Never

“Arden, I admit I was terrified when I first met you,” Linda said, her voice calm but cautious. “Throughout my life, I had never seen anyone like you. But the things I said back then

came from the heart”

Linda was worried. She feared Arden might do something reckless. She couldn’t be certain if Samson had realized she was missing or if he had started looking for her. In the face of the unknown, she could only protect herself and try to stay unharmed.

“Arden, I was scared of you back then because the scars on your face were frightening. But you also saved me that day. I wandered onto a deserted road by accident, and you were theone who brought me back. Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

“So that was why I told you back then that your appearance doesn’t define you. I believe you haven’t done anything truly wrong in all these years. You’ve just been only way you know how.

“If you need help with something, you can tell me. All I want is for you not to go down a path you’ll regret,” she spoke gently, like she was talking to a child. Arden suddenly smiled.

surviving the

“Linda, I don’t want anything complicated. All I want is you.”

Η

“I’ve spent all these years trying to find someone like you. Someone who wouldn’t care about my appearance and could see I’m a good person. Someone to share my life with. But I never found anyone like that. Every woman who sees my face recoils in horror

“They all say the same thing. “Arden, someone like you shouldn’t even dream of finding a partner. With a face like that, no woman will ever want to be with you. You should just focus on making money and taking care of yourself.”

“Words like that pushed me deeper into despair. Every time I heard them, I couldn’t respond because it was the truth. These days, if your face isn’t flawless, it doesn’t matter what you do. Nothing else counts.”

Arden wasn’t a bad person. But his experiences had changed him. He could no longer accept his appearance.

“Arden, you must understand that there’s no future for us,” Linda said carefully. “And it’s not just because I’m married now. It’s true. I never judged you for your looks. But just like the other women, I can’t force myself to feel something for you because of it.”

Arden suddenly snapped. He jumped up, grabbing Linda. He tried to pull her toward him.

She fumbled for the lamp on the bedside table and swung it hard at him.

“I’m warning you,” she said, her voice steady but tience. “Don’t try anything with me. If something happens to me, you’ll pay dearly for it.”

“Do you really think they’ll find you here?” he asked with eerie confidence as if convinced that no one could locate her unless he allowed it. No one could rescue her unless he decided to let her go

“Linda, I’ve come to realize something. Instead of hoping someone might fall in love with you one day, it’s better to just keep someone close, even if it means you

you must force her

“It’s okay if you don’t love me. I love you, and that’s enough. As long as you’re here with me, and a little light shines in my dark world, that’s all I need. I don’t need anything else and don’t expect it, either.”

He sounded like a desperate man who had run out of options.

Back at the banquet hall, Samson wrapped up a conversation with a few friends and returned to where he left Linda, but she was nowhere in sight

He remembered her mentioning something about going to the balcony if he couldn’t find her

Samson made his way to the balcony, but Linda wasn’t there either. A sense of unease crept over him, a gnawing feeling that something was very wrong.

His first instinct was to find the hotel manager and check the security cameras.

The last footage showed Linda stepping out onto the balcony. They went through every angle of the footage from the banquet hall’s cameras, but Linda seemed to have vanished Into thin air after she walked outside.