Chapter 0129

Suzy’s parting words: “I won’t hesitate to make you pay for this relentless loop in Dylan’s can.” His gaze darkened, bloodshot with frustration. “Am I really that worthless in your eyes?”

“Yes,” Suzy responded without hesitation. “You’ve never been any kind of decent person. Falling in love with you was the worst mistake I ever made.”

She left him standing there, her words resounding in his mind. “So, she married me out of love?” he wondered, stunned. But how could she have fallen in love with him when they’d barely known each other before marriage?

Determined to find answers, Dylan returned to the Wright family estate, heading to the garden where he found Grace tending to her flowers. As the setting sun cast a warm glow over the vibrant blooms, he was suddenly reminded of all those times Suzy had helped Grace care for this very garden over the past three years. Whenever she had a moment, she’d come over, planting and weeding alongside Grace. Back then, he’d dismissed her gestures as mere attempts to gain Grace’s favor. Even as he watched Grace’s health improve, he’d never given Suzy credit.

Grace looked up, studying him with a knowing expression. Seeing his silence and troubled gaze, she didn’t console him. Instead, she tilted her head, amusement flickering in her eyes. “Regretting now?”

Diana had already told her everything that had happened at the Goodwin estate, so she knew exactly why he was here, even if he hadn’t said a word. After all, she’d raised him and understood his nature better than anyone.

Seeing the mix of exasperation and smug satisfaction on her face, he stepped forward to help water the newly planted flowers. “I remember you once mentioned that marrying Suzy wasn’t just about repaying a debt.”

“Hmph…” Grace didn’t hide her displeasure. “Oh, so now you want to listen to me?”

How many times had she tried to tell him this very thing, only for him to brush her off every single time?

Dylan’s gaze narrowed. “How much do you really know about Suzy?”

“Oh, are you still worried she had ulterior motives?” Grace raised her small trowel, looking like she wanted to smack him with it. “You’re not wrong, she did have a motive—but it wasn’t for your money. It was because she wants you.”

His grip tightened on the watering can. “Did she tell you that?”

Grace shook her head with a sigh. “Does she have to? Anyone with eyes could see how she felt about you. Everyone but you, apparently.”

She watched him, her frustration evident. “For three years, she handled every detail of your life herself. If she was only after money, why go to all that trouble? And after the divorce, she left with nothing. Didn’t that make you question whether you’d misjudged her?”

Grace’s words left Dylan in a turmoil of regret and confusion, especially as she added, “It might be a little too late for you now.”

Thinking of the care Suzy showed toward Claude, an unsettling pang of jealousy and loss constricted his chest. Was it really too late? Suzy hadn’t left Claude’s side since he was placed in the ICU. Fearful of another incident, she refused to step away, not even for a moment. She’d never known time to crawl as slowly as it did that night. The hours felt stretched into eternity, and she kept expecting him to wake.

By all accounts, he should have woken up by now—the anesthesia had long worn off, and she’d even given him a life-restoring pill she’d developed herself. It had never failed her before, and yet, despite two hours having passed, Claude showed no sign of waking. As the minutes ticked by, the weight of dread pressed on her chest, nearly suffocating her.