When Love Comes Late

Madison didn't utter a single word to the Loughlins until she left the family manor. William sneered, "My mom was talking to you and you just ignored her? What, are you mute now?"

She didn't respond, not even sparing him a glance. Her heart ached as if pierced by needles. She fell sick when she returned home, so sick that she was bedridden for four days.

By the time she woke up, she was in a hospital room. Bella sat by her bedside, concern written all over her face. She had even brought homemade soup, but Madison was terrified that her mother-in-law also knew the truth.

For several days, William would bang the pot of stew Bella had made onto the table, looking down at her condescendingly. "McKenzie, get your ass up! My mom was kind enough to make you something. You should be grateful, not acting like you have the right to pick and choose."

No matter what he said, Madison remained silent. William scoffed, "Fine. Don't eat if you dare. It's just a fever; don't think for a second that I actually enjoy taking care of you."

She would rather starve than eat anything prepared by the Loughlins. In the end, she passed out and had to be put on an IV drip. It took her a full seven days to recover and return to the villa.

She had lost a lot of weight and was more silent than ever. After a few days, William couldn't stand it anymore. He tossed his car keys and said, "My mom wants us to take my cousin out. You're coming too."

Madison could never refuse Bella, so she went along. But when she arrived, she realized the cousin had just returned from abroad and loved extreme sports.

On the Ferris wheel, William gently coaxed his twelve-year-old cousin, his eyes provocatively looking at her. "Are you going to faint again? Don't leave Yancy with a bad impression!"

Madison had said she was afraid of heights and didn't want to go up, but William dragged her up without a word of protest. Her face was pale and she was desperately trying to hold back her fear.

William wasn't done yet. He wanted to go on the pirate ship, too. Madison reached her breaking point and rushed to the bathroom to throw up. Yancy pinched her nose and looked at her with disgust. "Aunt, stay away from me. It stinks."

William looked at her with pure contempt. "Disgusting." Yet they didn't stop. As if they had planned it together, they kept pushing her to her limits. By the end of the day, Madison felt like she had lost half her life.

As she lay pale in bed the following day, William forcibly dragged her up. "Yancy wants you to take her skydiving. A ten-thousand-meter jump. You're not scared, are you?"

For years, he had maintained an image of a loving husband in public. Still, in private, he was dedicated to tormenting her. Humiliation had become routine. Even the wedding video played on their anniversary was meant to remind her that all of this was for another woman.

William once said that the reason he kept her around was because of that letter. "William, I've been weak and sick since I was a child because of malnutrition. McKenzie is my only older sister. She's always had a secret crush on you. After I die, I hope you'll take good care of her. It's my only wish."

William didn't do as McKenzie asked. Instead, he tormented her like crazy. "McKenzie, don't think I'll really take care of you as you wish. Speaking of which, you're really a jinx. You took away so many nutrients in the womb, causing Madison to be weak and sick. Now you've even killed her. How dare you pretend to be sick and seek sympathy? You like to act, don't you? I'll make you really sick.

What he didn't know was that she was Madison. The weak, sick one. The one who had been deprived of nutrition in the womb. The one her mother had always seen as useless. Yet, she couldn't say a word.

Now, William's gaze was cold and sharp. Madison, pale as a sheet, remained expressionless. She looked at him and spoke softly. "William, do you want me dead that badly? Don't worry, I won't live long. I won't last much longer."

William's eyes were contemptuous. "Acting pitiful again? Do you think I'm as easily fooled as my mom? Too bad. You'd better hurry up and die. The sooner you make room, the better. After all, my chicks are waiting for your spot."

Madison pursed her pale lips and didn't say another word because no matter what she said, she was pretending in his eyes.

What she never expected was that they were actually going skydiving. Her pupils trembled. Dizziness swept over her. She had a serious heart condition. She was also terrified of heights, of wind and of the cold.