Unexpectedly, her thoughts drifted to Julian''s mother, Nathaniel''s sister. A woman infamous for having ended her husband''s life, whichnded her in prison for six years.


    When Miranda and she had talked about it before, she had sworn she''d never do such a thing. It just wasn''t worth it, she had said. Why ruin a perfectly good life over one man?


    Yet, not long after that conversation, her own husband ended up in the hospital, thanks to a violent encounter with her, clinging to life by a thread.


    What a mess!


    Despite everything, she didn''t think she was entirely at fault. If Lysander hadn''t pushed her so hard, she wouldn''t have reacted the way she did. She had wanted to discuss a divorce like reasonable adults.


    She was still young, didn''t want to end up in jail, and certainly didn''t want the burden of a death on her conscience.


    The weight of these thoughts made it hard to enjoy breakfast, no matter how delicious it looked.


    ...


    Across the table, Forrest''s eyes never left M. He knew her too well, could easily


    read the worry etched on her face and guess what troubled her mind.


    Setting down his coffee cup, he spoke softly, "I know some doctors over at Metropolitan Hospital. I''ll ask them to check on Lysander. Don''t worry, everything


    will be alright."


    M looked up instantly, gratitude washing over her. "Thank... thank you."


    Even after expressing her thanks, she felt it wasn''t enough and added with a self- conscious smile, "I seem to always be causing you trouble."


    Whether in the past or now, it seemed he was always the one looking out for her.


    "I''m happy to help," Forrest replied with a gentle smile.


    M fell silent, slightly taken aback, but didn''t say more.


    With the Lockwood family issues unresolved and more work to attend to, Forrest left after breakfast, leaving her with a promise.


    "If you have errands or need to go out, you can ask Vance to apany you. It''ll be safer that way."


    "I''lle home early to make dinner."


    Not long after Forrest left, M had to head out as well. All her important documents were unfortunately in Lysander''s possession, and she was too scared to go back and get them, afraid she might not make it out again. She had just managed to escape, after all.


    Fearful of returning, she decided to visit the police station to get recements. Without new documents, she couldn''t leave the country.


    Heading to the station, she was apanied by Howard and two bodyguards- courtesy of Forrest''s arrangements-which eased her anxiety.


    Arriving there, it was busy due to the weekend, and she had to wait a while for her turn.


    Once seated, the clerk asked what she needed.


    M quickly listed off a series of documents: birth certificate, ID, passport...


    The clerk paused, somewhat overwhelmed.


    "How did you manage to lose all your documents?" he asked, bemused.


    M offered an awkward smile. "So, can I get them reissued?"


    "Yes, but it''ll take some time and you''ll have to do them one by one."


    The clerk frowned, eyes fixed on theputer screen as he typed away. "First, you''ll need to rece your birth certificate. Are you the head of your household?"


    M hesitated, shaking her head. She had faced immense pressure to marry young due to dowry demands, which led her to escape from her family. Later, to sever tiespletely, she negotiated with them using a million-dor property to have her household registration moved out.


    Lysander had handled the transfer, cing it under the Montgomery family''s address, making him the head of the household.