Isabelle’s eyes remained widened in surprise as she finally understood why Richard, Victoria, and Martin had all been standing motionlessly and staring in the same direction.
For a brief moment, Tyler’s heart swelled with hope. He had imagined this reunion countless times during the blank moments that haunted his mind, how Isabella would run toward him with tears streaming down her face.
And imagined her throwing herself into his arms while asking where he had been for the past two years. He also imagined her crying, laughing, and refusing to let him go after believing he was dead.
Instead…
She simply rolled her eyes.
Without saying a single word to him, Isabella calmly turned her back on Tyler as though he were nothing more than an insignificant stranger. She smiled at Martin once again before reopening the wedding magazine.
“Look at this design again. The more I see it, the more I feel it’s perfect. Don’t you think the embroidery around the neckline is beautiful?” she said cheerfully, pointing at one of the pages.
Martin leaned over the magazine with a smile. “I think it’ll look amazing on you,” he replied warmly. “Honestly, you’d look beautiful in anything.”
Isabella giggled softly before nudging his shoulder playfully.
Tyler stood rooted to the spot. His eyes narrowed in utter disbelief.
“Isabella,” he called again, his voice carrying both confusion and pain.
This time, Isabella turned around much more slowly. Unlike the first time, there wasn’t a trace of surprise on her face. Instead, her expression was cold, impatient, and irritated.
“What?” she demanded bluntly.
Tyler unconsciously stepped backward. He swallowed hard before forcing a smile onto his face.
“I’m back,” he said softly. “I finally came home.”
Isabella folded her arms across her chest.
“I can see that,” she replied indifferently. “So?”
Tyler blinked several times.
“So?” he repeated.
He struggled to find the right words.
Before he could speak again, Isabella interrupted him.
“What exactly do you expect me to do?” she asked mockingly. “Should I organize a grand celebration because a madman decided to come back? Should I throw a welcome party for you?”
Tyler’s mouth slowly fell open.
He stared at the woman he had loved with all his heart, unable to recognize the person standing before him.
“What… what are you saying?” he asked weakly.
Before Isabella could answer, Victoria stepped forward with a triumphant smile on her face.
“Why are you looking so surprised?” she asked sarcastically. “Shouldn’t you be ashamed of yourself instead?”
Tyler slowly turned toward her.
Victoria folded her arms and looked him up and down with open disgust.
“If you aren’t mad,” she continued, “then explain something to me. Where are your clothes?”
Tyler instinctively looked down at his naked body.
“I…” he began.
Victoria didn’t give him the opportunity to explain.
“Oh, that’s right,” she said with a fake look of realization. “I almost forgot where your clothes went.”
She laughed loudly before looking toward Isabella.
“Do you remember that day?” she asked.
Isabella nodded calmly.
“How could I ever forget?”
Victoria smiled with satisfaction before turning back to Tyler.
“On the very day you were supposed to marry Isabella Prescott, the first daughter of the great Prescott family, everyone gathered to witness the wedding. Hundreds of important guests attended.”
She deliberately paused before continuing, “And then you decided to shame everyone.”
Tyler frowned deeply and asked, “What are you talking about?”
Victoria ignored the question.
“You suddenly started laughing like a lunatic while everyone watched. Then, without warning, you ripped your expensive wedding suit right off your body until you were standing completely naked in front of every single guest.”
Tyler’s breathing became heavier.
“No..,” he said in shock.
“You shouted nonsense that nobody could understand,” Victoria continued mercilessly. “After that, you ran out of the wedding hall completely naked like a wild dog escaping from its cage. You didn’t even look back.”
Every word felt like a hammer striking Tyler’s chest.
“No,” he whispered. “That didn’t happen.”
Victoria laughed coldly.
“Didn’t it? Hundreds of people witnessed it with their own eyes.”
She looked toward Richard.
“Didn’t they?” He asked.
Richard remained silent, but the disappointment on his face answered the question better than words ever could.
Victoria smiled triumphantly.
“The Prescott family was so humiliated that they nearly cut off all ties with us. We became the laughingstock of the entire city because of you.”
She suddenly reached out and affectionately held Martin’s arm.
“But fortunately,” she continued proudly, “my son wasn’t a useless disgrace like you.”
Martin smiled modestly.
Victoria looked at him with obvious pride.
“Martin stepped in and gradually repaired the damaged relationship between the Voss and Prescott families. He earned everyone’s respect through his character, his intelligence, and his maturity.”
She looked directly into Tyler’s eyes.
“And eventually…”
She smiled even wider.
