Larissa followed the incident on the news sporadically, but she didn't pay much attention to it. Apart from cursing the Cole family for their much-deserved fate, she moved on with her daily life. However, she never expected that Jay would come for her one day. That day, Larissa went downstairs to patrol the hotel rooms as usual. Suddenly, a door to a hotel room behind her opened. Larissa turned around instinctively, but before she could take a good look, a hand reached out from behind her. A damp cloth that emitted a pungent smell was clamped over her mouth and nose. Larissa struggled to get away, but she quickly passed out. When she regained consciousness, she was on the hotel rooftop. Her hands and feet were bound with coarse ropes, and a piece of cloth was stuffed into her mouth.Jay stood in front of her.Although he was still well-dressed, he appeared much more haggard than the last time they had met. His eye bags drooped over his sallow cheeks, showing how m

"Are you satisfied now that you've ruined our lives?" he shouted angrily, his bloodshot eyes red with fury. Remaining silent, Larissa kept her head down. She tried to avoid eye contact with Jay so as to not trigger his anger any further. Even so, Jay was unwilling to let her off the hook. He kicked her repeatedly, leaving bruises and marks on her limbs, abdomen, and face. "You bitch, why aren't you saying anything? What happened to your sharp tongue and quick wit? Can't say a word now, can you?" Jay's assault became more violent as the expression on his face appeared increasingly deranged. Larissa could taste the metallic taste of blood in her mouth. Her body was screaming with pain, aching at the repeated blows that she endured. At that moment, the only thought in her mind was for Kevan to come and save her as soon as possible. She waited and waited, desperately hoping for Kevan's arrival.Finally, the door to the rooftop opened. However, it wasn't Kevan who appeare

Larissa's chest tightened, almost suffocating her. Instinctively, the assistant looked at Larissa, his face filled with distress. Such a cruel decision should not be made by him. However … "Tell Larissa that I will definitely avenge her, so she won't have to feel wronged." Kevan's chilling words that sealed her fate sounded from the speakerphone and crushed Larissa's hopes into bits. "Kevan, you coward!" Jay shouted loudly. "How could you let a woman die in your place?" There was a brief silence on the other end of the call."I am not a coward," Kevan's steady voice seemed unaffected by Jay's provocation. "By staying alive, I can do more things to torture you. For example, your son would suffer a fate worse than death inside prison." Jay's eyes widened with shock. "What are you going to do to Reuben?" He got down from the railing and rushed toward Kevan's assistant, trying to snatch the phone away from him.The assistant evaded Jay's attack easily and held the phone fir

Jay's suicide made headlines in the media, and news of him kidnapping Larissa gradually spread. Larissa was once again famous for the wrong reasons, which troubled her to no end. What irked her even more were the constant messages of condolences. She kept receiving phone calls of concern from friends and former colleagues around her. Even Violet came to the hospital to visit her. The whole time, she tearfully admonished Larissa with advice on recuperating and left a thermos of hot soup for her. Just as she left, Edmund arrived.He strode into her ward with a large bouquet of champagne roses. "Lari," Edmund called out affectionately, his eyes filled with concern. "Are you seriously injured?" Larissa felt a headache coming on."I'm fine," she replied indifferently, trying to create some distance between them. "What do you mean, fine?" Edmund sized her up. "Look at your face, it's all bruised! And your leg is in a cast!"He continued his rant angrily, "Luckily, Jay is

He raised an eyebrow as he waited for her answer."I'm not interested," Larissa replied, refusing to play along with him.Edmund clicked his tongue in disappointment. Propping his arm on the back of the chair, he slunk onto the seat. "Well, my sister-in-law told my brother that she was going out shopping with a friend, but she was spotted meeting Kevan at the Microworks Building. She was there for the whole day. Who knows? Maybe they were together when you were kidnapped, which is why Kevan didn't come to rescue you."Larissa wanted to tell him that it wasn't merely a possibility but that was the case."Cody now suspects that my sister-in-law and Kevan are having an affair. After all, they had something between them in the past, but she married my brother in the end," Edmund said. His chin was slightly raised, and he could hardly mask the pride in his voice. "It shows that my brother had a stronger appeal than Kevan in the past, but not anymore … Now Kevan is wealthier, so women

