A week later, Tessa came to visit me.
This time, she didn’t look broken. She wore a long wig that hid any sign of her trauma. The bruises on her face had healed, and in person, she was even more stunning than her photos.
O
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weu, Feu a
Her pregnancy was still early, so her figure hadn’t changed. Her waist was slim and
delicate, almost impossibly small.
“May I come in?” she asked with a small smile.
I nodded and invited her inside.
She brought me two books as a gift and got straight to the point.
“Christopher told me what you said,” she began. “I know you mean well. To have this baby, I’d have to risk my life.”
As she spoke, her hand instinctively rested on her stomach.
I smiled faintly. “Exactly. That’s what the doctors told you, right? That’s why I suggested you terminate the pregnancy while it’s still early.
“Take some time to recover, and you’ll be fine.”
“Heart disease isn’t a death sentence,” I added. “Take your medication, rest, and you’ll get better.”
Tessa looked at me and said, “You really are kind, Hannah.”
I laughed softly. A “kind person“? She’d just handed me a “good person” card.
Tessa hesitated for a moment and then asked, “Would you like to hear my story?”
Curious, I nodded.
She smiled faintly, then began to talk.
Her parents were both teachers, well–educated and from a family with a tradition of valuing academics. From a young age, she was bright, beautiful, and hardworking, the center of attention wherever she went.
Her childhood and teenage years had been happy ones.
She was accepted into a prestigious film academy in the capital city of Norland
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<
Η
She was accepted into a prestigious film academy in the capital city of Norland.
“Because the school was far away, and it was my first time living on my own, I didn’t go home until the end of my first semester, after winter exams,” she explained.
“But when I got back… I didn’t have a home anymore.”
It turned out that while she was away, her parents had a second child, a baby boy, without telling her.
“My old room had been turned into a nursery for my new brother,” she said, her voice trembling slightly.
“They set up a makeshift bed for me on the balcony,” she continued. “My mom said, “You’re going back to school soon anyway, so this will do for now.”
“She told me that once I graduated, I’d get married and leave home. That’s just how it is for girls, she said. We’re only ever temporary guests in our parents‘ house.”
It was then that she realized her parents had always valued boys over girls.
“They’d never dared have another child because of the old policy,” she explained. “But when the government relaxed the rules, even though they were older, they couldn’t resist. They went ahead and had a second baby, all while hiding it from me.”
She paused, her voice calm but distant.
“I went from being their little princess, the one they cherished, to being a homeless wanderer.”
24
Tessa’s story was the kind you’ve heard a thousand times before–a family that favored boys over girls.
She was just 18, home for winter break during her first year at college, when it all fell apart. She cried, she fought, but nothing changed.
On New Year’s Eve while quervone else was heading home to celebrate she packed her
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| 67%–
On New Year’s Eve, while everyone else was heading home to celebrate, she packed her
bags and left hers behind. Alone, she stepped into an uncertain future.
She rented a cheap apartment near campus and started writing–novels, screenplays- anything to keep herself afloat.
When she met Christopher, she couldn’t decide if it was her fortune or her downfall.
From the beginning, she knew he wasn’t going to marry her. But he bought her a house, funded her scripts, and even turned one into a full production. For the first time, she tasted
success.
Christopher gave her romance, the illusion of love.
But she never let herself believe it.
Like me, she had locked her heart away, shutting out the sunlight.
“Even a parent’s love can be a lie,” she said. “They lied to me for 18 years.”
“They wanted a boy. I get it. But now, I don’t have a home anymore.”
“And as for that man–once I realized he was the CEO of the Gray Group, I knew he couldn’t give me a home either.”
“Hannah, do you understand me?” Tessa asked.
I nodded. I did.
She wasn’t like Evelyn. She was talented. Her screenplays and novels were brilliant. Even if she hadn’t met Christopher, she would’ve succeeded on her own.
“I’ve had nothing to live for since the day I left home at 18,” Tessa said with a sad smile, tears silently streaming down her cheeks.
“If it weren’t for what happened at that factory, I might have considered ending the pregnancy and moving on.“”
135 Wed, FCD 5. IL Y
67%
“But now, all I want is to have this baby.”
