Hendrix had no intention of riding in the other car, so he chose to drive to Freeman Manor himself, with Noelle naturally accompanying him. He was in an exceptionally good mood along the way, one hand on the steering wheel while the other held hers tightly. By now, Noelle couldn't even be bothered to resist. As the car neared Freeman Manor, she finally asked him, "Has Nathan officially joined Amity Group? Will it affect you?"Hendrix raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised by her sudden question. Then, he replied, "If I say it won't affect me, would you believe it?"Noelle was momentarily stunned. Hendrix glanced at her, then patiently explained, "The shares were given to him, but he holds no real power. Even if he joins Amity Group, he won't be able to stir up much trouble.""But Mrs. Freeman Senior—""If she truly wanted to support him to rise to power, then yes, it could be a problem. But if she really cared about him, she would've brought him into the fold long ago. To her,
As soon as Beatrice finished speaking, Hendrix clenched his fists.Noelle, seated beside him, could clearly hear the grinding of his teeth and see the bulging veins on the back of his hands. She knew that Hendrix wasn't afraid of competing with Nathan. What really set him off was that the one helping Nathan would be Beatrice.For some reason, she felt an urge to reach out and hold his hand. However, after her fingers twitched slightly, she ultimately decided against it.Hendrix quickly regained his composure and said, "Since you've already made your decision, what's the point of telling me now?""It's only right to inform you. After all, you're the company's general manager," Beatrice replied, her tone as calm as ever.Hendrix let out a laugh, but this time, it was cold. "Well, then, thank you ever so much for the heads-up."With that, he stood up abruptly. "I take it you've said everything you needed to? So, can we leave now?""If you're busy, you can leave first. I still have
Noelle's expression changed multiple times. "What do you mean by this?""Exactly what I said. Don't you want to leave him?" Beatrice asked, her tone almost urgent.Noelle stared at her for a moment before replying, "But this is between him and me. You're his mother, so no matter what, you should be on his side."Her words seemed to momentarily silence Beatrice.Noelle thought that her words had sunk in, but then, Beatrice laughed and asked, "So, are you pitying him now?"Noelle felt that something about Beatrice's demeanor was off. Just as she was about to say something, Beatrice beat her to it."Noelle, you've gone soft on him."That light, casual remark left Noelle stunned. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.Beatrice stood up. Crossing her arms, she gazed out at the yard for a moment before finally speaking again."But that's fine. This is between you and him and also your personal choice. If you want to continue living like this, I certainly won't interfere. But N
By the time Hendrix caught up to Noelle in the pharmacy, he arrived just in time to hear her ask for a pregnancy test.The store assistant immediately acknowledged her request, then noticed Hendrix entering. She asked, "Sir, is there anything you need?"Hendrix didn't respond. The store assistant found his silence odd at first but quickly realized he was staring intently at Noelle. Understanding the situation, she said nothing more and simply retrieved two boxes of pregnancy tests for Noelle.The entire time, Noelle didn't look at Hendrix—not even when paying at the counter. As he reached out to take the items, she swatted his hand away with a loud, crisp smack.The store assistant was startled by the sound but had no time to react before Noelle picked up the items and walked out. Hendrix immediately followed after her. To his relief, she still got into his car.During the drive, Hendrix wanted to explain himself.Should he say he did it for her health? Then, why hadn't he take
Hendrix suddenly fell silent.Noelle realized she had said the wrong thing. No matter what, the cruelest thing one could do during an argument was attacking the other person's deepest vulnerabilities. No matter how much resentment or anger she held toward him, she shouldn't have said that.Especially since Hendrix had just lost control of his emotions earlier that morning because of Beatrice's "betrayal". And yet, Noelle had still blurted it out."Oh, so that's what she told you," Hendrix finally said after a long moment.Noelle said nothing in response.Hendrix suddenly laughed. "Well, it's not surprising. In her eyes, I really am a monster. If she could, I think she'd want to go back in time and strangle me at birth. If it weren't for me, she wouldn't have been tied to the Freeman family all these years. Maybe she could have been with her true love instead."His voice grew colder and more mocking with every word.Noelle pressed her lips tightly together, saying nothing.As He
Noelle sneered. "Who said I wanted to keep the baby? Tell you what, Hendrix Freeman—I won't give you a chance to tie me down."Once you step away, I'll get rid of the baby!"Hendrix had thought he was heartless enough. He was on the top of the world last night and this morning, only to find that he was a fool.Even so, he still couldn't make himself any more emotionless. He was overcome by sadness after hearing her words.Till now, he could still remember the first time he saw Noelle crying. She was alone on a hospital bed at that time, having just lost their first child.He had never doubted for a second that Noelle would make a good mom. He also knew how much she wanted a child.When they attended an orphanage event in the past, he witnessed her comforting the kids. The tenderness she exuded mesmerized him.But now, she was threatening to kill that baby.He turned around slowly to stare at her. As if she wanted to make good on her threat, she immediately walked to the kitchen
