''My belly hurts so bad. Save me... Please save me!'' Briar laid in a pool of blood with one hand on her bulging belly and the other stretching towards Renee pitifully. Renee was frightened, and took a step back. ''S-Stop pretending. I just pushed you slightly, so how could you have such a serious fall?'' She had only tried to push Briar's hand away. She did not expect Briar to fall to the ground with just a shove. Did... Did she not control her strength? ''Ms. Everheart, my belly hurts so much. I'm going to lose my child. I don't care if you did it on purpose or not. Please send me to the hospital. Please save my child!'' Briar looked pale as she begged Renee. She was in so much pain that she broke out into a cold sweat. ''I... I don't know how to save you either. I...'' Renee tried her best to calm down and picked up her phone to call for an ambulance. However, someone pushed her aside, sending her phone sliding away. She turned around and found that it was Stefan. His ha
Stefan felt like he had fallen into an abyss. He felt like he was about to die, and his expression was strained. He wanted to crawl out of the abyss, but it was too dark, and he could not find anything to hold onto. Delirious, he muttered, "Hold me!" Suddenly, a small, warm hand reached out and held his. It felt like his saviour had found him, and his tense muscles gradually relaxed.He even heard a tender voice, as if someone was calling after his lost soul. "Stefan, it's okay, I got you. You need to wake up now..." Stefan followed the voice and slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was Renee's beautiful features creased with worry. "You're awake! You scared me." She heaved a long sigh of relief. Stefan had been unconscious for three days because of his hemophobia. The doctors had tried everything they could to wake him up, but nothing worked. Diagnostic tests had shown that many of his organs were failing, and if he stayed in that condition, he would have died. Re
Stefan's grip on Renee's neck tightened as his emotions overwhelmed him. At that moment, he seemed to have lost control of himself. He just wanted an outlet to release his guilt and anger, so his mind wasn't thinking straight. Renee was in too much pain to say anything. She stared at him calmly, but tears had welled up in her eyes. She could definitely fight back, but she did not struggle—she just suffered in silence. It was because Briar had lost her child because of Renee's careless mistake. If Stefan wanted her to pay the price with her life, then she would make it up to them with her and her two babies' lives. She would rather die at his hand than spend the rest of her life living in guilt. After a while, her vision started fading to black, and her eyelids fluttered. She closed her eyes in deep pain and bitter disappointment... However, Stefan could not bear to do that. He pushed her away with the last bit of rationality that was left in him. Renee gasped for air, coughin
While Stefan was taking care of some business, Briar started to go crazy again after the sedative wore off. "Let me die! Let me die!"Briar went crazy and hit her head against the wall hard. With a swollen bruise on her head, she screamed, "My baby is gone! I don't want to live anymore! Let me die!"The nurses were frantic and called Stefan. When Stefan received the news, he dropped his business and rushed over as fast as possible.Briar was out of control. Stefan grabbed her and comforted her repeatedly. "It's okay. It's okay."Briar suddenly hugged him docilely. She kept crying and murmured, "Stefan, the baby is gone… The only thing Tristan left for ms is gone…""They said my womb is no more! I won't be able to conceive anymore. What should I do? My life is finished!"Stefan silently laid Briar down on the bed. He put a hot towel on her swollen head and whispered, "Your life isn't finished. You'll have the Hunts as your biggest support.""Really?" Briar continued crying and
The computer screen glowed with a white light in the dark room.Stefan replayed the surveillance footage from Redwood Mansion over and over again. He wanted to see if the tragedy happened because of Renee's arrogance, as Briar claimed.Stefan tapped the forward and backward buttons again and again. He repeatedly watched how Renee humiliated and pushed Briar. He watched how indifferent Renee was as she watched Briar lie in a pool of blood.Stefan's eyes were glued to the screen. His face was tense with anger. At last, he hissed a low curse of disappointment in the silent darkness. "Damn it!" Stefan never thought of Renee as someone evil. She was just a willful woman with a strong sense of self. However, this video really hit him hard. He never knew she could be so vicious and hurt an unborn child like that!As Stefan struggled to restrain himself from losing control, he took out his phone and called Elijah."Bring Renee to Sutton at once," Stefan ordered coldly, "She must apologi
