Chapter 24
The thought made Liam Kingsley’s gaze toward Lily Wilson turn several degrees colder. Before she could recover, he grabbed her by the collar and dragged her toward the artificial lake.
As if guessing his intentions, Lily clung to his leg, pleading desperately, “Liam, I was wrong! I know I messed up, but I really did save your lives! And my feelings for you were genuine! Please don’t do this, it hurts so much. Just let me go this once, okay?”
Hearing this, Liam stopped walking but kicked her hands away in disgust, his voice icy. “Don’t touch me. You’re filthy.”
Lily stared blankly at her hands, her back burning with pain, the scalding wounds on her front throbbing relentlessly. She never imagined she’d be treated with such contempt one day. The tenderness they’d once shown her had vanished in an instant.
“Why?” She lifted her head, looking up at the towering man beside her, unable to stop herself from asking. “I hid everything so well before. How did you all figure it out so suddenly?”
By the lake, Liam scoffed. “Hid it well? Don’t flatter yourself. We just chose to believe you before, we never dug deeper.”
Then, in the next second, he kicked her straight into the water.
Watching her flail in the lake, an inexplicable memory surfaced, Sophia Sterling’s despairing eyes that day in the water. Back then, they had saved Lily first and abandoned her. That look in Sophia’s eyes still haunted him.
“Liam! Ethan! Help me! I don’t want to die!”
Lily screamed for help over and over, but Liam remained unmoved, his expression cold.
Ethan Kingsley approached, taking in her near-drowning state. The sight instantly reminded him of Sophia that day, hardening his gaze. Just as Lily was about to lose consciousness, he signaled a bodyguard to pull her out.
The moment she caught her breath, she was shoved back under.
After several rounds, she stopped struggling entirely, her spirit broken, drowning in utter despair. Pleading was useless, it only invited more torment. She had no choice but to give up.
Seeing Lily’s lifeless state, Ethan waved a hand, and the bodyguard released her.
Lily collapsed on the ground, soaked and disheveled, her hair and clothes clinging to her, none of her usual delicate fragility in sight.
“I was wrong… I really know I was wrong. Please let me go. I’ll never dare again.”
Now, she truly regretted it. The Kingsley brothers were devils, far beyond her ability to manipulate! No matter how hard she tried, she could never surpass Sophia’s place in their hearts.
She had been so close… so close to replacing Sophia as the most important person to them.
Yet she couldn’t understand, why wouldn’t they let go, even after Sophia married another man? Why couldn’t they just look at her instead?
“Apologizing to us is pointless. The one you should be begging is Sophia.”
Ethan’s eyes were cold, devoid of mercy. He signaled the bodyguard to take Lily, then headed to Rosewood Manor with Liam.
But the warmly decorated villa remained dark even as night fell. If not for knowing Sophia lived there, they might have thought it abandoned.
Ethan and Liam exchanged a glance, tension flashing in their eyes.
Had something happened to Sophia?
The thought terrified them, and their hatred for Adrian Pierce burned fiercer.
Why hadn’t he protected her properly?
