The clock on the wall struck twelve, declaring the coming midnight.

With a broad smile, she gazed at him. “I promise I’ll sign the divorce settlement tomorrow.”

Cristofer did not move and just frowned at her as if measuring the credibility of her words.

Meanwhile, Estelle stood up and walked up to him. Resting herself against his chest gently, she landed a kiss on his lips.

“Cristofer, just pretend that you still love me. I beg you. Just this once, will you?”

****

The next morning, Estelle was awakened by the glare of the sun.

Aches and pains racked her body, but she felt empty as if her soul had left her body.

Despite the fact that they had had sex last night, Cristofer had never kissed her on the lips. It was, for him, just a task that could be done without a trace of emotion.

Making love was supposed to be the most intimate thing that could happen between lovers. Still, Estelle felt extremely sad after making love with Cristofer.

There was no warmth left on the quilt next to her, and his figure was nowhere to be seen in the villa. Cristofer left hours ago.

Estelle struggled to her feet and cleaned up the mess on the bed.

Cristofer had been in such a hurry that he left his tie on the floor.

She picked up the tie, folded it carefully, and put it into the bag she always carried with her. There was also a photo of her child in her bag.

“Yohan, hang in there.” She stroked the little face in the photo and sniffled. “I’m trying my best to save you, my child. Just give Mommy some more time, okay?”

Tears streamed down her face and dripped onto the photo.

Estelle wiped away the tears from the photo with tenderness in her eyes.

“The world hates me so much that it wants to take everything, including you, from me. But it doesn’t matter because I have you and will protect you. You’re my beloved. As long as you live a good life, I can bear all the suffering.”

On the nightstand was a pile of papers.

It must be Cristofer who had left them there.

Estelle placed the photo back into her bag as gently as she could before reading the papers.

It was the divorce settlement, which didn’t surprise her at all.

She leafed through it and found no special terms. It was almost the same as the one that Cristofer had brought over earlier.

The only difference that caught her attention was written at the end: Estelle Hudson promises to leave Hadale City forever and never return.

It seems that you really don’t want to see me anymore.

Don’t worry. You won’t see me again because I’ll leave Hadale and even this world forever.

With a faint smile, she signed her name at the bottom.

****

As usual, Estelle came to the hospital for a check-up the day after the injection.

Noticing the bruises on her neck, the doctor frowned. “Mrs. Hans, do you need me to call the police?”

Estelle shook her head and covered the marks with her collar. “No, thanks. When will I know whether I’m pregnant or not?”

“Seven days later, at least,” the doctor said, “Mrs. Hans, if you’re still not pregnant in seven days, please receive chemotherapy before it’s too late.”

Estelle frowned and exhaled deeply. “How long can I live if I don’t receive chemotherapy?”

“Six months at most. But with timely chemotherapy, it can be extended to 3 to 5 years.”

“I don’t want to receive chemotherapy. I have to give birth to another child. Doctor, could you buy me nine months? I don’t mind what method is used or how much it costs.”

“Well, I have to warn you that it’ll be very painful in the late stages of cancer. Many patients give up the will to live because they’re unable to bear the pain. If you want to live longer, you have to fight against your fate yourself.”

Estelle sighed with relief. “I see.”

“The pain is so intense and piercing that patients normally cannot bear it.”

“I can make it,” Estelle replied as she nodded. To ease herself, she repeated, “I can make it.”

The doctor revealed a sorrowful look. “Mrs. Hans, you’re the toughest patient I’ve ever met.”

Estelle wore a big smile. “I’m still not tough enough. If I were tough enough, I wouldn’t have ended up in a mess.”

Estelle was dazzled by the sunlight as she walked out of the hospital.

She squinted at the sun, which was pretty radiant and warm. Then, her phone rang. It was a call from Cristofer.

He calls me!

Estelle could not stop her hands from trembling and almost dropped the phone.

“Cristofer?”

“Have you signed the paper?” Cristofer cut to the chase, not even bothering to greet her.”

