Chapter 22
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Soren grimaced as he pressed his hand tightly against the wound on his neck. Thick drops of blood oozed through his fingers.
Zoe, sitting on the floor, burst out laughing. “Soren, remember when Sylvie ruptured her artery? I wonder if you’ll be as lucky as she was and whether they’ll be able to save you in time.”
Soren quickly pressed the call button beside the bed.
“Soren, do you know what I asked the system for before it left?” Seeing the panic in his eyes, she grinned with satisfaction. “I asked for 30 minutes. I had the system block all communication between this room and the outside world for 30 minutes.”
Soren stared at her, unsettled by her unhinged behavior, and staggered back. “Zoe, I never knew you were like this.”
“Who are you to judge me, Soren? You could’ve chosen not to love me and gone after Sylvie instead, or just stuck to the plot.”
Zoe continued, “Bat no, you had me stay with you, pushed Sylvie away, and then claimed you always loved her before leaving me!”
Blood continued to pour through Soren’s fingers as his thoughts began to blur.
“Soren, I want you to die right here in front of me.” Zoe twisted her lips into a sickly smile. “I want you to suffer the way Sylvie and I did. A man as disloyal as you
doesn’t deserve a happy ending. You don’t even deserve to be the male lead.”
Zoe’s face blurred in Soren’s vision as he fell to the ground. She grabbed the knife from the floor, stepped on his chest, and stabbed him over and over.
“It hurts…”
Soren’s lips quivered as memories from the past flooded his mind. He saw two versions of Sylvie–one as a little girl, the other as a young woman–both standing before him, speaking words he couldn’t understand.
He went after them, trying to listen, but they kept slipping away. Then, something caught his foot, and he fell hard. He saw Sylvie from his past life, whom he’d tortured and killed. Her body was still warm.
Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. She rose slowly. Her pale skin flaked away with each movement, and her dull, lifeless eyes locked onto his.
Sylvie kept him firmly pinned under her foot, and a sharp knife suddenly appeared in her hand. “Soren, I’m done loving you. I hate you!”
Sylvie’s illusion gradually blended into Zoe’s form. Both of them gripped their knives and stabbed Soren relentlessly as he lay helpless on the ground.
Zoe screamed with raw hatred as she ended Soren’s life with her own hands. She collapsed into the growing pool of blood, her hands shaking as she slowly pressed the blade to her own throat.
Her eyes flickered to the countdown on the wall. Only 15 minutes remained.
“Soren, I’ll never love you again.”
Tears ran down Zoe’s face as she raised her head. Once, she’d dreamed of being a poor but driven intern. In that dream, she’d never crossed paths with Soren.
Through her talent and relentless efforts, she’d won her superiors‘ respect, climbed the corporate ladder, and ultimately become the youngest female CEO in the company’s history.
Later, she’d found real love and built a loving, joyful family. Surrounded by her children, she’d died peacefully, her eyes closing in contentment.
In one quick motion, Zoe slit her carotid artery and fell to the floor.
As her consciousness faded, she murmured, “Goodbye, Soren. I, Zoe Lasky, am starting a new life, too.”
