Noelle didn't know when Hendrix had appeared. She also couldn't remember how he had taken her away. But Marla's devastated expression kept replaying in her mind, over and over again.It was said that no one could truly understand another's pain. But in that moment, as a mother who also saw her daughter as her entire world, Noelle could feel Marla's despair. She could understand why when Marla saw Rosie, she wished it had been Rosie who died instead.And in that moment, Noelle even felt a twisted sense of relief that Rosie had survived. But that feeling vanished after just two seconds. Then, she wanted to slap herself. After all, Seline was her best friend. When Noelle was at her lowest, it was Seline who had helped her time and time again.How could Noelle be so selfish? How could she even think that? Even she herself felt like she was being too cruel.If Seline knew, she would probably rush over and slap her twice. Then, she'd say that she must have been blind not to see Noelle's
As he spoke, Hendrix walked to the other side. He first poured her a glass of water, then handed her a thermometer.Noelle didn't take it. "Where's Rosie?""I sent her to my mother's place."Noelle frowned slightly in dissatisfaction but said nothing. Instead, she simply got up to leave.Hendrix stopped her. "You're sick and in no condition to take care of Rosie right now. Besides, don't you trust my mother?""I'm fine now," Noelle insisted. "My fever's gone, and I can take care of Rosie.""Why don't you take a look in the mirror to see what state you're in right now?""That's none of your business!" Noelle shouted impatiently as she tried to push Hendrix away.But then, he asked out of the blue, "Did you dream about Seline just now?"Noelle immediately froze the moment Seline's name came out of Hendrix's mouth. Then, she slowly turned to look at him.Hendrix was staring straight at her. "Do you remember what happened on the day of her funeral?""What… What funeral?" Noelle
Noelle knew she was sick. She knew Seline was no longer in this world, yet she kept hearing her voice lately.Sometimes, Seline would talk to her as usual, chattering about the latest gossip. Other times, she would cry and ask Noelle why she didn't save her. At times, she would say she had willingly sacrificed herself and that Noelle shouldn't feel guilty.But then there were times she would angrily call Noelle ungrateful, asking why she had to die, why it had to be her of all people?These voices and images of Seline kept appearing in front of Noelle. They didn't even feel like hallucinations, because when Noelle reached out, she could almost feel Seline's presence.But Seline was already gone.Hendrix took Noelle to see a psychologist. But Noelle refused to talk to the psychologist. She wouldn't let anyone bring up Seline's name, yet she kept telling Hendrix that she wanted to see Marla and Marshall. She knew they resented her, but she still wanted to see them. She even felt t
Rosie paused at Hendrix's words. Then, she turned to look at him."Where did you take Mommy?" Rosie asked."You want to see her, don't you?" Hendrix countered.Rosie didn't respond."Or are you angry at her?" Hendrix continued. "Because of what she did that day?""No!" Rosie quickly replied. Then, in a softer voice, she said, "I'll never be angry at Mommy. But she hates me."As she spoke, her voice choked up.Hendrix chuckled softly. "What nonsense are you talking about? How could your mommy ever hate you?"Rosie didn't say anything else.She was clearly traumatized by what happened at Seline's funeral. After all, Noelle was the one who had always protected her and who never raised her voice at her, no matter what she did wrong. Yet, that day, she had seemed so different.Rosie couldn't understand why Noelle had changed. Even more so, she couldn't understand why those people kept saying she should have been the one who died or why Noelle thought so, too."Your mommy is just
The weather was beautiful the next day.Hendrix had someone take Noelle to the yard to enjoy the sun. She didn't object to the arrangement, but she was still in a listless state.But then, a jolt went through her body when she heard Rosie's voice coming from behind. "Mommy!"Noelle turned her head sharply to see Rosie running excitedly toward her. Rosie wore a beautiful dress, her hair neatly tied into little braids.Noelle, however, suddenly sprang to her feet and took a sharp step back. Her movements were frantic, as if she had seen something terrifying.Noticing Noelle's reaction, Rosie's steps gradually slowed until she came to a stop. Then, she looked at Noelle in disbelief.Noelle opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.Hendrix quickly walked over to Rosie and whispered something into her ear.Rosie's eyes were still red, but she quickly pulled herself together. After wiping her eyes forcefully, she continued to walk toward Noelle.Noelle still wanted
Hendrix was happy about the development.During breakfast, Noelle even took the initiative to speak to him. "The weather is nice today. Is it okay if I drop by the Swifts' place later?"Hendrix had been pleased by her earlier comment, but his expression faded when he heard what she said next.Noelle sat there, looking at him seriously. "You promised me before. Or were you lying to me then?""I wasn't lying," Hendrix quickly replied, though his brows furrowed slightly. "But why do you want to go there?""I owe them a proper apology," Noelle answered.But what Marla and Marshall wanted wasn't necessarily an apology.Noelle had only just started to improve recently, so Hendrix didn't want anything unexpected to jeopardize her progress. Not to mention, he knew all too well how much Marla and Marshall hated Noelle right now."Don't worry," Noelle said, as if she knew what Hendrix was thinking. "I know they won't forgive me, but even so, I want to do something to ease my conscience.
