"Miss, if anyone asks if I'm awake, just say that I woke up and fell asleep again," Macie said.The nurse looked at her and nodded despite thinking that Edward probably wouldn't ask.Macie was in a private hospital room. She lay in bed, staring blankly out the window.She wanted to leave and go far away from those two despicable people. She couldn't understand why they still had to torment her when she would be leaving in just three days.Only three days left. No, two.She could finally leave tomorrow.Macie closed her eyes. She had already packed everything. Now, she just wished time would pass faster.At noon, an unexpected visitor arrived.It was Nathan."Mrs. Fowler, how are you?" Nathan greeted. He brought a fruit basket with him. "Mr. Fowler asked me to check if you were awake."Macie remained expressionless and didn't feel like responding. The mere mention of Edward filled her with hatred."As long as you're okay, Mr. Fowler can rest easy. He's actually very worried a
Edward was deep in thought when a knock on the office door interrupted him. It was Nathan."Has she woken up?" Edward asked as soon as Nathan stepped in."Yes," Nathan replied. "I also spoke with the nurse about Mrs. Fowler's condition. She's recovering well and no longer needs oxygen, but she's still easily fatigued."Edward showed no reaction, his expression remaining cold and unreadable. He didn't show the slightest trace of relief or joy at the news. Nathan observed him for a few moments before turning to leave. But before he could step out, Edward spoke again."Find a place.""A place?" Nathan paused, puzzled."Decent environment, high security, private, and fully furnished." Edward listed his requirements succinctly. Nathan couldn't help but wonder if Edward was planning to move out with that mistress of his."Understood. I'll start looking," he responded, nodding.Just as he reached the door, Edward's voice came again."Did she say anything else?"Nathan halted, turn
Even if Macie had shown him the evidence, Edward would have defended Sharon. After all, love made one blind. Whatever Sharon did was correct in his eyes, while Macie was someone he loathed and wished dead.A bitter smile tugged at Macie's lips. Two years of devotion, and all she got in return was a death sentence from him.Meanwhile, Sharon had already taken a cab home and contacted a tech expert. She found that Edward's study computer was password-protected and tried entering her birthday.A second later, the device was unlocked. Her lips curled into a smug smile. Both Edward's computer and phone passwords were tied to her. If this wasn't love, what was?Sharon instructed the technician to erase the security footage. After the latter completed the task, she asked, "Is it completely wiped?""Relax. Even the cloud backup is gone," he assured her.Satisfied, Sharon let out a relieved hum. She thought, "Macie, you're as foolish as ever. You practically handed me this information. I
That night, as usual, Edward left work and went straight to accompany Sharon before returning home. Another day passed without him seeing Macie.He had attended a social gathering that evening and had a few drinks. Feeling discomfort in his stomach, he sat at the dining table, and a sudden image of Macie bringing him a bowl of hot soup flashed through his mind.She would always remind him to be careful and fuss over him like a nagging mother. If he scolded her, she would obediently stand aside, saying nothing.But as he came back to reality, the large house felt empty. There was no one else around. Edward frowned, realizing that he had been thinking about Macie a lot these past two days, which annoyed him.He got up to take some medicine and pour himself a glass of water, but something seemed missing. After a moment, he realized that Macie's mug was gone.He didn't dwell on it as it was just a cup. But when he went to the balcony to collect the laundry, he noticed that her bat
Sharon's eyes lit up with surprise, but she hesitated, feigning uncertainty. "This is the necklace you spent two hours choosing and paid a fortune for, just for May. It wouldn't be right for me to accept it."Edward's anger flared. Two hours and nine million dollars, yet Macie had dismissed it without a second thought, even throwing it aside. "She doesn't deserve it. Just take it," he said coolly before heading into the master bedroom and shutting the door.Sharon watched him leave. Then, a greedy and excited smile curled her lips. She had initially planned to make Macie return the necklace to Edward, but now, getting her hands on it had been effortless.Wasting no time, she put it on, sat in front of the vanity, and took photos under perfect lighting to highlight the dazzling rose-crowned design. Then, she posted them on her Instagram account.Inside the master bedroom, Edward lay in bed after washing up. He intended to sleep but found himself wide awake.His phone screen kept sw
"Impressive. You're still as strong as ever," Alice remarked over the video call.She asked, "Did you see the gossip piece I sent you? Why haven't you replied?"Macie hadn't responded yet when Alice suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right! You've been abroad for two years. You probably don't even know who Edward Fowler is."Macie lowered her gaze, remaining silent. How could she not know? She had been his housekeeper during that time."He was in our college too, but in the finance department while we studied digital media arts."Alice clucked her tongue before continuing, "I heard he broke up with his girlfriend in junior year. But who would've thought that they'd get back together four years later..." She continued rambling, speaking unclearly while brushing her teeth.Macie, not wanting to interrupt her friend's enthusiasm, turned the volume to its lowest setting. Alice was her college roommate and a close friend, but she had no idea that Macie and Edward had actually been
