Chapter 612

Her heart clenched violently.

That dull ache slowly, gradually sharpened, as if countless needles were piercing her flesh all at once.

Suffocating.

Agonizing.

She felt on the verge of fainting.

That woman... Luna Clark.

She was the one who lured Liam away.

She was the one who caused Vivian to suffer so much.

The baby... was gone too.

Yet he remained silent.

His attitude was like a cold blade, plunging unexpectedly into her most vulnerable spot.

The newspaper slipped from her fingers, fluttering soundlessly onto the carpet.

Vivian looked up at him, her gaze vacant.

Her eyes grew hot, her vision quickly blurring.

A single tear rolled down her cheek without warning.

Her heart felt as if gripped by an invisible hand, twisted and wrung, the pain making it hard to breathe.

She tried to force a smile, but couldn't maintain the curve of her lips.

Her voice was hoarse, trembling uncontrollably.

"You promised..."

"That no matter what, as long as I agreed, you wouldn't be angry with me anymore."

"Were you... lying to me?"

She stared at him, tears streaming silently down her face.

"You always say I'm the one who lies, that I never keep my promises to you."

"Now... is it your turn to lie to me?"

Liam's brow furrowed deeply, a flicker of helplessness in his eyes.

"Vivian, I can agree to anything else."

"But not this."

"The real mastermind behind sabotaging our engagement wasn't her."

How could that be?

A chill shot from Vivian's feet straight to the top of her head.

She had asked him to kill Luna Clark.

And he said... no.

"I don't care!"

Vivian shot to her feet, her voice rising with emotion.

"It was her! She's the one who ruined my engagement! Who did this to me!"

"She betrayed you too! Liam, when did you become so merciful? You'd spare a woman who betrayed us, who ruined us?"

She glared at him, her chest heaving.

"You never hesitated to kill before! You wouldn't even spare innocent people!"

"Why make an exception for her?"

"What do you take me for?"

Liam rubbed his aching temple.

He didn't understand.

Vivian was so intelligent. How could she not see the bigger picture?

"Vivian, calm down."

"This is a setup. Those photos in the paper were clearly taken deliberately while I was unconscious."

"If you believe them, you're playing right into their hands."

"We still need her to find the real person behind this."

But Vivian stubbornly shook her head.

Tears fell like broken pearls, one after another.

She gave a bitter, choked laugh.

"All I know... is that you promised me."

"You said you'd do anything to earn my forgiveness."

"But you can't do this."

She lifted her tear-filled eyes, staring directly into his.

"Not being forgiven by me, or killing her."

"Choose one."

Deep down, she understood.

She understood his concerns, his calculations.

But she wanted proof.

Proof that what he loved now was only Vivian Bennett.

Proof that he would go to any lengths for her, break with the past, defy the whole world.

If only he would.

If only he would go mad for her this once.

Then... she was willing too.

Forget the grudges from their past lives.

Forget the child who died.

Forget all the blood and hatred that stood between them.

Stubbornly, believe in him one more time.

Even if heaven punished her, it didn't matter.

"Vivian, don't be unreasonable."

Liam's voice lowered, carrying a hint of suppressed anger.

"When did you become so willful?"

He didn't understand.

Why did Luna Clark have to die?

This wasn't a binary choice.

Vivian understood his meaning.

The wrenching pain in her heart instantly spread to her limbs.

She gave a faint, broken smile.

"Then consider me unreasonable."

"Consider... that I've always been this willful."

Tears blurred her vision.

She looked at him, each word spoken softly as a feather, yet heavy as a thousand pounds.

"I just wanted..."

"If you could also indulge my willfulness."

"Without asking any reasons, without weighing any pros and cons."

"Just for me, for who I am, to do without hesitation... what I want you to do."

"Even if it goes against your conscience, it wouldn't matter."

"Complete trust."

"Complete... treating me as the most important person in your heart."

"Is that... too much to ask?"

She was crying openly now, almost too choked to speak.

"Who says... I can't be willful?"

"Doesn't love... forgive everything?"

Liam was stunned.

He looked at her tear-streaked face, at the near-desperate hope in her eyes. His heart felt as if struck by something heavy.

"You said... you couldn't live without me."

Vivian closed her eyes gently, tears seeping from between her lashes.

"You were lying, weren't you?"

"If I were truly... that important to you."

"Why would you spare the person who hurt me, who ruined our engagement?"

"You can't... go all out for me, can you?"

"Vivian!"

Liam's voice rose sharply, filled with disbelief.

"You're being too extreme! How can you equate these things?"

Vivian gave a tragic smile.

She opened her eyes, her gaze empty as she stared ahead.

"Yes, I'm extreme."

"But... I could go all out for you."

Her voice was soft, yet each word was clear.

"Even though you once... hurt me deeply."

"I still chose to stay with you."

"Even though I know... because of your family, my family was destroyed, my parents died."

"I still stubbornly... wanted to be with you."

She turned her head, looking at him through tear-blurred eyes.

"Going against my own conscience and hatred."

"Defying heaven's punishment."

"I loved you... so much."

Each word was like a needle dipped in blood.

Piercing his heart.

Liam stood frozen, his throat blocked, unable to utter a sound.

He looked at her pale face, at her ceaseless tears. His heart ached with each beat.

He wanted to say something.

But found himself... speechless.

The air grew still.

Only the sound of her suppressed sobs remained, painfully clear in the silent room.

And painfully... sharp.