Everest's Guardian Hubby Watched Me Freeze My Ghost Knows Where He'll Burn novel Chapter 40

Chapter 27

The swelling spread rapidly across the other side of Valentina’s face, a burning reminder of the tension now crackling between them. In that instant, she understood with chilling clarity that Nicholas had completely lost touch with reason. No amount of pleading or explanation would pierce the wall of madness that had taken over him.

Yet, despite the suffocating despair, Valentina refused to surrender. She would not let herself be swallowed by this nightmare, nor would she throw away her life for a man she barely knew. The threat of death ignited a fierce surge of adrenaline within her veins. With a sudden burst of strength, she wrenched herself free from his grasp and launched into a desperate fight.

Her nails raked across his skin, teeth sinking in as she screamed at the top of her lungs. “She killed herself! Why should I be the one to die for her? Why?! It was her who couldn’t handle the pain—it was her who gave up! What does that have to do with me?!”

Her voice cracked with raw emotion as she continued, “All I did was tell her the truth! If it weren’t for me, she’d have spent the rest of her life in darkness! Her legs were shattered, her life ruined—and she would have been lied to by her cheating husband every single day! How pathetic is that?”

“I was trying to save her! Don’t you see? Without me, she’d still be trapped in that nightmare, still swallowing your disgusting lies! That’s a fate worse than death!”

Each of her words stabbed at Nicholas’s heart like a thousand tiny knives. His mind went numb, overwhelmed by the relentless echo of her voice ringing inside his skull. His hands, which had been locked tightly around her, suddenly slackened, falling limply to his sides as if drained of all life.

Valentina knew she had hit a vulnerable spot. Empowered by this, she grew more fierce, more merciless.

“You think I’m the one who killed her? No. YOU are the one who destroyed Elara Kingston!”

“What was I to her, huh? Just a stranger she met once? The person she truly hated was YOU—the man she shared her bed with every night, the one she trusted!”

“You betrayed her. You broke her heart. That’s why she gave up. You’re the real killer here—so why are you trying to pin it all on me?”

“That poor, foolish girl lost both her legs because of a scumbag like you—and then she was stupid enough to end her own life over you! Ha! You two are a perfect match—both utterly insane!”

“You flirted with me while drowning in your guilt! You drove your wife to suicide, and now you won’t even face the consequences—you want to drag me down with you! You’re not a man; you’re a pathetic worm!”

“If you really want to avenge her, then YOU should be the one to die! Go on—do it now! Maybe then you’ll catch up to her. And when you reach heaven, you can beg for her forgiveness—and maybe, just maybe, she’ll be foolish enough to forgive you!”

Valentina unleashed every venomous thought she’d been holding back, her voice trembling with a mixture of pain and fury. Then, seeing Nicholas slump like a broken marionette, she shoved him aside, slammed her palm down on the unlock button.

The locks disengaged with a sharp beep. She yanked open the door and stumbled out into the night, running blindly into the darkness.

They were on an old mountain road, long abandoned and forgotten. Just a short distance beyond where Nicholas had parked, the road abruptly ended at a cliff’s edge, torn away by a landslide.

Valentina’s legs trembled beneath her. She staggered forward until she reached the precipice—and then froze.

There was nothing but empty space ahead.

Her heart pounded violently, threatening to burst from her chest.

Behind her, she could sense the deranged Nicholas closing in, the danger closing like a noose. Then, suddenly, a blinding white light flooded the darkness behind her.

She didn’t need to look back to know it was him.

As I reached for the door handle, I overheard his best friend’s voice filtering through the crack.

“Sean, enough already. Seven years of this endless drama—when are you actually going to sign the divorce papers?”

“Lanie was only twenty when she was with you! She gave you everything—three years as your girlfriend, and seven more in the shadows while you played house with Charlotte. She’s almost thirty now, man. If you don’t love Charlotte, just end it. Give Lanie what she deserves.”

A small smile began to tug at the corners of my lips—until Sean’s next words cut through the air like a knife.

“Charlotte’s pregnant.”

His friend’s voice exploded in disbelief. “Again? Your first kid’s already five, and you don’t even have the guts to tell Lanie!”

“You’re finally getting divorced, and now there’s a second baby? What are you going to do?”

The silence that followed stretched endlessly, thick with unspoken tension.

“She’s keeping it. That was one of Charlotte’s conditions for the divorce—I’m never having children with anyone else.”

My fingers clenched so tightly around the thermos that the heat of the metal nearly burned through my skin.