"Mr. Blackwood, you may leave. Just make sure that the trending topic is taken down," Edward said.Alaric was momentarily stunned but quickly nodded in relief. "I assure you, this won't happen again.""There's no need for overnight shifts. My personal affairs are my own to handle," Edward said indifferently.With that, Alaric left. Nathan was about to follow when Edward stopped him. "Did you find the place I asked for?""I've shortlisted five properties. When you have time, you can review them," Nathan replied. "Now," Edward curtly instructed.Nathan immediately sent the files to Edward's email and prepared to go through them individually. But before he could finish describing the first option, Edward cut him off, saying, "This one."Nathan paused, surprised. He had expected Edward to be picky or even reject all of them, forcing him to look for more options. But instead, the latter made an immediate decision, as if he were eager to move that woman out as soon as possible.With
"Ed, please don't be mad at me, okay? I swear, I didn't mention your name," Sharon pleaded, her voice fragile, as if she were on the verge of breaking.Edward took a deep breath and said, "Even if you posted it from a private account without mentioning my name, the Rose Crown necklace is one of a kind. The paparazzi were already hounding me after the fashion show incident.""I'm sorry, Ed. I didn't think it through…" Sharon sobbed.Hearing her cry, Edward pressed his lips together and stayed silent for a few seconds.He ultimately decided to let it go. He thought that Sharon was a simple person and had probably posted it out of excitement. As for the timing, she had said that she was up late last night, so he figured that it likely wasn't intentional."Stop crying. I was just asking. Just don't post things so casually in the future. It's too easy for the paparazzi to link us together," Edward said, his tone softening.Sharon sniffled, her voice still slightly choked, but the corn
Sean thought that Edward was truly scum. Alice had said that the one who stirred up trouble that day was Edward's ex-girlfriend—the same woman he had flaunted publicly as his mistress while still married.Now, Macie and Edward were divorced, yet the mistress still showed up in front of the ex-wife, while Edward just stood by and did nothing. Sean really thought that Edward was a piece of trash.Not long after, the officer from the interrogation room emerged again, this time with a few others."Mr. Hart, Ms. Hart, Ms. Smith," he addressed them. "Surveillance footage confirms that the suspect was the first to lay hands on Ms. Smith and made a deliberate attempt to drag her into a car by the roadside. This establishes criminal intent."Also, our investigation confirms that the three men were not the suspect's bodyguards, but were hired by her. They've admitted to receiving payment from the suspect to abduct Ms. Smith."Alice immediately said, "I knew it! Sharon was still making excus
Alice knew that her own injury wasn't even worth mentioning, so she walked over to Macie and tugged up the sleeve of her shirt. She stated, "Look at this. May's arm is going to be all bruised by tomorrow."Sean looked at the woman Alice had pulled over. Her fair, slender arm was covered in several glaring marks. It was evidently caused by someone grabbing her forcefully. His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.Macie felt uneasy under his stare and quickly pulled her sleeve back down. But the moment she did, Alice yanked it up again and turned toward the officers."Look at this. Does that woman look like she came just to talk things out? If she only wanted to talk, why did she get physical?"The officers glanced at Macie's arm. Just then, Sean's voice cut in, cold and sharp. "My sister and her friend were attacked. I hope your station handles this seriously and doesn't let the perpetrators walk away unpunished."The officers turned to Sean. The man had an overwhelming presence. Eve
"Who could possibly beat you?" Sean asked.Alice snapped, "I'm not joking! Edward's ex-girlfriend ambushed me and May, and she brought three thugs with her! May and I both got hurt! And they ruined my favorite handbag!"Sean furrowed his brow when he heard this. Alice kept going on, full of grievance and rage, until he cut in, saying, "Send me the location of the police station."Alice hung up and saw that the police had already arrived. They had come just in time.Sharon and the three men were all caught. Not a single one got away.The three of them headed to the nearby police station. It was the same one as before. Macie and Julian were already familiar with the place.In the lobby, Alice sent Sean the location. The three gave their statements while Sharon and the men were taken into an interrogation room.When they finished, one of the officers came out to mediate. "Ms. Emerson said that those men are her bodyguards. She claims that she wasn't trying to abduct anyone. It seem
When Macie heard that Edward had driven Sharon away, she was a little surprised. Alice was even more shocked, but Macie quickly said coldly, "I really did get divorced. He's the one who keeps pestering me. We're going to court next week." She glanced at Sharon. "Once that's over, Edward and I will have nothing to do with each other. Don't believe me? Come to the court yourself."Sharon frowned when she heard that, clearly unconvinced.What if they went to court and the divorce didn't go through? Then she would just end up being played yet again."May's right. She and that scumbag Edward are definitely getting divorced," Alice said mockingly. "You're the only one who still treats him like he's some kind of prize. No one else gives a damn. "You two had better lock it down. When you get married, I'll show up with a gift and wish you all the happiness in the world."Sharon shot Alice a glare. Wasn't this the same woman who had bragged last time that Edward was about to marry her?
