Chapter 26
Three days later, early in the morning, when Vivian Bennett walked downstairs fully dressed, she saw Charles Foster kneeling upright before her godmother.
The moment he saw her, Charles smiled.
He still called her Vivian, as if the past few days had never happened.
His features were as striking as ever, his smile as charming as before-
Only now, nothing about him could stir her heart again.
Her voice was ice-cold.
“What are you doing here again? I don’t need your trash. If you’re that desperate to give them away, send them to your
beloved Diana.”
At the mention of Diana’s name, a flash of pain crossed Charles’ eyes.
He shook his head slowly.
“Vivian, can we not talk about her anymore?”
“I came to apologize. From the moment I realized where my heart truly lies-everything I’ve done has been for you.”
As he spoke, he placed a whip into Vivian’s hand.
It was three times thicker than his finger, lined densely with tiny barbed hooks.
“These hooks,” he said evenly, “are modeled after piranha teeth.”
“Each one coated in venom.”
“The pain my parents felt before they died-what you went through back then-I want it repaid today, a hundred, a
thousand times over.”
Vivian’s breath faltered, but her gaze stayed ice-cold.
“You think this will repay what you and your family did to me and my parents?”
Charles’ voice grew darker.
“If it can earn your forgiveness, I’m willing to try.”
As soon as he finished speaking-crack!
Vivian raised the whip and struck hard across his back.
The barbs ripped into his flesh, leaving a long, wet line of blood in their wake.
Charles gritted his teeth, choking down the scream clawing at his throat.
His eyes bled red at the edges, his voice unsteady,
“I didn’t know Diana was a murderer.”
Another lash landed.
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Charles’ body jerked violently.
His fists clenched, neck veins bulging from the strain.
Just then, Northon Shea approached silently, carrying a medical kit.
He gently wrapped Vivian’s palm with gauze, his voice soft.
“Don’t hurt yourself.”
Charles’ gaze locked onto their overlapping hands:
And somehow, that cut deeper than any lash.
He muttered through clenched teeth,
“Diana lied to me.”
“She told me your mother fell accidentally. That your father’s death was a mishap-she said the rope slipped from her
hands.”
Northon’s hand trembled.
His voice quivered, “And… my sister?”
Charles closed his eyes.
“She envied your sister’s beauty. Said she was trying to take her place in the company.”
“But she told me… your sister drugged her first, that it was an accident…”
Crack-the third lash snapped down.
Charles coughed up a mouthful of blood.
“I believed every word of her lies. I deserve this.”
…Ten full lashes.
His bare back was soaked in blood, each wound blooming like a red flower across his flesh.
His body swayed, nearly collapsing.
Yet even as the world blurred and tilted, his eyes never strayed from Vivian’s face.
Bloodied lips moved faintly.
“I’m sorry…”
Vivian panted, chest heaving, before tossing the whip to the ground with a sharp flick.
“You made your choices, Charles. Whether she lied or not doesn’t matter.”
“Don’t think I’ll forgive you because of this.”
Charles smiled faintly and forced himself upright.
He reached out, gently tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, like he was handling something priceless and
irreplaceable.
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“That’s fine. I owed you this, always.”
With those words, Charles finally lost his strength-
And collapsed to the floor.
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