Chapter 127
Everyone saw the bloodied shard of glass hit the floor and gasped in unison.
Natalie had fallen and was twisting on the ground in pain.
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Anathea was hurting too. When Natalie had tackled her, it had triggered a sharp, searing pain in her abdomen.
“Ah…” She clutched her stomach, nearly passing out from the agony. She could feel a warm flow pooling inside her body. The bodyguards nearby hesitated when they realized Natalie’s target was Anathea. They exchanged uncertain glances. They knew Anathea was Gregory’s wife.
But after Gregory had left, Eleanor had instructed them to escort Natalie to her follow–up appointment. With everything going down like this, none of them knew what the right move was anymore.
“What are you standing around for?” Natalie roared, struggling to her feet and pointing at Anathea. “Get her! Now!”
Suddenly, she felt a sharp sting on her face. “Ugh…”
She froze, catching the strange looks people were giving her. A bad feeling crept up her spine. She slowly reached up to touch her face, only to find her hand covered in blood.
Her scream pierced through the room. “My face! My face!”
She clutched the deep cut on her cheek. Her eyes were wide, unblinking. They almost popped out of her sockets.
“I–I’m disfigured…” she uttered tremblingly.
A wave of horror washed over her. The realization shattered her, and before anyone could react, her eyes rolled back as she passed out.
Overwhelmed by the pain in her abdomen, Anathea collapsed onto the floor as well.
The room instantly erupted into chaos. Nurses and doctors rushed in, quickly taking Natalie and Anathea to different departments for treatment.
In Syntherra, a light drizzle fell across the gray cemetery, veiling the grounds in a mist that made the entire place feel even more somber.
Gregory stood silently in a black suit, holding a black umbrella in one hand and a bouquet in the other. He slowly made his way to a row of gravestones.
Theo and Adrian followed behind him, both also dressed in black.
“I know you guys never liked plain white flowers, so I brought a bunch of colors,” Theo said softly. His eyes welled up as he looked at the three young, smiling faces on the gravestones. “I figured this is more your style.”
Adrian, pushing his wheelchair, gently placed the bouquets down beside each grave. His eyes were filled with grief.
Gregory knelt in front of one of the graves and wiped the rain off the photo. Then, he pulled out a bottle of white wine, pouring a drink for each of them.
Exactly five years ago today, they’d been talking about their futures. Yet, only a few hours later, news had broken out that a bridge had collapsed on the outskirts of Castenea. The three of them were on patrol when it happened.
Only Adrian survived, though he’d been crushed under the rubble and become disabled. He’d been in a coma for three whole
months.
Gregory had been in the middle of leading a major international meeting for his company’s overseas strategy when it happened. That project was the result of years of collective effort. So, even though he’d been shattered, he’d forced himself to stay until the
Chapter 127
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very end and finish what they’d started.
By the time he’d made it back to Syntherra, the funerals were already over. All that had been left were three gravestones.
Theo had looked like a ghost back then–sunken and hollow. He’d grabbed Gregory by the collar and screamed at him for being heartless, for abandoning them. Gregory couldn’t defend himself.
Six months later, he’d quietly gathered every piece of evidence he could find and launched a brutal takedown of Adam and the Jacobson family–the ones responsible for everything.
The Jacobson family, once untouchable in Castenea, had collapsed overnight when Adam was taken down. Everyone who was tied to him had been ruined as well.
That was the only way Gregory had known how to mourn them–by making sure justice was served.
Now, five years later, the photos on the graves still showed the same bright, fearless smiles.
But the three men standing in front of them had changed. Gone was the unshakable confidence of youth. In its place was silence, sorrow, and the weight of everything time had taken away.
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