“The doctors say he’s healthy.”
“Hannah, I hope you’ll support me in this.”
At that moment, I understood Tessa a little better. She wasn’t just trying to have a child- she wanted a family.
Her parents had abandoned her, but she could still create her own connection, someone bound to her by blood.
“Alright,” I said. “I’ll support you. I’ll take care of him.”
I knew Evelyn was restless, and Christopher wasn’t reliable either.
So I quietly assigned my bodyguards to protect Tessa. If she was trusting me with her child, I’d make sure he came into this world safely.
What I didn’t expect was Evelyn showing up three months later.
To be honest, I didn’t want to see her at all.
But she came anyway, like a madwoman, pounding on my door.
“Hannah! Open the door!”
I sighed to myself. Maybe it was time to move again. That little house I owned in Pinewood Grove had stricter security–no one would let Evelyn just waltz in and cause trouble.
I opened the door reluctantly. Evelyn looked terrible. Her face was pale, her eyes hollow, and she was clutching a large bouquet of apricot blossoms. She stood there silently, the very picture of misery.
Winter had passed, and spring had arrived quietly, bringing with it the rain and the blossoms.
I had no idea why she’d brought apricot flowers to see me.
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Frowning, I asked, “What are you trying to pull this time?”
She walked in, set the bouquet on the table, and turned to me.
“Hannah, why are you so stupid?” she asked, her voice sharp.
“Why would you let her have the baby?”
“Don’t you
realize that even an illegitimate child still has inheritance rights?”
“I’ve never met someone as foolish as you.”
“And it’s not just your stupidity–you’re dragging me down with you!”
I sighed, thinking about something I’d seen online once:
People can’t earn beyond the limits of their own understanding.
Why was Evelyn so fixated on the idea of Tessa’s child threatening the inheritance?
Couldn’t she consider that our family–our sprawling empire–needed people to help
manage it?
I didn’t even want to have kids, but my family… well, we really did have mines that needed
inheriting.
25
I didn’t bother explaining anything to her. I just smiled.
“Evelyn, whether I’m stupid or not has nothing to do with you. Why don’t you focus on your own life instead?” I said.
Evelyn glared at me, her eyes filled with malice.
“If it weren’t for you meddling in my business Christopher wouldn’t have known… he
wouldn’t have…”
I frowned. I could tell Christopher must’ve done something to keep Evelyn quiet and
well behaved those pact thron monthe
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14:35 Wed, Feb 5 ti
well–behaved these past three months.
“He had them remove my uterus. And… one of my kidneys,” Evelyn said, her voice breaking as tears spilled down her face.
“I’m ruined.”
She stood up, lifted her shirt, and showed me the scars from her surgeries.
Her once flawless, porcelain–like skin was now marred by angry red marks.
I stayed silent.
I’m not a good person, and I didn’t feel any sympathy for Evelyn.
What she did to Tessa still made my blood boil.
And then there was the time she started an entire smear campaign against me online.
If my family hadn’t had both the money and influence to shut it down, I would’ve been the
target of endless ridicule, hated by the masses, living out the rest of my days like a rat scurrying through the streets, shunned and despised.
This woman got exactly what she deserved.
“So, are you here looking for sympathy?” I asked coldly.
“Evelyn, I don’t feel the slightest bit sorry for you.”
“In fact, I despise you. Down to my bones.”
Evelyn pointed a trembling finger at me, then suddenly burst into laughter–wild, manic laughter.
I couldn’t understand how someone could go through what she had and still not learn her lesson.
Whether it was the horrors she orchestrated for Tessa or the way slie tried to destroy me online, if I had decided to report her, she’d already be in prison.
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<
And she wouldn’t be getting out anytime soon–five to eight years at least, maybe more.
“Hannah,” Evelyn said, her voice sharp, “even if you tricked Christopher into marrying you, you’ll never live in the light. You’ll always be stuck in the darkness.”
This time, I didn’t reply.
Because, honestly, I had no idea what she was even trying to say.
Evelyn stepped closer, pointing her finger directly in my face.
“Hannah, have you ever wondered why Christopher never takes you to any public
events?”
