Chapter 82
âVictoria, you know well that if I set my eyes on something, I will do my best to fight for it.â When Bella
said that, her eyes were filled with conflict. âI treat you as a friend, so I am confessing this now before
your engagement with Chris. If I only confess after you two got engaged or married, it will be hard on
our friendship.â
Victoria leaned on the tree trunk entirely and switched the position of her crossed legs before
continuing, âSo, you like Christian. Then, what?â
âI hope you can give up your engagement with him and compete with me fairly. If he chooses you in the
end, I will leave and never complain.â As Bella spoke, a beam of hope emerged from her eyes.
A field of autumn chrysanthemums was not far from the sycamore tree, and the flowersâ fragrance
drifted along the cool autumn breeze. It was supposed to be refreshing, but somehow it made Victoria
feel irritable.
âI have been roleplaying as Christianâs bride since we were young, and I have chased after him for ten
years. Now that he has finally agreed to marry me, you chose to tell me that you like him too and want
me to compete fairly with you. What the f*ck are you thinking, huh? Who do you think you are?â
The more Victoria thought about it, the angrier she became. Finally, she straightened up, stuffed the gift
box into Bellaâs arms with an indifferent face, threw the earphone Bella gave her to the ground, and
stomped on it repeatedly.
She didnât pause to wait for Bellaâs response, as she quickly wiped the tears from the corner of her
eyes and left under the gaze of others.
âVictoria, is our friendship worth so little to you? How could you do this?â Victoria could hear Bella
sobbing behind her.
This was the first time Victoria heard Bella yelling in front of the others, for she had always maintained
her elegant composure. But still, Victoria did not stop and chose to stride forward.
It was precisely because Bella was a good friend that Victoria could not accept the truth. Bella knew
better than anyone else how much Victoria cared about Christian as they had been friends for years!
âDo you really want to force my hand?â Again, Victoria could hear Bella shouting from behind her when
Bella saw she didnât even slow her steps. It was as if Bella did not notice what a gaffe she made.
Bystanders watched the drama as it unfolded; Victoria and Bella were well-known because of their
beauty and ability as talented dancers.
Victoria merely bit her lower lip, and the gum on her face kept oxidizing, but she did not stop for a
second. Instead, her footsteps were faster than usual as she felt utterly embarrassed.
The scene changed to the Colemansâ villa.
The night shrouded the ground, but the beautiful buildings were brightly lit. Intertwined reflections of
guestsâ figures could be seen from the outside.
Victoria was in the fast-moving red sports car her brother had given her. Cold sweat beaded her
forehead and back as she held the steering wheel tightly. Her eyes were covered with a layer of mist,
and she could not remember how many times she tried to step on the brakesââ
Useless! It was still useless!
She was panicking as the sports car was moving at an incredible speed. Her limbs felt weak, her lips
could not stop trembling, and rivulets of tears ran down her cheeks. She still had a lot of unfulfilled
wishes, and she didnât want to die like this!
Beep. Beep.
At this moment, her phone vibrated. She quickly connected the phone with a Bluetooth headset. Tears
welled up in her eyes without warning, and she spoke incoherently, âVince, help me⦠Help me. I am o-
outside. The car⦠The car is notâ¦â
Before she could finish speaking, she saw someone walking out of the villa.
It was Bella in a tight white dress, outlining her nice body line. She had combed her long hair in a
French braid and looked intellectual and elegant. More importantly, she was walking straight toward the
sports car.
Victoriaâs pupils contracted. Therefore, she didnât even think as her body acted on its own by lowering
the car window. She utterly disregarded her personal safety and stuck half of her body out of the car.
âDonât come here! The brakes are broken!â
âItâs so windy there, Tori. I canât hear you. Repeat it. Where are you now? Whatâs wrong? Whatâs wrong
with the car? Whatâs wrong with you?â Victoria heard Vincentâs worrisome voice at the other end of the
phone.
Bella did not stop and kept walking in the direction of the sports car, which was moving at a great
speed toward her. It was as if she couldnât hear Victoriaâs yells.
âDonât come here! Canât you hear?!â The sports carâs speed increased, and the wind was blowing
strongly in Victoriaâs face that it hurt, making it even more difficult for her to scream. âMy car is broken!
Donât come here!â
Bella continued walking, and Boom!
Just before the sports car collided with Bella, Victoria clearly saw a hint of a smile across Bellaâs face.
The smile was like a lotus flower unfolding layer by layer and extremely beautiful, but Victoria could
only feel goosebumps when she saw such a stunning sight.
It seemed that Bella wanted the car to hit her on purposeâ¦
âShe did it on purpose! Not me! I didnât want to kill her!â Victoria screamed as she sat up, only to find
her back covered in sweat.
At first, she thought that Bella argued with her in public because she was too emotional. But after
spending two tedious and difficult years in prison, she finally realized that that so-called public
confrontation was premeditation for Bella to accuse Victoria of wanting to murder her.
It was twilight, and the sky was turning bright in the east. Victoria wiped the sweat off her head, only to
feel that her limbs were sore like she had run a half-marathon.
Vincent was squatting on the ground, looking up at her. Beneath his chicken coop-like hair was his
handsome face filled with pain and anger. âWhat did you dream about? Was it Christian?â He spoke
very slowly, perhaps because he had just woken up; his voice was hoarse. Every word he uttered felt
painful, like a knife stabbing his heart.
âWhy did you wake up so early? Did you drink last night and wake up with a headache today?â Victoria
avoided his gaze and his question.
He placed his hands on his knees as he rose to his feet. Unfortunately, the lower part of his body was
numb from squatting for too long, so he staggered for a while before he finally stood firm and squeezed
a sentence out of his throat. âDo you often have this kind of nightmare?â
âYou donât usually drink alcohol, so after drinking so much last night, you might experience a
headache.â She slept too little, so she had a migraine as she spoke. âThere is milk, grapefruit, and
bananas. Eat something, and you will feel better.â
Vincent clenched his fists tightly and was breathing a little heavy. âTori.ânovelxo.com fast update
âVince, you tossed for most of the night yesterday, so I only got a little sleep. Iâm a little tired, and I want
to rest for a while more.â Victoria rubbed her aching forehead, unable to hide her weariness.
His eyes were distressed when he saw that, so he could not bear to keep probing his sister. âHave a
good rest, and Iâll buy you something to eat.â He helped her to lay down, tucked her in with a quilt, and
tip-toed out the door.
She was so exhausted that not long after lying down, she fell into a deep sleep. Inevitably, there was
another nightmare, and the moment she woke up screaming, the sky was already bright, and the sun
was due south.
Evelyn was sitting gracefully on the chair, while Vincent was on the bed, his hair still a mess. Beside
him were the two takeaways, and he was staring at Christian, who was standing beside Evelyn.
âMrs. Thatcher. Mr. Thatcher.â Victoriaâs pupils constricted when she saw them. She rested her hands
on her bed and quickly pushed herself off it to greet them.
She was unsure how long they had been waiting for her in the room, nor could she be sure if she
uttered any nonsense when she had a nightmare. More importantly⦠She glanced at her brother and
furrowed her brows slightly in displeasure. Her lie to Christian yesterday had been exposed, and she
wondered if he would embarrass her brother