She clenched her fists tightly, still gritting her teeth in denial. "That masked man, who dared to go against Mr. Elan, must have a lot of power. Someone of my background, how could I possibly get in touch with someone so powerful..."
Travis still had a sinister smile on his face. "You're still as good at making excuses as you used to be. You almost had me believing you again, but this time..."
He paused for a moment, and his eyes, filled with sinister anger, suddenly blazed with ferocity.
"I will never let you go!"
With that, he kicked Luana fiercely, sending her sprawling to the ground.
Before she could react, one of the bodyguards struck her back with an iron rod.
The pain from the blow shot through her back, making her break out in a cold sweat instantly...
"Bitch! It's one thing that you teamed up with Bert from the Moriarty Group to screw me over, but you also sent someone to harm me. Do you think I'm easy to bully?!"
His
The person who burst in was Calvert, dressed in a black suit...The moment Luana saw him, she felt as if she had seen Albion from the past.Back then, when she was bullied and locked in the restroom by her classmates, it was also him who had rushed in to save her."Albion..."The name she blurted out instinctively caused Calvert's heart to jolt painfully. The pain spread throughout his entire body.Without a second thought, he rushed over, kicked the security guards out of the way, and took off his coat to cover Luana."Luana, don't be afraid..."He picked her up and held her tightly in his arms, whispering words of comfort.It was something he said without thinking, but it left Luana stunned.She suddenly couldn't tell whether the person who had come to her rescue was Calvert or Albion."Mr. Coburn..."Travis, sitting in his wheelchair, tilted his head and greeted Calvert casually, as if he wasn't afraid o
"Okay."Calvert nodded at her. As he carried her through the banquet hall, several bodyguards spotted them and quickly surrounded them.These bodyguards, seeing how severely Calvert was injured, were all filled with guilt for not protecting him properly and were apologizing to him one after another.But Calvert didn't care at all. He instructed the bodyguards to take Travis to the police station and then quickly headed towards the hotel lobby.Luana wasn't wearing any clothes, but fortunately, Calvert's coat was large enough to cover her petite body.However, she still felt very uncomfortable, worried that people coming in and out of the hotel would see her, so she buried her head deep into Calvert's chest.As she nestled in his arms, a group of about twenty bodyguards suddenly entered the hotel entrance, blocking their way.Calvert abruptly stopped and looked towards the entrance, where a man got out of a stretch Lincoln.The
"Cline!"Calvert's face turned ashen with rage as he saw Cline treat Luana so roughly.He didn't care about Cline's status anymore and lunged at him, aiming to throw a punch.The group of bodyguards that Cline had brought in had turned away when Luana's clothes had slipped off earlier.Now, sensing Calvert's hostility, they quickly turned back and stepped forward to hold him back.No matter how strong Calvert was, he couldn't match twenty-plus professional bodyguards.Soon, he was pinned to the ground, immobilized.Russell stepped forward, patted Calvert on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Mr. Coburn, my boss needs to settle some personal scores. Please wait to the side."Though Russell's tone was polite, his actions were anything but gentle.Whether Calvert liked it or not, the bodyguards dragged him away.Seeing this, Luana quickly said to Cline, "Mr. Moriarty, I'll go with you. Please don't hurt him."
When Cline saw Runa, he quickly closed the car door, preventing her from seeing the woman inside.She could only peer through the thick tinted windows, staring coldly at the woman in the passenger seat. "Cline, who is she?" she demanded.Cline had already proposed to her and even set a wedding date. Yet here he was, holding another woman.What's more, Cline was known for his aversion to intimacy with women due to his mental disorder. How could he be the one to initiate such an embrace?Runa's face was a mix of disbelief and anger. "Cline, why won't you speak?" she shouted.Ignoring her, Cline walked around the front of the car, got into the driver's seat, and closed the door without a word.Runa watched as the stretch Lincoln sped away, her usually gentle expression now cold and frosty.She took out her phone and made a call. "Find out immediately who the woman who accompanied Cline to the Beverly Hills Hotel today was!"Luana,
"What happened?" Cline's expression gradually turned cold, as if a layer of frost had formed in his eyes. "Did Calvert do this?"Luana quickly shook her head and said, "No, it was Travis..."Cline's eyebrows furrowed sharply. "Explain in detail," he demanded.Luana had no choice but to recount everything that had happened at the hotel to him.Upon learning that she had bled not because of any intimacy with Calvert, Cline's tightly knit brows eased slightly. However, when he heard that she had almost been raped by Travis's bodyguards, his brows furrowed again even more tightly.Without any hesitation, Cline took out his phone and made another call, saying, "Take care of Travis."Bert, who received the call, quickly replied respectfully, "Yes, Mr. Moriarty."Luana watched Cline as he made the call, feeling somewhat shocked that he would help her deal with Travis.Was it because he knew the woman he had been with was almost touche
