Chapter 5 Chapter 5

Catherine laughed bitterly, pointing to her own face and said:

"What? You want to hit me again? Look, this is your masterpiece."

Seeing the bruised, swollen redness on Catherine’s cheek, Gabriel's body stiffened. He had hit her in a moment of anger yesterday, but he hadn't expected the damage to be this severe. His gaze lingered on the wound on her face, where the bruise’s deep purple only accentuated her fragile pale skin, making his stone-cold heart feel as if pricked by a tiny needle. However, that fleeting feeling was quickly extinguished by his pride and innate need for control.

"Does it hurt?"

As he asked, Gabriel reached out to touch her cheek, but she quickly avoided his hand. Her hand clenched tightly at her side, each finger curling in as if trying to suppress a tremor rising from deep within her heart. His face darkened, his eyebrows furrowed, and he sneered: "If you had obeyed me, I wouldn't have had to hit you."

Obey?

Obey, to him, meant enduring insults from her in-laws, tolerating her foster sister stealing her husband, and leaving empty-handed with nothing. Was that what he expected? To her, the obedience he demanded was nothing short of a destruction of her very self - a betrayal of the soul and dignity she possessed. She had given up everything - her career, her dreams, even her own voice - just to become a soulless puppet in the luxurious house he called a home.

Ridiculous! How could he be so authoritarian?

No wonder he liked someone like Juliet, a woman who was inherently selfish and vengeful but outwardly seemed docile and understanding. From her mother-in-law to the household staff, everyone in the Sterling family adored her sweet and lovable demeanor. They couldn’t see that behind Juliet’s flawless mask was a heart full of calculation and refined deceit, something Catherine, with her genuine nature, could never compete with. She was utterly exhausted by these charades, where truth was twisted and kindness was mercilessly exploited.

In the end, someone who had devoted her life to her husband's family like Catherine had become the "disobedient" one.

Catherine took a deep breath, trying to steady her emotions, and said, "Fine, I’ll listen to you. I won’t appear in front of you two ever again. Is that what you want?"

The calmness in her voice now was not one of resignation, but of numbness after a storm of emotions, a painful acceptance that all her efforts had been in vain. It was the final sigh of a bird about to leave its cage, where freedom came at the cost of wounds that had yet to heal.

Gabriel felt uneasy seeing her so calm. He grabbed her wrist and lowered his voice, saying, "Catherine, you don’t have to be like this. I’m still allowing you to stay in the Stonehaven City."

His words sounded contradictory, both like a gesture of mercy and a final act of restraint. Perhaps deep down, he didn’t truly want her to disappear completely from his sight, for her very existence, even from afar, remained a testament to his possession.

Catherine responded with a scornful smile, shook off his hand, and pulled Emily towards the main road to catch a taxi.

Gabriel watched her retreating figure, his heart suddenly racing, filled with an unexplainable regret. That regret did not stem from love, but from the loss of something familiar, a “possession” he had always believed he was entitled to keep forever. Just as he was about to follow her, Juliet collapsed into his arms, grimacing.

"Gabriel, I feel so dizzy. Let's go inside and see the doctor."

Sensing the threat, Juliet desperately tried to shift Gabriel's attention, and sure enough, he turned away from Catherine to focus on her.

As the two of them were about to head inside, Gabriel heard the sound of a car engine stopping. He turned his head and saw Catherine and Emily standing in front of an expensive car. A man in his twenties got out, shielding Catherine’s head as she entered the front passenger seat, while Emily circled around to sit in the back.

That scene struck at the core of his tyrannical possessiveness, causing his reason to almost dissolve. He no longer saw Catherine as a person with her own feelings, but merely as something he owned, something now being coveted by another.

"Damn it! We’ve been divorced for just two days, and you already have someone new?"

Gabriel shoved Juliet aside and stormed over to the car, grabbing Catherine by the arm and pulling her out.

"Cartherine, explain this to me! What is going on?"

Gabriel roared, making Catherine clutch her stomach in fear and back away. Emily and the young man rushed over to help her escape his grip.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing? You lay a hand on her again, and I’ll call the police!" the young man shouted.

Gabriel, seeing Catherine hiding behind the man, with him protecting her, felt his anger surge uncontrollably.

"Goddammit, Cartherine, who gave you the right to cheat on me?"

Catherine sneered, "Brother, we’re divorced. Who I meet or spend time with is my business. Who do you think you are to shout orders here?"

Hearing these provoking words, Gabriel trembled with anger. He wanted to grab Catherine, but a young man blocked him. He raised his hand, ready to strike, when she shouted, "Enough."

Gabriel's raised fist froze in mid-air because Catherine was standing protectively in front of the young man.

"Catherine, don't think I won't hit you. Let me tell you, you’re my woman! You're not allowed to associate with any other men."

"Ha ha..."

Catherine laughed.

"How can you be so shameless? Let me remind you, we're divorced. Your girlfriend is still standing over there waiting for you. Aren't you worried she'll hear and get upset?"

But Gabriel didn’t care. He stared intently at the beautiful woman in front of him. In his mind, Catherine was destined to be his, even after the divorce. She had to remain loyal and chaste, never being with another man. It was an irrational imposition born from his overgrown ego, where love had long given way to domination and control.

The mere thought of Catherine remarrying one day drove Gabriel mad. He even had the urge to kill the young man she was shielding.

Gabriel stepped closer, reaching out to stroke Catherine's still swollen face. His voice softened, "Be good, stop causing trouble. Stay away from this guy, and I’ll forgive you for getting involved with him in front of me today."

This feigned gentleness was even more terrifying than his rage, for it revealed that he still believed he had the right to forgive her, and to control her every action. Catherine didn’t avoid his hand. Instead, she smirked, revealing a contemptuous smile, and said, "See, who’s the one that can’t let go of their feelings?"

Her words directly infuriated Gabriel. He shoved her chin away, gritting his teeth, "Stop daydreaming. I’ve had my fill of you."

He didn't stop there, continuing to humiliate her: "I bet this guy doesn’t know that you can't have children, does he? Once he’s done with you and finds out you can’t get pregnant, he’ll toss you aside. And when you're old and your beauty fades, don’t come crawling back to me for scraps to survive."

Catherine's entire body trembled. She clenched her shirt tightly, trying not to let herself break down in front of him. Inside, she was filled with rage, and though she was expecting a child, the cruel words Gabriel spoke still brought tears of pain to her eyes. These tears were not only for the pain, but also for the fury at the cruelty of the man she once loved. They were her final awakening, a reminder that there could be no mending for the fractures that had grown too deep between them.

He knew how much the issue of having children haunted her, yet he still used it to reopen her deepest wounds?

How could he be so cruel?

"Gabriel, you’re going too far."

Seeing her tears, Gabriel became flustered. As he reached out to comfort her, Juliet approached, wrapping her arm around his and smiling, "Brother Gabriel, what did you say to make Sister Catherine cry? Were you talking about our engagement next month? Oh my, you silly man, don't you know that would make her sad?"

Juliet cast a triumphant glance at Catherine, then took her hand and in a sweet, gentle voice added, "But I sincerely hope you’ll give us your blessing. After all, you’re still my older sister."