C3 Come with Me in Hell.

Lydia's heart jolted at the man's response.

For a few seconds, her mind went blank, then she questioned, bewildered, "Why? Why?!"

He clearly didn't like her, despised her even. So why, in this lifetime, when she wanted a divorce, was he refusing?

His gaze was icy, "Merely divorcing won't settle the score with the woman who caused the death of my beloved."

Though legally Lydia couldn't be held responsible for Maria's car accident, he was determined to make her pay in his own way.

"I was framed too! I was a victim! I once loved you, but that's not a sin, not a reason for you to pin all the blame on me," Lydia countered sharply, her voice resolute.

She'd bottled up these words for far too long. Finally voicing them brought an inexplicable relief.

But the next moment, pain shot through her chin, gripped tightly by the man.

It hurt so much, she almost thought her jawbone would break.

Reece's face drew close, "You think I'm accusing you unjustly?"

Their eyes locked, and the hostility emanating from him made Lydia's body stiffen.

Not just her, even the nearby servants broke out in a cold sweat at Reece's menacing look.

Though Reece was always aloof, the butler, after three years of service, had never seen him this furious, as if he could devour someone whole.

Sensing danger, Lydia averted her gaze from Reece's scrutiny and pushed back her fear.

"It's not about what I think," she declared, standing tall, "it's about the truth."

Her reply only darkened Reece's expression further.

Yet, he couldn't help but be struck by her defiant stance; she was far more intriguing than the woman who used to silently endure in submission.

Still, it did nothing to alter the image he held of her.

"When I was going through Maria's things, I saw the text you sent her with the hotel room number. How do you explain that?"

It was because of that text message that Maria saw him in the hotel with another woman, which led to her storming out and dying in a car accident!

Reece's voice was devoid of any warmth as he spoke.

The chill emanating from him swept through the cramped space like a force 12 storm.

"..."

Lydia had no explanation for the text message.

But one thing she was certain of was that she had never sent any messages to Maria.

Whoever had sent it, whoever was scheming behind her back, she was determined to expose them, sooner or later!

But at that moment, she was at a loss for words.

Facing Reece's interrogation, she bit her lip in frustration, her hand at her side clenched into a fist, nails digging into her palm.

Reece observed Lydia's subtle movements, his gaze icy and piercing.

"Nothing to say in the face of evidence, Mrs. Tillman?"

"..."

Only Lydia could fully grasp the scorn and loathing laced within the title 'Mrs. Tillman.'

Her heart filled with resentment and helplessness, she nearly bit through her lip in anger.

"The moment you caused Maria's death, you sealed your fate to never have a moment's peace! You wanted to spend your life with me, didn't you? Well, from now on, your life will be spent with me in this grim hell!"

Reece's face was expressionless as he spoke, but his voice was so eerily cold it sent shivers down one's spine.

He released Lydia and signaled the butler with a glance.

The butler immediately understood, and along with a maid, escorted Lydia back to the second floor.