Reckless Marriage Unyielding Love

This was Natasha's skill. Deftly leveraging her perceived weaknesses to garner sympathy at crucial moments.

"Natasha, stop pretending. | consulted with a cardiologist, and they confirmed that after taking your medication,

you couldn't possibly relapse this quickly. Stop playing everyone for fools," Mikayla declared, indifferent to how

others might perceive her. This time, she wouldn't let Natasha off easily.

Natasha's manipulation of her illness and disability to win sympathy masked an extremely malevolent mind. If

this wasn't addressed soon, she'd exploit these vulnerabilities to the point where no one in the family would dare

to oppose her. Eventually, it would lead to chaos, much like what happened with Huxley.

If anyone in the Ludwig family was pretending ignorance, Mikayla had no qualms about shattering their illusions.

"Mikayla, it wasn't me. I'm not pretending!" Natasha sobbed, her face streaked with tears.

"Mikayla, stop it! It doesn't matter who did it. | just want Natasha to be okay," Selena said sternly, a rare

occurrence.

Selena's heart ached upon seeing Natasha in such distress.

Slap!

The sound of a slap echoed through the living room.

Garrett strode over and struck Natasha across her pale face, leaving five distinct fingerprints. The force was

unmistakable.

"Dad!" Natasha looked up, her face a mask of shock and disbelief. Garrett was gentle and had never laid a hand

on her, as he could not bear to hurt her.

Even Mikayla was taken aback by Garrett's reaction.

"Garrett! Why on earth did you hit Natasha?" Selena raised her voice, bewildered and reproachful.

"She's been spoiled rotten by you," Garrett chastised Selena, then turned to the wheelchair-bound Natasha, who

was clutching her face. "Did you do it?"

Although phrased as a question, his tone left no doubt; he already knew the answer.

Garrett didn't want to believe his beloved daughter, Natasha, could do such a thing, but Mikayla had presented

undeniable evidence. There was no way he couldn't see that.

"Garrett, do you not even trust your own daughter?" Selena stood up, locking eyes with Garrett. "She's your flesh

and blood!"

"It's precisely because she is my daughter that | can't continue to indulge her. If not for Mikayla's intervention

today, | wouldn't have realized the severity of her actions. The housekeepers have been taking the blfor

her, while she hides behind her illness, never once stepping forward to admit her mistakes." Garrett shook his

head in disappointment. "Selena, it's not too late to correct Natasha's behavior."

Selena defended Natasha further, "Garrett, Natasha is our daughter. She couldn't possibly do such a thing. She's

always been so obedient and sweet. This is impossible."

"That's something only she can answer." Garrett's tone softened and turned to Natasha. "More than anything, |

don't want you to grow up to be a liar, Natasha. As long as you admit your mistakes, you'll always be my good

girl."

Natasha's hands fell from her face. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked at Garett.

"Garrett..." Selena tried to intervene.

"Natasha!" Garrett's voice sounded firm.

Natasha turned to look at Mikayla, her once lively eyes now filled with malice.

Their gazes met briefly before Mikayla turned away, unfazed.

"It was me. | did it all. | instructed Libby to do those things." Natasha wiped her tears, the previous frailty gone

from her demeanor.

"Natasha!" Selena shouted.

"Apologize to Mikayla." Garrett's tone was unyielding.

Natasha clenched her fists, but a moment later, she relaxed and softly said, "Mikayla, I'm sorry."

"It's all right. | hope you'll learn and grow from this experience," Mikayla responded magnanimously.

Whether Natasha's apology was

genuine or not, Mikayla didn't

concern herself. At least there was someone in the Ludwig family who would educate her properly, unlike Huxley,

who was blindly supported by his family despite his

wrongdoings.

Even if someone wouldn't treat her like before, she just wanted to have a clear conscience.

Mikayla glanced at Selena, who was squatting on the ground, wiping away Natasha's tears.

"Carlos, you've married a wonderful wife. Mikayla is a great spouse for you," Garrett said to Carlos, praising

Mikayla. "Thank you for your intentions, Mikayla. Carlos is fortunate to have you."

Tears flowed once more down Natasha's pale face, a mixture of resentment and regret. She hated herself for

causing such turmoil, only for it to fail.

Carlos, having watched the entire tic scene unfold, gracefully approached Mikayla with his long, elegant

strides. "Let's go home, Mrs. Ludwig!"

He extended his well-defined hand into the air, a slight arch to his eyebrow, as if silently asking, ‘Mrs. Ludwig,

have you had enough fun? If so, let's go home."

A radiant smile spread across Mikayla's face as she reached out her delicate, fair hand. "Yes, let's go home."

"Mikayla!" Selena called out, standing up.

"Don't worry, Selena. | won't be around too often for a while, which should be better for Natasha's condition,"

Mikayla replied with a serene smile.

Selena felt as though her feet were cemented to the floor. Having her thoughts so plainly read and stated out

loud was undeniably uncomfortable. With that, Mikayla and Carlos walked out hand in hand, their perfectly

matched silhouettes fading into the night.

The rest of the people at the Ludwig

mansion, no matter how hard they racked their brains, couldn't

reconcile the image of the usually sweet and gentle Natasha with the reality that had just unfolded

QUMS

Who said that beauty and brains couldn't coexist?

Today, they had witnessed firsthand that Mikayla was a woman of both exceptional intelligence and stunning

beauty.

When they returned to Carlos' mansion, it was still relatively early.

However, Dexter was nowhere to be seen.

"Doesn't the butler live here?" Mikayla asked as she stepped into the living room and changed out of her shoes.

She glanced around but didn't see any sign of Dexter. "He does, but | told him to stay in his room after eight

o'clock in the evening, so he wouldn't disturb our alone time," Carlos explained, following behind her. Mikayla

was at a loss for words.

She thought, 'After eight o'clock? What could a grown man possibly be doing in his room for that long?"

"Don't worry. Dexter doesn't have

many hobbies, but he's very fond of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. He's probably already asleep by now," Carlos

said, glancing at the clock in the living room. He was always patient with Mikayla, no matter what she asked.

p

Mikayla thought, 'All right then. It seems that no one around Carlos is completely normal. Except for me, of

course.’

Then, Mikayla headed to her room.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she was about to close the door, only for Carlos’ foot to block it.

"Considering how well you performed today, Mrs. Ludwig, shouldn't | receive ssort of reward?" he asked,

gently pushing the door open.