Is It Love Or a Lie?

"Get real. Lancelot has always loved me! He only married you to use you. Now that you're of no use, you should crawl back to whatever hole you came from, just like the four brats you delivered!" Florence Moore had just stepped out of the cemetery when she ran into Shirley Wilson, who clearly couldn't resist rubbing salt in her wounds. After losing her four babies during a difficult delivery, Florence had been living in a daze, her eyes dull and lifeless, like gray pebbles set in a hollow face. She had just finished arranging her father's funeral, so she hadn't noticed the malice and glee in Shirley's gaze. But when she heard Shirley mention her lost four babies, her eyes widened in shock. "What are you talking about?!" Shirley flashed a wicked smile. "Oh, there's one thing I bet you still don't know." She paused, her gaze shifting to the tall figure approaching from a distance, her eyes glinting with mischief. A chill ran through Florence's veins as dread gnawed at her. She had a feeling that whatever came next would be a truth she wasn't ready to hear. And then, Shirley delivered the blow. "You actually didn't lose the babies in childbirth. But there was no way Lancelot would let you give birth to his children. The very idea of having children with the blood of his enemy made him sick, so he took care of them." 'What?!' Florence felt as if she'd been struck by lightning. She stared at Shirley in disbelief. A chill crept from her feet up to her bones, freezing her to the core. 'Lancelot... killed my four babies?' For the past three years, she had been too numb to piece things together, but she had gradually come to realize that Lancelot Grosvenor's parents' deaths were somehow intertwined with her father. 'If Lancelot wants revenge on me and my father, I can understand that. But my four babies... They're his babies too! How could he be so cruel?!' Florence's voice broke as she screamed, "How could you?!" Shirley's laughter rang out, sharp and cruel, as she drank in Florence's anguish. 'This i***t Florence, ever since she lost her four babies, she believes whatever anyone tells her!' Seeing her plan unfold perfectly, Shirley sneered triumphantly. "Trash like them never deserved..." Before she could finish, a stinging slap interrupted her, burning across her cheek. Her rage boiling over, Florence glared at Shirley, veins bulging on her forehead. Without hesitation, she struck Shirley twice more. "You dare hit me?" Shirley clutched her face, stunned that Florence, who had seemed so fragile, would suddenly fight back. "Try me, and I'll kill you!" Florence snarled, her voice thick with fury, her hands trembling with the force of her emotions. She glared at Shirley with a fury faze and then kicked over a nearby trash can and grabbed Shirley's throat with a swift, merciless grip. 'My four babies are dead, murdered by the man I loved the most! My father is gone, too, driven to his death. There's nothing left for me in this world.' At that moment, only one thought burned in Florence's mind, to drag down the woman who'd schemed to steal her husband, even if it meant her own end. "Stop!" Lancelot's voice broke through as he rushed forward, pulling them apart, but Florence's grip had been too strong, and she stumbled backward. Shirley clung to Lancelot as if he were her savior, her pale face twisted into a mask of fake innocence. "Lancelot, I was just trying to comfort her, but she tried to kill me. I'm so scared." Seeing the red marks on Shirley's neck, stark against her smooth skin, Lancelot frowned. But then his gaze shifted to Florence, lying on the ground, and a flicker of worry crossed his face. Before he could react, Florence scrambled to her feet, her eyes burning as she took in the sight of them together, pain lancing through her chest. Her love, everything she'd believed in, now felt like a cruel joke, making her stomach churn with bitter resentment. 'What I thought was love turned out to be a lie!' And she'd been too blind to see it, playing the fool in her own tragic drama. Her legs buckled, and she leaned against the railing to steady herself, her voice hoarse as she asked, "Did you marry me just for revenge?" Her desperate gaze locked onto Lancelot. She still held onto a thread of hope, as fragile as a spider's web. Lancelot's expression turned cold, his voice devoid of warmth. "Yes." Florence bit down hard on her lip, the metallic taste of blood filling her mouth. She didn't seem to feel the pain as she shouted, "So, you've only ever used me?!" "Yes." The finality of his answer hit her like a sledgehammer. She staggered back, feeling as if her entire world was splitting apart, the pain nearly suffocating her. She asked one last question, "What about the four babies...?" She couldn't bring herself to ask the full question. 'After all, even a beast wouldn't harm its own offspring? Whatever grudges the previous generation held, the four babies were innocent.' But Lancelot's cold, unfeeling voice crushed her final thread of hope. "Yes." Florence stumbled, feeling the last bit of warmth drain from her soul. 'So, it was all true, everything Shirley said! She wasn't lying just to hurt me. Lancelot admitted it himself.' It made her feel like she was sinking into a frozen abyss. The man she had once loved deeply had turned that love into a weapon, driving it deep into her chest without mercy, and he hadn't even spared their babies. "How could you do this to me?!" Florence's face twisted with a mix of sorrow and rage, a manic glint flashing in her eyes. She had given Lancelot her heart, her youth, everything. Yet he had thrown them all away, using her like a pawn in his cruel game. Seeing her breakdown, lips pressed, Lancelot clenched his fists under the cover of his sleeves, feeling a heavy weight settling in his chest, but his expression remained cold and distant. "I came for revenge, Florence. From now on, the Moore family is finished. For the sake of what we had, take care of yourself." His tone was flat, his words devoid of any trace of compassion. Florence felt as if her tears had dried up, her chest aching with a void too deep to fill. A wild, bitter laugh tore from her throat. She just laughed, heartbreaking. "Fine, I was blind to love you. But even if it costs me my life, I'll drag you both to hell with me!"