"Mom, Dad, you have to help me, or I'll definitely end up in prison!" Ricky Spencer was crying out even as he tugged on Samantha's hand.Lionel glared at his incorrigible son. "What have you done this time?" he growled—it was certainly not Ricky's first offense. "I-I was just trying to practice my driving ahead of my driver's test. Irene's SUV was just sitting there and no one's using it, so I drove it around, and then I got caught in an accident…""What?!"Lionel almost died from a heart attack right then. "Just days ago, you almost blinded someone with a skewer, and I had to spend so much on damages and apologize to finally resolve it! Now, you're telling me you caused an accident? And without a license?! You honestly don't appreciate being alive, do you?""Calm down, Lionel. Ricky's your only son, and he hasn't completed his studies yet! You have to help him—he can't go to prison. Would he have a future if he does? The SUV is Irene's, so just say that it was her…""Dream on
With those words, Lionel headed upstairs.Samantha was left pouting, but there was no way she could abandon her son to his own fate right now—she had to listen to Lionel's instruction. "Let's go. Tell me where it happened," she said as she pulled Ricky along."But Dad just—"Ricky had more to say, but Samantha cut him short right then. "Just stop it and deal with your own mess right now! I was just humiliated because of you!"…Upstairs, Lionel found Sheryl packing her bags, and walked over to pull the dress she was holding out of her grasp. "We've been married for most of our lives. Do you really think a divorce is necessary?"Sheryl sneered. "What, I'm supposed to let you keep using me like a tool, and ruin my daughter's life?""How did I ruin her life? Do you have any idea how much money I spent on her as a child, the lessons I paid for?" "You know very well why you paid for all that. Also, I've given up on you ever since you've used my illness to coerce Irene into that a
"I'm Zachary Slate. Irene is slightly hurt, and she's having surgery right now," Zachary answered—he was standing right outside the operating room.Sheryl felt as if her heart had stopped right then. "What happened? Did my daughter get hurt?""Yes," Zachary replied. Flustered and anxious, Sheryl quickly asked, "Which hospital?""Central Hospital at the Second Militarized Zone.""Okay, I got it." Sherly hung up, and promptly hailed a taxi to head there.…On the surgical table, Irene caught the scrubs of the doctor who would be operating on her. "Can you save my baby?"She had already been screened, and while it was confirmed that she had suffered a miscarriage, one of the twins could still be saved."Are you sure you want to keep it?"Irene's cheeks were as white as a sheet, and her lips were dry and bleeding. "I'm sure," she answered hoarsely. "I'm counting on you.""I'll do my best," the doctor replied. Zachary was a thoracic surgeon, so he had to get the best obstetr
Zachary poured Irene a glass of water, and she drank half of it to ease the dryness of her throat. She felt a little just then better, but she was still aching all over."What happened? Who did that to you?" Zachary asked, unable to hold back his indignation and firing a guess. "Could it be Whitney?"Irene shook her head—she would have believed that herself, if her mother did not tell her that Ricky was driving her car. But now, everything was clear: Ricky was driving her car, and got into a car accident involving Isaac.The concerned departments would have gotten involved if it had been serious, but Isaac had decided to punish whom he presumed to be the culprit—meaning he was either seriously hurt, or very pissed off.The thought that she was assaulted because her stepbrother was involved in an accident left her feeling especially indignant. "Zachary, I've made up my mind—I'll divorce Isaac soon," she said quietly. "I've lost one of my children, and the other might not be sa
When Isaac took the sheet of paper and saw that Irene's name was on it, he frowned. "This isn't the driver!" The driver he saw was a young man!The secretary had no idea why Isaac was suddenly hostile, but admitted, "The SUV was registered under Ms. Spencer's name…""And that makes her the culprit?" Isaac growled as he got off the hospital bed and leveled an icy glare at her. "Is she the one you punished?"The secretary kept her head down in silence.Fuming, Isaac bellowed, "I'm asking you a question!""Yes, sir," the secretary finally replied.Isaac was hyperventilating from sheer frustration, and the secretary quickly apologized. "Sorry, I slipped up…"Isaac completely ignored her and stormed outside.Whitney, who had been standing by the door and trying to get in, saw him coming out. After that accident, it was perfectly reasonable to say that she had lost their child, and Isaac would not be able to say anything against that."Isaac," she called out, and reached for his
"Irene Spencer!" Isaac bellowed, breathing each syllable louder than the next as his cheeks flushed crimson and turned dark, the veins in his neck bulging as if something could pop just then.Seizing her neck, he snarled, "I'll strangle you to death right now!""I know you will," Irene replied with equal resolve and determination. "But I'm not afraid. I hate you!""Just because I slipped up and caused your miscarriage?" he asked, and continued before she answered, "I would've made you get an abortion even if I didn't—I'd never let you give birth to a b*stard just to mess with me! Everything's just fine now, since I don't have to do it myself. Guess even someone up there is refusing to let you have that b*stard, that's why the mistake happened in the first place!"Her repetitive use of 'b*stard' stung Irene in the heart, leaving her utterly hysterical. "I hate you! I wish you were dead!" Irene shouted.Hate and fury blazed within her eyes.On the other hand, Isaac's hands flinch
Did it hurt?For Irene, it was only natural that it hurt.However, any physical injury would never compare to the heartache she felt from losing one of her children. She lowered her eyes and did not respond then.At the same time, Isaac was grasping her arm to stop her from moving at all… and suddenly leaned in to kiss her lips."Umph! Did you lose your mind?!" she snapped.Isaac simply grinned in return, an evil look showing across his face right then. "You must answer when I ask you a question. That is basic manners, and I would have to instruct you if you don't know that. Just now was a punishment, and if you insist on being stubborn or using silence as a way of resistance, my punishment will only get worse."Pausing for a moment, he then added, "I'm a man of my word."On the other hand, Irene was already hurt, and since she also had to protect her child, she did not dare to fight back—even if she felt utter disgust toward Isaac just then, she did not dare to say a word.O
They were both murderers who had killed her child. There was no way she would feel anything toward them other than loathing! "But what are you going to do if Isaac still refuses to divorce you?" Zachary reminded her then. "You can hide your pregnancy for a few more months, but there's no way you can hide it as more time passes by."In reality, Irene had an idea, but she did not tell Zachary—he was too much of a friend to Isaac. And if Zachary were to find out, it was only expected that Isaac would find out. As such, she simply acted as if she had no plans, and said, "I have no idea. We'll just have to cross that bridge when we reach it.""If push comes to shove, you just have to run away in secret," Zachary suggested. "Just stay out of Isaac's mind, and he'll eventually forget about you."Irene gave him a dark look. "Do you really believe that Isaac would ever fail to find me once he sets his mind on it?""Well, no…" Zachary muttered, perfectly aware of what Isaac was like an