When Julian returned to the living room, Victoria was already sitting gracefully on the plush sofa.
Julian walked over and sat down beside her, pretending to be completely unaware that she had just witnessed the scene in the garden between him and Serena.
"Victoria," Julian began, casually glancing toward the large television screen. "This show looks pretty good. I was thinking—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Victoria leaned over and captured his lips in a deep, consuming kiss.
Her eyes were closed as she greedily claimed every bit of warmth that belonged to her. A moment later, she slowly pulled back, her cheeks lightly flushed.
"Julian," Victoria purred, a mesmerizing smile gracing her lips. "This is your reward. Do you like it?"
Julian stared at her inwardly. Is this really a reward for me, or is it a reward for yourself?
"Yes... I like it," Julian nodded against his conscience.
Victoria raised a dark eyebrow. "Since you like it so much, shall we do it again?"
Julian: "..."
Before he could respond, Victoria kissed him again.
Standing a respectful distance away, Butler Chen watched the scene with a subtle smile. Not bad, not bad at all. Miss Sterling and Master Vance are practically inseparable. At this rate, I’ll be cradling a young master or young mistress in my arms very soon.
This time, Victoria didn’t prolong the kiss. She pulled away and rested her head softly against Julian’s broad chest. "Don’t move... let me hold you for a moment."
She closed her eyes.
One minute passed... two minutes... three minutes...
Victoria’s breathing grew deep and even. She had fallen fast asleep.
Butler Chen stared wide-eyed at the quiet scene. Miss Sterling fell asleep?!
This was completely unheard of. Victoria suffered from severe, chronic insomnia, struggling for hours every single night just to get a few restless minutes of sleep. Yet right now, she had drifted off within moments!
Fearing any sound might wake her, Butler Chen quickly typed a message on his phone screen and held it up for Julian to read:
[Master Vance, Miss Sterling suffers from severe insomnia. Please don’t wake her—let her rest as long as she can.]
Julian was slightly taken aback. The original novel had indeed mentioned that Victoria’s insomnia was incurable, a chronic ailment that fueled her explosive, volatile temper over the years. Yet during the two days he had spent with her, she had slept remarkably well whenever she was near him.
After sitting still for a while, Julian’s arm began to go numb under her weight. Moving as gently as possible, he scooped Victoria up into his arms and carried her upstairs to the master bedroom.
Fortunately, she didn’t wake.
Butler Chen watched their retreating figures, shaking his head with a wry smile. Could Master Vance really be the cure for Miss Sterling’s insomnia?
It seemed unbelievable. Scores of world-renowned specialists had failed to treat her condition for years. It had to be a total coincidence that she fell asleep resting on his arm tonight.
At 2:00 AM...
Victoria slowly stirred, feeling a heavy arm resting comfortably across her waist. She paused, opening her eyes to see Julian’s handsome, peaceful face right beside her in the dim moonlight.
Her gaze softened instantly. Her Julian was right here. She wasn’t alone anymore.
"Julian," Victoria whispered, leaning up to press a soft kiss against his forehead. "You are my man. Victoria Sterling’s man. And only mine."
"No one will ever take you away from me."
"Any woman who dares try... deserves to die."
A icy, terrifying glint flickered in her eyes.
Silently slipping out of bed, Victoria changed into a sleek black silk dress, letting her dark, wavy hair drape loosely over her shoulders without any ornaments. She stepped quietly out of the suite.
"Miss Sterling," Butler Chen greeted her respectfully in the hallway.
"Where is she?" Victoria asked without a trace of emotion.
"In the sub-basement, Miss Sterling."
Down in the estate’s subterranean level, Serena was bound securely to a steel chair. She frantically surveyed the dimly lit concrete room, a surge of raw panic mounting in her chest.
It had to be Victoria Sterling!
She had disguised her background so carefully—there was no way Victoria could have uncovered her true identity so quickly. The only explanation was that Victoria found out about her attempt to seduce Julian in the garden!
Clack, clack, clack.
The sharp, measured sound of high heels echoed down the stone corridor.
Serena snapped her head toward the entrance, burning hatred flaring in her eyes the moment Victoria stepped into the light.
"Victoria Sterling!" Serena gritted her teeth. "It really was you!"
Without a word, Victoria extended her fair hand. Butler Chen respectfully placed a slim, razor-sharp scalpels into her palm. The polished metal reflected a cold glint in the dim lighting.
Victoria walked over slowly, using the flat side of the blade to tilt Serena’s chin upward. "You actually dared to try and seduce my man... You’ve got quite the nerve."
"Serena," Victoria murmured softly.
Hearing her real name spoken so casually, Serena’s eyes widened in sheer shock. "How... how do you know my name?!"
"I was originally planning to keep you around a bit longer to see who else was pulling your strings," Victoria said, her tone laced with arctic coldness. "But you chose to target the wrong person. Now, I have no choice but to make you suffer."
Serena bit her lip, sneering bitterly. "So you knew who I was all along... Of course you did. You’re a paranoid monster, and Rose Manor is your fortress."
She laughed mockingly. "You were planning to use me as a double agent to feed false intel back to my family’s remaining allies, weren’t you? But because of Julian Vance, you exposed your hand early!"
"Victoria, you’ve actually fallen completely for a man!" Serena taunted, her voice echoing in the cell. "You have a weakness now! And once you have a weakness, you won’t be so untouchable after all!"
Victoria’s expression remained completely serene. A weakness? So what? The worst that could happen was death, and she was someone who had already crawled out of hell once before.
"Victoria," Serena sneered maliciously, "you don’t actually believe Julian Vance likes someone like you, do you? He’s just putting on a pathetic act because he’s terrified of your power!"
"You heard what he said in the garden tonight, didn’t you? He obviously knew you were watching from the balcony! That’s the only reason he gave those sweet, hypocritical answers!"
"Shut up." Victoria’s eyes turned lethal, staring at Serena as if looking at a corpse.
"You know I’m right!" Serena laughed hysterically. "You’ll never have anyone who truly loves you! You’re going to lose your mind over a man, just like your mother did! And the second Julian Vance gets a real chance, he’ll run as far away from you as he can!"
"You are destined to live in the dark forever!"
In a flash, Victoria stepped forward, her slender fingers clamping down hard around Serena’s throat.
"I told you to shut up," Victoria hissed through clenched teeth.
The air was cut off instantly, Serena’s face turning pale as she gasped for breath. Yet despite the pain, Serena choked out a wild laugh. "Kill me... kill me, Victoria! I’ll become a ghost and watch him abandon you!"
Victoria’s eyes turned pitch-black with terrifying intensity.
"He won’t leave me."
"Did you hear me? Julian will never leave me!"
Julian had promised her himself—he was staying by her side with absolute sincerity!
As Serena’s vision began to black out and she thought her neck was about to snap, Victoria suddenly released her grip.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!" Serena collapsed forward against her restraints, gasping violently for air.
Victoria brought the razor-sharp blade back up to Serena’s cheek, her voice dropping to a low, chilling whisper. "I won’t kill you. Killing you is far too easy."
"I will keep you alive right here in this room, so you can watch day after day just how deeply Julian and I love each other."
Without a moment’s hesitation, Victoria pressed the cold steel down and slashed it firmly across Serena’s face.