Hearing Heinry’s heart-wrenching words of love, my vision blurred as tears spilled uncontrollably. I covered my mouth and ran out of the villa.

I had no idea how long I sat by the door, but suddenly, a bowl of scalding hot instant noodles splashed onto my chest, making me cry out in shock and pain.

Yvonne had changed into fresh clothes and appeared with a bottle of wine in her hand.

"Wendy Dawson, did you enjoy our show just now? Your pathetic retreat looked just like a dog running away with its tail between its legs."

So, she had seen me.

"I heard your body isn’t adapting well to that artificial heart of yours. It must be painful, coughing up blood and dealing with that constant ache, huh? It must be frustrating, too, not being able to fully enjoy a man’s love. But me? It’s different. I can enjoy any position I want, as exciting as it gets. Funny, though. You’re such a waste, yet your heart works pretty well. I felt amazing just now."

"You actually had the nerve to marry my little uncle and think you could take him away from me? Keep dreaming. His heart belongs to me and me alone. You’re nothing more than a walking vessel, a heart donor for me to use."

"Actually, that day wasn’t the first time your mother caught me with your fiancé. She dared to call me shameless, so I decided to teach her a lesson. I kidnapped her and slept with your fiancé right in front of her face. Oh, you should’ve seen her. She was so furious she had a heart attack. And when you begged to give her your heart, I faked an attack myself. But your dear uncle couldn’t bear to wait even a second. He didn’t hesitate to give me your heart instead."

"Ah, by the way, you were unconscious at the time, so you probably missed the best part, your mother’s face. Her arms stretched out so desperately, her eyes bulging wide open. She wanted to strangle us both to death. It was too bad she could only watch and she survived long enough to see everything. She was furious. Serves her right for daring to insult me. I’ll kill anyone who gets in my way."

I widened my eyes in disbelief. I had never imagined this could be the truth behind my mother’s heart attack.

My entire body began to tremble uncontrollably. These people… how could they act so righteous, so self-assured after destroying my mother’s life?

My hand shot up, but before I could strike her, Yvonne doused herself with the bottle of wine and let out an ear-piercing scream.

The next moment, a forceful shove knocked me to the ground.

Heinry appeared, pulling Yvonne into his arms. He roared as he turned to me.

"Wendy, what do you think you’re doing?!"

Yvonne sobbed as she told him, "Uncle, I just saw that Aunt Wendy hadn’t eaten, so I wanted to bring her some food and wine. But she accused me of making her mother so angry that she spilled the food and poured wine all over me. If you had come any later, Yvonne might not have survived her torture."

"The wine and instant noodles earlier were prepared by me personally. I know they’re not fancy or expensive, but they came from the heart. I even burned my hands with the hot water…"

Heinry’s face darkened instantly.

"Wendy, your mother had a heart attack because she couldn’t handle things and insisted on meddling in her children’s affairs. Before marriage, it’s normal for people to have a change of heart. Yvonne was being thoughtful and worried you hadn’t eaten, but instead of appreciating her effort, did you act like this? How can you blame her for everything?"

I was stunned by his words.

"Heinry, tell me the truth. How did my mother die? Did you really give her my heart?"

Heinry frowned.

"Of course. Didn’t I tell you? Your mother had a rejection reaction after the surgery. Heart transplantation is risky by nature. This is common knowledge. And yet here you are, ignoring all that, lashing out at Yvonne? You owe her an apology for your behavior."

I let out a bitter laugh as tears spilled down my cheeks.

This was the man I had loved for seven years, yet he would not even tell me the truth.

In a fit of rage, I grabbed the wine bottle from the ground, ignoring the broken edges and tipped what was left into my mouth. The sharp shards of glass cut into my lips.

The moment the fiery alcohol burned its way down my throat, the sharp pain in my heart felt as though it might tear me apart.

Heinry's eyes widened in panic as he shouted urgently, "Wendy, your body can't handle alcohol. Stop it!"

I threw the bottle onto the ground as I smiled at him bitterly.

"Heinry, you're right. How can anyone reject someone else's sincerity? So I drank the heart of your beloved. Does that make you satisfied?"

Without waiting for his response, I turned and walked away without hesitation.

Heinry instinctively reached out to stop me, but Yvonne clung to him tightly. "Uncle, Yvonne's heart hurts again. Perhaps I was too scared of Aunt Wendy just now..."

Heinry glanced at my retreating figure, hesitated for a few seconds, but in the end, he did not come after me.

That night, Heinry never came home.

I spent the evening packing up all my belongings. Then, one by one, I burned them all.

I did not receive any call until the next day.

"Wendy, it was my fault yesterday. I know your mother's death caused you deep pain. I shouldn't have said those things."

"But Yvonne's heart is weak. I'm afraid something might happen to her and I wouldn't know how to face her family if it did. As her uncle, I have to take care of her."

I replied calmly, "It's okay. I acted impulsively yesterday. Please, take good care of her."

"You drank wine yesterday and I know your heart must be hurting. Don't worry. I’ve already arranged to replace your artificial heart tomorrow. Rest well tonight. I'll come by to pick you up in the morning."

"All right."

But the next morning, Heinry did not come.

Perhaps it was just as well. Not all goodbyes require face-to-face closure anyway.

I left the signed divorce papers on the table and walked out the door.

When I arrived at the hospital doors, Heinry called me. His tone was apologetic as he spoke, "Sorry, Wendy, there’s a patient who needs resuscitation. I have to complete the operation. I’ll help you replace the artificial heart tonight. I’ll send an assistant to pick you up."

"Tomorrow is our seventh wedding anniversary. Once everything is ready, I’ll take you to eat something delicious."

Well, a very valid reason, perfectly suitable for lying.

Heinry had no idea that Yvonne had already sent me a direct message before.

Because “I” had spilled wine on a dress she had stained yesterday, Heinry was now taking her to a jewelry auction as compensation. He was preparing to bid on the grand finale of the event, the world’s only pink diamond necklace.

This was the first time he remembered our wedding anniversary, but it was so he could be with another woman.

"All right. I also have prepared you a gift."

"Really? I'm looking forward to it."

I put the phone down, took one last look at the clear blue sky and stepped into the hospital without a glance back.

Goodbye, Heinry Spencer.

On the other side, after successfully acquiring the pink diamond necklace for Yvonne, Heinry took her to a candlelit dinner. Afterward, he hurried to the hospital with her.

***

When they arrived, he realized that Wendy had not shown up yet.

He checked the time. It was midnight.

Why hasn't Wendy come yet?

Just as he was about to call his wife, his assistant rushed over, holding a box.

"Mr. Spencer, Madam isn’t at home. Someone brought this over, saying it’s a gift from Madam to you."

Heinry let out a helpless smile. "So Wendy went off to prepare a gift for me? She loves these little surprises."

He imagined Wendy hiding in some corner of the hospital corridor, her phone camera secretly turned on, ready to capture his surprised reaction when he opened the gift just like she had done for the past few anniversaries.

The thought of her sneaky, adorable habit melted his heart.

He regretted being so harsh on her that day. Yet, despite everything, she was not even angry that he had arrived late.

Heinry gestured to the assistant to open the box. He decided that no matter what was inside, he would make sure to look delighted. He would never let Wendy down again.

The box was opened the next second.

The moment Heinry clearly saw what was inside, his face went pale.