Kate looked at the man behind Tristan. He was tall and thin, and his face was bloody. His features could not be identified.

She put her hand to her mouth.

The man opened his mouth, and the voice was heartbreakingly familiar to her, "Fox, you endangered society, killed innocent people. You are the devil in this world."

"It is time for you to pay for it."

Tristan ignored him and bent his head to kiss her finger.

There was an inaudible sound. Was it the sound of pulling the trigger?

Kate cried out in fear, "No, please don't."

"Tristan, Jimmy, don't…" Kate cried vaguely and suddenly opened her eyes.

It was all dark around her.

She fumbled for the switch of the bedside light. There was nothing on the bed beside her. There was no familiar scent in the air.

She woke up fully and realized it was all just a dream.

She was still a little shaky from the dream, and she felt hollow inside as if her heart was gone from her c.h.e.s.t.

She got the cell phone on the nightstand and wanted to press the shortcut key, but the image of the bloody face flashed through her mind. Her heart was seized, and bitterness surged up.

She put the cell phone back down.

The light in the office was out. The colorful lights of ad boards outside came through the huge French window and cast shadows on the floor. The computer was on, and the monitor gave out some dim blue lights. It made the wide room bizarre and gorgeous.

The man behind the desk also looked mysterious under such lights.

Tristan leaned on the back of the chair with his head raised and eyes closed.

He was motionless, as if he was asleep.

The humming of the cell phone on the desk made him open his eyes. There was no drowsiness in his eyes, only some redness. He took a glance at the screen and turned it off directly.

There was no cigarette or wine or anything for narcotizing the mind. He was terribly sober.

The memories of the past few months flashed through his mind. He digested it and drew some conclusions:

Her emotions were real.

Her soft heart was real.

Her smile and tears were all real.

Her betrayal and lies were real too.

No, she had not lied. She was the same as she was all the time. She was her true self. She stuck to her principles, and sometimes it seemed that she bent them, but in fact, she didn't.

It was Tristan who had compromised. It was he who had changed. He let his guard down, blurred the boundary, and caved involuntarily, step by step.

He had seen the coldness and cruelty of human nature when he was thirteen. He didn't trust others easily and wrapped himself with layers of armor, making himself invulnerable. He tried to get what he wanted by hook or by crook.

In his twenties, when he had the first contact with love and when he was deeply in love later, subconsciously, he still had some reservations. Eight years later, with the death of his love, his heart turned cold, hard, and merciless again.

He didn't expect at the time, when he thought he was indestructible, a simple-minded and ineffective girl to defeat him so thoroughly.

The problem was on him.

All these years, he was enjoying riches, social status, fame, and all sorts of things that most people pursued, but at the same time, he grew tired of them. Without new elements entering his life, these things would build concrete walls inch by inch and trap him inside.

Since he had her, had these things, his life became lively. Like most men, his daily life was to work for a living, for wife and children, repeat the routines and return to the warm lights of home and a loving company at night.

He had greed for that.

He took up the ultrasound photo on the desk.

His peculiar experience made his values different from most of the people. He had never thought about his offspring. But now, he always imagined a little boy that took after him in looks, intelligence, behavior, and characters, or a little girl like her, obedient and a little stubborn.

The best scenario was that it would take after both of them, a mixture, a little smarter, less stubborn, simple-minded, and happy.

Thinking of these, he put down the photo and covered his face with both of his hands.

He took a deep breath.

Was he too greedy?

Did he ask for too much?

No. Tristan stood up abruptly. He grabbed the phone and car keys and walked out. He had to ask her what she thought. She was studying with persistent effort every day and never gave up on her plan for the future.

He thought she would at most leave the child to him and leave it alone, but now he realized that she was going to take the child with her to pursue her new life.

Tristan would be left alone behind.

What was he to her? He had given his heart as well as his wealth, and he would end up as a free s.p.e.r.m donor?

Blood was boiling inside him and surged to his head. The calm thinking all night was overwhelmed by his rage. The hell of calmness! His heart could be broken, but he could not take this humiliation.

When the elevator was going down, his boiling blood cooled down a little. Tristan saw his face in the mirror on the elevator door. It was exhausted and haggard, but his eyes shone with light.

