A Lifetime Sentence of Missing Her

Everyone in Concenia's elite circle knew that the ruthless heir, Julian Kennedy, loved Willa Taylor more than his own life. He had even donated his own heart to save her without a second thought. Yet, barely three years into their marriage, his obsessive pursuit of the journalist Serena Lynn became the city's worst-kept secret. At first, Willa didn't pay it much mind. But gradually, everything started to feel wrong. When Serena casually mentioned she wanted to make a wish on a falling star, Julian funded a massive artificial meteor shower globally just for her. When Serena posted a sad quote on i********:, he abandoned a ten-million-dollar corporate merger to fly her to the coast, sitting on the beach from sunrise to sunset just to make her smile. On Willa's birthday, he even broke their dinner plans just to accompany Serena to a rural area to film a documentary on elderly poverty. Swallowing the bitter acid in her throat, Willa handed him divorce papers. The first time, Julian fell to his knees. He begged for her forgiveness over and over, swearing it was all just a show for the media. The second time, with red-rimmed eyes, he issued a public apology live on national television, pleading with her to give him one more chance. But as the number of attempts grew, he became certain she would never actually leave him. His apologies turned into sheer negligence. By the ninety-ninth time, his patience completely snapped. With a deep frown, he snatched the divorce papers from her hands and aggressively signed his name. "Serena is never going to threaten your position as Mrs. Kennedy. Could you stop being so damn unreasonable?" He genuinely thought Willa was just throwing a tantrum. That very night, he ruthlessly outbid everyone at an auction to buy Serena a diamond ring to prove his devotion. What he didn't know was that this time, Willa was completely dead set on leaving. ***** Willa smoothed out the wrinkled divorce papers as tears slipped silently down her cheeks. It wasn't until the water droplets nearly blurred the ink of Julian's signature that she forcefully suppressed the agonizing pain in her chest. She tucked the papers away and dialed her best friend's number. "Are you absolutely sure you want to move abroad? But isn't Julian permanently banned from leaving the country?" Blake Reilly asked on the phone. Willa's knuckles turned white as she gripped the phone. On their wedding day, in front of hundreds of high-society guests, Julian had dropped to one knee and vowed never to betray her. "What if you do something to hurt me?" she had asked. Smiling, he had slid the diamond ring onto her finger. "I will never hurt you. I've been permanently blacklisted from leaving the country. If that day ever comes, you can flee abroad. Punish me by making sure I can never find you, leaving me in agony for the rest of my life." Willa turned her head to look out the window. Down in the garden, the estate staff were busy uprooting the hundreds of red roses. Julian had planted them with his own hands just to propose to her. Now, simply because Serena complained they looked too tacky, they were being violently ripped out of the earth. A bitter smile touched her lips. "Book me a flight for a month from now. And please, don't breathe a word of this to Julian." Blake sounded incredibly worried but eventually agreed. The moment Willa hung up, her phone buzzed again. It was the private nursing home. "Miss Taylor, you need to get here immediately! Mr. Kennedy is ordering us to pull the plug on your mother's life support!" Willa froze, forgetting how to breathe. A horrific car accident last year had left her mother in a vegetative state, entirely dependent on a ventilator to stay alive while waiting for a miracle. Julian knew damn well that without that machine, her mother wouldn't survive for three minutes. How could he be so ruthless? With no time to think, Willa sprinted frantically toward the hospital, stumbling the entire way. The moment she burst into the VIP ward, panting heavily, she saw Serena directing the nurses to disconnect the tubes. "There are so many people out there dying, waiting for a bed. It's a sin to waste precious medical resources on a vegetable." Willa lunged forward, desperately trying to shove the nurses away from the machine. "Do not touch that ventilator!" Serena let out a heavy sigh. "Mrs. Kennedy, I know you love your mother dearly, but do you have any idea how strained the healthcare system is right now? Your mother has been lying in this bed for a year. The amount of money wasted is astronomical. You should be using that wealth to treat patients who actually have a chance to live. Consider it building good karma for your mother." Years ago, Julian had spent a fortune building a custom glass mansion just to make Willa smile. Back then, Serena had written a scathing article slamming Julian for his reckless extravagance. She accused him of being blind to human suffering, claiming countless people were starving while he threw away millions. Willa had assumed Julian would be furious. Instead, he had smiled with an intriguing glint in his eyes and said, "She's quite an interesting woman." From that day on, the entire household's budget was drastically slashed. Not only were Willa's credit cards frozen, but she even had to ask for permission just to buy tampons. She could tolerate all of that. But this was her mother's life! Her mother was the only family she had left in this world. She would never let anyone harm a single hair on her head! She threw her arms around the ventilator, screaming like a madwoman at Serena, "Other people's lives matter, but my mother's life doesn't? Pulling her plug without my consent is murder!" Just as the words left her mouth, Julian walked into the room. Seeing the tear tracks on Willa's face, he felt a faint prick of pain hit his chest. He subconsciously took a step toward her. "What's going on here?" Before he could get close, Serena let out a soft whimper. Julian's footsteps halted. He immediately turned around, wrapping his arm securely around Serena's waist to comfort her. "What's wrong, Serena? Did someone hurt you? Are you feeling unwell?" Leaning weakly against his chest, Serena sniffled and recounted the event with a masterful display of fragility. "So many people are dying because they can't afford a hospital bed, yet we are wasting so much effort on someone who is practically gone. How can we face society like this? Besides, her mother hasn't woken up in so long. Maybe taking her off life support will trigger her survival instinct. It might actually bring us a miracle." Julian pondered for a moment. His cold gaze swept over Willa before he gave a slow nod. "Willa, Serena is right. Your mother has suffered long enough. Maybe this is exactly the push she needs." He turned to his bodyguards with a chilling command. "Pull the plug!"