At this point, the child was no more, dead without a witness, all she had to do was insist that the child was Matthew's, no one would be able to refute her.
Then, she would use this resentment over the lost child to "deal with" Flora.
Ensconced in the position of Mrs. Charles, having another child with Matthew was well within her grasp.
"Leave this matter to me, I'll take care of it." Matthew's lips twisted in a grim smile, his voice icy as he addressed the woman lying on the hospital bed.
In name, Selena was his wife.
And if he had not known early on that the child in her belly was not his, perhaps he would have been led by the nose by her today.
He had known all along that the child was not his, he had known all along that today's incident was Selena reaping what she sowed.
Not a shred of sympathy stirred within him.
Matthew, by nature, was a man devoid of warmth, shrouded in an icy aloofness.
All the love and tenderness he had gathered throughout his life, he chose to bestow solely upon Flora and their child.
The sobs hadn't yet fully ceased when Selena, wiping her tears, looked up at the man standing beside her bed.
He had been maintaining a deliberate distance from her, not moving an inch closer, showing no signs of wanting any intimate closeness with her.
"This is our child... If you ignore this for Flora, our child will die without closure..."
Matthew's emotionless face darkened further.
He turned away, walked out, leaving behind a simple command: "Rest now."
Selena's heart throbbed with fear.
Matthew's reaction was completely beyond her expectation.
Ignoring the lingering pain in her lower belly, she threw off the blanket, leaped out of the bed, barefoot, running to clasp Matthew from behind.
"Matthew... Where are you going? You can't abandon me, can you?" A wild thought flashed across her mind, causing her voice to rise: "You are going to find Flora, aren't you? How can you..." The more she spoke, the closer she seemed to the brink of insanity: "No, you can't find her! That woman is a vixen! She will ensnare you, bewitch you... Matthew... don't find her, please?"
"Have you lost your mind? You're the one who wanted me to avenge our unborn child, but now you're stopping me from finding her.
How am I supposed to take revenge without confronting her?" He used his strength to pry Selena's hands off him, then he quickly moved forward, never looking back.
The hospital room door slammed shut in front of her, and Selena's hands fell limp.
Tears blurred her pallid, worn-out face.
Her anxiety intensified.
She could hardly trust that Matthew truly intended to avenge their unborn child.
Ever since Flora appeared, everything Matthew did seemed to have deviated from the path he once followed.
The police car slowly followed Flora, ensuring her safe return home. Only after she had locked the door behind her did the officer drive back to the station.
Having promised Matthew to escort her home, he obviously couldn't abandon her on a dangerous night.
Shortly after Flora's return, the sound of a key being inserted into the lock resonated once again.
True to his promise, Matthew was back quickly.
"How did you know I was here?" The place she returned to was her old apartment, not his brother's home.
"Of course, I knew." Matthew closed the door, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her close: "Where you are, what you're doing, I always know.
Flora, have you forgotten? I'm Matthew, your man." Naturally, he should know everything about his wife.
He knew it all, including the hardships she and their child had to endure in the brief time apart.
A wan smile crossed Flora's lips.
Suddenly, she felt dizzy, her limbs heavy.
Without warning, her body went limp and she passed out in his arms..
When her heavy eyelids fluttered open again, she was met with Matthew's magnified face.
She felt a sudden sense of peace, letting out a soft sigh of relief.
Waking up to see him right beside her was comforting.
In an instant, all the anxiety, the unfamiliarity, the anger from their time apart seemed to have washed away like a stream of water.
She stretched out her hand, gently caressing his cheek.
"You've lost weight..." His cheeks seemed slightly hollow, making his cheekbones more pronounced.
His features looked more sharp, but... he indeed had lost weight: "Have you had a hard time these past days?"
"Not as hard as you have." Matthew placed a soft kiss on her forehead: "You fainted just from a hug, how could you possibly handle anything else?" His breath was warm, brushing against her smooth forehead.
The implications of his words turned Flora's cheeks a bright shade of red.
She reflexively aimed a kick between his legs: "Matthew, you are impressive! Freshly returned, you're already thinking about such debauchery!"
Unexpectedly, her strike toppled Matthew onto the bed.
Flora's complexion paled, and she hastily got up: "What's wrong with you? Don't scare me..."
"I'm not trying to scare you.
If you kick like that, what if you ruin something? What would become of your future happiness?" With a single flip, their positions switched - now with Matthew on top, pressing the woman he had longed for both day and night onto the bed, his head bent close to her neck, inhaling the refreshing scent of her body.
"What are you doing?"
