Chapter 19
Clifford was standing in front of the floor–to–ceiling windows when someone knocked on his bedroom door. At that point, the cigarette in his hand had already burned down to its stub.
He opened the door to see Lorenzo leaning against the wall next to the door with a glass of amber–colored whiskey in hand.
“So, you hit Magnus?” Lorenzo asked with an arched eyebrow, handing the glass to Clifford
Clifford didn’t like
like drinking alcohol–he always drank tea instead. But he needed something to numb the emotions surging within him right now, so he accepted the glass and downed the whiskey in one go.
The strong alcohol burned as it went down his throat, the sting extremely similar to how he had felt watching Lilibeth and Magnus being intimate with each other.
“He and Beth were making love to each other,” he said in a voice as hoarse as sandpaper. “1” couldn’t stand watching it.”
Lorenzo abruptly started laughing, but his gaze was frosty. “Beth? That’s new. It’s been six years since you married her, but this is the first time I’ve heard you call her that.”
The alcohol was beginning to take effect. As Clifford held onto the doorframe for support, the emotions he had kept suppressed for so many years suddenly bubbled to the surface.
“I might have fallen for Lilibeth, Lorenzo. In truth, when I came to Gindara, I wasn’t even sure how I felt about her. All I knew for certain was that I needed her to come home with me. But after watching her and Magnus for the past few days…”
He trailed off, massaging his aching temples. “I even recommended a potential suitor for Tiff, but when it comes to Beth, I just can’t accept her being with someone else.”
He lifted his head, looking at Lorenzo with bloodshot eyes. “Perhaps I had already fallen in love with her a long time ago, but-”
Lorenzo cut him off coldly. “But you were a deaf, blind fool.”
Clifford smiled bitterly. “Yes, I was. I regret it now… So please, help me. I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for what happened in the past.
Lorenzo remained silent for so long that Clifford thought he wasn’t going to reply.
In the end, he turned before saying over his shoulder, “We’ll see. You go to sleep first.”
After the door closed behind Lorenzo, Clifford lay in bed, tossing and turning.
The patterns on the celling seemned to warp under the influence of the alcohol, transforming into the entangled forms of Lilibeth and Magnus
Clifford sat up with a jolt, but then a burning smell reached his nose.
Smoke seeped through the cracks between the wall and the door. He could hear frantic footsteps and shrill screams coming from outside.
“Fire! Run!”
The curtains were painted red by firelight. Clifford got up quickly, only to realize that his
limbs felt weak.
There had been something wrong with that glass of whiskey!
But Lorenzo was the one who…
Why had Lorenzo spiked his drink?
The realization sent a chill through him, but Clifford only had one thought in mind at the moment he couldn’t let anything happen to Lilibeth!
He used all the strength he could muster to ram the door open, only to be hit by a wave of heat:
The corridor had already become a sea of flames, and the thick smoke in the air made him cough violently. Through the distortion caused by the heat waves, he saw Lilibeth supporting Magnus, who seemed just as weak as him, as they moved toward the fire exit.
“Beth!” he called out to her.
His voice was drowned out by the crackling of the fire, but Lilibeth seemed to hear him anyway. She turned around and shot him the coldest look Clifford had ever seen. It was as if she was looking at a stranger.
She turned and continued forward as the tongues of flames reached toward the hem of her
skirt.
“Lilibeth!” he yelled again.
This time, she didn’t even bother to look back. He tried to catch up to her but staggered and fell to his knees instead.
The wooden beam over his head groaned loudly before crashing down toward him, enveloped by raging flames. He was powerless to avoid it.
In the final moment before he lost consciousness, he suddenly recalled the abduction incident. When Lilibeth and Tiffany had both been strapped to bombs, he had chosen to save the latter without hesitation.
Back then, had Lilibeth been overwhelmed with grief just as he was right now?
“I’m sorry…
His confession was swallowed by the raging flames.
C
