My heart was pounding, but I kept my expression calm and concerned. I took a step forward,


    noting how much thinner Ethan looked.


    "Ethan, are you feeling unwell? Why do you look so pale?" I asked, my voice soft


    with worry.


    He didn''t answer. He just looked at me with those unfathomable amber eyes, making my anxiety spike.


    "Ethan, what''s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?" I


    asked, deliberately letting my eyes redden, looking at him pitifully, on the verge of tears.


    This always worked on Ethan. I''d angered him before, but as long as I acted weak and


    vulnerable, he would soften. He could never bear to stay mad at me when I cried. But today was different. His expression remained cold and distant.


    +15 Points>


    "Ethan..." I sobbed, about to deploy my ultimate weapon-full tears-when he suddenly spoke.


    "I just met with Nathan."


    The name hit me like a physical blow. Nathan ckwood. Ethan''s friend. It was normal for


    them to meet, but for Ethan to mention him now, with that expression on his face...


    My mind immediately went to that little girl. Lily. Even so, I clung to hope. Ethan trusted mepletely; he couldn''t possibly have investigated me.


    I forced myself to remain calm, responding with casual interest. "Why didn''t you ask Nathan to


    cook-"


    "Victoria, aren''t you curious about what he told me?" Ethan interrupted coldly.


    I felt a chill run down my spine. The way he was looking at me-like I was a stranger. Where was the Ethan who melted at my tears? The Ethan who believed every word I said?


    It was precisely because he knew my habits, knew that I stuttered and couldn''t speak aplete sentence whenever I lied, that he always believed me. Every time I vehemently denied something, he never suspected I might be lying.


    "Ethan, do you know? Do you know that the kidney Emma used was Lily''s?" I asked directly.


    I no longer had any illusions. Although I didn''t know why Ethan and Nathan had suddenly brought up the matter of that little girl''s kidney, I was certain that Ethan knew the truth. So I


    didn''t answer his question but asked my own instead.


    It was a rhetorical question, but spoken with certainty.


    Hearing my words, Ethan''s eyes filled with disappointment, grief, and confusion. He looked at me like he was seeing me for the first time.


    "Victoria, why? Why didn''t you tell me, knowing that the kidney was Lily''s? What were you thinking?" he demanded, his voice shaking with anger.


    Was it really as Olivia had imed? That I deliberately stole Lily''s kidney, wanting to kill her?


    "Ethan, I''m sorry, I''m really sorry. I didn''t want to, but I really had no choice," I said, suddenly


    < Chapter 116. Lily''s Kidney


    covering my face with my hands.


    I squatted down on the floor and burst into tears. Not the delicate, pretty tears I usually


    produced, but ugly, desperate sobs.


    +15 Points >


    "You know how important Emma is to me, even though I didn''t want to get pregnant with her."


    "I used to hate her, resent her. Her existence constantly reminded me that I was dirty, that I


    wasn''t worthy of you," I continued, my voice breaking.


    I let the painful memories surface, using them to fuel my performance. "Because of her, I


    suffered for a long time and even wanted to end my life many times."


    "But as she grew little by little inside me, as I felt her presence, I began to love her. She


    apanied me through countless nights without you, she was the reason I kept going."


    I looked up at Ethan through my tears, making sure he could see the raw emotion on my face.


    "Without Emma, I might have died during my time away, without you."


    "We depended on each other. Emma is my life, how could I watch her die..."


    Ethan listened to my words, looking at me in shock. For a moment, I thought I''d seeded in


    touching his heart. But then his expression hardened.


    "You couldn''t bear to watch Emma die, so you could watch Lily die?" His voice rose with each


    word. "Emma is your daughter, but Lily was my daughter too!"


    His eyes shed with anger, the amber darkening to a dangerous gold. "In your eyes, Emma''s


    life is a life, but Lily''s life was not?"