Noelle had no idea how she managed to get through that day.The two ladies, whom Hendrix had mentioned, showed up to look after her, but they did not have the key to the handcuffs.One of her hands was cuffed to the bed frame. She spent the whole day in bed, feeling like a farmed animal. Her thoughts did not matter. After all, she was just a tool to them."Mrs. Freeman, why don't you have something to eat?" one of the ladies suggested cautiously.Noelle ignored her and did not look up.The maids helplessly exchanged a look before they quietly left the room. Noelle lay in the bed motionlessly.A while later, she heard the familiar sounds of a car engine from the first floor—something she had heard of multiple times.Those sounds once brought her joy, but she had to conceal her emotions from everyone else. Now, all that was left was despair and chill.Soon, she heard Hendrix and the maids talking. The maids seemed to be telling him about the fact that she refused to take any
"You didn't even do it for your family. You did it for personal gains. To me, you will never compare to Dylan. Never!" Noelle stated.Truthfully, Noelle did not have much feelings for Dylan in the beginning. He just happened to show up in her life at a time when she needed someone by her side the most. Since she trusted and depended on him, she took the hand he extended to her.Hendrix's multiple interferences only served to deepen her feelings for Dylan. In other words, she decided firmly that she would love Dylan in that moment, even if it were to spite Hendrix.As expected, Hendrix's expression soured after he heard her words. Gritting his teeth, he tightened his grip on her chin until his knuckles turned white.Suddenly, he let out a laugh. "Is it? Do you trust that I could make Dylan kneel before me and cry for mercy in two days? Hm? Why don't you come and spectate when that happens? I'd like to see if you'll still love him when he—""I will love him regardless. No—I'll love
Dylan had been wrong all along.Money and power—none of that had ever been what he was truly meant to chase. Because no one could stay at the center of power forever, and no one could possess those things for all time. What he should have been chasing was just that one light. That one light that would stay on for him late into the night. But now, he knew it was all too late.As he closed his eyes, Dylan suddenly thought of his mother, Leah. He remembered how, as a child, he had longed for a new set of paintbrushes. He had asked his parents for them many times. He even wanted to use his own Christmas money to buy them. But they refused.They believed it was wasteful. It didn't align with the frugal and disciplined lifestyle they lived by. So in the end, Dylan stole the set of paintbrushes from the stationery store.Because he came from a prestigious scholarly family and always kept a refined, gentlemanly image in public, the store owner never suspected a thing.But his parents fo
"Are you crazy? Noelle, let go of the wheel!" Dylan struggled to regain control of the car, but Noelle held onto the steering wheel tightly, refusing to let go.The car didn't slow down. On the contrary, it raced forward at an even faster pace.How long did this go on? Maybe it lasted only dozens of seconds. But for Dylan, it felt like the blink of an eye. Because the next moment, he saw the oncoming car.That car was speeding as well.Dylan didn't even have time to grab his gun. Just as he was about to slam on the brakes, the two cars collided at high speed. There was a deafening crash as the cars were thrown into the air, then slammed back down.Dylan's eyes widened. But in that instant, his first instinct was to turn and look at Noelle. Her eyes were already closed. She looked as if she had been prepared to face death all along. She must have known what he intended to do, and she also knew he didn't actually want to die.The only reason he took her away was so he could use her
Erwin was just about to repeat his question when a voice came from behind."Excuse me, but I think I know where your wife is."Hendrix spun around immediately.Standing behind them was a woman with long hair and big eyes. "I saw her just now in the backyard. Someone was taking her away. If I'm not mistaken, I think it was Mr. Pritchett from Morphy Fund?"At the mention of Dylan, Hendrix's expression turned dark as thunder. He charged up to the woman. "Where did they go?""I'm not sure. But I did take down his license plate number. Do you need it?""Where is it?" Hendrix barked.The woman held out her hand. "I'll give it to you for 1,000 dollars."Hendrix didn't carry cash with him. But he shoved his bank card into her hand without hesitation. "The license plate number!"The woman looked at the card, a little dissatisfied. But considering Hendrix's status, she figured he likely wouldn't care about such a small amount of money. Thus, in the end, she still showed Hendrix the phot