Hearing that, she was speechless.

“Estelle, you’d better not play tricks.”

“I’m not playing tricks. I’ve signed it. I’ll do what I promised you.”

Cristofer immediately said, “Then I’ll have Mr. Jones get it.”

“Sorry, Cristofer. I can’t hand the divorce settlement to you right now.”

Irritated, Cristofer growled in an icy, biting tone, “Estelle Hudson! What the hell do you want from me?!”

“I…”

“I have had enough that you tricked me into sleeping with you in this despicable way. If you need a man so badly, I can pay to get you one. You shouldn’t have disgusted me like this!”

Why does his voice sound so familiar yet so strange at the same time?

Never had Cristofer spoken to Estelle so cruelly before she was 20 years old. A gentle and affectionate man like him, in days gone by, was even afraid to hurt her when holding her hands.

He asked her many times whether it hurt or not the first time they had sex, and he would panic upon seeing the slightest frown on her face.

But now, his words were like a cold knife thrusting at her heart bit by bit.

With a bitter laugh, Estelle said softly, “Cristofer, did you see the stars last night?”

Cristofer had run out of his patience. “I have no time for this crap.”

“They were gorgeous.”

“Estelle Hudson, don’t challenge my patience!”

“I’ll give you the divorce settlement. I’ve already mailed it off, and you’ll have them in seven days.”

Cristofer’s breathing sounded heavier, and she could feel his rage over the phone. “You deceived me again! Estelle Hudson, is there a grain of truth in what you say? You fooled me five years ago and keep fooling me even now!”

However, Estelle was not angry at all, and her voice remained gentle. “I’m not fooling you, and I’ve never deceived you.”

“If you have any conscience, if you have any feelings of guilt for my parents, you should divorce me at once and get the fuck away from me!”

She laughed. “I saw the new clause you added to the divorce settlement, saying that you want me to leave Hadale forever.”

Cristofer replied, “Yes, that’s because I don’t want to see you anymore.”

“I can do what you want. In seven days, I will disappear completely and never show up before you and Gretchen. But Cristofer… can you watch the stars with me one more time? Any day is fine. It’s just for one night.”

Beep, beep, beep–

The phone was hung up directly.

Cristofer didn’t say yes and wasn’t willing to listen to her voice any longer.

His indifference did not surprise Estelle, who had been used to it for the past four years. At this moment, she was numb with heartache.

****

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are.” A clear, childish voice came from nearby.

A little boy of five or six years old sat in a corner at the hospital entrance and sang the song off and on, resting his chin on his hands.

Estelle walked over and squatted before him, asking, “Hey, little boy. Why are you here alone? Where’s your Mom?”

The outgoing boy replied in a sweet voice, “Mommy is a cleaner in the hospital, and I’m waiting for her to get off work.”

“Then why don’t you wait inside the hospital?”

He pouted his lips. “It’s tiring to be a cleaner. And Mommy doesn’t want me to see how tired she is. Do you work in the hospital, too?”

Deeply touched, Estelle said softly, “No, I’m sick, and I’m here to see the doctor.”

“It costs a lot when you get sick!” The boy could not help the quiver in his voice as his eyes turned red. “If I didn’t get sick, Mommy wouldn’t have to work as a cleaner.”

Estelle didn’t know how to comfort him.

She took all the banknotes from her purse and put them in his arms. “Here you are. Take them to your Mom.”

There were about ten thousand dollars. The banknotes were so heavy that the boy held them with difficulty. “Really? I can have them all?”

She nodded with a smile. “Yes.”

“But Mommy says that accepting gifts from others without her permission is unacceptable.”

Estelle thought for a while and came up with an idea. “How about singing ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ for me in return?”

The boy nodded firmly.

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are! Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.”

With his back straightened, he sang earnestly while struggling to hold all the banknotes in his arms as if they were all his hope.

On Estelle’s way back, that lovely song still echoed in her ears. And she couldn’t help thinking to herself.

