Sam didn’t know how long he had been searching.
His body had just recovered from a severe illness, and the aftereffects of the anesthetic left him weak and exhausted.
Despite this, he refused to give up. He fell repeatedly but always got back up and continued forward.
“As long as I don’t see their bodies, I won’t believe they’re dead.”
His perseverance paid off when, just as he was about to collapse from exhaustion, Sam saw a familiar piece of fabric, bright red, hanging on a branch.
His eyes lit up with joy as he stumbled and crawled over to pick up the cloth.
“It’s hers!”
In this desolate land, who else would love wearing a red dress like she did?
With this clue, Sam’s hope was reignited.
Finally, he found them in a charred forest.
Gracie sat on the ground with her long hair flowing, surrounded by lifeless blackened land, with small flames flickering like serpents’ tongues.
Her vibrant red dress added a splash of color to the monochrome world.
“Mom…”
Sam shouted at her, but Gracie seemed not to hear him.
She cradled the person in her arms and spoke tenderly:
“Gregory, we promised never to leave each other. You also promised to take me around the world. Wake up… please don’t sleep.”
“You always said I was too foolish. What will I do without your protection? And Sam… our family has finally reunited. How can you bear to leave us?”
The person in her arms had already passed away. Judging by his cold body, he had died about two hours earlier.
He had kept his eyes open, holding onto his last breath, hoping to see the two people he loved most one last time.
In his final moments of mental clarity, Gregory’s eyes filled with tears as he looked at her face.
“Gregory, don’t leave me.”
She hadn’t cried in front of him since she was eighteen. Seeing her tears now broke Gregory’s heart.
But he no longer had the strength to hold his little girl and comfort her.
“Don’t be sad… I should have died long ago… Gracie, if… if there’s another life, would you marry me?”
As soon as he finished speaking, he coughed up blood.
The sight of blood terrified Gracie, and her tears flowed uncontrollably.
Gregory knew he had wronged her in this life. Dying in her arms was already a blessing from above.
But what about her? Did she stay with him out of love or gratitude?
This question had troubled Gregory all his life. Out of jealousy, he had made many mistakes that nearly drove Gracie to a mental breakdown.
“Gracie, promise me… okay.”
In the next life, he would never touch another woman and would love only her with all his heart.
In the next life, he would abandon fame and power and live a simple life with her and Sam.
In the next life… he really wished for another life.
“I promise you!” Gracie choked out.
Her hot tears fell on his lips, and Gregory licked them. So bitter. Is this the taste of tears?
He had once told her: Tears are a sign of weakness; only useless people use crying to hide their incompetence.
After that, she never cried in front of him again, no matter how much pain she endured.
But Gracie didn’t know that he later regretted saying that.
“Great! Gracie, take care of yourself and… and Sam.”
“In the next life… see you again.”
Silent tears fell from the man’s eyes as he finally closed them. So tired! He had never felt this exhausted in his entire life.
Seeing the woman he loved brought him peace; his only regret was not seeing his son one last time before dying.
Reflecting on his life, Gregory realized he had not been a good husband or father.
He had spent most of his life scheming, only to be outwitted and die far from home.
Wealth and glory were fleeting illusions; fame and power were like mirages-all meaningless.
Nothing was more important than cherishing what you have and the happiness around you!
But it was too late for him to realize this. If only he had understood sooner.
Goodbye, dirty world. Goodbye… dirty me.
With his final sigh, he slowly closed his eyes, his arm slipping from Gracie’s grasp, taking all her hopes and tears with it.
“Gregory!”
“Father!”
Arriving just a moment too late became a lifelong regret.
When Sam reached them, his father had just taken his last breath.
He couldn’t believe that the man who had held up the entire Lucas family, that cold and silent man, had really left him!
“Why… why didn’t you wait for me…”
Kneeling beside his father’s cooling body, Sam didn’t even have time to say goodbye.
Strong as he was, never showing vulnerability in front of others, today he cried like a child.
In this way, he was very much like Gracie, inheriting her stubbornness.
Gracie held Gregory tightly but still freed one hand to comfort Sam:
“Don’t cry; he didn’t like tears. See, I’m not crying either.”
“Mom.”
Sam collapsed into her arms, utterly exhausted from days of running without rest.
Above him came Gracie’s gentle voice:
“Sam, do you hear someone playing the piano? It sounds like ’13 Pairs of Eyes.'”
She softly hummed the elegant melody, looking at the two men she loved most in this life cradled in her arms.
“Mom, stop singing. Father is dead. You still have me.”
Sam reached out to wipe her tears but was caught off guard by what happened next.
Gracie took her own life.
The sound of the dagger slicing through flesh was muffled like stepping on snow. Blood flowed endlessly from her abdomen.
Her red dress blended perfectly with the blood.