?Chapter 1497:


    Seated in the bathtub, she let the hot water cascade over her back.


    She curled into a tight ball, burying her face in her knees, and began to cry softly.


    This time, her tears were not for the way William had ignored her wishes and taken her again. She wept because, in that moment, she had felt no resistance within herself at all. She had even thought that if it could soothe his anger, perhaps it was not so bad.


    What was happening to her?


    Even if Marc had deceived her, she should not be falling for the man who kept her captive—should she?


    Ste could make no sense of her own heart, let alone understand what she truly wanted. All she could do was weep in silence.


    Half an hourter, she climbed into bed without drying her hair, wrapped the nket tightly around herself, and closed her eyes.


    His scent still lingered on the sheets, but shecked the strength to get up and change them.


    The moment she closed her eyes, a flood of images rushed into her mind.


    They came like relentless shbacks, fraying her nerves.


    In one, Marc was down on one knee, proposing, and she joyfully covered her mouth as she epted.


    But just as she reached out her hand, the kneeling figure suddenly became William.


    There were memories of sitting with Marc on campus, the two of them sharing a quiet, unspoken understanding in the library.


    But before long, thepanion from her youth blurred and shifted, transforming once again into William’s face.


    Who had she truly been with?


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    Her memories were badly damaged.


    She couldn’t recall anything from the past two years, and now even moments from more than a decade earlier were bing warped and unreliable.


    All night, those jumbled images haunted her, leaving her restless and unable to sleep.


    When morning finally came, she sat up with dark circles under her eyes and a dull, pounding headache.


    Reaching back, she touched the nape of her neck and froze.


    Her hair was still damp from the night before.


    No wonder her head hurt.


    After blow-drying her hair, Ste slipped into her slippers and headed downstairs.


    The vi was eerily quiet. Aside from Tasha, there was no one else around.


    Ste hesitated before asking softly, “Where’s William?”


    Tasha looked at her with faint sympathy. “Mr. Briggs leftst night and hasn’te back.”


    She had overheard their argument the day before and wanted tofort Ste, but she didn’t know where to begin. If Ste really had taken William’s documents for another man, then she was indeed at fault.


    It was only natural for William to be furious.


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