Money is so powerful. It either saves lives or destroys lives.

Longing for more money, my mother and uncle orchestrated a car crash that killed Cristofer’s parents. However, I could also use my money to save the poor boy and his mother.

When Estelle was almost home, she saw a woman standing at the gate from a distance.

The woman wore delicate light makeup and a pink dress, with her black hair cascading over her shoulders.

She greeted Estelle in a sweet voice, “Hi, Ms. Hudson. I’m Gretchen Abrams.”

Estelle nodded. “What do you want?”

Gretchen took out a wedding invitation from her handbag and handed it to Estelle.

“Cristofer and I are getting married in seven days, and we’d like to invite you to our wedding.”

Estelle did not reach out her hand but chuckled, “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll make a scene at your wedding?”

“You won’t,” Gretchen responded with a confident smile, “Unless you want to lose your son.”

The smile on Estelle’s face vanished. Her heart skipped a beat.

“How did you know….”

How did you know about my son? I’ve done many things to keep it a secret. Even Cristofer knows nothing about his existence. How is it possible?! Estelle wondered.

“Of course, I know about it. It was my mother who helped you deliver your baby.” Gretchen put on a vicious smile, “What a poor boy! He was born with sepsis, so he has always stayed in the ICU.”

“It was you?! My son got sick because of you?!”

Estelle had thought that her son’s sepsis had been caused by a medical accident all along. But it was not an accident but premeditation.

Gretchen thrust the wedding invitation into Estelle’s hand and sneered, “Ms. Hudson, if you want to save your son, just get divorced as soon as possible. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that the car accident that took your father’s and Cristofer’s parents’ lives five years ago was also planned by me. Just a little glitch in the brakes, and that was enough to handle three troublemakers. How wonderful!”

Estelle froze with shock. “You even killed my father and Cristofer’s parents. Why?! How could you?!”

“Cristofer’s parents liked you so much and only wanted you to be their daughter-in-law. If they were alive, how was it possible for me to replace you and marry Cristofer?”

Gretchen patted Estelle’s face and approached her, saying in a condescending tone, “Well, you should be grateful that I told you the truth. After all, you will never find out the truth by yourself. And telling you the truth doesn’t matter to me now as you and your son are dying anyway.”

“Ah–” Someone suddenly screamed.

In a rage, Estelle choked Gretchen and pinned her against the wall while glaring at her.

It was you! It was you all along, you vicious and heartless bitch! My father died because of you! Cristofer split up with me because of you! My son has septicemia because of you!

GO TO HELL, you fucking piece of shit!

Gretchen had not expected that Estelle would choke her. Unable to move, she snapped, “Estelle Hudson, how dare you lay your hands on me? You’ll irritate Cristofer even more!”

Estelle sneered. “I don’t care if he’s irritated ’cause I’m dying anyway. Why not just take you down with me as well?”

“Get your hands off me! Are you crazy?”

“I have nothing to lose, Gretchen Abrams! Even if I choke you to death, I’ll be merely sentenced to the death penalty. It’s just another way of dying, but it’s less painful. And I have to thank you for offering me the opportunity to kill you!”

Panic appeared in Gretchen’s eyes as she struggled hard. “What about your son? If you dare hurt me, your son will definitely die!”

“If that’s the case, then you’ll definitely go down with him!”

“Estelle Hudson, what are you doing?”

Suddenly, Estelle’s hands were pulled away from Gretchen’s neck. The next second, she was thrown heavily onto the cold concrete ground.

It was Cristofer. He came along.

He held Gretchen in his arms gently, feeling extremely nervous. But when he looked at Estelle, his eyes were filled with malice. “Are you looking forward to death?”

Looking forward to death? I don’t need to look forward to death, for death will soon come to me.

Estelle staggered to her feet with dust all over her body. Her arm was bruised, and crimson blood dripped down from her fingers.

“How blind you are, Cristofer!” Estelle cried.