Noelle couldn't remember the last time she had been outside with the sun rays touching her skin. It wasn't until she saw the Christmas decorations and felt the festive atmosphere on the streets that she realized the end of the year was approaching.So, it had already been over a month since Seline passed away.Noelle stared out of the window for a while before slowly closing her eyes.The Swift residence was eerily quiet.Noelle had been here a few times before. Sometimes, when Seline brought Rosie over to play, she would come to pick her up. More often than not, as soon as she reached the door, she could already hear Rosie's cheerful chatter coming from the inside.Marla would watch Rosie with pure affection, then urge Seline to hurry up and get married. Seline would always push back defiantly, and Marla would scold her, but there was never any real anger in her tone.Noelle knew Marla loved Seline deeply, so when Seline later insisted she didn't want to get married, Marla simpl
Clearly, Marshall was equally worried about Marla's condition. Thus, he quickly turned to Hendrix and asked, "What does Noelle want to say to my wife?"Hendrix shook his head. "I have no idea."None of them knew the answer, so they could only wait quietly outside.Hendrix had imagined countless possible mishaps. He had even prepared himself to rush in immediately if something happened without a second thought of where he was.But to his surprise, nothing happened. He couldn't hear any sound coming from inside the room, as if Noelle and Marla were having a calm, peaceful conversation. Yet, the calmer it was, the deeper his frown became.He assumed it was just the calm before the storm and that the real storm would quickly come. But it didn't.Noelle soon emerged from the room.Hendrix wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but Noelle's demeanor seemed lighter, as if she had shed a heavy burden.When she saw Marshall, she even smiled and said, "Thank you for letting me meet Mrs.
The moment Hendrix fixed his eyes on Noelle, she suddenly found herself at a loss for words. As their eyes met, even the tips of her ears began to flush red without her realizing it."Why are you looking at me like that?" Noelle couldn't help but ask."So, have you remembered everything?" Hendrix asked instead. "Everything about us?""No," Noelle replied, turning her head away. "My head hurts. Didn't you say you were going to get the doctor? You can go—"But before she could finish, Hendrix suddenly grabbed her hand. His grip wasn't strong, but the way his fingers gently moved across hers felt like an intimate caress.Noelle couldn't help but tremble, and she instinctively tried to pull her hand back.But then Hendrix suddenly said, "Actually, even before we got married, I'd seen you many times."Noelle hadn't expected him to bring this up. She froze for a second. Then, she quickly said, "I know. Back then at college—""Not just at college. After I graduated, I went to see you,
"Who are you?"That was the first thing Noelle said when she opened her eyes.Hendrix had still been basking in the relief of her waking up, but the moment he heard those words, the expression on his face vanished completely."What did you say?" he asked, his voice slightly strained.Noelle didn't answer. She simply stared at him, confusion clear in her eyes.Hendrix clenched his fists tightly. Maybe it was because he had gone through something like this before that he was able to calm himself down quickly this time."I'm your husband. My name is Hendrix Freeman. Do you still remember your own name?" he asked."Husband?" Noelle frowned slightly. "As in—we're married?""Yes. And we have a daughter. Her name is Rosie. She's three years old. This is her picture."As he spoke, Hendrix started to pull up a photo on his phone.But Noelle quickly asked, "Then why don't I remember you?""You were injured. But don't worry. I'll get the doctor to take a look at you."As Hendrix moved
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