?Chapter 1627:


    Marc hesitated before responding. “Her love has curdled into hatred — she’s reckless and thinks only of herself — but at the end of the day, she remains a member of the Carter family.” The way he looked at Ste carried a weight of unspokenplexity. He left the sentence hanging, confident she would read between the lines.


    And she did.


    Nina had been raised in the Carter household, and those ties to her grandfather and parents weren’t something she could entirely sever, no matter how fractured the rtionships had be. The previous time, Lance had been the one to approach her. If Norene and the others joined him on this asion, there was a reasonable chance Nina might actually agree to cooperate.


    Even so, Ste couldn’t entirely convince herself that this strategy would pan out. She fixed Marc with an icy stare through the dividing ss, her gaze carefully emptied of anything resembling warmth or trust. “Marc, don’t expect me to believe you’re offering this help out of the kindness of your heart.”


    The words seemed to catch himpletely off guard. He froze, then sat in stunned silence for what felt like an eternity.


    Marc’s voice dropped so low it was barely audible, threaded with a tremor. “All I want is your forgiveness. I know we can’t have a future together. I just don’t want you hating me anymore.”


    Ste listened, and a cold smile curved her lips. “Marc, I don’t hate you.”


    Marc stared at her, clearly caught off guard after everything he had done. Hope flickered in his eyes — a condemned man seeing light. Just as he started to speak, Ste cut him off.


    “I don’t hate you because you’re not worth the effort. You’re less than a stranger to me. Hating you would only waste my time.”


    The hope died. His shoulders slumped. Of course. Why would she forgive him?


    He drew a slow breath, forcing eptance, then looked at her again. “That’s fine. You don’t have to forgive me. I just want you to know — if there’s anything I can do to make this right, I will.”


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    Ste nearly sneered. Still, she needed information right now, so she held back. Any lead that might help William mattered too much to dismiss.


    By the time she stepped through the prison gates, night had settled over the city. She breathed deeply, trying to shake off the weight of that ce.


    Before she reached her car, a voice she detested called out from behind her.


    Ste turned. Jazlyn stumbled out of a taxi and rushed toward her. The woman who had once obsessed over every detail of her appearance now wore clothes that looked ancient. Her hair fell in tangles, and her face was carved with lines that aged her a decade.


    “Ste, did you see Marc? Will you forgive him?” Jazlyn seized Ste’s arm with startling force. “Or did youe to mock him? What did you say to him? You didn’t upset him, did you?”


    William had thrown her out of the vi weeks ago, and she hadn’t dared go back — terrified he would follow through on his threat if she pushed him again. She hadn’t known Ste would be here. Pure chance had brought them together.


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