Chapter 145

Chapter 145
Emily lifted her head, smiled briefly at Matthew, and deliberately provoked him, "How did Rishima die? Didn’t you see it yourself? Why would you still believe my lies? Even the heartbeat check turned into a straight line—don’t you know what that means? Matthew, are you really that foolish?"
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Before she could finish, a loud “Thud” sounded. Emily immediately shut her eyes, feeling a burning pain on her face. Matthew had struck her. Yet, she didn’t feel too upset; instead, a strange sense of relief welled up inside her. She suddenly felt lucky that Robert was so mysterious that Matthew couldn’t find any trace of him. Otherwise, she would have been the culprit.
Emily thought Matthew must have believed her words by now. At least, even if he didn’t fully trust her, his heart had begun to waver.
She quietly cheered herself on. In fact, that day at the hospital, Rishima had told Emily much about her own situation. Then she begged Emily to help arrange surgery to deliver the baby early, just so she could see the baby before dying.
Emily also promised to protect Rishima well and help fulfill her wish. However, in the end, Rishima was taken away by Zvonimir. At that time, Emily couldn’t protect Rishima, but now she was determined to succeed.
She could not let Matthew know the truth that Rishima was still alive. After all, to Robert, Rishima was just a vessel, a conduit to send his sister’s heart. Without Rishima, Robert could use another vessel to send that heart. To Robert, what was lost was only a vessel, but to Rishima, what she lost was a life.
In this world, nothing is more important than life itself, and if he promised to protect Rishima, he must keep that promise.
"Emily, tell me where Robert is," Matthew shouted angrily at Emily.
"There is no Robert. I made it all up."
"Impossible, I don’t believe you!" Matthew shook his head relentlessly, looking utterly exhausted.
He almost believed it. He desperately wanted to believe that Rishima was still alive. Even though his subordinate’s words had made him doubt, he chose to believe Rishima was alive. Yet the truth was, he was only deceiving himself.
Matthew felt a sharp pain deep in his chest. Now that all the truth had been laid bare before him, Emily had once again deceived him. Otherwise, why couldn’t he find the male who had taken Rishima away? Why couldn’t he trace whether anyone had donated a heart that night? It all turned out to be a lie—just another one from Emily.
Without hesitation, Matthew reached out, gripping Emily’s neck tightly. He screamed with all his might, “Tell me, Rishima is still alive, isn’t she?!”
Though he clearly knew Rishima was dead, Matthew refused to accept Emily’s lie. He truly hoped Rishima was still alive.
Emily’s face flushed red under Matthew’s grip, her breath coming in gasps. She accepted that this was the price she had to pay. “Rishima has been dead for a long time.”
Emily struggled to speak those words, feeling Matthew’s hold tighten. Her neck ached as if it would shatter, and breathing became difficult.
“What’s your purpose? You lied to me just to toy with me like this?!” Matthew grabbed Emily’s clothes roughly and shoved her to the ground.
A loud “bang” echoed as Emily fell hard, unable to stand. Matthew then frenziedly lunged at her, punching and kicking as if he had lost all reason. Emily lay still, clenching her teeth, unmoving.
Only when the bodyguard nearby pulled Matthew away did he stop. “Master Matthew, if you keep going like this, you’ll kill her. After all, she’s still Bob’s daughter.”
Matthew glared at Emily with eyes full of hatred. He pushed the bodyguard aside and stepped back in front of her, holding her chin and lifting her head. Emily’s face was battered and bruised, her eyes swollen and dark. At this moment, she no longer looked beautiful as before but truly pitiful beyond words.
“Emily, tell me, why did you lie to me?” Matthew gritted his teeth, looking at her as if he wanted to tear her into a hundred pieces.
“Speak!”
Emily’s heart trembled. She desperately wanted to say, “Because I want to protect you, and also protect Rishima.” But how could she possibly say that?
So she said, “Because I like you, I don’t want you to keep hating me. But I didn’t expect my lies to go this far—it’s truly nothing to be happy about.” Emily tried to sound proud in front of Matthew.
At that moment, Emily’s phone rang. It was her mother calling.
Emily had just promised her mother she would come home quickly, but she still hadn’t returned. Her mother must be very worried. She hurriedly picked up the phone and said, “Mommy...”
Before she could finish, Matthew snatched the phone away. Emily looked at him in panic, nearly dropping to her knees at his feet, her eyes pleading, “Give me the phone.”
She wasn’t afraid of pain or suffering. But she was afraid her mother would worry about her. “Matthew...”
Afraid her mother might overhear, Emily tried to speak softly. She reached out to grab the phone, but before she could touch it, Matthew kicked her in the chest, and she fell to the ground.
Matthew looked at her coldly, expressionless, then put the phone to his ear.
“Emi, why haven’t you come home yet?” On the other end was Emily’s mother’s anxious voice.
“Matthew, give me the phone.” Emily begged, but Matthew ignored her.
Then he slowly spoke into the phone, “Emily is with me.”
“Who are you?”
Matthew looked at Emily with cold eyes, a cruel smile curling at the corner of his mouth. He felt the best way to get revenge on Emily was to keep her by his side, not to send her away.
“I am Matthew.” He stated bluntly, “Emily has changed her mind. She has decided to become my mate, so she won’t be going home today.”

“No!” Emily shouted urgently. But before she could finish, Matthew hung up.