Felipe smiled as he spoke.
“I’m happy to be able to see you again. Adam will bring you happiness, and I sincerely wish you two all the best. Of course, I wish that the two children would grow up healthily too. You’d also have to keep this secret forever. Don’t let them know that they have such an abominable biological father.”
In the end, Felipe still took Cathy’s hand.
He once had the opportunity to hold these small and soft hands tightly, but he had pushed them away ruthlessly. Now, all he could do was put them down gently.
Felipe placed the red rope in Cathy’s palm before bowing his head. Then, he pressed a deep kiss on the back of her hand. In the end, he could only let go.
“Cath, you must live a blissful life.”
After giving his blessing, Felipe turned around.
The moment he let go, Cathy felt as though her heart was being hollowed out.
She clenched the red rope in her hand, watching Felipe’s bleak silhouette as he walked further away from her. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes again.
“Felipe!”
She called out his name with an indescribably intense feeling.
Felipe’s footsteps came to a halt.
He turned his head. It was unsure if his eyes were moist from the sea breeze as his vision of the beautiful face seemed slightly blurry. Gradually, he could not see Cathy’s expression clearly, but he could hear her question clearly. “Felipe, is there still a chance for us to see each other again?”
Upon hearing her words, Felipe gave a slight and gentle smile. “In the next life, Cath. I’ll see you in the next life.”
His tone, light and shallow, blew past Cathy’s ears like a gust of wind, falling instead into her heart, leaving an extremely profound imprint.
Cathy’s tears broke out from her eyes against her will.
The next life, he said.
It turned out that they were truly not destined to be together in this life.
Felipe quickly got into the police car. The moment the car started, he looked at her through the car window, and tears welled up in his eyes.
‘Cath, I’ll only be able to see you again in the next life.
‘In my next life, I’ll be a respectable and law-abiding person. Never again will I cross the line and stoop to anything unscrupulous.
‘Cath, thank you for coming into my life. Thank you, and goodbye.’
He thought to himself before shifting his gaze away.
As the police car promptly drove away, Cathy remained rooted to the ground, not knowing what it means to feel relieved…
Half an hour later, Niamh and Kendrick arrived at the beach of April Hill.
Niamh immediately saw Cathy standing in a daze by the coast, while Felipe was nowhere to be seen on the beach.
Kendrick too was a little bewildered. They were promised an hour, and the time was not up yet, so why had Felipe left?
When Cathy heard movement behind her, she glanced back. She forced a smile upon seeing Niamh and Kendrick.
“He had already left. He told me that he’ll see me in the next life.” The smile remained plastered on her face. “I think he has already made up his mind.”
“How could it turn out like this?” Kendrick said in disbelief.
He had thought Cathy to be the last ray of light that could pull Felipe out from the darkness.
However, Felipe’s final decision remained unchanged.
“Nia, stay here with Cathy. I’m going to talk to Felipe.” Kendrick hurriedly said and drove away immediately.
Seeing Cathy’s sorrowful face, Niamh felt sorry for the woman with all her heart.
“Cathy, deep down, you still can’t let go of Felipe, can you?”
Cathy tugged the corners of her lips, feeling dejected. “It’s truly easy to fall in love, but it turns out that letting go is very difficult. So difficult…”
She sighed. As she looked at the endless sea, the light in her eyes gradually faded…
Kendrick rushed to the prison that held Felipe as quickly as possible. Soon after, Felipe arrived.
Instead of being bound in handcuffs, he was impeccably dressed. He also seemed to be accepting of his impending death, visible from his tranquil manner.
However, Kendrick was infuriated seeing him act this way. “Felipe, have you thought this through? Do you honestly want to choose this path? Do you know that you could appeal? Even if you had committed those crimes, you also have the opportunity and the right to give yourself a chance to fight for a heavy sentence. This is a right granted by the law!”
“Kendrick, I know you only want what’s best for me, but I’ve already made my decision. I hope you can respect it,” Felipe said lightly.
“Respect? In that case, are you showing respect for Cathy? Are you showing respect for your two children? No, you aren’t, Felipe. You’re only thinking about atoning for your sins, but do you think that your passing on is a means of atonement? I’m telling you, it’s not!
“Felipe, I’m asking you again. Do you truly want to give up on this opportunity?”
Kendrick had always thought that he was of a calm disposition, but now, he was on edge.
Felipe was giving up on himself. As his nephew, Kendrick was extremely worried.
Kendrick knew that if Felipe were willing, Felipe could certainly avoid the death penalty. However, he seemed to have accepted his fate.
He had also thought that, after meeting with Cathy and learning that he had two children, Felipe would certainly aspire to continue living. On the contrary, the meeting only solidified his determination to walk resolutely towards death.
“Felipe, have you thought about it, truly?” Kendrick sought his confirmation yet again. “You only live once. There’s no turning back.”
After listening to Kendrick’s earnest reminder, Felipe seemed to be lost in contemplation.
A long while later, Felipe lifted his gentle and narrow eyes.
“Kendrick, I need your help for the final time.”
“Tell me.”
“I hope Cathy will have a blissful and carefree life from now on.”
“You can give her the bliss that she wants.”
Upon hearing his words, Felipe curled his lips into a small smile. “Her bliss would require a condition, and that would be for me to withdraw from her life.”
Kendrick frowned at this. “How in the world do you want me to help?”
Felipe only gave a mysterious smile. “Kendrick, I believe that with your ability, you’d certainly be able to assist me in performing this task with perfection.”
Kendrick stared at Felipe’s smiling face in confusion. Felipe’s words slowly made it clear to Kendrick what Felipe’s favor would entail.
Kendrick could deeply sense Felipe’s love for Cathy in his words.
He pitied them and felt a pang of heartache for Felipe.
Felipe was most probably very regretful, but regret was often useless.
In this regard, Kendrick had already experienced much himself.
Fortunately, he and Niamh could still turn back, but Felipe and Cathy…
…
The seaside of April Hill.
Niamh accompanied Cathy for some time as they enjoyed the sea breeze. Although it was a little cold, Niamh did not want to disturb her.
Niamh, watching Cathy standing motionlessly on the shore like a wooden person, felt a pang of heartache for her.
As she was about to persuade Cathy, Cathy looked back and gave Niamh a friendly smile.
“Evie, you don’t need to accompany me. Just let me stay here by myself.”
Niamh approached her. “Cathy, if there’s anything that’s bothering you, don’t hesitate to talk to me about it. You’ll have my undivided attention.”
Tears pricked the corners of Cathy’s eyes. Biting her lip, she strode toward Niamh and hugged her. “Evie.”
The way Cathy called out to her tightened Niamh’s heart.
She held Cathy and gently patted her back, comforting her. “I’m here. Don’t cry. Just tell me if you have any grievances.”
The corners of Cathy’s eyes were soaked as she could no longer fight back the tears. “He said that he’ll see me in the next life. He said that he has always loved the wrong person.”
Niamh’s patting motion suddenly stopped. Based on Cathy’s words, Felipe still intended to accept the death penalty, no longer wanting to appeal.
This surprised Niamh.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.