Chapter 3

I did as Edward directed and leaned back on the railing, prompting him to nod in approval. I pursed my lips in an act of playfulness after a while and complained, "I've been doing it for quite some time, and my clothes got dirty from leaning on the railing. I don't want to take photos anymore, Edward."

Edward eyed the railing suspiciously, stepping up to test it with a push right as I lowered the pot of roses. He had forgotten that I had over ten years of dance training and possessed incredible flexibility.

I quietly snuck up behind him and suddenly yelled, "Watch out!"

Edward was caught off guard and lost his footing.

I lunged forward to grab him, but I used too much force and sent him falling backward even faster.

In the next instant, a loud thud echoed.

Edward was sprawled on the ground below, his right leg bent at an unnatural angle while blood slowly pooled beneath him.

Those who witnessed the scene while passing by screamed at the horrific sight of him.

Victor and Mary, who had been pretending to sleep inside, rushed out of the room excitedly. "It actually worked! Let's take her to the crematorium right now!"

"Who's getting cremated?" I asked curiously.

Victor stammered, "A-A relative of ours who had just passed away. What are you still doing here?"

Mary shuffled over with difficulty. "W-Where is Edward?"

I looked over the balcony before crying out loud, "H-He lost his footing and fell from the balcony! I mean, I could inherit his estate once he's dead, but that's something only a heartless monster would do! I couldn't possibly exchange my husband's life for money—I'm too kind-hearted to do that!"

Victor and Mary were speechless, unable to offer a single rebuttal. They could only glower at me with sheer hatred, as if they wanted to tear me limb from limb.

After just a week out of the hospital, Edward was hauled off in an ambulance again.

He sure was tough to kill, surviving a drop from the fourth floor. He pulled through yet again after a day and a night of emergency treatment, suffering only a fractured leg, a fractured arm, and six broken ribs.

I let out a disappointed sigh.

Mary shot me a fierce glare. "You're the one who should have fallen off the balcony!"

I acted completely puzzled. "How could you be so certain that I'd be the one falling off, Mom? I really don't get it…"

Victor warned Mary with a pat on the shoulder and forced a smile. "Mary is only saying that because she's worried about Edward. You shouldn't take it to heart, Maddie."

I shook my head and replied, "How could I? I'm far too kind for that, Dad."

I only wished death upon someone if they wanted me dead first.

…

Mary prepared some soup at home and asked me to bring it to Edward in the hospital.

I downed most of it on the way over, then filled it back up with contaminated water from the hospital restroom toilet.

I pushed open the door to the hospital ward and found a beautifully dressed woman wearing an emerald necklace worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. She had a baby bump showing and was sitting beside Edward's hospital bed, acting overly familiar with him.

I placed the soup on the table and asked, "Do you have no intention to introduce her to me, Edward?"

Edward offered a sheepish smile. "She's Natalie Lambert. She works as a secretary in my company."

Natalie showed off the necklace around her neck, running a hand over it. "Mr. Zucker and I went to university together and have a great relationship. He's the one who gave me this necklace."

Edward shot Natalie a warning glare before turning to explain to me. "Natalie closed a few major deals, so it was part of her bonus."

Mom and Dad were the ones who had brought Edward's company all its business through their connections. Did Edward really take me for a fool?

I realized that everything Edward had ever given me as a gift was worth less than 7,000 dollars in total. I had thought he was simply used to living frugally after growing up poor, but now I realized that he just thought I wasn't worth the money.

I clenched my hands until my fingernails dug into my palms, the pain snapping me out of my rage.

Natalie supported her lower back and kept going. "It's exhausting being pregnant. I just hope the baby's father can get rid of the obstacle soon so he can look after the baby and me down the road."

I was the obstacle she wanted gone, but unfortunately for her, that wasn't going to happen.

Edward's mentally ill cousin was waiting for me at home, but I wasn't the one who was going to end up dead.