Chapter 358

Michael was like a madman, clutching Willow’s throat with deadly force, as if he wanted to drag her down to hell with him.

Willow’s eyes rolled back from the choking, her fingers weakly prying at his wrists, gasping with difficulty, “Michael…”

Her broken sobs escaped. “Let me go, please let me go…”

Her voice was faint, carrying a pitiful sense of pleading.

But Michael’s bloodshot eyes remained locked on her, his expression maniacal. “From the moment I stepped into this mountain, I never intended to leave alive. Since I’m going to die, I’ll take you with me.”

It turned out he truly meant to strangle Willow.

Willow felt the air grow thinner and thinner, her face turning red and purple.

Her vision went dark in an instant, stars bursting before her eyes.

That hand clamped around her throat like an iron vice, tightening endlessly!

His knuckles sank deep into the soft flesh of her neck, cutting off every bit of air.

She could clearly hear the sickening crackling of her throat bones being crushed under immense pressure.

She opened her mouth helplessly like a fish flung ashore, unable to form a complete sound.

Her hands instinctively clawed at Michael’s arms, nails scratching bloody marks. But it was like a bug trying to move a tree, completely useless.

Her vision blurred, and all she could hear was the blood thundering at her temples and her faint, fading heartbeat. Her consciousness was slipping away…

“Michael, let her go!” Nicolas shouted urgently.

He signaled to the attendants beside him. “What are you standing around for? Pull him off her!”

Immediately, several attendants rushed forward, trying to separate them. But Michael’s hand was locked tightly around Willow’s throat.

The harder the attendants pulled, the more pain it caused Willow.

They didn’t know how to proceed. Michael’s eyes only fixated on Willow, his fingers tightening again and again.

He was truly about to kill her when Nicolas’s anxious voice rang out, “Michael, let her go. Willow is carrying your child!”

Michael froze, shock flashing across his face.

He looked at the dying Willow and instinctively loosened his grip.

As her body began to fall, he quickly caught her again, his eyes filled with confusion and panic.

Michael stared at Nicolas, his voice trembling, “What did you say? Say it again.”

Seeing him release Willow, Nicolas finally breathed a sigh of relief. He stepped forward, signaling someone to take Willow from Michael’s arms, then said, “Willow. She’s pregnant.”

Willow’s violent coughing brought Michael back to reality.

He first stared blankly at the ground. After a while, a hoarse laugh escaped his throat.

A repressed, wounded howl, like a lone wolf in agony, tore out of his chest.

His tall figure seemed to collapse inward like his spine had been ripped out.

He stumbled and crashed heavily to the stone ground.

Tears gushed from his eyes as he let out an anguished, gut-wrenching cry.

Michael pounded the ground with his fists like a madman, his expression shattered and hysterical. “Why… Why are you doing this to me??”

The news of Willow’s pregnancy brought him no joy, only helplessness and despair.

They had already ended things between them. Yet fate had cruelly tied them back together with the existence of a new life.

To him, this feeling was worse than death.

He could kill Willow, but he couldn’t bring himself to harm an innocent child.

Michael clutched his head and cried, completely unhinged.

Willow looked at him in fear, unable to take a step forward.

She was certain. He had really meant to kill her.

“Nicolas…” Willow whimpered and ran to Nicolas.

He pulled her into his arms and comforted her gently, “Don’t be afraid. He won’t hurt you anymore.”

Willow looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, her expression full of lingering fear. “Michael really wanted to kill me. Nicolas, just let him go…”

They had once been husband and wife. Willow couldn’t bear to see Michael die in front of her.

Nicolas patted her shoulder lightly, signaling her to stay calm.

He handed her over to Marquita, then walked toward Michael.

The nearby men tensed up at his approach, trying to stop him. But Nicolas waved his hand to show he was fine.

He crouched down beside Michael and cautiously placed a hand on his shoulder.

Michael didn’t react, so Nicolas gently patted his shoulder again and began to speak. “Even if you return now, no one will believe you. This place might not be as grand as the Osborne family’s estate, but it’s free. You won’t have to bow to anyone anymore.”

He added, “Michael, I hope you’ll think carefully. If you go back, it’s a dead end. But if you stay, you’ll have a home, Willow, and soon, your child.”

Michael hung his head without answering.

But his emotions slowly calmed. Nicolas’s eyes flickered with satisfaction.

He glanced at Willow. She gave him a small smile.

It seemed they had long expected Michael to be tamed.

Willow stepped forward again, reaching for Michael’s arm. “Michael, let me help you up. Your wounds need tending. I’ll take you back to bandage them.”

As she got close, Michael didn’t push her away. He even allowed her to touch him.

Joy bloomed in Willow’s heart. Michael had stopped resisting. He had finally resigned himself.

Chapter 358

Willow supported him as they walked toward the rear courtyard.

As they passed by Nicolas, he gave her a subtle look. She nodded slightly, showing she understood.

Michael now resembled a defeated wolf, all the fierceness drained from his eyes, leaving only numbness.

He let Willow remove his outer robe, clean his wounds, and wrap them in bandages.

After she finished, she sat beside him, resting her head on his shoulder, sobbing. “Michael, I haven’t stopped thinking about you for even one day. Everything that happened between us was all because of Athena. Please don’t be so stubborn anymore, okay?”

Her tears fell onto his robe, finally stirring a response from Michael.

He looked at Willow’s tear-streaked face.

She looked just as pitiful as she had when she was a child running to him after being bullied.

But at some point, everything had changed.

He thought about it. It changed the moment Athena returned.

Old memories, like poisoned blades, stabbed deep into Michael’s heart, filling him with unbearable pain.

His reddened eyes stared at Willow. His lips moved, but no words came out.

Willow took his hand and placed it gently over her belly, watching him with hope. “Can you feel it? Our child is here. I’m almost two months along.”

Beneath his palm, her stomach was still flat.

But Michael felt a shock run through him, as if he could sense the stubborn life growing inside.

His hand recoiled like it had touched boiling water.

Michael looked at Willow in panic, then closed his eyes. He still couldn’t accept it. “Get out. You… get out.”