Chapter 7

"Yes."

Hearing this, Arthur held Chloe tightly.

He knew it—she loved him too much not to eventually give in for his sake.

The next second, Chloe shoved him away hard and stared at him, like a withered rose, her face ghostly pale. "But I won't."

"Chloe, back then, you were willing to suffer such serious injuries for me. Now you won't endure this small thing? We've known each other for so many years—we're inseparable parts of each other." Arthur raised his hand to touch her face, but Chloe turned away. His movement froze mid-air. "Chloe, can you bear to leave?"

Chloe looked at Arthur, her eyes sad yet determined. "Arthur, I won't lie to you. It breaks my heart to leave you."

"But no one is irreplaceable. Arthur, Avery is waiting for you."

"Chloe..."

Ignoring Arthur's plea, Chloe turned and walked away.

When she reached the pharmacy on the first floor, just as she was about to pick up her medication, she saw Avery leaning against the wall, giving her a mocking smile.

"Chloe?"

Chloe clutched her medicine, eyeing Avery warily.

"You don't need to be so afraid of me. I'm not trying to destroy what you have with Mr. Williams."

Chloe didn't want to engage with Avery. Her actions had already revealed everything.

She didn't believe Avery would wear her clothes and lie in her bed to taunt her without an agenda.

"Be sensible and stop fighting with Mr. Williams. After all, the only reason our parents haven't kicked you out is because of your marriage to him."

Avery played with a strand of hair by her cheek, watching Chloe with amusement.

"I don't care about their opinions. I'm getting divorced."

Seeing Chloe's proud demeanor, Avery felt a surge of irritation.

"Who are you trying to fool?"

Avery blocked Chloe's path and pulled out a pearl necklace from her collar.

Chloe's eyes fixed on the pearls, anger reigniting in her heart.

"You remember this necklace, don't you?" Avery stroked the necklace, her eyes full of challenge as she looked up at Chloe.

"Mom said she was going to give it to you, but in the end, didn't it come to me?"

Chloe remembered the necklace well.

It had been a token of love between her parents. When her father died, the Brown family had taken almost all his possessions, leaving only this pearl necklace.

Luna had promised Chloe she would give her the necklace on her birthday.

But on that day, as soon as Avery saw the necklace, she had snatched it away.

Chloe remembered how Avery had flaunted it, taunting her.

Even when she'd argued her case, Luna had sided with Avery.

"Avery is your little sister—you should let her have it."

"I know you're mature for your age, but thanks to the Scott family, we have the life we do now. Being good to Avery is your way of repaying the Scott family for their kindness."

Thinking of that supposedly loving family, Chloe felt cold from head to toe.

"Chloe, what I want can only be mine." Avery flashed a smug smile. "You don't know this, but before I got pregnant, Mr. Williams and I made love countless times in your bed."

"All men stray, especially when they find someone who suits them better than their partner."

"Mr. Williams' heart already belongs to me."

As she spoke, Avery caressed her face.

"Once I have this baby, marrying into the Williams family is just a matter of time."

"So what if you were childhood sweethearts? After all the sacrifices you made for Arthur, I'll be the one sitting in the position of Mrs. Williams."

Chloe looked up at Avery's provocative expression.

She knew Avery's tactics of sowing discord, but she couldn't dismiss her words entirely.

She remembered how Arthur had encouraged her to take several vacations this year, his unexplained absences, and the "physical" compensation that followed those absences.

Men who cheat became more affectionate at home.

His passionate ardor then had now transformed into a sword piercing her heart.

Once trust was broken, things could never be the same.

Seeing Chloe lost in thought, Avery's lips curled into a satisfied smile.

She stood up and walked to Chloe, leaning down to whisper in her ear.

"Chloe, you've been taking medicine to regulate your body so you can have Arthur's baby, right?"

Chloe turned to face Avery's smug eyes.

"When he's with me, he says you taste bitter from all those medicines, that you're boring in bed—not even one-thousandth as good as me..."

The next second, Chloe's hand flew up, landing a slap across Avery's face.

The slap wasn't hard, but Avery used the momentum to fall dramatically to the ground, clutching her stomach and starting to sob.

"Chloe, I don't want to ruin your marriage. I just wanted to help Mr. Williams."

"I truly hope you two can stay together."

Here she went again.

These words kept repeating in Chloe's mind.

Whenever Avery wanted to take something from her, she would pretend to be hurt, blame everything on Chloe, and garner everyone's sympathy.

Soon enough, Arthur stormed over, his face dark as he lifted Avery from the floor.

Avery covered her face, nestling like a delicate bird in Arthur's arms.

"Arthur, don't blame Chloe. She just loves you too much."

"Cut the act, Avery. Want me to repeat what you just said to Arthur?" Chloe laughed coldly.

If Avery hadn't provoked her, would she have ever laid a hand on her?

"Avery is pregnant. No matter what she said, that's no reason to hit her."

Arthur looked at Chloe with disappointment in his eyes. "Chloe, I was going to give you more time to accept this situation, but your actions only disappoint me. I should have kept this from you from the beginning."

Just as Chloe was about to speak, Avery suddenly burst into loud sobs.

"Arthur, my stomach hurts so bad. I don't know if the fall hurt the baby."

"I know Chloe didn't mean it, but the baby—the baby is innocent."

Chloe had witnessed this fake crying act hundreds of times before.

She reached for Avery but was shoved away by Arthur.

Arthur's brow furrowed deeply. "Chloe, I told you not to harm this child. I don't want to argue with you. Go home and wait for me."

With that, Arthur carried Avery away urgently.

Chloe stood frozen, feeling as if someone had carved a hole in her chest. She stared vacantly after Arthur. "We grew up together. You know what kind of person I am. You know how many things Avery has taken from me over the years, how many false accusations I've endured. How can you not see that?"

"The past doesn't matter. All I see is that you clearly can't accept this child. You need to calm down."

Arthur paused, not looking back, as he carried Avery into the elevator with long strides.

Tears blurred Chloe's vision as she clutched the medicine box so tightly it nearly crumbled.

She smelled that familiar metallic scent again, feeling blood trickling down her thighs.

Baby, I'm sorry. Mommy was useless—I couldn't protect you.

Pain radiated from her abdomen.

Chloe struggled to stand but ultimately collapsed to the floor.

Before losing consciousness, she felt someone lift her up.

The warmth reminded her of her late father, Edward Brown.

As a child, Edward would often carry her just like this, taking her everywhere with him.

The pearl necklace—the token of love between Edward and Luna—flashed before her eyes, sending waves of pain through her chest, filling her throat with the taste of blood.

Was Edward coming to take her away this time?

"Chloe? Chloe?"

Her vision gradually cleared, revealing Dr. Zoey's worried face.

"You just had treatment for the baby. How could you wander off like that?"

"I'm sorry, Dr. Adams," Chloe replied weakly.

That's when she noticed someone standing at the other side of the room.

He stood by the bed, his impressive physique accentuated by a black suit.

For some reason, Chloe found his silhouette familiar.

The man turned to face her, the light from the window outlining his profile.

"It's been a long time, Chloe."