His icy lips curved slightly: "Doing what... don't you know? We need to check whether your kick just now had any impact."
Their lips met, nipping, entwining.
The atmosphere between them began to heat up, filled with the intoxicating flavor of passionate love.
Within Matthew's deep, dark eyes, lust and desire brimmed, he murmured: "Flora... I've missed you..."
"You vanished without a word, do you know how worried I was?" Flora slightly knitted her brows.
Recalling the series of incidents that had transpired during Matthew's disappearance, she suddenly felt as if everything happening now was merely a dream.
Matthew released a long sigh: "I failed you.
But at that time, I couldn't let you know." In that critical situation, every step had to be carefully calculated.
"What exactly happened?"
"I fell into an enemy's trap and got slightly injured, but then was rescued by someone and taken to a secret place.
As soon as my wounds healed, I hurried back here, but it seems I'm still late, leaving you and our children to suffer." If it weren't for that interfering party, who would not let him leave, his family wouldn't have had to struggle like this.
Flora's eyes widened: "You were injured?" Her heart ached, she hastily lifted the hem of his shirt: "Where are you hurt? Let me check!"
Matthew chuckled, forcefully pulling off his buttoned shirt, throwing the crumpled garment aside.
There were a few more scars on his body than before, but all were scabbed over or had already scarred.
Flora's delicate hand gently traced the deepest wound on Matthew's abdomen, she asked softly: "Did it hurt a lot?"
"Are you asking about that wound? It doesn't hurt anymore.
Now, the most painful wound is here..." Grabbing her soft hand, he guided it to his chest, halting at the closest spot to his heart.
Each powerful, hasty heartbeat was the clearest demonstration of his current emotions.
"Is lovesickness included?"
Matthew used the simplest and most direct way to assure Flora he was back by her side.
After finishing, she was so exhausted she didn't even want to move a finger, he held her into the bathroom, lowering her into a warm tub.
"Um... so comfortable..." Her body was enveloped by the warm water, and her pores opened in relaxation.
The dark eyes of the man standing beside the tub suddenly darkened, he deliberately lowered his voice: "Feeling comfortable? Let me help you bathe."
Flora gave him a sharp glance.
Without thinking, she knew this man had some indecent intentions: "No need! Go outside!"
"You're rejecting me like this?" Matthew grinned slightly: "Used and then thrown away, you truly are... cold-hearted." Despite his words, he still exited the bathroom, hastily tidying up the room they had disheveled.
After cleaning up, Flora donned a bathrobe and stepped out to see him half-lying against the bed's headboard, laptop placed on his legs, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
"Are you busy?" As soon as she finished speaking, she realized her question was redundant.
Matthew was the CEO of S.E.I Corporation, and he also played an important role in his foster father's organization in the underworld.
He had disappeared, his obligations paused in one place, awaiting his return to resolve them.
Thus, it was natural to be consumed with busyness.
Matthew, however, decidedly snapped his laptop shut, placing it atop the bedside table: "No distractions.
Being with you is of utmost importance."
The previous night, he'd glimpsed uncertainty, fear, and a myriad of other negative emotions within Flora's beautiful brown eyes.
At this moment, she and their children were the most important and meaningful aspects of his life.
As for his work, it wasn't of such grave importance.
"Matthew..." Flora leaned into him: "About Selena's pregnancy..."
"It has nothing to do with you.
It's not your fault." Before she could finish, Matthew firmly affirmed.
"Winky told me that you caused Selena's miscarriage." Selena must've said the same, or more accurately, except for her, everyone else would say the same: "You don't resent me?"
As if he'd heard a feeble joke, Matthew humored the narrator with a laugh: "Why should I resent you? Or rather, why should I believe their words and doubt you?" He tightly embraced her: "Everything that concerns you, I know.
I trust that you're not that kind of person."
Selena's pregnancy had nothing to do with him, and her miscarriage had nothing to do with Flora.
Selena and the Whites used the pregnancy to manipulate the situation, surely, they must've foreseen this day.
"Stop worrying, rest a bit.
Didn't you tire last night?"
Flora nestled her ear against his solid chest, listening to the powerful and steady rhythm of his heartbeat.
She closed her eyes, slowly sinking into sleep.
When she opened her eyes again, the clock neared ten in the morning.
Slipping on her slippers, Flora left the room.
Signs of Matthew were clear, a pair of men's shoes on the rack, yesterday's clothes in the laundry basket, the long robe hanging on the rack.
Their silence reassured Flora that the previous night wasn't a dream, he'd truly returned.