadn't been allowed in despite having an invitation. He also didn't know why I had been mistaken for an academic fraud and was being bar
I looked down at my phone and was zooming in on the image of the data. But before I could even take a good look at it, Emma squeezed my arm."Holy crap! Emilia. Isn't that your ex-husband's brother!" she exclaimed.I instinctively looked up—just in time to see Irvin opening the car door and courteously helping Grace get down.Grace flashed a gentle smile at Irvin, then linked arms with him. To onlookers, that intimate gesture made them look like a loving married couple.I thought back to how Irvin had been near tears when we had met on the first snowfall of the season. Yet now, he was holding another woman's arm and playing the role of her devoted husband.I couldn't even describe how I felt at that moment.Then, I recalled how much Irvin had despised Grace before. Yet, in just a month, he managed to make it look like they were happily married. I feared it wouldn't be long before he began to feel sympathy for her. And then, per Grace's scheme, Irvin would eventually truly becom
William wasn't the type to repay a life-saving favor. So, for the past two years, Julianne had always wondered why he treated her so well and was especially attentive to her health.It was only after she returned to Claudeville that she finally understood.It turned out William had a sickly niece he cherished dearly—one whose survival depended on Julianne. Upon learning this, she suddenly felt she had the upper hand again.While she still couldn't figure William out entirely, she had come to understand him somewhat. She knew he would continue to tolerate her—for the sake of his sickly niece—as long as she didn't do anything out of line.To be clear, Julianne made my life difficult because she hated me. But as long as she didn't harm me, she knew no one would hold it against her. After all, William's niece needed her blood to live.The more she thought about this, the more pleased she became.I could see it plainly in her eyes. Her expression seemed to say that even after all thes
Seeing how determined I was, Emma didn't press any further.Just as we were about to leave in the car, another car pulled up beside ours. When I saw who stepped out of it, my eyes widened in shock.Emma saw them too and tugged at my sleeve in surprise. "Emilia, isn't that your ex-husband's brother and sister-in-law?"I was just about to say yes when Grace suddenly collapsed into Irvin's arms. He picked her up and rushed toward the hospital.Seeing this reminded me of how I had wished that Irvin would come and save me when I was drowning.I chuckled mockingly.Noticing something was off with me, Emma turned to me. "Emilia, what's wrong?"I withdrew my gaze. "Nothing."Then I told the driver to start driving.As the car drove out of the hospital, Emma stared at me. She hesitated at first, but then curiosity got the better of her "Emilia, looking at how you reacted to your ex-husband's brother… Is it true that he's actually not Timothy, but Irvin?" she asked.She had been with
Only after our car had driven far into the distance did William finally withdraw his gaze from Noah's car."Was Ms. Quill's assistant rescued?" he asked.Matthew immediately replied, "Yes, she's been taken to the hospital. She's out of danger."William hummed indifferently in response, then got into the car and left.…By the time I woke up in the hospital, night had already fallen.I was surprised to see Noah sitting at my bedside—surprised that I was still alive and that it was Noah who had come to save me.Seeing me awake, Noah stood up excitedly. "Emi, how are you feeling? I'll get the doctor!"I wanted to tell him I was fine, but my voice came out hoarse when I opened my mouth.Suddenly, I remembered something and quickly reached out to grab Noah before he could leave to call the doctor.Before I could even ask, he already knew what I was going to ask. "Your assistant's fine. She woke up even earlier than you," he said. Hearing that, I breathed a sigh of relief.Noah
Emma was also quite smart. Once she calmed down, she immediately understood what I meant. She wanted to say something, but I had already opened the car door and pushed her out.Seeing several people swimming toward us, I shoved her again, urging her to leave quickly.In the face of life and death, survival would become an instinct for everyone. So even though she didn't wish me harm or want to leave me behind, she swam away with tears in her eyes. Not long after she left, those so-called "rescuers" surrounded me.When they noticed someone had swum away, they exchanged hand signals underwater, planning to send some after her and others to capture me. Realizing this, I quickly pointed at myself, trying to tell them that I was the one they were looking for. Then I turned and swam in the opposite direction, hoping to lure them away and buy her more time to escape. But even though they understood my gesture, they didn't believe me. They still sent people after her.They were very
There was only one road from the airport to the city, and William's car was right behind ours.Matthew, who was driving, immediately sensed something was wrong when he saw our car suddenly accelerating at an alarming speed.He quickly said, "Mr. Ashford, something's wrong with Ms. Quill's car!"William, who was busy reading the documents, immediately looked up. His gaze darkened when he saw how recklessly the car in front was moving."Catch up with them!" he ordered. At that moment, his phone rang. It was Noah calling, and he sounded anxious on the other end. "Uncle Will, are you with Emi right now? I just heard that Madeleine is planning to kill her! "I don't know the exact plan, but I heard they're making a move on the way from the airport to the city. You need to be careful! I'm heading to the airport right now!"Noah's words made William's expression grow even darker. …While Emma was still processing the situation, I noticed something strange about the driver. If the
Just like that, we came back alive from the brink of death in an instant. It felt like we were in hell one moment and in heaven the next.Perhaps I was still too scared. So scared that even after the plane had stabilized for a while, I still couldn't find any strength in my body. I was still shaken by the fear and couldn't fully snap out of it.William was also holding me tightly the entire time, not letting go. The softness of my body in his arms stirred something in him that he couldn't describe. He instinctively didn't want to let go.It wasn't until a flight attendant knocked on the door to check on us that I finally returned to my senses.William also let go of me instantly. The sudden emptiness in his arms left him feeling rather hollow.He came to realize something, and his already deep gaze darkened even more, making it even harder to read.After the flight attendant tidied up the cabin and left, William, who had been perfectly fine and warm just moments ago, suddenly tur