“Absolutely not!” Owen exclaimed.
Maya was taken aback by his strong reaction. Her eyebrow lifted slightly as she spoke with a hint of mockery and confusion.
“Why not? Didn’t you want to resolve this? If you agree, I won’t take it any further.”
Owen’s expression turned stormy, as if he were struggling to keep an emotion at bay.
“Anything but this. I can promise you anything else.”
Maya chuckled icily. “No, I just want to end the contract.”
Owen was infuriated by her words. He snatched up several glass cups from the table and hurled them to the floor.
The glass shattered into pieces. Standing nearby, he glared at her with disdain.
“Alright. If you’re so desperate to end the contract, then crawl across these glass shards to me, and I’ll agree to release you.”
Owen anticipated that Maya might waver or seek a middle ground, but he was taken aback when she immediately knelt down without hesitation.
As soon as her knees met the fragments, a sharp pain surged through her. Maya clenched her jaw and pressed on, res- olute in her actions.
Seeing her determined face, Owen felt a surge of frustration.
“Maya, are you truly that eager to end our contract?”
He spoke each word deliberately, as if he might erupt at any moment.
Maya just gritted her teeth even more. “Yes.”
Her skirt was soaked with blood, but she continued on, seemingly unaware of the agony.
Unable to stand it any longer, Owen advanced and yanked her to her feet.
“That’s enough! Leave now!”
Despite the blood streaming from her knees, she managed to persist and ask one final question.
“Can I still end the contract without completing the kneeling?”
Owen was surprised by Maya’s reaction. Despite his intense anger, he laughed.
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13:22
Chapter 7
“Alright, but don’t regret it.”
Maya gave a small, tight–lipped smile but said nothing. Slowly, she dragged her weary body out of the ward.
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Outside, a gentle rain had begun to fall. The chill crept in through the window cracks, prompting her to pull her coat tighter around herself.
As she was leaving, she overheard the nurses chatting.
“Isn’t that Ms. Heald who was admitted yesterday? How did she end up like that?”
“You should have seen her when she came in. Her back was completely injured, and her body was covered in bruises, with no part left unscathed! When Mr. Kecith brought her in, his anxiety made me think they shared a special bond. However, after Ms. Basom coughed twice, he left Ms. Heald to stay the entire night with Ms. Basom instead.”
Each word pierced her ears, but Maya paid no attention and stepped into the rain.
***
That evening, Maya set a large box before Owen. Before he could speak, she threw it open and spilled its contents onto the floor.
Inside were all the mementos from their years together–group photos, couple’s trinkets.
Every gift he had casually given her was meticulously preserved in pristine condition.
As soon as Owen laid eyes on these items, he suddenly stopped moving, a foreboding sense of dread swirling within
him.
The next moment, Maya’s voice burst into his ear.
“Owen, you always talked about wanting to travel the world, but never found the time. I secretly mapped out all the routes and listed the local delicacies in a notebook. I planned to take you this year, but now it seems pointless.
“You had a passion for classical music, so I secretly studied music theory and hunted down rare scores everywhere. This is a unique compilation I spent three years putting together. I intended to surprise you, but now I think it’s best to destroy it.”
As she spoke, Maya had already pulled out a lighter and set the cardboard box on fire.
The flames leapt up quickly, consuming the contents at her feet.
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