"Impossible!"Alexander seemed like a different person. The gentle side of him had given way to a murderous temperament. Olivia noticed vague black smoke smoldering between his brows. She thought she was seeing things, but now, the fact that he was a witch finally registered in her."If you don't agree to lift the Lifebond Curse first, I have the rest of my life to play with your games. But do keep in mind that Jacqueline will suffer from the Heart Devour Curse on every full moon. Her body won't be able to take it one day. Are you sure she can put up with it?" Olivia reminded him.Convulsing in the throes of pain, Jacqueline grabbed his arm. "It hurts! I can't hold on any longer!"Alexander hugged her. "It's not that I don't want to, but we need a quiet place to lift the Lifebond Curse. The hosts also have to be free from pain or injury to make it work. Now that Jacqueline is in pain, I can't do anything about it. If her life is in danger, the curse might kill her right away too.
"Zero," Ike replied without hesitation. Wayne shot daggers at him with his eyes. "Do you have to tamper my confidence like this? I'm your boss.""Ike doesn't mean it that way, Mr. Maxwell. According to our sources, Ms. Fordham brought along her youngest daughter, Willow. She hasn't been able to speak ever since she was born. How could she call you 'Dad'?" Alan hurriedly spoke for his brother because he knew Wayne was going to hold a grudge again otherwise.Ike once tried to murder Olivia in the country before this, and he was severely punished when Wayne found out.Wayne tipped his cigarette. Despite his tall stature, he looked lonely in the cloud of smoke. "It hasn't been that long since I last met her. Why do I miss her so much?"Alan facepalmed upon hearing the muttering. Just what kind of spell did Olivia cast on Wayne that he was so hopelessly in love with her?…On the other hand, Willow was preparing to lift the curse off Jacqueline.Ethan had never witnessed such a
Willow nodded obediently, but her wary eyes stared at the man as he approached her.She heard the local had tanned skin from sunbathing, but this man looked weird. As it was his first time dealing with a kid, Wayne took out a candy. "Here, for you." He had prepared it beforehand. To his dismay, Willow had already categorized him as a kidnapper. Abandoning her ball, she turned around to leave."Hey, kid! Why are you running away? I don't bite. You don't like strawberry flavor?" Wayne grabbed her wrist. Due to his towering stature, even a grown woman looked petite next to him, let alone Willow.He scooped her up with one arm as if she were a doll. His frantic hands fished out a bunch of lollipops. "I have more flavors—watermelon, mango, orange. Here, they're all yours." Alan, who was watching them from afar, went speechless. "Mr. Maxwell is a total novice in babysitting. If a freak came up to me when I was a kid, I would've been scared. Can't he see that the girl is freaked ou
Wayne tried to explain himself, saying, "I just wanted to give her some candies because she looks cute."Knowing that he wasn't a lowly man who would hurt her daughter, Olivia was certain that he was the backup Ethan called over. But Wayne was as reckless as usual. He almost ruined her plan!If Jacqueline and Alexander had found out about his presence, things would've gone south. That was why Olivia gave him the cold treatment. She looked at him like he was a stranger. "No need for that, thanks." She carried Willow and strode away. "Stay away from strangers. They kidnap kids," she warned intentionally for Wayne to catch on the situation.He was rendered speechless. Although he was aware of her intention, he couldn't help the disappointment. Only he knew that he couldn't sleep the previous night thinking about their reunion. Alan put down the binoculars. "He's gonna cry. Look at him. He looks lonely.""Serves him right. Why is he so concerned about someone else's wife and chil
Olivia felt like there was a voracious tiger behind her. It would take one reckless move from her for it to tear her neck off her."Wayne Maxwell!" Olivia didn't know what Wayne was trying to do. All she could was stay still.When she looked back at the past, she did deceive him. Ethan and Wayne were at odds, and Wayne even kidnapped her!Wayne had always been the man of revenge, so she didn't dare to provoke him. She struck a topic instead. "Does your head still hurt these days?"As she had expected, his eyes brightened at that question. "Are you worried about me?"He was such an easy man to please. Noticing that he was still that same old person, she nodded. "Yeah. You're my patient, after all. I left you a prescription before I left, but I don't know if it worked because I wasn't the one to treat you."Wayne bent over, and his lips reached her ear. "Liar. If you were worried about me, you wouldn't have run away. Do you think I'd buy that again?"Left with no choice, she ins
Olivia's brows furrowed. Although she was aware that Wayne was a rough man by nature, she couldn't accept hearing that from men other than Ethan.After all, Ethan was raised in a rich family. Even during the worst time of their relationship, he never said such words to her."You'd better watch your language," she told Wayne off.If he wanted to touch her, he could've done it two days ago. However, he was waiting, waiting for Alexander to lift the curse off her. Thus, she knew that she was safe, at least for now.Noticing that his threat didn't scare her, he let her go. He was discouraged. "Why are you so smart? This is so unfair."Olivia stared at him warily. "Why did you bring me here? I'm looking for my daughter."The next thing that happened was beyond her expectations. He kicked a screen in the room to reveal Willow sitting there, eating fruit yogurt."I made that myself. I wanted to speak to you, but I couldn't find the chance to do so. So, I asked for her help to lure you
Wayne's expression fell as if he had heard a joke. "Dr. Fordham, are you kidding me?"Olivia appeared serious. "Do you think I'd joke about something serious?"She wasn't that kind of person. However, Wayne couldn't fully trust her. She had lied to him twice!"Once my curse is lifted, we can figure this out. Take a DNA test, and we'll know the truth." Olivia walked away with Willow in her arms.Wayne was left all alone in confusion. Olivia's words kept ringing in his ears. "You and Ethan are cousins."He couldn't believe it. Wayne and Ethan had been fighting with each other for half of their lives. They had even nearly killed each other. Not once, but several times!Now, Olivia was telling him that he had been trying to murder his family.When Alan and Ike showed up, they saw Wayne's blank face. His eyes were widened as he stood still at the same spot.Alan nudged at his brother. "Is he caught off-guard by the rejection or what?""How many times do I have to tell you that it
Ethan was looking around for Olivia. When he found her and Willow unscathed, a wave of relief washed over him. "Where have you been?"Olivia cast a glance at Jacqueline, who was just nearby, and made up an excuse. "I was spending time with Willow.""Alexander said that Jacqueline can do the ritual tonight.""Finally," she exclaimed. She crouched down and whispered to Willow, "Better be careful tonight. They're bad guys. We never know what they have up their sleeves."Willow nodded.The night sky dawned, and layers of grey clouds covered the moon with the stars hiding behind them.Most of the locals went to bed quite early. Places that were still lit up were business operations and army bases.Dim lights brightened the port, adding a luster to the mood.That night, Olivia and Jacqueline sat by the beach. There was a speedboat nearby. Jacqueline reminded sternly, "You can only come after me after three days as promised.""Yes."After what Jacqueline had done to the Fordham fa