When Annabelle Linton saw this, a single thought screamed through her mind: ’What the actual fuck.’

She immediately tried to shift from side to side, intending to pull her hand free, but she didn’t dare struggle for fear of accidentally hurting him.

’What the fuck is this psycho trying to do now?!’

’Murder is illegal!’

’If something happened to him, my hand would be on the weapon. Based on the fingerprints, it would look exactly like I stabbed him!’

’Holy shit, is this psycho trying to frame me and send me to prison?’

’What did I ever do to deserve this? Can’t he just let me have my engagement in peace?!’

"Leona Grant, listen to me, calm down! We can talk this out. Let’s just talk, okay? This isn’t going to solve anything!"

’For attempted murder, wouldn’t I end up rotting in prison?’

Annabelle, who wasn’t usually one to let her imagination run wild, was now envisioning countless disastrous outcomes, apparently having forgotten everything Leona had just said.

Leona’s eyes misted over as he gazed at her, his voice full of affection. "Annabelle, I know I’ve hurt you deeply in the past and made you lose all hope and feelings for me. But that’s okay. From now on, no one will ever bother you or disturb you again. Am I finally doing something that makes you happy? Are you happy?"

Annabelle: "..."

’Could I possibly say I’m not happy at all?’

’I still have hopes for this world. I still want to live!’

Annabelle’s brow furrowed. Done caring whether she might accidentally hurt him, she began to yank her hand with all her might.

But his grip was too tight; she couldn’t break free. Annabelle glared at him in frustration. "What the hell kind of scene are you making now? If you want to die, no one’s stopping you, but what’s the big idea pulling this suicide stunt on me? And that’s my knife! If you want to kill yourself, find your own weapon. I’m not lending you mine!"

With that, she resumed struggling to free her hand.

Leona gazed at her lovingly, as if he could never look at her enough. He reached out with his free hand to gently caress her face.

"Don’t worry. I made my decision before I even came here today. If anything happens to me, you won’t get into any trouble."

He looked at her with a pained, vulnerable expression full of longing. "You silly girl... I know how good you were to me back then. I remember every single bit of it, clear as day. It’s just... a little too late. Too late to fix anything... But that’s okay. When you make a mistake, you have to face the consequences. I understand that."

’But I already told him I don’t need this.’

"You..."

Annabelle opened her mouth to speak, but Leona gave her no chance. "In the days to come, when I’m not by your side, you have to take good care of yourself. Live a good life, you hear? I don’t expect you to forgive me anymore. I’m sorry, but I guess that compensation I mentioned is off the table. I don’t have the courage to live long enough for that. How about it? Do you feel relieved now?"

He ruffled her hair, then reached up to wipe the corners of his eyes. It was the first time he had ever cried in his life, and the tears just wouldn’t stop.

He laughed through his tears, his voice choked with emotion. "Damn it. I really don’t want to go like this... Annabelle, my darling, you probably don’t know this, do you? Leona Grant has a great wish. He’s always, always, *always* wanted to have a baby with you."

"Because once you had a baby together, he planned to use the baby to keep you tied to him. Whenever you made him angry, he’d take the child and run away from home, making you beg him to come back. You’d have to plead for his forgiveness, plead for another chance, and plead to make it up to him. You’d tell him you were wrong, that you’d never make him angry again, and that you’d love him forever."