"Erwin!"The voice came just as Erwin stood on the terrace, smoking a cigarette in frustration.Although they had technically won the battle and he had earned a great deal from it, he felt, strangely enough, not the slightest trace of satisfaction. Maybe it was because Hendrix had forced him into the game. Or maybe, by now, winning and losing simply didn't stir anything in him anymore.At the beginning, Erwin had been somewhat excited. He had thought Dylan would be a difficult opponent—someone who could cause serious trouble, maybe even defeat them entirely. That would have been interesting. But instead, everything had gone far too smoothly. There had been no twists and no turns. Just a clean finish. It was boring, to say the least.And the current victory party? Equally so.Hendrix had insisted Noelle attend the party, saying she had flawlessly completed her part of the plan and that this victory was also hers. So, the party had turned out very wholesome, or rather, dull.Erwi
Erwin still showed signs of dissatisfaction. It seemed he was saying something, but Noelle could no longer hear him. She didn't look back either, instead turning her gaze to the other people at the party.The loud music continued, and the excitement and energy of the crowd remained high. But Noelle knew that this wasn't the usual celebration. This, in fact, was just Hendrix's way of making her adapt and accept the situation.Though she had known this for some time, the realization still made Noelle uncomfortable. Then, she suddenly remembered something Dylan had told her a few days ago about her past with Hendrix.Even though she knew Dylan's words weren't necessarily true, that didn't mean everything he said was a lie. How much of the past he mentioned was real, and how much was false?Noelle actually thought her life was fine now. She was willing to accept her past choices and believed in Hendrix's feelings for her. At least, this was what she thought sometimes.But at other tim
Dylan didn't dare to stay there. He immediately drove back to his place.He wanted to take Noelle with him and leave. Even if she didn't have her passport, it didn't matter. After all, there were definitely people looking for him right now.But no matter what, he was going to protect her. Even if they had to roam the world, it didn't matter. As long as they were together, it was fine. Even if it was just a shabby house, as long as there was a light on, that would be their home.However, when Dylan returned to the apartment, he found Noelle nowhere in sight. Gone also were all her things. The desk and floor were spotless, as if nothing had ever existed there.Dylan remained standing where he was. It took him several minutes to finally process what he was seeing. Then, he couldn't help but laugh. It was as if he had just heard the biggest joke—he laughed so hard that his whole body shook.Of course, how could he have thought she would be waiting for him here? How could she possibly
"I'm damned for ever believing your words! Now, just die!" George didn't give Dylan another chance to speak. He pulled the trigger, aiming to shoot a bullet through Dylan's forehead.In that instant, Dylan finally understood. This time, Hendrix didn't intend to leave him alive.If the goal had only been to swallow up Morphy Fund and make Dylan lose everything, the matter would have ended there. However, it seemed that Hendrix must have said something to George, which led him to believe that Dylan and Hendrix were working together—that Dylan had betrayed Morphy Fund.At this point, George had no way out. So, it wouldn't be surprising if he shot Dylan in the head. What Hendrix wanted was for him to die.Dylan didn't know what he was thinking at that moment. By the time he reacted, he had already grabbed the gun's barrel and twisted it violently. The bullet scraped past his head.Without hesitation, George moved to pull the trigger again when Dylan, still holding onto his wrist, forc
Dylan still remembered the victory party at the villa a few days ago. At that time, George had pushed him in front of everyone. He had enjoyed all the praise and recognition while sipping glass after glass of champagne.He knew that no matter how much doubt and skepticism there had been about him in the past, it all vanished that night. That was also why George had thrown him a victory party at the very first stage.After all, only by telling everyone about his achievements would they believe in him and entrust him with their funds. But they probably didn't expect the final result to be like this.Actually, when Fuer Fund continued to add to their position after reaching the peak, George had already warned Dylan that there might be some issues. But the market was unpredictable—a moment's decision or a few seconds of hesitation could lead to failure.Thus, Dylan didn't wait. He thought Hendrix was also gambling. So, he disregarded the risk and pushed all the funds in. He wanted Hend
Noelle's expression changed at that moment. It took her a while to find her voice to ask, "Is that what really happened?""Hendrix definitely hasn't told you all these, right?" Dylan smirked. "It's because he's too afraid to mention them. So, tell me. How could someone like him possibly deserve a happy life? "Don't worry. I'll make sure to take him down this time. Once I get your passport, you can go whenever you want."When he finished speaking, there was sincerity and seriousness in his eyes as he looked at Noelle. He really hoped she would stay. Of course, he wanted victory. But if he could have her by his side when he achieved it, that would be even better.Although once he reached the top, anyone could stay by his side. But the person he wanted most was Noelle."Thank you," Noelle said in the end.That wasn't the answer Dylan was most satisfied with. But he knew he couldn't afford to rush things just yet. For now, it was enough that Noelle was on his side."Alright, go to