"Mom, I'm sorry. I couldn't protect myself, and now I've made you sad." Stefan's voice was calm.Francine looked at Stefan sadly. Her son used to be such a proud man, and now he was so depressed and melancholy. The light in his eyes seemed to have disappeared. Francine was devastated seeing her son like this; it was so painful that she could hardly breathe."Stef. Oh, son. What have you been through?" Francine hugged Stefan tightly. She couldn't imagine the kind of torture Stefan had been through during his disappearance to become like this."It's over. I don't want to talk about it," Stefan said indifferently. He did not want to reveal anything, and forbade Seraphina from saying anything.Stefan believed what he had suffered was the consequence of his past actions. It was to repay what he owed to Renee, and he deserved it. The debt was cleared, and the two no longer owed each other anything. There was no need to get involved with each other again."Okay. Let's not talk about it.
"I couldn't believe it either! I didn't think Ms. Everheart would be so cruel to Stefan, the man she truly loved. Her love may have turned sour, but she shouldn't have been so cruel. Unfortunately, it was indeed Ms. Everheart's doing. Love can be so beautiful, yet so scary sometimes!" Seraphina sobbed, deliberately slandering Renee. Renee's brother was the one who harmed them anyway, which was the same as Renee hurting them."Stef was reluctant to tell you for old time's sake. Ms. Everheart was the one who did it, but he did not want you to act impulsively and try to avenge him." Seraphina watched Francine's expression and continued to add fuel to the fire. "Also, when I went to save Stef, Ms. Everheart retaliated and hurt me. I..."Seraphina hesitated, then burst into tears."Good girl, calm down. How did she hurt you? Tell me…""S-She ordered a bunch of men to violate me. I almost died!" As Seraphina spoke, she lifted the hem of her nightgown, revealing the shocking bruises on he
Renee took a sip of her grape milk tea, then sighed. "Well, it would be rude if I didn't see it then, right?""Prepare yourself. It may be a little heartbreaking," Quinton said mysteriously.Renee could not help but roll her eyes. "Enough with the dramatics, brother. Hurry up, or I'm going to fall asleep.""You lazy pig. You sleep so much every day! I guarantee you'll suffer from insomnia after watching this," Quinton scoffed and sent a video to Renee.Renee casually clicked on it. However, the second the video started, she froze and clenched her fists subconsciously.After a few minutes, Quinton asked, "Well, have you finished?"Renee said indifferently, "I finished it.""You finished it?" Quinton was slightly surprised and asked eagerly, "So, how do you feel?""I don't feel anything," Renee replied calmly."No way! How can you not feel anything? I'm usually unemotional, but even I felt touched seeing it. Shouldn't you be feeling something more?" Quinton urged.When Renee di
"Mommy, look! Uncle Xavier took us to a treasure cove today! We caught a lot of fish and colourful starfish! Aren't they beautiful?" Abigail was carrying a small bucket, her round face flushed like a red apple. "Look, Mommy! It's a colorful starfish! Isn't it beautiful?" The little girl took the starfish by its two arms and excitedly showed it to Renee."Yeah, it's so pretty." Renee forced a smile, looking distracted.Little Abigail put down the colorful starfish and hugged Renee tightly. She looked up and asked worriedly, "Mommy, what's wrong? Are you unhappy? Did someone hurt you?""No. I'm happy. You're amazing, Abigail. Did you collect many good things?" Renee tried her best to keep her spirits up and share her children's joy. Unfortunately, her depression was like a dark cloud in the sky—it was so obvious that Aiden, Xavier, and Leia felt it too."Ren, what's wrong?" Leia put down the bucket full of fish and took Renee's hand. She asked worriedly, "Is it him again? Did he pr
Renee was not joking; she figured her brother was right. She should go back.Soon after, the group took a flight back to Beach City.Quinton came early to pick them up. His gentle and elegant appearance made him look like a kind and knowledgeable scholar. No one knew he was the notorious and fearsome Night Demon who had spilled the blood of many people.Quinton leaned against a large black SUV and kept his eyes on the exit. When he saw Renee and the two little ones, he waved at them excitedly. "Sis, over here!""Sis?" Leia and Xavier exchanged glances confusedly, then turned to Renee. "Who is he? Why is he wearing a mask in broad daylight?""He's my brother," Renee replied honestly, a smile on her face. She had been talking to Quinton on calls lately, but Leia and Xavier had been unaware of his existence."Brother? Is he your godbrother?" Xavier frowned and complained in disgust, "What age is this? That's such an old-fashioned way to hit on girls. I'm going to throw up.""No! He
The dialogue between the two siblings made Leia feel a little jealous. Their conversation touched her.Leia wiped her tears and bumped Xavier with her elbow. "Look at them! How touching… Ren rarely relies on other people, so her brother must be a really good person. I'm so envious!"Xavier was the only child and could not understand such sibling love. He frowned, looking confused. "Don't you have a brother? Isn't your brother the same?""No way. I've been fighting with my brother since we were young. He always insults me and calls me names. He always says no one will ever want me, and I will never get married. He says I must equip myself with more skills, or I'll starve to death!" Leia whined.Leia could not stop whenever she complained about Liam. "Did you know he used to trick me when I was a kid? I handed my pocket money to him for safekeeping, but when I asked him for it, he asked me to pay a service fee. I had to give him two dollars to retrieve a dollar of pocket money. In th
