The Undying Starlight

I thought Karsten would stay with Theresa for a few days, but he came home on the same night. 

“Vali, look what I got you for Valentine’s Day!” Kars was full of affection as he handed me a gift box.

I swallowed the hatred surging inside me and forced myself to act as if I hadn’t seen him with his ex. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be on a business trip? Why did you come back so soon?” 

“It’s Valentine’s Day. There’s no way I can leave you alone at home.” 

If I hadn’t witnessed it with my own eyes, I might have been fooled by the tenderness in his gaze, fooled into believing he loved me with all his heart. 

I casually took the gift and unwrapped it to hide the bitterness twisting my face. 

The gift was a set of lacy, seductive lingerie. 

“Do you like it? Size 36C—I’ve always remembered your measurements.” 

My fingers tightened around the box, my grip unconsciously firm. Among the clothes scattered across my parents’ villa’s living room today, I had seen an identical set of lingerie. 

But when I looked up again, my face was already adorned with a smile. “Mhm, I love it.” 

Karsten pulled me into his arms, his breath warm against my ear. He said, “Babe, will you wear it for me tonight?” 

I glanced at the faint red marks on his neck—traces of another woman’s kisses. My stomach twisted. A wave of nausea hit me, and I bolted to the bathroom, dry heaving over the sink.

Karsten appeared behind me moments later, his hand warm and gentle as he rubbed my back.

After rinsing my mouth, I turned to face him. His eyes sparkled with joy.

“Babe, you went to the hospital this morning, right? Were you trying to tell me… are you pregnant with our child?”

I studied his excitement, the eagerness in his voice, the light in his eyes. And I thought of his lies. His betrayal.

Slowly, I wiped the water from the corner of my mouth. “Yes,” I said. “I am.”

Karsten spun me around in excitement, his joy so genuine it didn’t seem fake at all. Then it hit me—our agreement clearly states that if we have a child, he gets 10% of Thalmann Legacy Holdings. 

I wasn’t giving birth to his child; I was giving birth to his ticket to wealth and power. No wonder he was ecstatic. 

Watching his over-excitement, I could hardly wait to see his face when all his dreams crumbled to dust.

“Vali, you should stay home and take care of yourself. Don’t worry about the company—I’ll handle everything.” His tone was light, almost cheerful.

So, he had his eyes on the company too.

A year into our marriage, my father passed away. On his deathbed, he held my hand, his grip weak but urgent.

“Vali, Thalmann Legacy Holdings is my safeguard for you. But you trust too easily. Promise me—no matter what—you’ll always keep the Thalmann Legacy firmly in your hands.” 

Losing him shattered me, but grief had to wait. After arranging his funeral, I stepped into my role without hesitation.

Over the past year, I had gradually handed over the company's management to Karsten, convinced that my failure to conceive was due to stress. The traditional medicine practitioner he found for me insisted that overwork was the culprit.

For six months, I faithfully drank the bitter herbal concoctions prescribed to me. Yet, the pregnancy I longed for never happened.

Desperate, I turned to modern medicine, subjecting myself to weekly procedures and tests. Ironically, it was through these hospital visits that my breast cancer was discovered—still less than a centimeter in size.

I exhaled slowly. “Alright then, I’ll head to the company soon and make the necessary arrangements. After that, I’ll focus on resting at home.”

Karsten’s brows furrowed for the briefest moment before his expression smoothed over. “Alright, but promise me you won’t overwork yourself. If you feel unwell, come home and rest.”

In that moment, he looked every bit the devoted husband, the expectant father.

I wondered if he would still smile at me like this after I returned to the company and laid bare all his carefully deceitful plans.

Once arriving at the company, I never expected the first person I’d run into would be Theresa.