Chapter 22

Noah felt neither joy nor sorrow. His heart was completely empty. Standing at the peak of power, he suddenly felt tired and fed up. He handed over all his assets to Isabelle, hoping it would allow her to live the rest of her life without worry. Then, he gave Ricky a generous sum and told him to retire early. As he looked around at everything that was so familiar, his thoughts returned to Isabelle. He thought about her scarred back, her despair, and her coldness. He realized that he had not yet been punished. He took off his shirt and picked up a belt. He struck himself hard. Every blow was delivered with full force. Soon, he was beaten until his skin was broken and bleeding. "Scrappy, I am sorry," he said. "I love you." While punishing himself, he apologized to Isabelle. He could not spend a single day in Thornbridge without Isabelle. Dragging his battered body, Noah set out to retrace the paths he had once walked with Isabelle. He picked up the pieces of their past happiness o