“It’s because you’re not worthy!”
I sighed again. People like Evelyn always view the world through their own narrow perspectives.
First of all, if I wanted to attend events, I wouldn’t need Christopher to bring me.
Second, why don’t I go?
Because I find them boring and tedious.
Those events are just networking opportunities, a stage for social climbing, a way to seek validation from people higher up the ladder.
And I don’t need any of that.
Of course, I wasn’t about to waste my breath explaining this to Evelyn.
If it weren’t for Christopher acting as a link between us, I wouldn’t even know someone like her existed.
“Hannah, let me tell you something,” Evelyn said, standing tall and proud, like a rooster crowing at dawn. “Christopher loves me.”
“Loves you?” I murmured softly.
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Christopher’s version of “love” was strapping her to an operating table and having her
uterus and a kidney removed?
Turning her into a shell of a person?
How could she still not wake up and face reality, even after all that?
“Evelyn,” I said, genuinely curious, “what exactly do you think makes you so special that Christopher would love you?”
I I had nothing else to do, and honestly, watching Evelyn’s theatrics was mildly
entertaining.
She smirked, clearly pleased with herself.
“Because all of you other women… you only want him for his money,” she said.
“But me? I love him.”
“One day, he’ll realize it. He’ll see that I’m the one who loves him the most in this entire
world.”
26
I smiled and said, “Evelyn, you’re right. You probably are the person who loves him the
most in this world.”
Even now, after everything Christopher had done to her, she didn’t hate him. She was still hopelessly caught in the whirlpool of her own delusions about love.
Fine. If she wanted to keep lying to herself, I wasn’t going to stop her.
I had tried before, many times, but there’s no waking someone who’s pretending to be
asleep.
“If you already know that, then you should act smart for once,” Evelyn snapped, pointing a finger at me. “Divorce him voluntarily, and I’ll let bygones be bygones.”
|||
4:36 Wed, Feb 5
“You can keep this house and have a roof over your head. Find yourself some boring, lecent man to marry.”
“But if you keep clinging to Christopher, I’ll make you regret it.”
I stared at her, wondering if she’d lost her mind.
Who even says things like that?
So, I picked up my phone, put it on speaker, and called Christopher.
“Hannah, what’s up?” Christopher asked as he picked up.
“Evelyn’s here,” I said, glancing at her. “She’s telling me to divorce you. Says she’ll ‘let me off the hook‘ if I do.”
“And Christopher,” I added, smirking, “if you want a divorce, you could’ve just told me yourself. No need to have your mistress come all the way over here to harass me.”
“Oh, and she also said I should go find a ‘decent‘ man to marry. Aren’t you a decent
man?”
Christopher’s voice came through the speaker, laced with irritation. “Hannah, ignore her. Tell her to get lost.”
“I’m busy right now, but I’ll stop by later to check on you.”
Η
Evelyn stood right there, hearing everything loud and clear.
Suddenly, she lunged forward and snatched the phone out of my hand.
Screaming into the speaker, she yelled, “Christopher! Tell her the truth! Tell her you don’t love her! Tell her I’m the one you love!”
“Christopher, I get it now, I understand!”
Christopher’s voice came back, sharp and Impatient. “Understand what? Give the phone back to Hannah. Stop making a scene and get out of there.”
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“I understand why you wanted me to get into acting,” Evelyn continued, ignoring him completely. “I get it now. You wanted me to make a name for myself, to become someone worthy of standing by your side.”
“Yes, that’s it! You were doing it all for me, weren’t you?”
“I’ll work hard, Christopher. I’ll win an award, I’ll become a star, and then we can finally be
together!”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Evelyn’s ability to spin her own fantasies was truly
impressive.
I knew Christopher too well.
He’d played a fleeting romantic game with her, and when it was over, he’d made arrangements for her future. In some ways, I suppose he was being responsible.
Evelyn was beautiful and decent at acting. She might actually have a shot at making it in
Hollywood.
But that had nothing to do with whether Christopher wanted to marry her.
Evelyn kept going, her voice rising. “But first, you need to divorce that bitch Hannah! She doesn’t deserve to be with you!”