When he reached the first floor and walked through the empty lobby, a person sitting on a couch nearby stood up.

Tristan stopped walking.

The lady wore a black belted long coat, with shoulder-length hair and a slightly pale face. She walked directly to him.

"I knew you were still here. I called but could not get through. I have waited here for half an hour."

Tristan frowned slightly, "What did you come here for?"

****

Back at the office, the secretary had been gone since last night. Tristan poured a cup of water for Jessie and sat face to face with her.

"They just had a meeting, and a special team was built to look into this case. They will dig up the problems of the Chasin Group…"

Jessie went back to see her father a couple of days ago. Last night she overheard her father taking a call in the study. She heard "Chasin" mentioned, and so she kept it in mind.

After her father went to sleep, Jessie took his keys and went to search for his study. She found a file in his drawer that listed the crimes of Chasin, including smuggling, Tristan's involvement in murdering and bribing government officials, and more.

She was shocked, and it took her half the night to digest what she had read.

That morning, she contacted her friend in the city government. Because of her job and her father, she had acc.u.mulated quite a considerable social network in the government.

Her friend told her that the city government was holding a meeting tonight to discuss this case. So she waited for one night, and as soon as she got the information, she came to see Tristan.

Tristan listened to her composedly and asked, "This scared you?"

Jessie still held some hope in vain. "Is this all true?"

Tristan nodded.

And then he said with sarcasm, "Right. The man sitting in front of you is a smuggler, murderer…"

"Please don't say that. I know you were forced to." Jessie interrupted him.

"No." Tristan leaned back on his chair and looked aside, "You don't need to find excuses for me. There is no reason to justify committing crimes. I had other options too."

Tristan could choose to live in hatred and regret, a pain that was worse than death.

He could have never chosen that kind of option in the past, but now he had little doubt about his options. He showed a little trance in his eyes.

Jessie felt sorry for him and said, "Tristan, marry me."

Tristan looked at her in surprise.

"This time, they have sufficient evidence, and they will play it seriously even at an economical cost to the city. My father is acting justly. The only way is to bind us together. My father has only one daughter…"

Her voice became lower, "He feels he owes me. If I beg him, he would have to bend his principles. Besides, my uncle is working in Washington. He can also help to keep the case down."

She told him everything, even her calculations about her father. It shocked Tristan. He looked at her earnestly and asked, "Even after you know what kind of person I am, you still want to do this?"

There was affection in Jessie's eyes. She didn't need to reply to that.

He sighed, "Jessie, thank you very much for your kindness, but…"

"You don't have to refuse now." Jessie interrupted him and continued with difficulty, "I know you care about Kate, right?"

Her sharp eyes saw the ring on his hand when he had poured the water for her. It wasn't the old one she had seen before. That one was once an eyesore to her, and she, of course, could recognize the difference between the two rings.

Jessie said self-mockingly, "I don't expect you to love me anymore. It is just a makeshift plan for you to get through this danger."

She added with bitterness, "You can still be with Kate."

This was out of her pride's bottom line. Tristan felt his throat tightened.

"Before today, I would not have thought I could do this. I thought I might not be able to give you up to somebody else…"

Jessie recalled her sleepless night after seeing the file. It was then that she realized that she could ask for nothing, as long as he was safe and alive. She would be satisfied if she could save him.

But Tristan had stood up.

He said calmly, "I have been prepared for this, and I can handle it myself. This fight doesn't suit you. I will send you back. Go and have a good sleep."

He walked to the door first, but Jessie ran up and hugged him from behind.

His body turned stiff. He heard her saying with misery, "It is only a marriage in name, and you still would not accept it? Am I so terrible in your heart?"

Tristan could not harden his heart and said in a soothing tone, "I cannot do this. It is not fair to you."

Jessie put her face on his back and said in a nasal voice, "There is no fairness in this world, especially in the world of relationsh.i.p.s."

The words were said lightly, but they were like a lightning bolt that flashed across the sky and split the thick darkness of the night.

Tristan's heart that had been so gloomy for the past few days, suddenly felt relieved.