A Journey from Bitterness to Truth

Yvan’s grip on Matilda’s neck was like a vice. “Don’t you want to see your son again?”

Matilda’s eyes narrowed in a mix of fear and defiance. “Are you threatening me with Logan?”

“He might not carry the surname Thompson in the future…” Yvan sneered, “He’ll take my name and forget all about you, his so–called mother!”

“Over my dead body!” Matilda struggled furiously. “Let go of me! Logan is my child, and you–using him to blackmail me–you’re a monster!”

“If you know where it hurts, then behave yourself.” Yvan’s piercing gaze pinned Matilda down, and his eyes fell on her partially exposed chest, igniting a flame of desire within him.

His voice was husky as he held Matilda’s wrist so tightly she thought it would break, “Yvan, let me go. I’ve served five years; why are you still tormenting me?” Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“Because.” The man’s hands pressed against her, his smile as chilling as a demon’s. His face, though handsome, was twisted with a ferocity that sent shivers down her spine.

In his eyes, Matilda saw a rage that could destroy everything, saw her disheveled and powerless self spiraling into the abyss…

Whispers of a curse echoed in her ears, “Your punishment is far from over.”

“Not over… Why not… Yvan, how much more hope will you steal from me…” she couldn’t help but say.

Eventually, unable to bear Yvan’s cruelty, Matilda bit down on her own tongue at the brink of collapse– perhaps in the hope of release.

Yvan shouted in disbelief, “You’d rather die than face me? Matilda? Don’t you dare!”

When Matilda woke up again, it was dusk. The first thing she saw was her son, Logan, and beside him was a woman she recognized from a bar–Evie.

Evie raised an eyebrow at Matilda, “Well, look who’s not dead.”

“Where am I?” She wondered.

12:40

Logan saw the confusion in her eyes. “Mom… we’re at the Boyd residence. Mr. Boyd brought you here last night.”

Boyd residence? Then why was Evie here?

Evie laughed arrogantly. “Ah… Mr. Boyd asked me to come over, of course. Seriously. he’s so tough on me. Said we had to keep a low profile, and then he invites me over to his house…”

Logan’s hand clenched tightly at his side, his small frame trembling. After what felt like an eternity, he lifted his head and gently touched Matilda’s face, “Mommy, does it hurt?”

Matilda shook her head, her eyes catching the tears in Logan’s.

Seeing your own father bring another woman home right in front of your mom would be too much for, any kid, wouldn’t it?

Matilda let out a bitter laugh just as Yvan walked in.

Behind him trailed a personal doctor, the same man who had recognized her in the hospital before, who now sighed in relief, “Lucky you didn’t have the strength, or the damage could’ve been severe. If

you’d really bitten down hard, it could’ve been fatal.” A look of despair crossed Matilda’s eyes, for in that moment, she had truly intended to end her life.

Yvan just watched her pale face without a word, his eyes a tangled web of guilt and conflict.

Matilda wanted to laugh, thinking. “Guilty for what, the pain you caused? Yvan, hearts are made of flesh, and they can only take so much pain before they die.”

And at that moment, Evie suddenly spoke up. “Mr. Boyd, since she’s awake now, let’s just let her go. Stop meddling in her life.”