Everyone was at a loss for words. There was a long silence. Xavier's smile froze a little, but he eventually laughed and reached out his hand to Quinton cheerfully. "Ah, you're an old friend! I've heard so much about you!""We're indeed old friends." Quinton had a cold look in his eyes. He said, smiling, "After all, there were many times when I wanted to chop you up and feed you to crocodiles!""Hahaha! Quinton, you're such a funny man!" Xavier pointed at Quinton. "I thought Stefan had beaten you into depression. Is that why you've been hiding in Water Dock?""You must be joking, Mr. Stuart. Do I look depressed? You can try to find out.""If I do, I'll die."The two men were going back and forth with smiles on their faces, but it felt like they were fighting it out with their words.Renee and Leia held each other's hands and retreated to the side, afraid of being accidentally injured."Okay. Have you had enough? Can you stop fighting? Don't block the entrance and hinder traffi
"Ah, monster!""That's so scary! Did someone cut off half of his face? That's terrible!"The passersby's reactions hurt Quinton's self-esteem badly. He quickly put his mask back on and smiled bitterly. "Sorry for scaring you.""N-No..." Renee felt sorry for Quinton and comforted him, "I think you're very handsome. Your eyes are very much like Mom's—gentle and determined. Your mouth is very much like Dad's. You have beautiful lips. You're really my brother. If we weren't blood-related, I would've fallen in love with you at first sight!""Really?" Quinton's eyes brightened immediately. Quinton had always wondered what his mother looked like. He had imagined it countless times, but it never felt real. However, when Renee described her, her image immediately came to his mind, and his heart softened."Of course. You can ask Lei too. She's Mom and Dad's goddaughter and often visited us. She knows Mom and Dad's faces very well… Right, Lei?""Y-Yes!" Leia had been startled by Quinton's s
Then, Stefan calmly placed the crab leg on the plate in front of Leia. Leia was flabbergasted. She did not dare to move. She wondered what he was doing, and if he wanted to sacrifice her."Why aren't you eating it?" Stefan looked at Leia, sounding composed. Yet, he was full of the dominance that could burn anyone.Leia swallowed and gnashed her teeth, asking Stefan, "How could you peel the crab for me? Isn't it inappropriate?" She was the most cowardly person. Usually, she looked fierce and indignant as if she wanted to punish Stefan severely. But when he came to her and looked at her, she would be very frightened. She would not dare to do anything."Why not? Someone said women shouldn't peel the prawns or crabs themselves. I'm just being a gentleman. It's nothing serious. It's just peeling the crab!" Stefan said. It was rare to see him speak so much. It was incompatible with his contradictory identity. However, it was clear that he was mocking Justin and saying how ridiculo
Both Stefan and Justin mocked each other, which made the atmosphere more awkward. Although Liam and Leia were simply watching the fun, they felt awkward, too. It made them restless.Renee was having a hard time, too. She smacked the table and said to Stefan and Justin, "You'd better stop eating. Go out and fight. The food got cold because of your endless fight."When she spoke, she sounded like a class teacher with absolute authority. Although both Stefan and Justin were dissatisfied, they fell silent and did not dare to say more. Everyone started enjoying the great food, but said nothing. It seemed a little gloomy.Renee was about to get a prawn, but Justin had already peeled it nicely for her. He dipped it in some sauce and put it in Renee's bowl. "I know you love prawns the best. I've peeled it for you. Of course, women can't peel the prawns themselves.""Oh, Mr. Baldwin. You're considerate. You're a role model among the men. Anyone who marries you will be very happy!" Le
Justin smiled and described the children's experiences, acting like a stepfather. When he talked about the children, he made it sound like they were his biological children. Stefan didn't look so good. He felt that the glass of wine was getting bitter."Well, I'm sure kids will find everything new and exciting when they go to a new place. But they'll get bored with it when time passes. They'll love their real home better." Stefan had wanted to act relaxed and casual, but he could not stop himself from refuting when he heard Justin's provocative words. "Mm?" Leia sat beside Liam and leaned against his arm, and whispered, "What are they doing? This is weird. Are they going to fight?""It's just a competition between men. They won't get into a fight." Liam kept eating and watching the fun. He merely found it amusing. As expected, Renee was greatly admired. Although she remained silent, she would always be in the limelight. Liam was amused to see people like Stefan or Justin
