Chapter 152

Chapter 152

Elizabeth's spirit knelt beside him, her hands reaching out in vain to wipe away his tears.

"You fool, why are you so foolish..." She sobbed uncontrollably, her heart twisting in agony, wishing she could return to her cold body and crawl into his arms, even if she had to drag herself there.

John's eyes also reddened. Ignoring the glass shards on the floor, he dropped straight to his knees before Matthew.

"Mr. Moore..."

"You can't die. Ms. Winters took those sleeping pills because she thought you were dead and wanted to join you with the baby."

"If you die here today, what happens when Ms. Winters wakes up? Will she kill herself again to find you?"

"Even if she never wakes up, what about your child together—born an orphan?"

"Do you want your child with Ms. Winters to face the Moore family? Do you want this child to grow up like you did, surrounded by schemes and assassination attempts everyday? Can you bear that?"

Each sentence, each word, hammered down like a heavy weight on Matthew's bleeding heart.

Yes.

If he died, that twisted psycho Philip would never spare Elizabeth, nor would he spare this child.

The haunting memories of his childhood—would he let his child go through that all over again?

Only the sound of running water remained in the bathroom.

Matthew fell silent.

He stared at the blood-stained water and glass on the floor, sitting quietly for a long time.

Just when Elizabeth thought even these words couldn't reach him, he moved.

He braced his hands against the floor and stood up stiffly, stumbling out of the bathroom, step by step back to the hospital bed.

Elizabeth's spirit followed him closely.

Matthew walked to the bedside and slowly bent down.

He roughly wiped his hands on his clothes, trying to clean off the blood.

Only after making sure his palms were clean did he gently place his broad hand on Elizabeth's slightly rounded belly.

Through the thin hospital gown, he felt that faint pulse of life.

Though it wasn't yet the month for obvious fetal movement, the moment his palm touched her, miraculously, Elizabeth's belly gave a small flutter.

That tiny movement traveled through his palm straight to Matthew's wounded heart.

Matthew’s eyes widened, his pupils dilating as his whole body trembled uncontrollably.

"Baby..." he murmured in disbelief, and then tears streamed down his face again.

Was that Elizabeth responding to him? Was their child telling him not to give up?

He lowered his head, tenderly kissing Elizabeth's pale forehead, pressing his face against her cold cheek.

"Okay." Matthew closed his eyes, his voice hoarse. "I'll live."

He pressed his forehead hard against hers, as if making the most solemn vow: "Elizabeth, for you, for this child... I'll live."

"Even if you lie here forever, I'll watch over you forever. Even if I have to wait a lifetime, I'll protect you both."

"But listen carefully..."

"Every day you don't wake up, I suffer one more day in this world. So don't make me wait too long... okay?"

Hovering in midair, Elizabeth’s spirit stared at the scene, completely dazed.

The moment he said "I'll live," her spirit, which had been cold all this time, suddenly felt a strange pulling force.

Like a warm current flowing from Matthew's palm on her belly, pulling at her soul through countless invisible threads.

A heavy gravity was dragging her back into that body.

"Matthew..." Elizabeth's spirit slowly closed her eyes, letting that warm force wrap around her.

"Wait for me. For you, I'll definitely wake up too."

In the quiet hospital room, the heart rate line on the monitor, which had been steady, jumped up slightly in an unnoticed instant.

Three months later, night soaked the entire city, neon lights began flickering on, one after another.

Matthew stood in the shadow of a skyscraper, his gaze locked on the glass building before him—Nianqing Pavilion.

The city's newest landmark, a memorial he'd poured his heart into building for Elizabeth.

"Mr. Moore, would you like to go in and take a look?" John stood three steps away, his voice so soft it seemed afraid to break the air.

Matthew unconsciously rubbed the couple's ring on his left ring finger, lost in thought.

Elizabeth—three whole months, and she still hadn't woken up.

He kept hoping that one day he'd open the door and she'd be standing quietly in the entrance waiting for him.

When he handled company documents, she'd lie by the desk quietly keeping him company.

When he got moody, she'd lean over and kiss him gently, just like he kissed her, never able to kiss enough.

As long as Elizabeth was by his side, even the most ordinary days felt like heaven on earth.

But why wouldn't she wake up... what did he have to do for her to open her eyes and look at him?

They were so close, yet farther apart than if separated by an entire galaxy.

A bitter taste rose in his throat. Matthew loosened his silk tie, his defined fingers brushing the smart watch on his wrist.

This watch monitored Elizabeth's heartbeat, breathing, and all her vital signs 24/7. The slightest abnormality would trigger an immediate alert.

He stared at the fluctuating numbers with reddened eyes. Heartbeat stable, everything normal.

The doctor said his heart function was weakening day by day—he might not last much longer.

He was so scared, scared that she wouldn't wake up before he left her first.

Matthew just stood there for a very long time, as if time had frozen around him.

Not until the distant clock tower struck its tenth chime did he suddenly snap back to awareness.

Elizabeth's soul, wrapped in a faint glow, stood quietly in the night.

She looked up at the gleaming glass tower, the lights making her spirit tremble slightly, also piercing the heart she thought had long gone numb.

"What a madman..." she whispered softly.

Those little things she'd long forgotten, those design sketches she'd doodled casually—he'd treasured them like precious gems, enshrined in such a luxurious tower.

Matthew suddenly pressed his chest, a strange flutter ran through him, starting at his heart and rippling all the way down to his fingertips.

He slowly turned his head, his gaze cutting through the sparse crowd in the plaza—the next second, the entire world stood still.

Several hundred feet away, a slender glowing figure was gazing up at Nianqing Pavilion, the halo hazy, yet every inch familiar to the bone.

The way she tilted her head slightly, even the way she stood quietly...

"Elizabeth..." His voice was so hoarse it didn't sound like his own.

Elizabeth suddenly froze, as if sensing something, and turned her head.

The moment their eyes met, her spirit wavered violently.

Matthew's pupils contracted sharply.

This figure—he'd seen it on countless drunken nights, in drug-induced hallucinations, in every dawn when he dared not close his eyes.

Just last night, she'd smiled and reached out to him like this, but the moment he touched her, she scattered into particles of light in the darkness.

Matthew stared at that spirit with reddened eyes, his heart aching beyond breath in self-mockery.

Elizabeth's soul shook violently, overwhelmed by shock—he... he could actually see her?

Their gazes locked, the world like someone had pressed pause.

The musical fountain in the center of the plaza suddenly activated, dozens of water columns shooting skyward, the water curtain blurring their vision.

A sightseeing train passed by, colorful lights flashing, slowly blocking their line of sight.

"Move!" Matthew roughly shoved aside the pedestrians in front of him, his voice out of control.

The few seconds when the water curtain and train car blocked his view felt like a century.

When his vision cleared again, the spot where she'd stood was empty.

Elizabeth's spirit had vanished.