Chapter 3

Liam remained silent for a long time, trying to persuade her, but Lucy wouldn't listen at all. In the end, he could only give up.

He first went to the hospital cafeteria to buy lunch for his mother and daughter, then asked a nurse to help take care of them for a while before leaving the hospital.

Unable to reach Karen, he decided to go home to check.

According to the doctor, the cost of his mother's subsequent chemotherapy was not a small amount.

Especially since his mother's health wasn't in good condition, the doctor suggested using targeted therapy drugs, which would be more effective and cause less harm to her body.

But these drugs weren't covered by insurance, which meant more money was needed.

Unfortunately, Liam's company had already gone bankrupt, so he could only turn to Karen for help.

All the company's funds had been in Karen's hands as the financial director. Even after the bankruptcy, Liam estimated that she still had some savings, which could be used to deal with the immediate emergency.

Moreover, Liam also had several credit cards with high limits, which were also in Karen's possession. These could help alleviate the current financial strain.

As he entered the familiar neighborhood, Liam didn't have the emotional energy to reminisce and quickly walked to a building.

Using Lucy's key, he opened the door and walked in, only to find the house empty.

Liam sighed in disappointment, glanced around at the familiar furnishings, and finally went into the study to find a charger. He took out his phone and plugged it in.

A few minutes later, Liam turned on his phone, and various notifications began to ring crazily.

This high-end phone, which still faintly emitted a golden glow, was one he had bought just before going to prison. At the time, it was part of a promotion to get a phone with a top-up, and he had done it to help a friend who was selling phones boost his sales.

Although more than two years had passed, and this so-called high-end phone was now outdated, the balance of the over ten thousand dollars top-up hadn't been fully deducted. The account was still quite sufficient, but the battery had long since run out.

Liam didn't bother checking the flood of messages; instead, he first called Karen, but it went straight to voicemail.

This made his frown deepen, so he called Frank.

This time, the call was answered quickly, and Frank's familiar voice came through.

"Liam? Oh, my gosh, what a forgetful mind I have! You were released today, weren't you? I'm really sorry, I have a few important clients here today, so I got the date wrong. How about this, I'll arrange a gathering tomorrow night and invite the old buddies over to welcome you back!"

At that moment, Liam couldn't quite describe how he felt inside, so he could only force a smile and say, "It's fine. You're a busy man; it's good that your business is thriving. By the way, I called because I wanted to ask you if you've seen Karen lately. I can't get through to her..."

"Karen?"

Frank paused noticeably on the other end of the line, then laughed and said, "I'm really sorry, Liam, I invited Karen to join me for a meal with some clients. Her phone's probably out of battery. Hold on, I'll get her to talk to you..."

"Liam, you're back today? If there's anything, let's talk when you get home tonight. I'm really busy right now, it's not convenient to talk."

Karen's voice was cold, with a hint of something strange. She hung up after saying just a few words.

After putting down the phone, a dark cloud began to gather in Liam's eyes.

He wasn't a fool, and Karen's behavior today was clearly unusual.

The release date had been set long ago, and even though Karen hadn't visited him in prison during this time, the prison would have notified the family of such an event, so there was no way she didn't know.

Yet on this important day, Karen chose to go out drinking with clients, which already spoke volumes.

Especially with Liam's mother gravely ill in the hospital, Karen didn't show up there either, instead leaving their fifteen-year-old daughter Lucy to care for her.

In fact, after he was imprisoned, Liam had already noticed a change in Karen's attitude.

From visiting him once a month at first, to once every three months, and finally, not even once in half a year...

Because the company was busy and she had to take care of the two children, Liam had felt a bit disappointed at the time but didn't think too much of it.

But now, it was clear that something was wrong.

As Liam's mind raced with these thoughts, he fiddled with his phone and suddenly, unintentionally, clicked on a notification.

And when he saw what it was, his face turned pale, and he felt as if he couldn't breathe.

It was a credit card transaction record, showing that a business deluxe suite had been booked at the Grand Continental Hotel.

The time was today, just an hour ago!

Scrolling through more of the records revealed dozens of hotel bookings with different dates but the same hotel name and even the same room number...

Not knowing how long he sat there in a daze, Liam finally came to his senses. He forced himself to suppress the searing pain in his heart, his face ashen as he stood up, left the house, and headed straight for the Grand Continental Hotel.

As he passed through the living room, the large wedding photo of Karen smiling radiantly with a face full of happiness now seemed unbearably glaring.

As Liam stepped out of the warm taxi cabin, he was suddenly struck by the chilly wind, causing him to shiver. It was only then that he realized he had forgotten to put on warmer clothes when he returned home earlier.

Hunched over, Liam couldn’t shake the cold creeping up within him.