Chapter 9
A sharp, bloodcurdling scream pierced through the villa.
Looking down at Eleanor writhing on the ground, clutching her leg and howling in pain, Lena stood frozen, her mind completely blank.
It took her a long moment to come to her senses. Heart pounding in her chest, she rushed downstairs.
But Hunter was already there.
She didn’t know when he had arrived, but he was now holding Eleanor tightly in his arms, his face filled with undisguised concern.
“Mr. Langdon,” Eleanor whimpered, voice trembling through sobs, “I accidentally startled the cat, and it fell off the balcony and died. Ms. Steele got furious, slapped me, and pushed me off the balcony. She said I should die to make up for it.”
Hunter’s fury boiled over as she choked out her tearful version of events. The veins in his forehead bulged with rage.
He turned to face the approaching Lena, face dark as thunder, not giving her a chance to explain.
“You’re upset over a cat? It’s dead, so what? Lena, how could you push someone off the balcony over that!”
Lena had imagined countless ways this moment could unfold on her way down. Maybe he’d be shocked. Perhaps he’d doubt Eleanor’s story.
But she had never expected that he would believe her so quickly, so completely.
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Her blood ran cold as she stared at him, stunned.
“She said I pushed her, and you just believed it? Hunter, we’ve known each other for years. Is that really who you think I am?”
Hunter wanted to believe her. But when he looked down at the pool of blood on the ground, reason slipped away.
“In this situation, how do you expect me to believe you? Are you saying she threw herself off the balcony to frame you? Lena, what happened to you? I don’t even recognize you anymore!”
Faced with his scolding, Lena couldn’t say a word.
She took a deep breath, stepped forward, and pulled out her phone, wanting to show him the recording.
But the second Eleanor let out another cry of pain, Hunter completely lost patience. He shoved Lena aside and carried Eleanor toward the car.
She fell hard, slamming her head against the edge of the flowerbed. Blood immediately gushed from the wound on her forehead.
Warm red trickled down her cheek. Her whole body trembled in pain, and cold sweat soaked her clothes.
As she watched his figure disappear down the road, she clutched her bleeding forehead and let out a bitter, broken laugh.
The sky gradually darkened. She forced herself to stand, made her way back to the bedroom, and cleaned and bandaged her wound.
+
For the next two days, Hunter didn’t come home. Not a call. Not a
message.
Instead, Eleanor kept sending her videos and photos of Hunter feeding her medicine, buying her gifts, and watching over her at the hospital with
gentle care.
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Lena saved every single one. She stored them on a flash drive, along with the earlier messages and that key recording.
The day she left, the skies were clear.
She went in person to the immigration office and picked up all the finalized documents.
On the way back, she called her parents and told them when her flight would land.
The moment she opened the front door, she saw Hunter standing there.
His expression remained cold and gloomy. He stared at her for a long time before finally speaking.
“Lena, when are you planning to apologize to my assistant?”
Lena met his gaze without flinching. Her voice was calm, like still water.
“I’m not planning to.”
Hearing her refusal, Hunter’s face grew even darker. His voice carried barely restrained anger.
“Fine. Then until you’re ready to apologize sincerely, we don’t need to see each other again.”
With that, he turned and got into his car without looking back.
The sound of the engine starting completely drowned out Lena’s quiet reply.
“We really won’t see each other again.”
She watched the car disappear down the road, then turned and quickly went upstairs.
01:13
She placed the flash drive and a sticky note that read “Let’s break up” on the bedside table.
Then she picked up her suitcase and walked out of the villa.
The sunlight outside was warm and golden, wrapping around her like a silent blessing.
Before boarding, she looked at the country and city she had called home for over 20 years.
“Goodbye.
“Or more accurately–goodbye forever,” she thought, a faint smile touched her lips.
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