Luana gave a noncommittal nod, and Eva's smile deepened at the corner of her mouth.Without saying much more, she instructed Luana to rest well and then turned to leave the ward.After Eva left, Luana couldn't hold herself up any longer, closed her eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.She didn't know how long she had slept, only that the moment she opened her eyes, she saw Cline sitting beside her.He was wearing a black turtleneck sweater, and under the sunlight, his skin appeared fair, with features as if painted.The noble and refined aura he exuded made people hesitant to desecrate or approach him too closely.His slender fingers held a report. With his long eyelashes lowered, he flipped through the pages one by one.His expression while reading the report was unchanged, which suggested that Eva had created a fake report for him.Eva had not only kept her secret but also prepared a fake report without needing her to worry abou
Cline coldly interrupted him, "No meeting."Russell immediately seemed a bit embarrassed. "Mr. Moriarty, he is, after all, the CEO of Coburn Group. Right now, people from Coburn Group are constantly asking me for him. I can't keep him locked up forever..."Russell's meaning was clear—he could withstand the pressure for a while, but not for long.Cline's face darkened as he thought for a few seconds, and finally relented, "Let him go."He then hung up the phone directly and looked at Luana, who was examining him.In fact, Luana had already guessed who he was talking about and didn't ask.As long as he was willing to release Calvert, she could thank him later once she had recovered a bit.Cline stared at the IV drip for a while until the liquid in the bottle was completely gone, then he helped her remove the needle.Luana glanced at the three bottles of medicine still on the side. Logically, they should be administered one
Cline finally put down the vegetable salad and picked up a napkin to wipe the corners of her mouth.In the five years she had been with him, he had never taken care of her like this. Luana was utterly shocked.She stared blankly at the man in front of her with her clear, innocent eyes, feeling as if all of this was surreal.Cline, however, didn't seem to find anything amiss. He calmly wiped her mouth with the napkin.After cleaning her up, he took out his phone and called Eva. He asked Eva to bring medical equipment to the villa.Hearing this, Luana quickly snapped out of her daze and said, "I'll be fine with just some rest. There's no need to trouble Dr. Eva."Cline glanced at her coldly, his tone domineering and brooking no refusal. "Whether it's troublesome or not, I'm the one who decides."Luana had no choice but to keep quiet and let him arrange everything...When Eva pushed a cart full of instruments into the room, Cline
"Does it hurt?" Luana silently asked herself.Once, she had known pain—excruciating, soul-crushing agony that had left her curled on a cold floor, voiceless and desperate.It had been a pain that stripped away all hope in this man before her, eroding her very will to live. It had been so severe that even in her final moments, when she'd longed for a glimpse of him, he'd refused even a phone call.That pain was no mere physical wound. It was a despair that seeped into her very being.It was after enduring such torment that she had finally seen Cline for what he truly was—a man utterly ruthless toward her.Yet now, here he was, holding her and asking if she hurt. The irony was bitter, almost laughable.With a cold, expressionless face, she said, "The five minutes are up. Let me go."But Cline, who had finally held the person he'd obsessed over, had no intention of releasing her so easily.He held her tight and said, "
Cline held tight to her arm, as if he'd never let go unless Luana gave him a chance to speak.Luana, brows furrowed, sighed and relented, "Five minutes, right here."Cline's cold gaze shifted to Dorian, who shot him a glare before turning to Luana."Five minutes, then home," Dorian warned.Luana nodded meekly, "Okay."Only after Dorian strode into the villa did Luana turn to Cline, her voice cool and impatient."Well?"In Dorian's presence, Luana had been the picture of obedience, just as she used to be with him.Now, though, Cline saw a change in her—calm, distant, and edged with impatience.This new version of Luana only deepened the ache in his chest.He longed to reach out, to brush his fingers against her face, but as his hand rose, she flinched violently, stepping back as if struck.Luana stared at Cline's right hand, her pupils suddenly clouded with fear, as if the ghosts of past trauma had res
Luana nodded in agreement and turned toward the stairs.But after just two steps, she froze, her fingers brushing the banister.Slowly, she turned back, her voice hesitant. "Clarissa, I came back as Dorothy... What about Gehrmann?"Clarissa had guessed that Luana had returned as her sister Dorothy the moment she heard Dorian call her by that name.Clarissa's smile was warm, reassuring. "I won't say a word to him or Cline. Your secret's safe."Relief flickered in Luana's eyes. "Thank you," she whispered, the word soft as a feather.As Luana walked away, Clarissa watched her retreating figure, worry knotting her brow."Is this luck or a curse?" she thought, "Leaving Cline only to be trapped by Dorian."At the car, Luana opened the passenger door and slid in."Home at ten seems early," she ventured, her tone tentative.Dorian glanced over, his indifference palpable. "Make it eight, then."Luana's lips twitched
