Even After DeathEN

On the day Olivia Fordham was diagnosed with stomach cancer, her husband, Ethan Miller, was taking care of his first love's children. In the hospital corridor, Keith Rogers said grimly while holding a biopsy report, "Olivia, the results are out. If the surgery is successful, the five-year survival rate for a 3A malignant tumor is 15 to 30 percent."Olivia gripped the strap of her sling bag tightly with her slender fingers. Her petite face was pale and solemn. "Keith, how long do I have left to live if I don't do the surgery?" "Six months to a year. It's different for everyone. In your case, it's better to do two rounds of chemotherapy first before the surgery. It will prevent the risk of the tumor spreading or undergoing metastasis."Olivia bit her lip while forcing out, "Thank you.""Don't thank me. I'll arrange for you to be admitted to the hospital right away," said Keith."There's no need. I don't plan to receive treatment. I won't be able to get through it," Olivia said.

In the dark of night, Olivia stood alone in the bathroom. The hot water chased away her chills. She rubbed her swollen red eyes and walked to a room. When she opened the door, a warmly furnished children's room lay before her. She pressed a button lightly, and mellow music from a music box filled the room. The room was lit with yellow lights. The atmosphere was undoubtedly homely, but Olivia wept unstoppably.God must have decided to take her life because she had failed to save her baby's. She climbed onto the cot that was barely more than three feet long and curled up into a fetal position. Tears from her left eye flowed to her right eye, down to her cheek, then finally wet the children's blanket she was lying on. She hugged a plushy tightly while murmuring, "Sorry, my baby. It's all my fault. I failed to protect you. Don't be afraid. I'll be with you soon."After losing her baby, her mental health had deteriorated. Olivia was like a pretty flower slowly wilting away. She ga

Marina wore a white cashmere coat. Her white pearl earrings made her look gentle and charismatic. Just the shawl around her neck was already worth more than a thousand dollars. The salesperson went up to her and greeted her at once. "Mrs. Miller, is Mr. Miller not here today to pick out jewelry with you? There are some new arrivals. Each one of them would suit you great, Mrs. Miller. The emerald piece you asked me to reserve for you is here. Try it on later. I'm sure it would suit your complexion very well."The salesperson punctuated almost every sentence with "Mrs. Miller" just to butter Marina up even though she and Ethan weren't legally married yet. Marina looked at Olivia with a smile and a proud look in her eyes that showed off her victory. Everyone knew that Ethan treated her like the most precious treasure, but they did not know that Olivia was his legally married wife. Olivia clenched her hands into fists. Why did she have to bump into the person she least wanted to see in

Chloe Parker had left when Olivia was eight.It was Jeff's birthday, and Olivia had been in high spirits, eager to return home and celebrate her father's birthday with her family. She never knew that what awaited her was her parents' divorce. Olivia had chased after her mother, scrambling down the stairs and falling. She did not even realize that she had lost her shoes. All she cared about was clinging onto her mother's legs and crying, "Mom, don't go!" The graceful woman bent down, stroked Olivia's cheeks, and said, "I'm sorry." "Mom, I'm first in my grade. You haven't seen my test papers yet. You have to sign them. Don't leave me, Mom. I'll be a good girl. I promise I won't go to any more fun fairs. I won't make you mad. I'll listen to you. Please …" Hastily, young Olivia blubbered everything she could think of in hopes of making Chloe stay. In the end, Chloe simply told Olivia that her marriage with Olivia's father was not a happy one and that she had found her true happiness el

Chloe looked at Ethan with a puzzled gaze. She never knew that he was married. "Mr. Miller, we stayed overseas for many years and are unaware of what goes on here. What does my daughter have to do with you?" Ethan's eyes were calm. His expression remained indifferent as he said, "Even if there was something between us, it's already in the past. I'm settling my divorce soon." Olivia never thought that he would take things so lightly after all their years of marriage. She had given him her heart, yet this was all she got in the end. Needless to say, she was furious at him. However, she felt more disappointed than anything else. It was the disappointment of finding out just how blind she had been to treat trash like him like something precious. Olivia took out the ring box and hurled it at Ethan's face. "Fuck you, you scumbag! My deepest regret is marrying you! See you at the City Hall tomorrow! Whoever fails to show up is a coward!" The box hit him squarely on his forehead

