Chapter 3

The moment Stanley spotted Tessa, the gentle expression on his face was instantly replaced by a frighteningly dark and furious look. "Tessa! Who allowed you to come here?" Stanley stepped forward, his voice ice-cold and dripping with undisguised contempt. "Get lost! You have no right to be here!" Supporting herself on the gravestone, Tessa rose slowly. Her eyes were red, and her voice was hoarse with emotion. "I came… because I miss Alexis…" "You miss her?" Stanley laughed as if he had just heard the most absurd joke. He abruptly grabbed Tessa by the neck with a strength that could have crushed her bones. "You've got some nerve saying you miss her. "Alexis trusted you so much that she gave you the chance to escape, and what did you do in return? You bolted! You left her with those monsters! Do you even know how miserably she died? Do you?" As Tessa couldn't breathe, a stifling wave of airlessness overtook her, and darkness closed in on her vision. She didn't try to struggle. She even closed her eyes. Maybe dying like this wouldn't be so bad. Perhaps dying at his hands in front of Alexis' grave could be her way of atoning and finding peace. But just as her consciousness began to slip away, Stanley suddenly let go. She collapsed to the ground. Clutching her neck, she coughed violently as she gasped for air. When she looked up, she caught a fleeting glimpse of an utterly complex mixture of pain and inner turmoil in his expression. Her chest ached sharply. After everything that happened, could it be that he didn't really want her to die? "Stanley!" Clarissa approached right then, looping her arm through his. She whined in a soft voice, "It's really hot right now. Let's go pay our respects to Alexis and not waste time on unworthy people." Stanley closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, the icy detachment had returned. He took the bouquet from Clarissa and placed them gently on Alexis' grave without glancing at Tessa on the ground. "Let's go," he murmured to Clarissa. They had barely taken a few steps when Clarissa complained about her foot hurting. Stanley knelt at once, hoisted Clarissa onto his back carefully, and made his way down the stone steps of the cemetery slowly. Seeing them cling to each other, Tessa felt her heart being ripped apart. Once upon a time, he had carried her just like that. They were on a hike that time. She had stubbornly refused to go on. Stanley had chuckled at her stubbornness and called her sly, but he still knelt steadily in front of her and softly said, "Get on." His back had been broad, carrying a faint scent of pine. Tessa had clung to him, refusing to get down, teasing that she wanted him to carry her forever. Laughing in a low voice, he had spoken with tenderness. "Alright. Then I'll carry you forever, Tess." Alexis had stomped around beside them, complaining, "Can you both stop acting all lovey-dovey in front of me?" Back then, the sunlight had been warm, the wind gentle, but that was all in the past now. Suppressing the catch in her throat, she trailed behind them in silence. When they reached the car, Stanley shot her a cold glance. "Get in." Tessa froze at his words. "You will only be desecrating my sister's resting place if you remain here a moment longer," he uttered, his words cutting like a knife. Tessa silently opened the car door and got in. She wouldn't be able to come here again anyway. The car wound along the mountain road. As if on purpose, Clarissa clung to Stanley, her fingers tracing restless circles on his thigh while she breathed softly by his ear. Stanley swallowed before saying in a low, hoarse voice, "Stop messing around, Claire. I'm driving." Clarissa daringly kissed his earlobe. "I don't want to stop. I want to do it. We haven't done it in the car before…" Stanley's gaze darkened. With a sudden turn of the steering wheel, he pulled the car over onto the emergency stopping lane. He turned sharply, his icy gaze landing on Tessa. "Get out." Tessa turned pale. She gripped the hem of her shirt. "Didn't you hear me? Get out!" Stanley repeated in annoyance, his eyes devoid of warmth. The trembling Tessa opened the door. The instant she stepped out, the door slammed shut behind her with a loud bang. Immediately, the car started shaking violently and rhythmically. Then, the sounds of a woman's playful moans and a man's suppressed groans could be heard.