"How dare you!"Stefan's words instantly made Leia speechless. She had wanted to rebuke him, but he snatched the chance from her and struck her dumb.In short, he was an utter scumbag.After a moment, Leia finally managed to comment, "How shameless!" Justin had kept silent all the while. He looked at Stefan with a scrutinizing and mocking gaze. "Mr. Hunt, I admire your honesty and self-awareness. If that's the case, let's stop being reserved and have fun together!""Yes, let's have fun together. I'm shameless, too!" Liam joined in the effort to mock Stefan. He swayed his glass of wine and faked a smile. "I've known her a long time, so of course I know what shameless things Mr. Hunt has done. I think I'd better grab this chance to tell you all of them since everyone is here today."Standing at the door, Renee was worried that Liam might say more indecent things. She hurriedly stopped him. "Pipe down, Liam!" "Got it." Liam shrugged helplessly but obeyed her.Although he yea
"Do you want to leave?" Stefan saw Renee. He was calm, indifferent, and distant. His behavior stung Renee. Renee could easily recall their lovey-dovey memories. They had both risked their lives for each other and vowed to be together forever. They had two children, too. Yet, they ended up as strangers.Although Renee was heartbroken, she became competitive. She smoothed her hair and said in a similarly cold manner, "I'm going to the washroom." "Okay." Stefan did not have anything to say. He nodded and walked past Renee before heading to the dining table. "Hmph! I didn't expect you to come so boldly," Quinton sneered.At the sight of Stefan, Quinton subconsciously clenched his fists, acting like he was about to fight Stefan. On the surface, he wouldn't act aggressively because he knew Renee would stop him. "It's not easy for the few great families to get together. It's good and meaningful for us. If I refused to come, it would make me seem heartless."Stefan kept his co
Having said that, Renee lowered her head, about to leave. She didn't even have the time to bother about Adie and Abby, and told Quinton to take them home later. Her strange behavior filled Quinton with displeasure. He blocked Renee and said solemnly, "Are you afraid? Do you want to run away? People might think that you're guilty and have cheated on your husband!""No, I'm not!" Renee refuted him loudly, then explained seriously, "I'm busy. I need to handle something right away. Plus, I'm not guilty. I did nothing wrong. There's no reason for me to feel guilty." Quinton went straight to the point. "What are you afraid of since you know you're not guilty? Why do you want to run away? He should be afraid instead!""I told you. I'm not afraid of him. I'm just…" "What?" Quinton crossed his arms and looked at Renee coldly. He wanted to get to the bottom of it.Renee came up with a ridiculous yet normal excuse. "I… I recalled that the dessert shop that I want to head to is about to
Jovan called Stefan to sound the latter out. Anyway, it would be convenient for Stefan to rush over since they were both at the same spot. "I'll be right there," Stefan said. Then, he hung up.For a moment, silence washed over everyone, as if something terrible was about to happen.After taking in the new information, Leia said indignantly, "What's going on? Why does he want to come? Isn't he too shameless? How dare he come?" Although everything wasn't discussed openly, everyone knew why Stefan and Renee broke up all of a sudden, despite how lovey-dovey they were. The reason was that Stefan had cheated on Renee.Even if the adultery was faked, it was still the cause of their breakup. If Stefan were shameful or guilty, he wouldn't have agreed to come. He was going to face Renee there with their friends and family around. Certainly, it was embarrassing. "Hmph! Why not? He impersonated me, seized my business, and snatched away my woman. Plus, he led a steady life, got married
Jovan's words made the atmosphere quiet and bizarre. "Are you out of your mind, Jovan? It's already very annoying to have someone like you here. Do you have to get another annoying guy?" Leia frowned, crossing her arms. She kept scolding him.Initially, the atmosphere was considered harmonious. It was still considered fine even if there was an annoying person like Jovan. Unexpectedly, he wanted to call another, more terrible person to come here. Things would certainly go wrong. "Ms. Osborne, you're famous for talking harshly, too. You're just like me. I love it." However, Jovan was not mad at all. He grinned while waiting for Stefan to answer the call. Generally, Stefan would not answer Jovan's call. Surprisingly, he picked it up that time."What's the matter?" Jovan purposely put it on speaker mode. Stefan sounded aloof and emotionless.Jovan sounded wicked as he calmly asked Stefan, "Do you want to join a gathering, Stefan?""I'm going to hang up if you don't say anythi
In the past, Jovan had always regarded Stefan as a coward. Stefan couldn't forget about Renee, but he kept pushing Renee to another man. It seemed like Justin was more responsible, considerate, and gentle. Of course, Renee would lead a very happy, steady, and comfortable life with such a man. At the very least, Jovan felt that he could not be that meticulous and considerate. He would only drive Renee mad just to get her attention. "Hmph! Are you trying to humiliate me or yourself?" Justin didn't find that a compliment. Instead, it sounded like smockery. Jovan made it sound like Justin was a nice guy, but would not be picked by Renee. Usually, people like that had to suffer and would not end up well."I'm praising you." Jovan was helpless because of his reputation as the villain. Although he had said a lot of annoying things, he did want to compliment Justin. His love was probably as deep as Justin's, but his and Stefan's ways of loving Renee were much inferior to Justin's.