Chapter 2

Nathan POV

I came out of the shower and habitually headed for the master bedroom.

Pushing the door open, I found it empty. The bed was neatly made, without a trace of warmth.

I frowned, a strange feeling flickering within me. Whenever we argued before, Alicia would wrap herself in a blanket and cry silently, waiting for me to hold her, to comfort her. Her injured hand would ache on rainy days, and she couldn't sleep without my soothing presence.

But tonight, she wasn't there.

I irritably rubbed my temples, then went to the study. I thought Alicia might be waiting there for me to console her, but pushing that door open, it was also empty.

I scoffed, thinking Alicia's playing mind games had gone a bit too far this time. Too lazy to search further, I lay down directly on the study sofa.

Anyway, in less than three days, she would come back to me like a stray dog that couldn't live without me, wagging her tail. How could a useless woman who couldn't even hold a scalpel survive without me?

The next morning, I was woken by the piercing sound of an electric drill downstairs.

I immediately rushed down and pushed open the door to the storage room on the first floor.

The scene inside made my pupils contract sharply. The floor was covered in blood and broken glass, a truly horrifying sight. Seraphina stood there, pale-faced, while Alicia lay in a pool of blood.

I didn't hesitate, stepping over Alicia on the floor, and pulled Seraphina into my arms.

"What happened? Are you hurt?" I anxiously scrutinized Seraphina.

Seraphina immediately put on a wronged expression, her eyes slightly red.

"Nathan, I just wanted to help you clear out the storage room to make it a media room. A big news story is about to break."

"I didn't know that old tape recorder was so important to Alicia. She suddenly rushed at me, trying to hit me. In a moment of fear, I pushed her in self-defense... I really didn't mean to."

My face instantly darkened.

I turned, looking down at Alicia, who was lying in a pool of blood, desperately trying to piece together shattered tape. My eyes were filled with disgust and disappointment.

"Alicia, haven't you caused enough trouble?!" I roared, "Seraphina is a key asset to the company. She pulled several all-nighters to suppress negative news."

"What's wrong with me asking her to turn this into a workspace? Not only do you show no consideration, but you act like a madwoman and resort to violence! Look at you now, so hysterical. Where's the decorum befitting high society?"

Alicia froze.

She slowly raised her head, looking at me. Blood dripped from her fingertips onto the floor, a gruesome sight. But in my eyes, there was only Seraphina's fright.

"She smashed Ryan's belongings," Alicia's voice was as light as a breeze, yet filled with bone-chilling despair. "Nathan, that was Ryan's last voice, the last thing he left me."

I paused, my gaze sweeping over the pile of junk on the floor, a flicker of irritation in my eyes.

"It's just a broken tape recorder, isn't it? If it's broken, it's broken. I'll have someone buy you a hundred new ones tomorrow! Is it really worth all this trouble, making a mess of the house and hurting Seraphina, over such a trivial thing?"

"A hundred new ones," Alicia suddenly laughed, tears streaming down her face.

She swayed, rising to her feet, her right hand still bleeding profusely. She looked at me, the last flicker of light in her eyes extinguished completely.

"Nathan, you're disgusting."