Adrian’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard.
In his past life, even though he and Lillian had lived out their years in what others might call harmony, it was never the life he truly wanted.
He had given up his inheritance as the heir to the Whitmore family. He faked his death to elope with her–sacrificing power, wealth, and social status in the process.
Once the darling of the elite, he’d become just another faceless man in the crowd–scraping by as a freelarice translator and picking up odd jobs to survive.
Lillian made and sold crafts to help them get by, but no matter how hard they worked, their days were always tight. It wasn’t happiness–it was survival.
He used to attend private galas and exclusive clubs, a man of privilege and refinement. How could he have ever truly been content with a life of mediocrity?
But because of the cost of faking his death, he’s stuck huddled on the edge of the city for the rest of his life as an ordinary man nobody cares about.
Until, near the end of his life, fate threw him one last blow.
During a random attack on the street, he ran into Evelyn–the woman he had broken. She still shone just as brightly, impossible to miss even in a
crowd.
In that moment, he didn’t think twice about exposing himself. He threw himself between her and the knife.
He never expected her forgiveness. He only hoped that maybe, just maybe, dying for her could make up for everything.
But fate, cruel as ever, pulled him back one more time.
He was reborn.
And this time, he vowed to make everything right.
Reclaiming his rightful place as the Whitmore heir, he married Lillian at once, thinking that wealth and status would finally shield them from the hardship of their past life.
But then came the truth.
Evelyn–misunderstood, blamed, hurt.
Lillian–deceitful, manipulative.
The girl who had once moved him to his core with her music… had never been Lillian at all. It had always been Evelyn.
That realization hit him like a tidal wave.
And now, the regret, the rage, the helplessness–he could no longer hold them in.
His fists slowly clenched at his sides, knuckles whitening. His expression darkened.
But in the end, he said nothing.
He turned, yanked the door open–and slammed it shut behind him.
That night, he had her medication stopped. Food deliveries canceled. The maids–dismissed.
No confrontation. No words. Just silence and suffocating cold.
By the third morning, it happened.
No one treated her wounds. No one brought water or food. What had been minor injuries turned into infection. Lillian grew weaker, dizzier.
Chapter 18
She tried to crawl from bed to reach a water jug–but collapsed before she could touch IL
She waited. Thought maybe, maybe Adrian would send someone.
He didn’t.
When the staff reported it to him, he merely said: “Let her be.”
And in that darkness, Lillian understood.
He was done with her. Even if she died, he would feel nothing but relief.
She lay trembling, tears carving paths down her cheeks, nails digging into the floor hard enough to break skin.
And finally, her hoarse whisper broke the silence.
“…I agree to the divorce.”
Minutes later, Adrian appeared with two assistants, as if he’d been waiting for those exact words.
He didn’t enter–he loomed in the doorway, expression detached.
A divorce contract landed at her feet.
“Legally, I could have dissolved the marriage without your consent,” he said, voice icy. “But for the sake of our past life–I’m giving you the chance to sign.”
Lillian didn’t respond, just sneered. She knew she had been completely abandoned.
Two aides approached. One lifted her arm. The other forced a pen into her hand.
And just like that, she was no longer Mrs. Whitmore. Just a discarded woman.
She would be sent back to her family–the one that never welcomed her. Back to her stepmother’s disdain, her half–sister’s contempt.
No one would marry a woman discarded within three days of her wedding.
She bit her lip hard, eyes filled with hatred.
I was the one who suffered beside him. Who fled with him. Why is everything different this time? Why am I left with nothing?!
Adrian turned away, indifferent, not sparing her even a glance. He tucked the signed papers into his briefcase and headed for the door.
He was ready. Ready to find Evelyn, city by city, no matter what it cost.
But just as he stepped over the threshold-
A piercing sound split the air.
“Die, Adrian!!“.
Lillian–eyes mad with fury–had snatched a shard of porcelain hidden beneath her pillow and launched herself toward his back, blade poised to strike.