Clarissa watched Luana's fingers tighten around the phone until her knuckles whitened. "When I first saw those messages flooding in, I tried luring him out myself—posed as you, planned to bring the cops. But instead of catching a creep, I got..."She trailed off, the memory of the man in the café still prickling her nerves.A man as cold and heartless as Cline—why would he cling to memories of Luana like this?"Anyway," she shrugged, "he never showed. Guess some ghosts stay buried."Luana's voice was a whisper. "These things... they should've been my fight. Not yours."Clarissa cut her off, "If it were me in this mess, you'd do the same. So quit with the thanks already."Luana nodded meekly, her lashes drooping as she glanced back at the phone screen.The mystery gnawed at her—Mr. Night's messages reeked of obsession, yet he hid in plain sight. Why?She couldn't fathom it, and frankly, didn't care
"I had no choice but to pull a dumb move—I seduced Gehrmann and took Naomi's spot as his bedwarmer," Clarissa said flatly, her voice echoing off the brick walls."I thought I could use him to get back at Cline. Turns out I was dumber than a bag of hammers—Gehrmann wouldn't lift a finger against Cline for any woman." She kicked at a pebble, watching it skitter into the shadows. "By the time I figured that out, he wouldn't let me walk away."Clarissa shifted her weight, catching Luana's profile in the dim light."But don't you worry, Luana. I ain't falling for Gehrmann's charm. This world's got exactly one good man left—Albion. And he's six feet under."So, I won't be that girl anymore—the one who pours her heart out for every little kindness, even when it's not worth it."Mentioning Albion again made Luana's eyes dim as if the light behind them had been switched off.She lowered her lashes, hiding the sorrow pooling th
Third Person's POVLuana tightly embraced Clarissa, hoping to alleviate her pain.Clarissa, however, patted her back with a smile and said, "It's alright. After finding out the truth, I was devastated for a while, but then I pulled myself together. I installed surveillance cameras and recorded every moment of their infidelity, which I sent to my lawyer."I won the lawsuit, but I couldn't get the house back. I could only recover the mortgage payments, the money I spent on him, and compensation for emotional distress..."However, what I didn't expect was that someone would expose Albert's bigamy online, ruining his reputation. His company fired him, and no other major firms would hire him. As far as I know, his current salary isn't even enough to cover the mortgage. Plus, his mother has cancer, which is why he keeps begging at my door."Clarissa's voice turned cold as she continued, "He thinks I'm still the naive woman I once was, that if he kneels a
Clarissa took a deep breath, opened the bedside table, and took out a marriage certificate, handing it to Luana."You two weren't entirely meant to miss each other. At least he kept his promise from when you were young and married you."Seeing the marriage certificate, Luana's eyes welled up.She reached out and slowly unfolded it...Name: LuanaName: AlbionBeside them was a composite photo of the two, dressed in white shirts, with a red background, their faces beaming with happiness.When Luana was eighteen, she had asked Albion, "When are you going to marry me?"Albion, engrossed in a book at the time, looked up and playfully tapped her nose with his pen, saying, "When I'm capable of giving you happiness."Luana pouted, dissatisfied, "But when will that be?"Albion held up his book and replied, "After I've mastered all this knowledge and become someone worthy, then I'll marry you."Luana rested her chin
Last time, it was her negligence that failed to keep Albion by her side. This time, she was determined to do everything in her power to protect Luana.Clarissa raised her hand and gently patted Luana's shoulder, hoping to offer some warmth.Time ticked by, and they remained in the same position until a man in a gray suit approached.Clarissa looked up at him, noticing his gaze fixed on Luana, and her tension grew.Before she could inquire about his identity, the man stepped forward and gently pushed Luana's head with his slender fingers."It's ten o'clock. It's time to go home..."Luana, recognizing Dorian's voice, didn't lift her head, her lifeless eyes fixed on the floor.Dorian frowned at her silence, then bent down slightly and spoke patiently, "Dorothy, come home with me."Luana raised her weary head and said, "I don't want to go home today..."She wanted to stay and support Clarissa, to quietly live for herself for
She couldn't believe it. Even with the news reports and Clarissa's own words, she still refused to accept it.Albion, the gentle and considerate young man who had cherished her, how could he have taken his own life in such a tragic way? It was impossible.Luana shook her head in disbelief. "No, he wouldn't do this..."Clarissa stepped forward and embraced Luana. She felt Luana's body growing cold, and her heart ached."Luana, I don't want to believe it either, but..."Clarissa's words trailed off, tears streaming down her face.Three years ago, fearing Albion might do something rash, she had followed him to the cemetery.There, she found no sign of Albion, only bloodstains on the tombstone.Her unease grew as she searched for him, but he was nowhere to be found.The next day, the news reported that Coburn Group's CEO, Calvert, had committed suicide at the cemetery.Only then did she realize Albion had truly done s