Stefan was so angry that he wanted to choke Elijah to death. He narrowed his eyes and hissed, "How could she just vanish into thin air? That's ridiculous!""Right? We've tried searching all we could but failed to track Ms. Everheart's whereabouts… By the way, Ms. Everheart's nanny Margaret disappeared along with her…"Elijah sighed repeatedly and apologized. "Mr. Hunt, I've tried my best, but I can't help. If you don't believe me, you'll have to do it yourself!"Stefan didn't hesitate and immediately took a private jet back to Beach City.Stefan firmly believed that anyone alive would leave a track of activity. 'That's impossible. How could she have completely disappeared? Unless… She's still in Beach City!' thought Stefan. He did not mind using all the power he had to find her.Stefan sent more men to search all of Beach City. He also had Christopher and Xavier use whatever method they could to search for her.Xavier had recovered by this time and was discharged from the hospita
"I mean it literally," Stefan confessed with an expressionless face and steady breath.Anyway, the baby and Renee were gone. It did not matter anymore whether the secret was kept or made public."W-what?" Xavier gapped in shock.Christopher had a similar reaction to Xavier's. He spent about ten minutes sorting out the whole story. After a good while, he finally let out a long sigh. "Stef, you're such a fool. It must be aggravating."Stefan said coldly, "I'm fine. My late brother saved my life. I have to give my all to fulfill his last wish, but unfortunately… I can't do anything!"Stefan slammed his fist hard on the table. His eyes were slightly red. It was clear that he felt very guilty about Tristan."Of course you're fine. It's your wife who suffered!"Xavier could not help but fight for Renee. "If you feel responsible for Tristan's death, so be it, but why did you have to hurt Renee? You did so much for Briar and her child, but what about Renee? She was married to you for fo
"I almost choked her to death. Did I go too far?" Stefan asked."Yes and no." Xavier was an outsider and said impartially, "Considering your usual behavior, choking someone wasn't the worst thing I've seen you do, but… I think hurting Renee was a little too much."Xavier had never seen the usually sober and sensible Stefan in such distraught in all their years of friendship, heartbroken to see the state Stefan was in despite finding his actions maddening. Therefore, he toned down his words."She deserved it!" Stefan's calmness evaporated instantly like a long-dormant volcano that erupted suddenly. His voice was cold. "It's only fair to repay a life with a life!"Xavier took a step backward in shock and grimaced. He ridiculed, "Okay, fine. It's fair. So are we spending so much effort to find her for you to continue choking her to death?"Stefan hissed coldly, "We'll talk about that when we get her back!"Xavier and Christopher exchanged a glance, smiling. They shrugged and shook t
Jovan felt that he wasn't as passionate and loving as Stefan."Stop beating around the bush. Why is he trying to hold himself back? You made a scumbag sound like he'd suffered a lot!" Renee snarled.She gnashed her teeth. If her foot was not chained, she would have long beaten Jovan up for being evasive and mysterious."I think he was forced to give up his beloved woman because of his identity. He has suffered a lot." Jovan frowned, his tone laced with sympathy."What about his identity? I've already known about that. Our grandfathers decided on our marriage. What are we, Romeo and Juliet?" Renee had wondered if their families were sworn enemies. It might be the reason why Stefan was in a dilemma.However, her grandfather made the Hunts take care of her when her family was doomed. Her grandfather always wanted the best for her. He held her hand and told her that only Stefan could make her happy, and only the Hunt family could protect her. It seemed unreasonable that Stefan was
Jovan was stunned to hear Renee's words. He was so furious, he laughed."Maybe!" He agreed with her and looked at her wickedly. "Since I can't win him over, I want his beloved woman.""You're out of your mind!" Renee was disgusted as goosebumps gripped her. "I'm not his most beloved woman. He loves Briar the most. You got the wrong person. You should kidnap Briar instead. Then, you can get to him."She was acting out of spite, but she meant what she had said.In the past, she was confident that Stefan loved her the most. After so many things had happened, she was no longer as confident. Stefan eventually broke up with her because of Briar. It was enough to prove her position in his heart."Haha! Do you really think so?" Jovan shook his head, his lips a complicated smile. He seemed to be muttering to himself or hinting at something. "Unfortunately, he can't always do a good job. His romance is a mess. His most beloved woman doesn't understand him. How pathetic!""Stop mumbling!