Without warning, Kevan grabbed her chin, squishing her lips."How many times have I told you to stay away from Edmund!" he asked, his voice hoarse. "Don't you understand?"His cold glare was intense. Suddenly becoming defiant, Larissa pushed his hand away and glared back at him."You said Edmund would harm me, but he hasn't done anything to me although I've been around for so long! On the contrary, when you're with your beloved, you can't be bothered even when I'm about to die!" Kevan was taken aback for a moment. Soon, he stood up straight, chuckling. "I forgot how blind you've always been." He placed the lunch he brought on the table by the bed and said, "If you want to get close to Edmund, go ahead. I can't control what you do, nor do I want to."With that, he left.In the afternoon, the doctor came to inform Larissa that Kevan had completed her discharge procedures and that his assistant would take her home.Kevan's assistant arrived an hour later. It was still the same a

Larissa pursed her lips. "There's nothing else to eat at home."She had secretly bought a pack of instant noodles when she moved in and hid it in her bedroom. She had thought it would finally come in handy today, but things turned out differently. "If there's no food at home, don't you know you can order takeout? You can hop from your bedroom to the kitchen on one leg, but you can't take a few more steps to the door? If you don't want to move, you can even call my mom and ask her to bring you food!" Kevan scolded Larissa, leaving her too stunned to come up with a retort."Forget it." Ruby grabbed Kevan's hand and said, "It's fine to have instant noodles occasionally."Kevan glanced at Larissa and fell silent.Leaning on the kitchen counter, Larissa tried to squat down. However, as soon as she bent over, Kevan grabbed her by the back of her collar and lifted her."What are you trying to do?" he asked, frustrated.Larissa pointed at the floor. "I'm trying to clean up the mess."

Instantly, she broke into a cold sweat. Inhaling sharply, she turned her head to see Ruby sprawled on the sofa, with one hand pressing down on her injured leg."I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Ruby quickly got up from the sofa and knelt on the ground as she hurriedly removed the bandage from Larissa's leg.As she had pressed too hard earlier, Larissa gritted her teeth in pain even at Ruby's slightest touch.When Kevan returned from his bedroom, he noticed Ruby's anxious expression and Larissa's pale complexion. A sense of foreboding rose in his heart."What happened?" he asked.Ruby burst into tears first."I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she repeated incessantly, unable to say more.She covered her mouth, crying uncontrollably, tears streaking her face.Unable to stomach the sight, Larissa instructed Kevan, "Get her some tissues to wipe her tears."Kevan quickly grabbed several tissues and stuffed them all into Ruby's hands."What about you?" He lowered his head to look at Larissa's injured l

Kevan had successfully calmed Ruby down. Although her eyes were bloodshot, all traces of tears had been wiped from her face."All done?" Kevan asked Larissa.Larissa tried to nod, but her neck was too stiff to move."Yes," she said, white mist forming in the air when she spoke."What did the doctor say?""It reopened again, but the doctor fixed it for me again." Larissa stopped herself from saying the injury had worsened. Ruby's lips trembled, and tears shimmered in her eyes."It's all my fault—""You didn't do it on purpose," Kevan said, comforting her gently.When Ruby calmed down, Larissa asked, "Shall we go? I'm freezing to death."Only then did Kevan realize how thin the clothes she was wearing were.Pursing his lips, he took off his coat and draped it over her. The stiff fabric still carried his body warmth and minty scent. Feeling extremely cold, Larissa stopped caring about acting all proper and polite. She pulled the jacket tighter over herself.Meanwhile, Ruby wa

Thanks to Ruby, Larissa's vacation was extended indefinitely. Fortunately, Kevan never brought Ruby back again.Larissa did not like sitting idle. Being cooped up at home all day, she had nothing to do except watch TV and play with her phone, which made her extremely restless.Thankfully, Violet was kind enough to bring Larissa downstairs for a walk occasionally when the weather allowed it, instead of allowing her to suffocate at home.On a particular day, Violet took her to the park downstairs after lunch. The park was filled with elderly people who had taken their children out for some fresh air. There was hardly anyone Larissa's age.As they often ran into each other, Violet had become acquainted with them and would chat with them when they sat together."Is she your daughter?" asked a woman next to Violet, pointing at Larissa.Grinning, Violet answered, "She's my daughter-in-law, as dear to me as my daughter."Her words brought Larissa more warmth than the sunlight did."Oh