“Shut up,” Christopher snapped, his anger bolling over. “Have you lost your mind? Stop
this nonsense!”
And then, with a sharp click, he hung up the call.
Evelyn, furious, threw my phone to the ground with all her strength.
My poor, brand–new iPhone skidded across the floor, bouncing a few times before coming to a stop.
I shook my head, picking it up. “Miss Reed,” I said calmly, “are you going to pay for the damage, or should I send the bill to Christopher?”
Evelyn pointed at me, her rage bolling over. “Hannah, are you deaf? Did you not hear me?
14:36 Wed, Feb 5 ti
<
I want you to divorce Christopher!”
67%)
I smiled, completely unfazed. “Miss Reed, you do realize you’re just a mistress, right?”
“I tolerate you because it’s amusing to watch you hop around like a little grasshopper on stage. But as for my marriage with Christopher? That’s not something you get to decide.”
“If you’re so confident, why don’t you go ask Christopher yourself whether he wants a divorce?”
“And honestly, with only one kidney left, how do you still have so much energy?”
I walked over to the door, opened it, and gestured for her to leave.
Once again, I felt the urge to move. This place was really becoming unlivable.
But when I opened the door, I saw Tessa standing on the doorstep.
“How long have you been here? Why didn’t you knock?” I asked.
Back when she was still recovering, I’d visited her a few times in the hospital. We exchanged numbers and occasionally chatted.
Tessa was someone who knew her place.
When we talked, it was about her screenplays, her books, or the shows she was binging. She’d even pulled me into a few of her binge–watching marathons, mentioning now and then that the baby was doing well.
The one thing she never brought up was Christopher.
This was only the second time she’d shown up at my door unannounced. The first time was because of the baby.
Tessa’s lips curved into a small smile. “You have company? Is this a bad time?” she asked.
“Just a lunatic. Don’t pay her any mind,” I replied, waving her inside.
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Tessa’s gaze landed on Evelyn for a brief moment, a flicker of hatred passing through her
eyes.
But she quickly looked away, walking to the living room and sitting down on the couch without a word.
27
I glanced at Evelyn and said again, “Evelyn, you can leave now. I have a guest.”
Evelyn lifted her chin and sneered. “Two shameless, pathetic women.”
With that, she turned to walk out.
But Tessa’s voice came softly from behind her. “Evelyn, you’ll never reach my level, no matter how hard you try.”
Evelyn froze, then turned around. The crazed look she had earlier was gone. I couldn’t help but wonder–was all that madness just an act?
“Christopher will marry me,” Evelyn declared, her voice steady. “When that happens, I’l send your bastard child straight to an orphanage.”
I thought Tessa might be upset. I almost opened my mouth to comfort her.
But instead, Tessa chuckled and said, “Like someone did to you?”
“Evelyn, do you really think Christopher will marry a woman with no uterus and only one kidney? You’re delusional.”
That was it. Evelyn charged at Tessa, raising her hand to slap her.
I caught Evelyn’s wrist mid–air. I’d trained in martial arts since I was a kid, and Evelyn–still weak from her surgeries–was no match for me. I dragged her to the door and shoved her outside before slamming it shut.
From the hallway, Evelyn’s enraged screams echoed.
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<
She cursed at me. She cursed at Tessa. Her voice was hoarse, shrill, and full of venom.
I handed Tessa a glass of juice and asked, “So, what’s going on?”
“It’s her,” Tessa said, her tone calm. “She’s been harassing me nonstop, telling me to get
an abortion. She says if I don’t, she’ll kill me.”
I shook my head. “Does she ever use her brain?”
Tessa laughed lightly. “She thinks Christopher is madly in love with her.”
This was the first time Tessa had ever mentioned Christopher in front of me.
Curious, I asked, “Do you love him?”
Christopher and I were in an arranged marriage.
Back then, out of all the eligible men I had met, I chose him.
He had clear, gentle eyes, a calm and refined demeanor, and a quiet elegance that made
him stand out.
On our wedding day, my father had said to me:
“Hannah, life is full of love and longing, but all of it comes with pain.
“Learn to let go, and you’ll find happiness.”
