Taking the phone quickly, Estelle said, “Don’t come here! I’m safe. Do you hear me, Cristofer? Don’t come here anymore!”
Hearing her voice, Cristofer breathed a sigh of relief and responded, “I’m relieved to know you’re safe.”
“I’m out of danger. Listen to me. Don’t come here,” Estelle implored.
Before she could say more, Victor seized the phone and declared, “Did you hear her? She’s safe and unharmed.”
Cristofer’s expression darkened when Estelle’s voice abruptly disappeared, replaced by Victor’s rough tone. He then exclaimed sternly, “I’ll be there soon. Let her go.”
“Who are you to order me in such a domineering tone?” Victor was annoyed.
“I’m not ordering you. I’m begging you. You can kill me and do whatever you want to me. Let her go first.”
“You come here first,” Victor said as he turned on the lighter in his hand and looked at the small fire. “Let’s get everything over and done with before the sun rises tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Cristofer said in a tired voice.
Hearing Victor’s words, Estelle asked him, “What are you going to do?”
Turning off the lighter, Victor showed an evil smile and said, “Do you see the forest in the distance? I’ll make him disappear there without any traces.”
Estelle froze, and her face turned pale in an instant.
Handing the phone to her again, Victor ordered, “Have a good talk with him and say whatever you want to say. You won’t have a chance to talk with him anymore after he dies tomorrow.”
After saying that, he turned around, walked into his house, and closed the door.
“Estelle?” Cristofer’s gentle voice came from the other end of the line.
Putting the phone to her ear, Estelle couldn’t help calling his name in a sobbing tone, “Cristofer…”
“Are you crying?” Cristofer’s voice sounded both gentle and anxious. “Don’t be afraid. I’m going to save you. Keep yourself safe. If Victor wants to… do something to you, don’t resist or irritate him in case he does anything to hurt you out of desperation. Got it?”
In a flood of tears, Estelle tried her best to make her voice sound normal and said, “Can you accept it if I… sleep with him?”
Hearing Estelle’s words, Cristofer smiled bitterly and said, “Nothing is more important than your life. Besides, I’m very likely to die together with Victor tomorrow. It’s pointless to care about this. I just want you to be alive.”
Estelle didn’t say anything.
“Estelle, please listen carefully. Victor and I will meet at the designated location tomorrow morning, and he won’t be home. You can use this chance to escape. I’ve arranged everything. Head east after leaving his house, and you’ll find a small shop. Ron will be waiting for you there.”
“…”
“When you return home, take good care of Grandpa and the children. And, if you ever meet someone right for you in the future, seize the opportunity and don’t let him slip away.”
“…”
“By the way, don’t rely on Dr. Carrey. Avoid being with him. If you face any difficulties, you can turn to Justin for help. Don’t trust others easily, okay?”
“…”
“Estelle, I understand that I may not deserve to say the following words, but I must say them because I may not have another chance,” Cristofer said nervously, his voice trembling slightly. After a pause, he continued, “Estelle, I love you deeply. I love you more than words can express. I regret so much, and I can’t bear the thought of you marrying another man. It pains me that we can’t spend our lives together. We’ve been married twice. We registered our marriage the first time but didn’t have a wedding ceremony. We had a wedding the second time but didn’t register it officially. Nonetheless, you are my wife.”
Tears kept streaming down Estelle’s cheeks. Cristofer’s words moved her, but she knew that she must stop Cristofer from coming here, so she said hurtful words to him again, “Stop it. Don’t say such words anymore. Cristofer, I don’t love you and don’t want to see you anymore. And I don’t need you to save me. I’m happy when I am staying with Victor. You don’t need to come here.”
As soon as she finished her words, she quickly hung up the phone, turned it off, and threw it into the wasteland nearby. Then she walked back into Victor’s house. It was already dark. The light in Victor’s house was on, while the light in his adoptive parents’ house was off.
“Have you finished talking with him?” Victor was leaning against the head of his bed with his legs crossed and reading a book.
Without answering his question, Estelle looked at the cover of the book and saw the book’s name. The book’s name is… ‘Running Away With the CEO’s Baby?’ Doubting that she had misread it, she rubbed her eyes and took a look at the big pink characters on the cover again. Then she was speechless.
Noticing her gaze, Victor sneered and said, “Why don’t you answer my question? You two will be parted by death soon. Did you say goodbye to him?”
Estelle still didn’t answer his question, walking to a small stool and sitting down. Then she asked him with sarcasm, “Did you ‘take’ this book in the bookstore before we came here?”
“Don’t change the topic,” Victor sat up and said, “Where’s my phone? Did you throw it away?”
Estelle’s heart skipped a beat, and she didn’t say anything.
“I knew you would do that,” Victor smiled sarcastically, “To save him, you must have tried every means to stop him from coming. You must have said something hurtful such as ‘I hate you,’ ‘I will never forgive you,’ and ‘I don’t want to see you anymore,’ right?”
Frowning slightly, Estelle asked, “How did you know that?”
“I guessed it. Once a woman loves a man, she will do whatever she can do to keep him safe when she knows that he will be in danger. As I said, you still love him. So it’s not difficult to guess what you have said to him,” Victor rolled his eyes.
Hearing this, Estelle glared at him, “Cristofer is the father of my children, after all.”
“You went against me again. Aren’t you afraid that I will kill you?”
Raising her head, Estelle looked at him and snapped, “Didn’t you say that you would let me go?”
“But I also told you I won’t let you go if you ruin my plan.”
“Alright,” Estelle answered shortly and nodded blankly.
Surprised by her reaction, Victor growled, “It looks like you are not afraid that I will kill you.”
“I am afraid.”
“But you still tried your best to save Cristofer regardless of your safety,” Victor said loudly.
“I…”