Alice remained asleep, sleeping for an entire hour. When she awoke, she found the villa empty, and fear instantly embraced her.
She trembled as she called out, realizing a blanket was draped over her. She couldn’t even remember how she got home and had naturally forgotten that she was with Nicholas.
Seeing this blanket, she began to scream uncontrollably, even kneeling on the floor as she screamed.
Who covered her with this blanket? Was it Anna who followed her back? Indeed, the child must have come to claim her life. If she hadn’t argued with the child, Anna wouldn’t have died.
Nicholas heard her screams from upstairs and immediately rushed down, seeing her shivering and curling into a ball with the blanket, hurriedly patting her back.
"Don’t touch me! Don’t touch me!!"
Alice was utterly unaware of who was patting her, merely feeling goosebumps rise all over her body, her voice hoarse like a blood-stained oriole.
Nicholas suddenly pulled off the blanket from her head and then embraced her tightly.
"Alice, look at me; it’s okay. What are you afraid of?"
Alice continued to tremble all over, unable to stop, as though the shaking came from deep within.
Her upper and lower teeth chattered, unable to form a complete sentence.
"It’s okay now. Get some sleep, and tell me if you’re hungry."
Alice suddenly looked at the face in front of her, started to cry, and nestled into his embrace.
"Nicholas, I killed Anna. If only I had agreed to her request that day. If only I had gone with her to live in a small town, perhaps we could have lived freely. I was too greedy, too fond of fighting, and that’s why she’s dead..."
Everything she said was true, and Nicholas had no idea how to comfort her, merely pursing his lips and gently patting her shoulder.
After Alice calmed down, he carried her upstairs.
Passing by Anna’s room, she shrank back, not daring to look, burying her head in Nicholas’s chest.
"Nicholas, will you stay with me tonight? You’re all I have left, Nicholas..."
Alice just realized how truly pitiful she was; she had no relatives left.
From the moment she impulsively followed that man away, she had no family. Later, when Anna was born, that child became her only relative. Eventually, she fell in love with Nicholas, who then became her support.
But the things this man did made her realize that this support was false.
"Sleep, I’m here with you. If redemption is needed, it should be us together."
Nicholas said quietly, raising a hand to turn off the room lights, but Alice stopped him.
"Don’t turn them off; I want to sleep with the lights on."
She lay down gently on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
With no other option, Nicholas lay down beside her. Despite being so close before, they now had nothing to say.
Silence spread through the room, growing heavier and seemingly poised to swallow them whole.
In fear, Alice finally fell asleep.
Nicholas, however, couldn’t sleep, seeing Rachel’s shadow before him.
He recalled encountering Rachel at the hospital entrance today, and the guilt tormented him relentlessly. He was reminded that Eleanor never wanted to see him again, enveloping him in a profound sense of impotence.
He sighed and then turned over, gradually falling asleep.
On such a night, many cannot sleep, especially after dealing with Anna’s affairs; everything lately felt like a dream.
Eleanor was still watching TV, thinking about Anna’s untimely death, occasionally lost in thought.
Unable to resist, she looked at Anna’s will. Fınd the newest release on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚•𝕟𝕖𝕥
Anna’s will had already gone viral online, with everyone discussing her cause of death, and Alice, the mother, facing public condemnation.
After reading the will, Eleanor found herself not hating Alice at all.
If she were Anna, perhaps she would have done the same; the beliefs she was exposed to were ingrained, making her think everything she did was right.
Her mood was heavy; she frowned and shut down the computer.
Hugo had just come in from outside, seeing her still awake, unable to resist checking the time on his watch.
"I thought you’d be asleep by now; it’s eleven o’clock."
Eleanor spread her arms, "I’m waiting for you. You seem busy lately."
Hugo rubbed his brow, indeed busy, about to travel for work again—abroad this time—and he’d surely miss her.
He sank down slowly, pulling her into his arms.
"Don’t stay up late—and her death isn’t your business, Eleanor. Don’t punish yourself unnecessarily."
Eleanor pouted, unable to deny that reading Anna’s will left her feeling quite uncomfortable, as if something was clogging her heart. She didn’t know what it was, perhaps pity for that woman.
"How do you know I read that? Do you have eyes in the room?"
Hugo glanced at her, a faint smile on his lips,
"Because I know you so well. You’re so soft-hearted, like a steamed bun. She treated you like that before, and you’re still here foolishly mourning her."
Eleanor said nothing, tugging at his arm.
"How come you know me so well? I’m just empathetic."
She slowly lowered her gaze, aware that empathy was the least needed thing in today’s society.
The two embraced without speaking. Eleanor bit his arm gently, snorted softly, and finally drifted to sleep.
Hugo found it amusing, forcefully ruffled her hair in retaliation.
Though both were mature adults, they acted like children at this moment.
Meanwhile, next door, the actual child was already asleep.
The three woke almost simultaneously, meeting at the doorway.
Marcus had a tuft of hair sticking up, yawning, his eyes brightening upon seeing them.
"Dad, Mom, good morning! Hurry up and eat breakfast; I need to head to school."
Hugo frowned, remembering it was the weekend. Why was the child going to school?
"Marcus, it’s the weekend; do you still need to go to school?"
Marcus froze, pulling out his phone to check, his face falling.
"Turns out it’s the weekend, huh? So I can’t see Chloe. Last time I brought her a cake, she really liked it."
The more Marcus spoke, the more he felt the atmosphere around him growing silent. He turned his head, finding his parents eyeing him inquisitively.
His face flushed beet red, frantically waving his hands.
"No, it’s not like that. I just thought that girl is really annoying and needs snacks to keep her quiet, or she’d drive me crazy with her chatter."