Chapter 12
“Why did this happen? How did it turn out like this… What was the reason? Why did the fire start?
“Norah! You asked me for so much money, but you never even spent a single penny! You love money the most, don’t you? I’ll give you all my money! As long as you tell me this is just a joke, I’ll give you everything!
“Norah!” Justin roared in despair.
In the past, he had resented Norah’s greed and materialism, but now, he wished more than anything that this was just another one of her schemes to extort money from him. If he handed over everything, would she smile and come back to him?
But no matter how many times he called her name, there was no response. In this vast wasteland of ashes, the woman he loved was truly gone.
“Norah… Norah!” Justin called her name weakly, his tears falling uncontrollably.
Even though she had hurt him time and again, he still couldn’t forget her. He had sworn that marrying Selena would be the end of their past, yet… Why did she leave him again?
“Norah, you are so heartless. Did I ever matter to you, even for a second?” he wondered to himself as he sobbed.
He couldn’t even hold her one last time. The overwhelming pain engulfed him, suffocating him amidst the ruins. Why had she left him again? Why couldn’t he let her go?
Watching Justin collapse into madness, Jeremy hesitated for a moment before stepping forward, revealing an earth–shattering truth.
“Mr. Johnson, when we were matching DNA to confirm the victim’s identity, we discovered that Ms. Serpentine was actually the person who donated a kidney to you back then.
“According to the hospital’s surveillance records, she left immediately after the surgery without even staying to recover. That’s why there were no detailed records at the time.”
It was like a bolt of lightning splitting the sky. Justin’s face turned deathly pale.
Back then, he had seen Selena by his side when he first woke up. He had noticed the scar on her waist, and combined with the nurses‘ vague responses, he had always believed that Selena was the one who had donated her kidney to save him. That was why he had agreed to date her.
It all turned out to be a lie.
“Also, when you were on that business trip and got caught in an avalanche, Ms. Serpentine was the one who risked her own life to save you…”
One by one, these truths were revealed before Norah’s lifeless body. With each word Jeremy uttered, the pain in Justin’s heart grew heavier until he could no longer bear it.
“Norah!” he bawled
He had always thought she never cared about him and never spared him a second thought. But now, he realized that Norah had sacrificed herself for him time and time again behind his back.
If that was the case, why did she leave him? Why didn’t she tell him? If she had only said the word, he would have given up everything for her…
Why? Why did she silently endure all his resentment and cruelty? How much pain did she suffer? Why didn’t she tell him that she loved him, too?
Tears streamed down Justin’s face, his broken sobs swallowed by the night. Overwhelming grief crashed over him, drowning him in an abyss of despair.
The sky was scattered with stars, shining silently over the stillness of the night. And beneath them, before the grave of the one who was lost, the truth–at last–was laid bare.
