Goodbye, Mr. Regret

The reason Timothy didn't really lose his temper at Vince, or completely sever ties with him, was mostly because, that night, the fault had been his own.

From start to finish, Vince had protected Jessica for him.

A while later, Vince walked out of the hospital room looking perfectly fine. Yates stared at him in disbelief. "Timothy really does treat him differently," he muttered.

"Let's go."noveldrama

Yates waved goodbye to Sallie.

Sallie shot them both a glare, then went back into the room to press Timothy about the cause of the accident.

Timothy shut his eyes and said coolly, "I'm tired. I need to sleep."

Sallie opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but seeing Timothy's battered body, she simply pressed her lips together and fell silent.

After a twelve-hour flight, Jessica finally arrived safely in Aetherion.

The moment she stepped off the plane, she spotted Mr. Smith at the gate, holding up a sign with her name illuminated on it. Her nose stung with sudden emotion.

She hadn't contacted Mr. Smith herself-clearly, Vince had arranged everything. Ever since she'd met him, Vince had always been there, helping her.

He knew full well that going against Timothy would do him no favors, but he never seemed to care. He'd even gone so far as to stab Timothy, just for her sake.

Jessica composed herself and walked toward Mr. Smith with a smile.

Waiting for her, at last, was the life she'd been longing for.

Mr. Smith led Jessica to her new apartment, just a short walk from his office. It was fully furnished, everything she could need was already there-including a top-of-the-line computer.

Jessica thanked him sincerely.

"No need to thank me," Mr. Smith replied. "Vince arranged all of this. If anyone deserves your gratitude, it's him. You just got off a long flight, so get some rest and let your body adjust. If you need anything at all, just contact me. I'll let you settle in now. Goodbye."

By then, Jessica was starving.

But her throat was burning and sore, and she didn't dare treat it carelessly-it was

tied to whether she'd ever speak again.

She caught up to Mr. Smith and,

using her phone, typed out a message "You mentioned before you could introduce me to a doctor. Now that I'm here, my throat's feally hurting. I'd like to get it checked out first."

Jessica hadn't planned to reach out to Herbert. She didn't want to drag him into

her problems anymore.

"Is your throat really painful?" Mr. Smith asked.

Jessica nodded.

Mr. Smith recalled the promise he'd made Herbert and said, "He's out of town right now for a conference, and I can't reach him by phone. Maybel couldContact Herbert instead? He's close with the doctor and could help get you some medicine in the meantime."

Jessica hadn't expected to run into such bad timing. She quickly typed, “---

rbert mysell. The 1

you. Goodbye."

Once Mr. Smith left, Jessica paced the apartment, weighing her options. In the end, she decided to message Herbert.

She'd fought so hard to get here she couldn't give up her chance to speak again, or her chance at a new life.

That night, Timothy had torn through her like a madman. She knew her vocal cords had been pushed past their limits.

Herbert was the only one helping her recover. If she didn't reach out to him now, there'd be no hope.

If she could keep Timothy from finding out she was still in contact with Herbert, maybe she could buy herself more time.

After hesitating again and again, Jessica finally sent Herbert a message.

The moment Herbert received it, he video-called her.

For the past few days, he'd been anxious, unable to reach her, not knowing how she was doing.

"Little Mute..." he said softly.

He was desperate to say more, but the words caught in his throat.

He wanted to protect her, but he simply couldn't.

That crushing sense of helplessness gnawed at his heart.

Jessica propped up her phone and began to sign to him on video.