The words were like countless fine needles, piercing through\u00a0<\/p>\n
her retinas and into her temples.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The past couldn\u2019t be changed, but she could still change the\u00a0<\/p>\n
present and the future!\u00a0<\/p>\n
She couldn\u2019t let Edward go after Roderick\u2019s company again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine took a deep breath, collected her thoughts, and\u00a0<\/p>\n
continued looking at her phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Besides these specific details, there were also some gossip\u00a0<\/p>\n
articles about Edward below.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[In \u201921, it was rumored that Anabelle Garrison, the only daughter of the Starlight Group\u2019s chairman, pursued him intensely, even\u00a0<\/p>\n
publicly declaring she \u201cwould marry no one but him,\u201d but\u00a0<\/p>\n
Edward declined, citing his career.]\u00a0<\/p>\n
[Rumor has it, a major political figure intended to arrange a strategic marriage between his daughter and Edward, but it ultimately fell through\u2026]\u00a0<\/p>\n
[Early last month, renowned investor and CEO of Grand Capital,\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
Amelia Chen, was photographed having dinner with him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Afterward, Amelia stated bluntly in an interview: \u201cEdward is the most outstanding young man I\u2019ve ever met, bar none.\u201c]\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShit!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine wanted to smash her phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What the hell had she gotten into? A power\u2013fantasy web novel?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine\u2019s gaze wavered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A novel?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instantly, a bone\u2013chilling cold crept up from the soles of her feet, spreading through her whole body until it felt like a large\u00a0<\/p>\n
hand clutching her heart.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A novel\u2026 Could it be that she was in a novel?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A novel where Edward was the protagonist?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then what were she, Roderick, Kev, and her parents and\u00a0<\/p>\n
everyone around her?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Supporting characters?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Disposable side characters?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
Or just passersby?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Were they even real, living people?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Too much information flooded Madeleine\u2019s mind. She turned\u00a0<\/p>\n
and grabbed the wall, afraid she might fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA novel\u2026 This world is a novel\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She closed her eyes. They felt warm, and something seemed to\u00a0<\/p>\n
be caught in her throat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If that was the case, then everything seemed to make sense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her personality change, the things she did for Edward, were all\u00a0<\/p>\n
just to help him, the male lead, become more successful.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Why?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine\u2019s eyes snapped open, a fire burning within them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She gripped her phone so tightly her knuckles turned white, her\u00a0<\/p>\n
chest heaving.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If this world really was a novel, then what was she?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
A means to an end, existing only to highlight the male lead\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
charm?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A stupid female side character, manipulated by the narrative\u00a0<\/p>\n
control into loving him, betraying her family, only to be casually\u00a0<\/p>\n
sacrificed in the end?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat a joke!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She raised her hand and hurled the phone away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It bounced once, and the screen shattered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t care.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bullshit male lead, bullshit Man of Destiny!\u00a0<\/p>\n
She, Madeleine, was flesh and blood. She could feel pain, she\u00a0<\/p>\n
could feel hate. Why should she be a stepping stone in\u00a0<\/p>\n
someone else\u2019s story?\u00a0<\/p>\n
The weary faces of her parents, Roderick\u2019s worried gaze, and\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kev\u2019s innocent smile flashed through her mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was all of that fake?\u00a0<\/p>\n
This warmth, this pain, these living, breathing emotions\u2013how\u00a0<\/p>\n
could they just be a few lines of text on a piece of paper?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t give a damn what kind of hellish world this is\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She gritted her teeth, her voice low and hoarse but firm. \u201cI am\u00a0<\/p>\n
who I am. No one is going to control my life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Outside the window, the twilight was heavy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine stood up straight and wiped her face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If this is a game, then she\u2019ll play it to the end.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Edward is the male lead, isn\u2019t he?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Isn\u2019t he blessed by fate?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Doesn\u2019t everyone love him?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she would, with her own hands, tear this so\u2013called Destiny\u00a0<\/p>\n
to shreds.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick had showered before leaving, and his hair was still wet\u00a0<\/p>\n
when he got to the office.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rebecca frowned. \u201cYou didn\u2019t have to rush like this. Why didn\u2019t\u00a0<\/p>\n
you dry your hair?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t stand you slandering my wife.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rebecca was furious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that what you call slander? Go look at the anonymous\u00a0<\/p>\n
discussions on the company\u2019s intranet. Everyone\u2019s guessing if\u00a0<\/p>\n
there\u2019s a mole.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were just afraid the CEO would trace them through the intranet, so they didn\u2019t dare mention Daquan Livingston directly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rebecca sat in the chair across from Roderick\u2019s desk with her\u00a0<\/p>\n
arms crossed, her voice a bit calmer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, tell me, why do you trust your wife so much this time?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick really was different this time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before, he\u2019d protect her, but if Madeleine had actually done\u00a0<\/p>\n
something, he\u2019d admit it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But this time, he was certain Madeleine didn\u2019t do it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rebecca chuckled. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a gut feeling, is it?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick shot her a displeased look.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rebecca could only shrug helplessly, signaling for him to\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 85\u00a0<\/p>\n
continue and that she wouldn\u2019t interrupt again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis isn\u2019t the first time business information from the branch\u00a0<\/p>\n
office has been leaked. It only got exposed this time because so much was leaked. I had people watching it since the first\u00a0<\/p>\n
time it happened.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella\u2019s storytelling style is immersive and addictive\u2014perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.<\/p>\n
Night Carved Paths Into Silence by Zyrel Ash 85 The words were like countless fine needles, piercing through\u00a0 her retinas […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29382","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-heart-surgeons-last-patient-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29382\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}