Quand l’amour et la haine s’effacent, reste l’adieu

"Miss Stella Jewell, where are your family members?" The nurse asked her again and again, but Stella did not know how to respond. She lowered her head to see her cell phone, but the call was still unconnected.

A massive pile-up occurred at the overpass Rivera City Route 3 Loop. A bus tipped over and fell into the river. Tens of injured civilians were sent to the hospital. The family members of the wounded, except Stella, arrived at the hospital in droves.

Despite the fear from the horrifying accident remained, what filled her heart now was disappointment. 'If I died in the accident today, would anyone know?'

"Miss Jewell?" Stella returned to her senses. The blood stains accentuated her pale face. Her voice was slightly hoarse and flustered, but she did not lose her poise. "Sorry, he might be busy. Can I sign it instead?"

"I'm sorry, but if we don't have a signature from your family, I would strongly recommend that you stay in the hospital for further observation. The severity of a concussion can vary, and it's our responsibility to make sure you're well taken care of."

Stella pursed her lips and said, "Then, let me try again."

She left the ward with her phone in hand and passed two nurses pushing a trolley. When she moved to the side, she overheard them ask, "Who's in Ward 16?"

"Who?" The other nurse asked.

"Bella Young! The superstar! The one who was in that very famous drama, the female lead of 'Secret Sweetheart'!" The first nurse exclaimed.

"Oh my god! Did she get severely injured?" The other nurse asked.

"Her elbow was slightly scrapped. If she had come just a little later, it would have healed. She's a celebrity, so she cares more about her appearance than us regular folks. If I was this beautiful, I wouldn't hesitate to get my whole body insured!" The first nurse answered.

"Oh yeah, I even saw her boyfriend! It was the person who had his picture taken being with her at her lake villa!"

Stella instantly stopped in her tracks.

"He was tall and handsome. Based on his clothing, he must be quite rich. Most importantly, he was so nice to Bella. He rushed over here shortly after the accident and personally handled her hospital admission. He made sure she stayed in a VIP ward and remained by her side, taking care of her every need. I can't help but feel envious of Bella for having such an incredible boyfriend!"

Their voices faded out. Stella slowly gripped her phone tighter until her knuckles turned white. Outside of Ward 16, Keegan was talking to Bella's manager. Although Stella did not hear anything, she felt he was scolding the manager for Bella's injury.

Stella called Keegan. Keegan paused for a bit and looked at his phone. His brows were now furrowed even more tightly. He answered the call with impatience. "What's wrong?"

"Where are you?" Stella's voice was hoarse, and her tone held some fragility.

Keegan, instead, did not notice it and coldly said, "At the company."

"Is the Kane corporation also involved with hospitals?"

Keegan froze, and his face sank. "You stalked me?"

Stella felt the urge to laugh a little, but her eyes turned slightly red. The disdain in his tone made her chest tighten.

"Mr. Kane, You're overthinking it. I'm not that bored." She paused a bit then said, "I saw someone who looked like you on the news, so I called to ask."

Keegan replied. "Don't you have something better to do?" Then, he hung up the call and turned around to go into the ward.

Stella gave a single chuckle of self-mockery and thought, 'Yeah, I have nothing better to do. I knew he wouldn't admit being at the hospital. I'm such a dummy for calling him, thinking he'd tell me the truth.'

In the end, Stella was picked up by her friend, Felicity Thompson. She would not have resorted to Felicity if she had other family. She did not want to show the bad part of her life to people because their mockery or pity would only made her embarrassed.

"What about Keegan?" Felicity asked.

"At the company, I guess. That's what he said," Stella replied.

Felicity slammed the steering wheel and cursed out, "Fucking mutt. His wife was in an accident, and he still wouldn't come. Is he earning so much money just to buy his own coffin?"

Stella bantered in return, "He could also be doing it to buy me a coffin."

Felicity glared at her. "You still have the mood to joke around! The people in the car behind you are already dead!"

"That's right," Stella lowered her gaze and gave a barely audible sigh. "I almost died..."

Felicity had some urgent business, so she rushed off after sending Stella home. As soon as Stella walked into the house, she greeted Maya Lane, the housemaid, and went upstairs.

After she finished the shower, the traffic incident had already started trending. However, most of the headlines were related to Bella Young. Apart from the state media being concerned about the level of severity of this incident, the entertainment media heavily focused on Bella's mysterious boyfriend.

The media did not dare to leak Keegan's identity and merely mentioned that he was a wealthy man. Bella's fans were helping Bella deny the relationship while spamming concerns about Bella's injuries in the comments section of each major media site. Stella thought that it was a little funny. The nurse said that Bella only had minor scrape wounds. 'Aren't these people making a big fuss over a minor issue?' She thought.

However, her expression immediately changed as Bella posted a pregnancy checklist on her social media. She felt her heart tightened in her chest.

Six weeks ago was precisely the day a picture of him was taken at the lake villa.

Stella stared at the screen, stunned, and her heart sank. Three years of marriage was just a piece of paper. Before Keegan married her, he was together with Bella. Keegan's grandmother, Cordelia Lawson, looked down on Bella's status and background. Hence, she forcefully separated them.

In a fit of anger, Keegan chose Stella, despite her less prominent family background among the socialites. This marriage was a business alliance. Their marriage was a business alliance. The Jewell family wanted help from the Kane family in the business world, while Keegan saw Stella as a suitable candidate for marriage. Both sides got what they needed.

No one knew that Stella married Keegan because she genuinely liked him.

Stella fell for Keegan, so it was inevitable that she would also be the one to suffer. Bella's presence was like a thorn in Stella and Keegan's marriage. Stella had made efforts to disregard it, hoping that one day Keegan would be moved by her genuine affection and love her. However, when Bella shared her pregnancy test results, Stella realized that Keegan would never love her. She had been playing the role of a clown, putting on a one-sided show in their marriage.

When Keegan came back, it was already close to ten at night. The lower floor was quiet, with only Maya there.

"Where is she?" Keegan asked.

Maya took the coat and softly said, "Madam went to the room once she returned. She did not come out at all. She didn't even eat her dinner."

Keegan furrowed his brows.

"I'll heat up the porridge again and send it to the room," Maya said.

"That won't be necessary." Keegan's tone was indifferent. "She'll come down herself when she is hungry."

Maya did not question any further. Keegan took a shower and stayed at the study for a while. Then he glanced at his watch and it was already eleven o'clock. Usually, at this time, Stella would come in with a glass of milk in her hand. If they had a fight, she would still let Maya send it over.

He waited another ten minutes, but there was no knock from the door. Keegan could not focus on his files any longer. He stayed for another few minutes before getting up and going to the bedroom.

He opened the door, and no lights were turned on in the room. Although it was pitch black, he still saw she was lying sideways on the bed. Stella opened her eyes the instant the door was opened. She did not move and felt the bed cave in as Keegan lay down.

She flipped over and stretched her hands into his pajamas. Feeling his muscle under her hands tense up. Keegan's breath became heavy. When her hands continued to move lower, beneath his belly, he grabbed them. He flipped over and pinned her beneath him. "What are you doing?"