“Don’t be like me, living a life of wealth and success, only to end up with no home to return to, wandering through life without peace
Tessa thought for a moment before answering. “Of course, I liked him.”
“But I know he can’t give me what I want.”
“People always want what they lack. Before I turned 18, I was daddy’s little girl, my parents‘ princess.”
“Then, at 18, I lost my home.”
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“I argued with my mom, and she told me I was old enough to understand.”
“So, I understood. I left that house and never went back.”
I thought about it for a moment and asked, “Have you ever considered finding someone
who could give you a home,
Tessa shook her head with a faint smile.
“There are plenty of men willing to marry me, men who’d give me a home,” she said.
“But I know my condition, and I know where I come from.”
Her parents were getting older. Her younger brother, spoiled and entitled, was still a child but already causing trouble. From what she’d heard, he had a terrible personality, and their parents‘ indulgence would only make him worse.
“Why ruin a good man’s life?” Tessa said with a bitter smile.
“Christopher is perfect–young, handsome, the kind of man you’d never find again in a
lifetime.”
“I’m lucky enough to have a child with him. That’s more than I could’ve hoped for.”
“And besides, I met you.”
Tessa said she’d been feeling much better lately. The nausea from her pregnancy had subsided, her appetite had improved, and she wanted to come by to see me.
“I even planned to surprise you, but instead, I got surprised myself,” she joked with a smile.
I took Tessa out for the day–shopping, catching a movie, drinking bubble tea.
It felt like we’d known each other forever, like old friends reconnecting after years apart.
28
I moved with Tessa to a quieter place, a small gated community called Greenleaf Haven
411
28
I moved with Tessa to a quieter place, a small gated community called Greenleaf Haven.
I was afraid Evelyn might try something deranged again, something that could hurt Tessa and her baby.
For a time, Evelyn seemed preoccupied. Under Christopher’s arrangement, she’d entered the entertainment industry–first appearing on reality shows, then moving on to acting in
dramas.
She was beautiful, talented, and a quick learner.
Christopher wasn’t wrong–Evelyn was a natural fit for show business.
I thought she’d finally found her lane, that broadening her horizons would help her let go of Christopher over time.
But I overestimated her.
Evelyn quickly gained her own following in the industry–and, unfortunately, some of her fans were completely unhinged.
She used one of these fanatics to pull a cruel prank on Tessa.
By then, Tessa was over seven months pregnant. The scare from the incident caused her heart to stop.
I rushed her to the hospital with my team in a panic.
In the end, she gave birth to a premature baby girl on a cold winter day.
But Tessa, overwhelmed by the shock, had a heart attack during labor. She never woke
up again.
Christopher was devastated. And so was I.
The hardest part was knowing that Tessa had been doing so well.
36 Wed, Feb b
Her health had steadily improved over the months. I’d taken her for regular checkups, and the doctors had been optimistic. They said that as long as she avoided stress, she had a good chance of delivering safely.
But heart disease doesn’t take kindly to fear or sudden shocks.
As for the deranged fan, there was no escape for them. They’d face the full consequences of their actions.
And Evelyn?
For the first time, I felt a deep, burning desire to destroy her.
At Tessa’s funeral, her parents showed up with her spoiled little brother in tow.
They acted as if they were strangers to her, distant and indifferent.
I couldn’t hold back and asked, “Aren’t you even a little sad?”
Tessa’s mother, a woman in her fifties who looked older than her years, glanced at me. Her eyes were dull, her graying hair unkempt. She wore a black dress that was neither new nor well–kept, its hem already fraying. She no longer looked like the respectable teacher she once was.
“Girls,” she said flatly. “They’re destined to belong to someone else’s family. She wasn’t
ours anymore.”
Then, as if on cue, her gaze softened as she looked at her son nearby, her spoiled child.
“I have a son,” she added with a faint smile.
I nodded, unwilling to say another word.
After everyone else had left, Evelyn arrived.
She carried a bouquet of flowers, which she laid at Tessa’s grave. Then she turned to me, her expression unreadable.
“Hannah, why are you still here? Stop pretending to care–she’s already dead,” she said.
