Martin responded. "Will do, Mr. Lowe." Then, he muttered under his breath, "Is Ms. Cadwell cursed or something? One minute she's getting burned, the next she's involved in a car accident, and now she's been slapped in the face. "As if that's not enough, she has asthma and depression, and she tried to cut her wrist to commit suicide. Then, she ran away on a rainy night… It's a miracle that she's still alive!"Quentin frowned. "What did you just say?"Martin hurriedly responded, "N-nothing!"Quentin spat, "If you don't have anything nice to say, shut up!"Martin immediately lowered his head. Just then, Quentin's phone rang. His expression softened when he saw the familiar number. He answered the call. "Elle?"Noelle asked, "Let's go out for dinner tonight."His eyes crinkled as he asked gently, "Where to?""I sent the location to your phone," she said.Quentin checked his messages and forwarded the address to Martin. "Take me to this restaurant."Half an hour later, Quentin
Xyla had just started to calm down when someone yanked the blanket off her. "You bitch!" Layla snarled. As soon as she saw Xyla, she was reminded of everything she had been through. Before Xyla could react, she slapped her several times in a row. Then, she took a picture of her swollen face before storming out of her ward.Xyla was so furious that she almost passed out. Layla had slapped her again and taken a picture. The thought of her bruised and swollen face being paraded in front of countless eyes drove her insane.Just then, her friend forwarded her another post from Yvette's social media. Xyla took one look and nearly lost it. It was a picture of Quentin and Noelle at the cinema. Noelle was holding a popcorn bucket, her eyes crinkling with a smile. The man beside her was handsome and tall.Xyla felt as if she had been punched in the chest, and she was consumed by anger. Why was she getting slapped here while the two of them were out enjoying a movie? She should be the one st
Noelle hailed a cab and headed straight to the hospital.…Meanwhile, Xyla sat on the hospital bed. Her hair was a mess, and her eyes were glazed over. Her face was marred by handprints and swollen. It was just like that day all over again.Quentin felt as if his heart was being squeezed in a vice. "Xy?" Her vacant gaze slowly shifted toward him, and she began to sob, "Quint, she just can't stand me, after all…"He appeared bewildered. "Was it that woman again?"Xyla nodded, tears streaming down her face. "She told me that Noelle had sent her to deal with me and that even if she beat me to death, you wouldn't know because you were out having dinner and watching a movie with Noelle. She said that I could scream until my throat was raw, and you still wouldn't hear me…"With each passing moment, Quentin's expression grew colder. Was this really Noelle's doing? As he thought about her strange behavior earlier that evening, inviting him out to dinner and a movie, his fingers started
Xyla looked anxious and pitiful, a sight that tugged at Quentin's heartstrings, though his mind swam with questions. His dark gaze landed on Layla. "Were you really the one who slapped Xy?"Layla glanced at Quentin, then at Xyla, and felt both amused and vexed. "Stop pretending, Xyla Cadwell. You're not blind. I'm sure you know who slapped you!" Her words made Xyla shudder, and Quentin's expression changed drastically. He glanced at Xyla, who was still trembling, and frowned. As doubt gnawed at him, the door to the ward swung open once again, and Mithcell walked in. "I can confirm that it was Ms. Lewis who slapped Ms. Cadwell, and she did it on two separate occasions!" he declared resolutely."However, Ms. Cadwell made me delete the surveillance footage, which is why you couldn't find anything. Also, that EEG report was falsified; it belonged to another patient. Ms. Cadwell doesn't have depression!"Mitchell's face was as pale as a ghost. Now that the truth had come to light, he c
Large rocks tumbled down from the mountaintop unexpectedly. It crashed into the bus, which Noelle Xanthos happened to be in, and the two cars ahead. The cars were buried beneath the rubble right away. Meanwhile, the bus got struck so hard that it jerked violently before flipping onto its side."Wren, we encountered a landslide! I'm going to die!" A woman on the bus bawled while shrieking into her phone.With trembling hands, Noelle fished her phone out and sent Quentin Lowe a voice message. "I'm scared, Quentin… Can you come and get me?"The shivering in her voice made it evident that she was crying.Yet, there was no response from the other end.Noelle sat near the window, so her head smashed into the glass when the bus flipped over. The girl sitting beside her also crashed into her. When everything finally stilled, Noelle could no longer move one of her arms.Pain, chaos, stuffiness, fear, and helplessness overwhelmed the small, cramped space. Noelle felt as if she were drown
Noelle had an incomplete business contract discussion with a client yesterday. The client had to leave abruptly, so they needed to continue their discussion today.Two dolled-up women walked over from not far away. One said, "I heard that Xyla got into a car accident while shopping yesterday. She had a minor injury on her forehead, but Mr. Lowe spent all afternoon accompanying her for a full body check-up! He treats her so well!""Yeah! I don't know where Xyla got all her luck from," replied the other.The two were wives of wealthy families and donned stylish outfits. They gossiped about yesterday's scandal while walking by.Noelle's mind went blank as the pair's words stabbed slowly but deeply into her heart. As she was unloved in her marriage, she had to face her fears and pains alone. Meanwhile, Quentin kept Xyla company and cared for her even though she only had a mild injury.Tears welled in Noelle's eyes as she had never experienced such sorrow. The thick, overwhelming
Of course, Noelle's text went unanswered.The next day, she went to John's villa with two dark circles around her eyes. She was halfway through dealing with work when Yvette came looking for her.Yvette drove a trendy red Porsche, and she donned a fashionable, neat outfit. She brought Noelle to watch a movie. Noelle couldn't refuse her, so she had no choice but to go along. After the movie, Yvette treated her to Frosan cuisine. She couldn't help but ask, "Have you heard any news about your cousin?""Why don't you call Quentin if you miss him that much?" asked a giggling Yvette. She took her phone from her bag, dialed Quentin's number, and shoved the phone to Noelle. "Go on, talk to him!"Noelle was only worried Quentin would get scammed in a foreign country and never asked to speak with him. So, at that moment, she was at a loss. The phone was like a ticking time bomb in her hands."Yes?" A calm voice rang out from the other end of the call.Noelle's heart skipped a beat, and s
Noelle was speechless.Quentin continued to walk away without stopping once.Noelle's heart sank into her stomach as she wondered whether she had to do with Quentin's sudden departure. Unease filled her chest as she finished the chess match and stood to leave, too.She had just arrived at the yard when a blinding beam of light shined at her, so she covered her eyes. That was when a deep voice rang out from behind the light. "Get in."Noelle frowned. The Maybach's headlights had switched off when she approached it. She got into the backseat. She once saw Quentin driving and Xyla sitting in the front passenger seat. Due to that, she never sat in the front with Quentin.Quentin's threatening voice sounded from the driver's seat. "Did you tell my mother?""Tell her what?" Noelle was confused.Quentin scoffed lightly. He was evidently feeling infuriated by her innocent reaction. "I gave Xy a diamond necklace worth one million for her birthday. "It seems you, my wife, got jealou