“He won Isabella’s heart.”
Isabella reached for Martin’s hand without hesitation.
The two of them intertwined their fingers naturally, almost as though they had been together for years.
Victoria chuckled and added, “Now they’re getting married.”
Tyler felt his world collapse around him. His breathing became shallow. An unbearable pain spread through his chest.
His hand instinctively pressed against his heart as though trying to stop it from breaking apart.
“No…” he whispered.
“This can’t be happening.”
He looked desperately at Isabella.
“Tell me she’s lying.”
Isabella looked at him calmly before tightening her grip around Martin’s hand.
“She’s not lying,” Isabella replied without emotion. “Martin and I love each other.”
Those simple words shattered whatever hope Tyler still had.
“How has everything changed so completely?” he said to himself.
Before Tyler could recover from the devastating blow, Richard finally spoke.
His deep voice echoed across the courtyard.
“To be honest,” Richard said coldly, “I never imagined that Selena would give birth to someone like you.”
Tyler slowly lifted his head.
Richard looked directly into his eyes.
“I honestly believed I had a son.”
“But now…”
He shook his head with disappointment.
“I realize she gave birth to nothing more than a madman.”
The mention of his mother struck Tyler harder than everything else combined.
His eyes instantly turned red.
He clenched his fists tightly.
“Please…” he said in a trembling voice. He slowly shook his head.
“Dad… please don’t disrespect my mother.”
His voice cracked with emotion.
“She has already passed away.”
“Please let her rest in peace.”
Richard merely snorted.
“If she had raised you properly before she died, perhaps this family wouldn’t have become the joke of the city.”
Tyler closed his eyes tightly. His entire body shook with grief and anger.
Just as Tyler slowly opened his eyes again, an excruciating pain exploded inside his head.
“Argh!”
He suddenly grabbed both sides of his head.
His breathing became frantic and the world around him blurred.
Then…
Images flashed before his eyes.
They came so suddenly that Tyler couldn’t tell whether they were memories or hallucinations.
He saw the front gate of the Voss Mansion.
The gates burst open violently.
A tall man dressed entirely in a black fighting robe calmly walked inside the estate.
His face was expressionless.
The mysterious man continued walking toward the mansion without slowing down.
Richard stood in the courtyard exactly where he was standing now.
The stranger calmly threw a thick document onto the table.
“Sign it,” the man ordered coldly.
Richard glanced at the document before shaking his head.
“I refuse.”
The stranger’s expression remained unchanged.
“You only have one chance.”
“I said no,” Richard replied firmly.
The next moment…
Four silver daggers appeared in the stranger’s hands almost magically.
Before Richard could react, the man flicked his wrist.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The daggers flew across the courtyard like streaks of lightning.
They pierced Richard’s arms and legs before embedding themselves into the wall behind him.
Richard screamed in agony as his body was nailed helplessly against the wall.
The mysterious man slowly approached Richard.
He leaned close enough for only Richard to hear.
“Something is coming,” he warned coldly.
“You should leave this place immediately… if you wish to live.”
The vision disappeared instantly.
Tyler gasped violently before collapsing onto his knees.
His entire body was soaked with sweat.
“What happened?” Martin asked with a mocking grin.
Tyler looked up at Richard with terrified eyes.
“Dad!”
His voice echoed through the courtyard.
“You have to leave this mansion immediately!”
Everyone looked at him strangely.
Tyler hurried to his feet despite his dizziness.
“Please listen to me,” he begged urgently. “Something terrible is coming. I don’t know what it is, but I saw someone walking into this mansion. He’ll force you to sign a contract. When you refuse, he’ll stab you with four daggers and pin you against the wall.”
Richard frowned deeply.
Tyler continued desperately.
“Please, Dad. You have to believe me. Leave here immediately before it’s too late.”
For a brief second…
Silence filled the courtyard.
Then Martin burst into laughter.
“Hahaha!”
He held his stomach as he laughed uncontrollably.
“I knew it,” he said between laughs. “He’s completely insane.”
Victoria laughed just as loudly.
“I’ve never heard such ridiculous nonsense in my life.”
Isabella shook her head in disappointment before looking at Tyler as though he were someone beyond saving.
“I almost felt sorry for you when I first saw you,” she admitted coldly. “But now I can see everyone was right.”
She sighed.
“You really are a madman.”
Richard’s expression became even colder.
He looked at Tyler with complete disappointment.
“So this is your latest fantasy?” he asked.
Tyler desperately shook his head before saying.
“No, Dad. I’m telling the truth.”
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