"You're trying to take revenge on Stefan, aren't you? What did he do? Why do you hate him so much?" Renee demanded.She was particularly clueless.At the very least, she felt that Stefan and Jovan didn't have a grudge even if they couldn't get along. Besides—back then, Stefan survived because of Jovan's blood.In a sense, they should be close to each other. Stefan was able to live on because of Jovan.Yet now, Jovan wanted to ruin the one he had once risked his life to rescue."No, I don't hate him," Jovan answered honestly. "I even admire him, and I'm jealous of him. He's my role model, the pride of my family.""Then, you're envious of him!" Renee went straight to the point. "You can't defeat him, so you tried to make him disappear. When that happens, you'll feel better. No one will block you, and you'll get a chance to shine."Jovan, speechless, slowly stopped smiling. Renee had accurately guessed his innermost thoughts. Since he couldn't defeat Stefan, he would let Stefan b
The thing Renee feared the most was that Jovan's action would infuriate the Baldwins.Quinton, Adie, Abby, and Margaret were still there. If the Baldwin family wanted to do something bad, Renee's family would be in danger. Her happiness was secondary. She just wanted to ensure that her family was safe and sound.It seemed Austin was full of schemes. Though he seemed to have brought her family to live with her, he in truth just wanted hostages to control her…Unfortunately, she couldn't go back in time even though she had seen through his tricks."What's the rush?" Jovan watched Renee with a meaningful smile. "Someone will handle it even if it's a big mess. Your family will be fine. My foolish cousin won't let them be in danger. At most, the two families will fight fiercely."Renee was shocked. She glared at him, and suddenly understood something. "So you did it on purpose! You wanted to watch them fight and get something from it.""That's not my concern. Once, I was more powerf
After all, Jovan was a human being. Such direct physical pain made him shake and groan. Normally, he should get angry and try all means to make her stop biting him.However, he was not an ordinary man. Although he trembled in pain, he maintained his posture and let her bite him as if he wanted to see who would give up first.Renee kept biting him fiercely, as if her teeth would gnaw through his palm. Blood oozed out of the wound. She was full of hatred, wishing to vent her anger. "Just bite me hard as long as you're happy. I'm enjoying myself too!"Jovan looked at her, whose head was lowered as she kept biting his palm fiercely. It was a bloody scene, but his words made everything sound ambiguous. Renee noticed his underlying meaning and was disgusted. She immediately let go of his palm. "Bah! Disgusting! You're sick!"Her lips were still stained with blood. From afar, it looked like a blooming rose from afar. It looked attractive on her. Aroused, Jovan held the back of her
The bed was around seventy inches large. Renee's eyes were closed as she moved anxiously.She thought she was still sleeping in the West Chamber, but the mattress didn't feel the same. Then, she abruptly opened her eyes. She saw a luxurious bedroom in the Paris La Nuit Club style. Above her hung a brilliant chandelier akin to the ones in medieval castles. A fragrant scent permeated the air. "You're finally awake…" A man's bewitching voice came from an inconspicuous corner. "Renee."Jovan was sitting in a luxurious chair, his legs crossed, swaying a glass of red wine. He appeared like a stereotypical vampire as he stared wickedly at Renee. "Are you out of your mind, Jovan? What did you do to me?" Renee yelled.Recalling what had happened, she abruptly sat up. Once she realized her situation, she started snarling at him. "Do you or your family hold a grudge against me? Why did you kidnap me from my engagement party?! Have you thought about the consequences? I'm sure you know h
"I… I don't know! I really don't know!" The makeup artist's face was flushed, her eyes rolling back. She felt like she was about to faint again."Are you still trying to hide the truth?" Justin continued flexing his fingers. He was certain that the makeup artist who suddenly wanted to modify the size of the gown must be aware of the truth.With her eyes rolled back, the makeup artist begged him, "I'll tell you…! Please let me go! I'll tell you everything!" Hearing that, Justin slowly released his grasp.The makeup artist finally got a chance to breathe. She kept taking deep breaths and almost cried because of her terror. "What should I tell you?" She truly knew nothing."What?" Justin's gaze grew fierce."Oh, I remember it now…" She drew in a cold breath and hurriedly said, "A handsome guy came not long after you were gone. I think he's Mr. Hunt. When Ms. Everheart saw him, she was very…"She paused, trying to find her words. "She was very…?" Justin urged her. This was the
Meanwhile, Liam and Leia became vigilant when they saw that scene."What are they doing?" Liam walked past the guests enjoying the fun and stood between Alexander and the two guards. He faked a smile and said, "We're the guests you invited sincerely. Is this how the Baldwin family treats their guests?""Guests?" Austin got off the stage and strode toward them. Although he was smiling, coldness gleamed in his eyes. "Have you ever seen any guest steal the hostess?""You can't say that, Sir Baldwin..." Liam smiled and added, "How could you be sure that it must be the Hunt family?""Who else could it be?" "This is just your guess. They've always been here. Even if they wanted to do that, they couldn't. So… You should act fair and square, given your noble identity. Shouldn't you find fault with the culprit instead? Isn't that more reasonable?" Liam looked at Austin. Although he was younger and came from a family weaker than the Baldwin family, he was still domineering.Besides, his
Alexander took a deep breath and analyzed logically, "This wasn't Stef's style. If he wanted to snatch her away, he would have done it openly in front of everyone. But this trick was cunning and dishonest!""Yes, you're right, but this is a special case. If he didn't use a trick, his woman would marry someone else. It's normal for him to be restless." Although Francine agreed with Alexander's analysis, she felt that Stefan could do anything if it concerned Renee. Naturally, he would stoop this far. "Regardless, we have to leave," Alexander whispered to Francine, sensing danger. "Austin has always been decisive and cruel. Since Stef humiliated him, I'm sure he wouldn't let Stef off easily. We're in danger too.""Is it that serious?" Francine looked at Austin, who was standing on the stage. He coldly ordered his assistant about something. It seemed like he wasn't that crazy. "I don't care what he'll do. We have to get out of North City right away because this city is controlled b