Samantha smiled gently. "What else could I do? Go steal someone else’s husband? Besides... Eric really doesn’t like me. He’s always loved Ella. How could I become that shameful mistress? More importantly... I’m not even good enough to be a mistress!"
The man didn’t even look at her—how could she be qualified to be the mistress?
Nicholas was overestimating his sister. Eric had never once shown her that kind of affection.
It was all her own delusion—thinking that by taking a bullet for him, he would be eternally grateful and fall in love with her, waiting crazily for a woman who was "already dead" to come back.
This kind of story only exists in fairytales.
"But..." Nicholas began.
"Don’t say it, brother. I’m fine with going back to Y country quietly. After all, there are plenty of men who pursue me. I’m not worried about not being able to get married," Samantha said lightly, smiling.
Her eyes glistened with a tinge of sadness. Thinking about the warm scenes of Eric’s family of four, she felt jealous and heartbroken, but she had to admit she didn’t fit into such a family.
If Eric were a playboy, Ella wouldn’t have said all these things to her.
Before coming to Country S, Samantha had looked into their marriage. Just like Ella said, every actress who tried to climb into Eric’s bed had been blacklisted.
Nicholas stared at his sister unwillingly. Now that she had given up, it was pointless for him to keep pushing.
Seeing Samantha drowning in sorrow, Nicholas went outside to smoke.
He smoked cigarette after cigarette, taking several calls from home. When he heard that Samantha had been in a car accident and added to that Eric’s "heartlessness," he was furious and cursed under his breath.
"That unfeeling bastard can’t be allowed to live in peace! Do something about it. Make him suffer for the rest of his life!"
Some women can be incredibly petty, and some have hearts that are narrow. Mrs. Richardson couldn’t accept that her daughter had wasted more than ten years of her youth.
She almost forgot that it was her own refusal all those years ago that made Samantha suffer for a decade.
If she hadn’t insisted on separating Samantha from Eric, maybe Samantha would have been rejected by Eric a long time ago, and she would never have clung to this foolish infatuation.
"Don’t worry, sister may have given up, but that doesn’t mean I will let him off," Nicholas said coldly. Their Richardson Group was already quite wealthy in Y country, stronger than the old Nelson family by at least double.
But the current Nelson Group was no longer what it used to be.
Nicholas knew that trying to bring down the Nelson Group was a fool’s dream.
So what method should he use to punish Eric?
Kidnap Ella? No, he wouldn’t do anything illegal.
In business, he had no advantage over Eric.
Nicholas was troubled and decided to return to the hospital room to stay with Samantha, waiting for her recovery before making any further plans.
Ella’s belly was growing more noticeable, and every time Lucas visited Country S to see his daughter, he would be especially happy, bringing plenty of little princess dresses for the future princess.
They had bought everything for the baby. Since it was a girl, all the items had to be bought new.
For Ella and Eric, this process was almost an enjoyment.
A month passed, and Samantha had already been discharged from the hospital. She was staying at a villa Nicholas had temporarily rented.
Her leg injury had healed enough that she could move around freely, and Eric’s family had visited her several times.
Ella had even specially sent Samantha some expensive gifts, ensuring that Eric would feel that he didn’t owe her too much.
Samantha was straightforward and had no ulterior motives.
It was Nicholas, on the other hand, who became visibly grim every time he saw Ella and Eric, his words always harsh and unkind.
Ella finally came to believe that a person’s heart was judged by their actions—men’s hearts aren’t necessarily any more open than women’s.
Eric no longer paid much attention to Nicholas, as he considered him no real opponent.
Nicholas’ strength and wealth were nowhere near Eric’s, not even half. How could Eric possibly take him seriously?
If it weren’t for the fact that Nicholas was Samantha’s older brother, Eric really wouldn’t have bothered being polite.
One day, as the days drew nearer to the Spring Festival, the weather was bitterly cold. Eric wrapped himself in a black fur coat, braving the biting winds as he sat in his office, going through the latest contracts.
Samantha called him, telling him that in a week, she would be leaving Country S and returning to Y country.
Eric wasn’t sure what to say.
Though he was deeply grateful, and Samantha had left a good impression on him, when the words came to his lips, he couldn’t figure out what to say.
Other than Ella, he just couldn’t say anything particularly heartfelt to any other woman.
"Eric, I’m really sorry. My presence here might have been a bother to you, but I’m glad I didn’t do anything to make you hate me," Samantha’s soft voice came from the phone.
"Thank you, Samantha," Eric replied, his words brief.
Samantha let out a sigh of relief, and after bidding him farewell, she hung up.
Eric set the phone down, lazily leaned back in his chair, and rubbed his temples.
Good. She was leaving. Now he didn’t have to worry about anything. With Ella pregnant, she couldn’t handle any stress.
If Samantha had done anything extreme, he likely wouldn’t have spared her out of courtesy.
She had saved him once, and he was grateful, but that didn’t mean she could harm his most important family—his loved ones.
Just then, the secretary knocked on the door and walked in.
She was holding an urgent package.
"Mr. Nelson, there’s an urgent delivery for you. Please sign for it."
Eric looked up and noticed the package. It only had his name and address on it.
Urgent deliveries weren’t usually the norm for contracts; typically, someone from the company would hand them over in person.
He took the package and casually felt it, noticing that it seemed to contain photographs.
Eric signed for it, tore off the delivery slip, and handed it to the secretary. Once she left, he opened the package.
A large stack of photos spilled out.
At first glance, Eric saw a familiar face—his mother, Victoria.
He was puzzled. These photos seemed to be old, but who had sent them? Eric had similar photos at home.
He absentmindedly flipped through the photos, but then the style of the images suddenly shifted!
One by one, the photos that followed were shocking, leaving Eric’s blood running cold. He felt like he was suffocating...
In the photos, Victoria was lying on the ground, her body surrounded by a shocking pool of bright red blood!
These were pictures of Victoria’s suicide!
Eric’s breath quickened, his head beginning to ache.
Who had taken these photos?
He was only seven years old at the time, but he remembered it clearly. Besides the servants, Grace, James, and himself, no one else had been there!
Could these have been taken by the doctors when they arrived?
Perhaps a paparazzi had snuck into their garden, trying to catch James and Grace in a scandal, and had accidentally caught this tragic moment on film?