The wind blew bitingly cold on her face. Olivia was frozen to the core, but she pushed herself up and continued chasing after the car.She overestimated the current condition of her body and only ran for a couple of feet before crashing back to the ground. The car door opened. She saw a pair of shiny, tailored leather shoes halt before her. Slowly, she moved her sight from the shoes and up the trousers until she met Ethan's cold and unnerving gaze. "Ethan …" Olivia muttered weakly. A pair of slender hands reached out to her. In a trance, Olivia thought she caught a glimpse of the young man she had fallen head over heels for all those years back. She could not help but stretch out her hands to him. Just as their hands touched, Ethan pulled back, extinguishing the light in her after giving her false hope and causing her to fall once more. She had not injured herself before this, but when she slipped this time, she cut her palms on the pieces of shattered glass on the ground.

Olivia sounded unnaturally calm when she said this. It was as though she had thoroughly let go of Ethan. However, Keith knew that letting go of someone you once loved was not as simple as this. She was like an injured animal that would hide her wounds in front of others but tended to them when no one was around. Still, Keith did not probe further about it. He tried changing the subject. "I know you haven't paid for your father's surgery. Since we're friends, I'll lend you some money for now. You can pay me back in the future."It was not a simple matter for Olivia to obtain such a large sum of money. He had offered help multiple times before this, but she always refused. Today was no different as Olivia shook her head and said, "No, thanks." "Olivia, your father's condition is serious. Would you rather be humiliated by that scumbag than accept my help? I have no conditions. I just want to help you. My family might not be as wealthy as the Millers, but this sum isn't much to me

Olivia looked at the paper in her hand. It was the address of a cemetery. Was Ethan's sister dead? Even so, what did her father have to do with her death? If anyone were to know what kind of person her father was, it would be Olivia. And she knew he was not one to harm others, let alone a young woman.She knew that Brent and Kelvin would not disclose more information and decided to stop probing them. It was silent all the way to the Millers' residence. Olivia had mixed feelings when they arrived. Brent politely asked her, "Mrs. Miller, would you like to go inside?" "No, thanks. I'll wait for him here." This was the final time she would meet him, and it was only to settle their divorce. She did not want to cause more trouble for herself. Besides, every single thing in there would remind her of their time together, and she refused to reminisce about the past. He was to blame for cherishing her so much back then. Even though he had become colder and more indifferent to her

It was dead silent in the car. Marina's voice was loud as she was anxious, so Olivia managed to hear her say the name "Connor." She remembered the day she received her pregnancy report. She had run into Ethan's embrace and told him about it. "Ethan, you're going to be a father! We're having a baby!" Her voice was filled with enthusiasm. "I've thought of our child's name. It'll be Colette if she's a girl and Connor if she's a boy. What do you think?"Oh, how she wished she had misheard Marina, but Ethan looked her right in the eyes and told her, "His name's Connor." "You asshole!" Olivia's hand was already in the air. She slapped him, yet he did not flinch, letting her do as she pleased."How could you name her child after our own?" The thought of her child was Olivia's final straw. Tears streamed down her cheeks uncontrollably, and she pounced on him as if she had gone crazy. "You devil! Why did God take away my child from me? Why weren't you the one who died?" She landed h

Olivia stayed before the grave for quite some time before leaving. She did not have time to wallow in sorrow for too long. She had an investigation to carry out now that she had the photo. Most of the women her dad was in touch with worked in his company, so it was natural that Olivia started from there. But just as she started to search for a way to contact them, her phone started ringing. It was one of the children from the countryside whose education her father had sponsored back then. His voice was rather anxious. "Ms. Fordham, I just returned from overseas and heard that Mr. Fordham is gravely ill. Is he alright?" "Thanks for your concern. My father's still getting treatment at the hospital." "Gosh! How could someone as kind as him get into such a situation? If it wasn't for him sponsoring our studies years back, we wouldn't be where we are today." A thought flashed across Olivia's mind. In the past, her father had helped children in the countryside to move to the city