How could you fall for a vicious woman like Gretchen Abrams?

Cristofer carried Gretchen in his arms and glared at Estelle. “You’re right. I was so blind that I once fell in love with you and ended up losing both my parents. And just now, I nearly lost Gretchen.”

At the same time, Gretchen leaned softly against his chest and made a “V for Victory” sign towards Estelle.

Clearly, it was a conspiracy again.

Gretchen had made a shrewd calculation to ensure that Cristofer would arrive just in time to see how hysterical Estelle could be when provoked.

Estelle was disheartened.

All her hope had vanished.

Cristofer said, “Estelle, get a divorce with me right now ’cause I don’t wanna stall on it anymore.”

“No way,” Estelle refused resolutely, “I won’t divorce you until seven days later.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

“There’s indeed something wrong with me. I’m sick. I told you about that, but you didn’t believe me.” Estelle took a deep breath, and her eyes gradually filled with icy contempt. “Cristofer, I order you to watch the stars with me at night in the following seven days, or else I will hurt your precious Gretchen!”

Cristofer shook his head. “What if I say no?”

“Then I will do anything to take her down. And can you protect her forever? I had managed to kill your parents five years ago, let alone Gretchen Abrams!”

“Estelle!”

“It’s only for seven days. Your wedding will be held in seven days, right? In seven days, I’ll divorce you and get out of your sight for good.”

Cristofer frowned and stared at her.

With a sneer, she continued, “Don’t worry. I won’t force you to sleep with me. All you have to do is watch the stars with me.”

With his eyes fixed on Estelle, Cristofer frowned and remained silent.

Estelle knew that he was reluctant to accept her proposal.

To be exact, he was more than willing to rip her into pieces for hurting Gretchen, his beloved woman. And it was possible for him to watch the stars with Estelle willingly.

But he did not know that a pathetically weak woman like Estelle could not injure anyone at all. She was so skinny that the wind could easily blow her away. If Gretchen had not deliberately provoked her into making a scene, Estelle couldn’t have touched her clothes at all.

Speaking of clothes, Estelle cast a glance at Gretchen’s dress which used to belong to her.

It was a white and pink dress made of crepe, which was embroidered with mauve flowers. The dress was indeed lovely.

Cristofer adored floral patterns. In Estelle’s old wardrobe, eight out of ten dresses were in such patterns. It was he who had bought them for her.

Gretchen’s dress was tidy without any crease, and the patterns on it hadn’t changed a bit, just like its current owner, fresh and outstanding.

As for its original owner Estelle, she looked so withered and pitiful with her watery eyes, as if the pain had penetrated her fragile bones.

Estelle smiled lightly. “Miss Abrams, may I ask what you do for a living?”

Hearing that, Gretchen suddenly trembled in terror and buried her face in Cristofer’s arms at once, saying in a coquettish voice, “Cristofer….”

“Don’t worry. I got you. I won’t let her hurt you.” Cristofer’s voice was more than gentle as he encircled Gretchen’s waist and stroked her hair.

But when he looked at Estelle, the tenderness in his eyes disappeared instantly.

“Why do you want to know about it?”

Estelle replied with a chuckle, “I’m just curious.”

“It’s none of your business. Estelle, I advise you not to lay your hands on Gretchen.”

“Cristofer Hans, I advise you not to talk to me this way ’cause I don’t know what I might do when I go crazy!”

“You…”

Estelle almost laughed out loud when seeing that Cristofer was so furious but dared not retort for the sake of Gretchen.

Everyone had an Achilles heel.

Estelle’s Achilles heel was her son, while Cristofer was Gretchen.

Estelle said to herself, As I’m already a villain in your heart, why not just go all the way and become an even more wicked villain?

Then she strode past them, opened the door, and entered the villa. Before shutting the door, she said to Cristofer, “I’ll wait for you on the roof at seven tonight.”

Estelle then reached her bedroom on the second floor, which had a large French window.