Sean couldn't help but think to himself that he'd really gone too far. He wondered how he was any different from the bullies who had tormented Macie.He remembered how Macie had looked that morning with her anger held back, forced to endure his teasing with a fake smile. Meanwhile, he found it amusing, as if it were some kind of game to him.He couldn't believe what a monster he had been.Macie's quiet demeanor was the result of years of enduring suffering, with her anger only surfacing when she was pushed too far.Macie was a young woman with a vintage landscape as her profile picture—someone who had already seen the world's harshness and matured well beyond her years. And all of this was the result of childhood trauma and constant bullying. At this moment, Sean could no longer dismiss what Alice had told him. He fully believed her now. …After returning to her private office downstairs, Alice didn't dare admit to Macie how spineless she had felt. All she could do was firmly
"Stop it right now. Don't bully my friend anymore, or I swear I won't let you off easy," Alice warned. However, Sean didn't even flinch, arrogantly ignoring her threat.Alice was furious, but there was nothing she could do. She wouldn't win if she argued or fought with Sean. He could easily slap her down to the ground, and she wouldn't even be able to get back up. If anyone else had bullied Macie, she would have gone all in, but this person was Sean—her brother, the one who had always pushed her around since they were kids.Alice sighed, moving from anger to helplessness, feeling stuck and useless. She couldn't protect Macie and felt she wasn't a good friend. "Macie has already been through enough. Can't you show a little compassion? Stop bullying an innocent, vulnerable lady!" Alice tried softening her tone. "You don't know how much Macie has suffered. Do you even have an ounce of human decency?" She switched tactics, telling him everything she knew about Macie's past and th
It looked like Macie hadn't just been flustered—she'd fully entered rage monster mode. Sean could imagine her fists flew, as if they could actually do damage, even though they barely stung. He genuinely found it endearing.When Sean finished reading the last screenshot, he closed the chat and saw a new message from Alice. Her text read, "So, are you going to explain why you were flirting with my friend? "And what about the things you said to Edward last night? It sounds like you meant what you said. You weren't just playing along with me."Did you put your arm around Macie's waist? Hold her hand? You had better come clean!" Sean just typed a simple response. He typed, "Go ask her if I did that." Alice, on the other end, was speechless.Sometimes, Alice really wondered if Sean was just a brooding, black-bellied guy with an obsession with keeping things mysterious. She didn't respond right away. Instead, she stormed over to his office, yanked a chair out, and took a seat rig
Alice immediately called Macie, venting all her frustration about Sean. She cursed him as much as she could, even bringing up stories from their childhood to illustrate just how terrible he had been.Macie listened to how Alice described her miserable childhood, living under the shadow of Sean, enduring various "torments".As Alice spoke, Macie couldn't help but picture that insufferable face, and she felt that it wasn't surprising he could do such things. If he treated his own sister that way, what would he do to her? Indeed, some people's bad habits formed when they were young. Macie felt sympathy for Alice, and what started as one person venting turned into a united front, two people joining in on the complaints."Ugh, my brother's the worst. When we were kids, he ripped the ears off my plush bunny, and then claimed it was the turtle pillow that did it." Alice continued, venting, "I love cake, but I got cavities. He'd eat it right in front of me and mock me for not being able
Not far from Macie's workstation, Lily had been listening to their conversation, especially when Macie, with a hint of pride, casually mentioned her good relationship with Sean. Lily's fists tightened, and a flash of hatred and jealousy crossed her eyes. There was also a sense of helplessness and resentment. Julian hadn't fired her, but had only made her apologize publicly in the company's group chat, and now this happened.Macie was not only Alice's friend, but she also had a close relationship with Sean. Moreover, Julian clearly favored Macie, openly confessing his admiration for her.Macie's relationships within the department would only be stronger. Her promotion to team leader would only be a matter of time. Lily had crossed her, and sooner or later, she'd be the one getting sidelined. Lily was already worried about her future and deeply regretted causing trouble for Macie on her first day. She shouldn't have tried to embarrass her last night either. At her desk, with ju