The Cherished Wife (Noelle and Charles)

Upon hearing Charles' reassurance, Noelle finally let out a sigh of relief. "That's good. I thought..."

She smiled, then urged, "Go change your clothes. Aren't you worried about catching a cold?"

...

Meanwhile, Chloe had pressed the button to end the call, but her mind remained unsettled. The fact that Charles had already gotten married was hard for her to accept, especially since his wife was woman who looked exactly like Kelly.

This left Chloe in disbelief. She had always believed that Charles harbored no romantic feelings for Kelly-or perhaps he had, but it was in the past. Now, however, she was not so sure.

"What's going on?" Jordy asked, noticing the shocked expression on Chloe's face. "I just heard you mention something about Charlie being married, the Hoffmans, and Kelly. What's all this about?" Chloe rubbed her temples in frustration. "It's nothing!" Her mind was a mess.

Charles' last words were not up for negotiation-they had been a warning. His marriage was not something he had told her to get approval for; he was simply informing her.

The message was clear-either stand with him and move forward together, or align with the Hoffmans or the Bakers and be in opposition. For Chloe, none of those choices seemed easy. Charles was serious this time!

That New Year's was destined to be anything but peaceful. The lively atmosphere at the Hoffmans gradually faded into a bleak ending, something that had not happened in decades. Burdened with a heavy heart and full of worries, Chloe could not sleep well into the early hours of the morning.

...

Meanwhile, back at the Hoffman residence, the quiet night was suddenly shattered by a piercing scream in the middle of the night.

Clarisse was the first to react as her room was close to Janet's. The moment she heard the scream, she grabbed the bottle of pills from her drawer and rushed to Janet's room.

"Janet, what's wrong?!" she called out while banging on the door.

Inside, Janet stood with her long black hair hanging loosely around her. She clutched a photograph in one hand and a fruit knife in the other, frantically stabbing at the photo.

She was muttering under her breath, "You wretched woman, you wretched woman! Kelly Anderson, you bitch!"

"Janet! Janet!" Clarisse was terrified as she heard the sounds coming from inside the room. She pounded on the door even harder. "Janet, open the door! Let me in!"

"What's happening?" Mateo hurried over after having thrown on a coat. Seeing Clarisse in such a state, he furrowed his brows together. "What's going on with Janet now?"

"Quick, open the door! It sounds like something terrible has happened to her!"

"Keep your voice down! Don't wake the old man," Mateo said, covering Clarisse's mouth and shaking his head.

"I'll open the door. Don't cause a scene."

Clarisse nodded, and Mateo let her go before forcefully kicking the door open.

"Janet, what's wrong?" Clarisse rushed in as soon as the door opened, but her sudden entry only startled Janet more.

Janet stood there, gripping the fruit

knife in one hand and the tattered

photo in the other. Her bloodshot eyes glared at Clarisse as she screamed, "Kelly, you wretched woman! I'll kill you!"