Chapter 3: Mr. Voss's "Life-and-Death Friendship"

Ilone's POV

I didn't know when Kyle had moved to stand behind me, but he'd heard every word I'd just said.

"I... I was only saying that to provoke her. Don't take it seriously."

I twisted the corner of his suit jacket nervously in my hands, feeling heat rush to my face.

"Actually, I think Ms. Thorne made a wise decision."

"Ms. Thorne, I believe you should seriously consider this marriage. First, it's your grandmother's dying wish—agreeing to it would at least bring some peace to her soul. Second, it would solve an urgent problem of mine."

"Your urgent problem?" I looked up at the man before me, confused.

Kyle's smile faded, his expression returning to its usual cold severity.

"Because I'm thirty this year as well, at the age when I should be getting married. The Voss family may not be old aristocracy, but we still can't escape certain conventions, so I need a wife in name to help me ward off some unnecessary troubles."

"Mr. Voss, I... I'm not worthy of you."

I stepped up onto the stair so I could look directly into the man's deep eyes, forcing myself to meet his gaze.

"Ms. Thorne, you underestimate yourself far too much. You possess a beautiful and resilient soul that few others have—please don't look down on yourself, and don't question my judgment of character. Besides, this is your grandmother's wish, a bond between the older generation. My grandfather gave me strict orders that I must bring you home, otherwise I needn't bother coming back myself."

As he spoke, he spread his hands in a gesture completely at odds with his usual aloof persona.

Looking at the man's sincere smile, for a moment I almost believed him. But when I lowered my head and looked at myself, I knew those were just words meant to comfort me. No one would actually like a fat girl.

"Mr. Voss, thank you for everything you did for me yesterday, for handling Grandma's funeral, and for making a special trip to bring me back today."

"There's Grandma's house ahead. That's strange—why is the door open?"

I led Voss along the country path lined with wildflowers, stopping in front of a stone-built English-style old house with its gate standing open.

Before I could step across the threshold, a tall figure suddenly rushed out from inside. Before I could even see who it was, I felt a stinging pain across my cheek, followed by a brief ringing in my ears.

But in the next second, Kyle was already standing in front of me, his voice cold as ice:

"Madam, please conduct yourself with dignity. No one has the right to strike another person."

Looking at the tall figure shielding me, warmth flooded through my chest. Besides my grandparents, he was the third person who had ever stood in front of me to protect me.

"You must be Wolfram Voss's grandson. I'm Ophelia's mother—you can call me Aunt Mara."

She quickly turned and pushed forward the elegant woman standing behind her. "This is Ophelia, my second daughter. She graduated from a prestigious university and was the opening model for the D brand's major show."

The man didn't respond, but instead turned to look at me, still apparently stunned from the blow.

He gently lifted my face, moving my hand away from where I'd been clutching my cheek. I saw his already somber eyes grow even colder.

"Ethan, please escort these two ladies out. This is the Thorne residence, and the current owner is Ms. Thorne. Anyone who enters without the owner's permission is trespassing. If they refuse to leave, turn them over to the police."

With that, he took my hand and led me into the main house.

The wooden door couldn't block out my mother's curses from the courtyard—words so vicious you'd think she was cursing a mortal enemy. I felt my low blood sugar acting up again.

Just then, the noise in my ears suddenly diminished. A pair of warm hands covered my ears, and when I looked up, I found myself drowning in a pair of captivating eyes.

It was the first time I understood what novels meant when they described eyes as deep as the ocean. They were like a whirlpool, drawing you in. In that moment, I couldn't hear the knife-sharp voice outside at all.

I didn't know how much time passed before Kyle lowered his hands from my ears, saying with a slight smile:

"Ms. Thorne, I apologize for the forwardness, but the noise outside was rather hard on the ears."

I tried to pull my lips into a polite smile in return, but found I simply couldn't manage it.

I couldn't smile as if everything were fine after being verbally abused by my own mother like I was some kind of whore.

"Ms. Thorne, when you're sad and want to cry, cry. If you don't want to smile, you can keep your face expressionless. You only need to be your authentic self—that's Mrs. Voss's privilege."

In those slightly cold eyes, I thought I actually saw sympathy. I must have been knocked senseless by that slap.

"Mr. Voss, let them come in. They're still my family, after all, and this is a problem I need to face and resolve."

Seeing the determination in my eyes, the man relented and had his assistant allow them inside.

My mother stormed aggressively toward the main house, only slowing her pace when she saw Kyle standing beside me.

"Ilone, look at what you've become—how dare you keep your elders waiting outside! I truly regret leaving you in the countryside with your grandmother all those years."

Hearing my mother complaining about Grandma again, I couldn't help but step forward to face her.

"Mom, you're the one who found me disgusting because of the excessive weight gain I suffered from a medical error when I was young. You and Dad thought having a daughter like me was embarrassing, so you dumped me with Grandma."

"Grandma was the one who raised me, who sent me to the best university, who let me grow up surrounded by love like any other child. In the whole world, she was the best grandmother, and you're the last person who has any right to question her."

"The marriage arrangement with the Voss family was Grandma's dying wish. I will definitely marry Mr. Voss."

"You... you shameless creature. I should have back then—"

"I should have died, right? That's why you left me alone at home when I was little, sometimes not coming back for days because you were too busy with work. So I never had a mother growing up, and I don't need one now. Now, please leave my house immediately."

Voss, standing beside me, gave a look to his assistant waiting by the door, who then "escorted" Mara out while she was still trying to speak.

I heard Ophelia gently trying to calm our mother down. "Mom, don't be angry with Ilone. Grandma just passed away—she's the most heartbroken. Once she's had time to recover, we can talk to her slowly."

Looking at Ophelia, as pure as a gardenia flower, I didn't know whether I should hate her or not.

The truth was, I didn't hate Ophelia. When I came back to the city during summer vacations as a child, she was the one who took chubby me everywhere to play, who chased away the other children when they called me a fat pig.

But someone who received a hundred percent of love couldn't understand what it felt like to receive only ten percent. Sometimes Ophelia's kindness was more like poison disguised as candy—swallowing it left your insides torn and aching unbearably.

Sometimes I even wished Ophelia could be a little bit mean, could be a wicked sister, so I'd have a legitimate outlet for all the resentment and rage boiling inside me.

"Impressive counterattack, Ms. Thorne."

"I've booked a flight for tomorrow morning."

"I... I want to finish sorting through Grandma's belongings before making any decisions."

"I know, which is why I'm returning to Vela City tomorrow to handle some urgent business. If all goes smoothly, you'll see me again the morning after. I'll leave Ethan with you—if you need anything at all, you can reach out to him."

"That's not necessary, Mr. Voss. You've already gone to so much trouble. I can handle the rest myself. You and Assistant Ethan should both go back."

Hearing that Voss planned to come back, I quickly waved my hands in refusal.

"Ms. Thorne, I think we can be considered people who've been through life and death together. We just dealt with your grandmother's passing, then dealt with your biological mother. Round it off a bit and we're basically bound by life-and-death friendship. Continuing with 'Ms. Thorne' and 'Mr. Voss' does seem a bit too formal."

He leaned forward slightly, looking directly into my eyes with a smile playing at his lips.

His sudden closeness startled me, and I found myself asking without thinking:

"Then what should I call you?"