Mrs. Hart’s heart skipped a beat.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she raised her hand—
And tossed the apology note straight into the trash can.
For heaven’s sake.
Mrs. Hart stared into the trash, a complicated expression on her face as she nibbled on her thumbnail.
The pink notecard lay there among the garbage, the powerful script of “I’m sorry” clearly visible.
She recognized Linton’s handwriting instantly.
Mrs. Hart still harbored a deep resentment towards him. Just the sight of anything related to Linton made her blood boil. A man who would dare to hurt her daughter—what good could he possibly be?
Her reaction had been visceral; her hand moved faster than her brain, and she threw it away on pure instinct.
But now, as her initial anger subsided, she took a moment to think.
Perhaps what she did wasn’t quite right.
How could she just toss Linton’s apology into the trash?
Mrs. Hart turned around.
She found a lighter in the living room, retrieved the note from the trash can, and, without a second thought—
Lit it on fire.
*Whoosh.*
The note went up in flames.
Mrs. Hart watched impassively as the apology burned, until only a small corner remained. Once the words “I’m sorry” were completely gone, she dropped the smoldering remains into the sink.
After dousing the embers, she picked up the soggy, blackened scrap and threw it back into the trash can.
Having done all this, she dusted off her hands and let out a satisfied laugh.
“Mom.”
Liliana’s confused voice came from behind her.
“What did you burn? It smells so strongly of smoke.”
Mrs. Hart jumped, nearly leaping out of her skin.
She forced a smile, her back still to Liliana, and said breezily, “Oh, nothing. I was cooking something on the stove and got distracted tidying up. I completely forgot about it.”

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