30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 240: I’ll Let Him Marry You

"What else do you want to do to me? I’ve swallowed all the ecstasy you’ve forced on me and injected all the drugs you’ve given me. What’s next?" Aiko Nakamura glared at Lily with resentment.

Lily instinctively took a step back.

Before coming here, she had planned to do whatever it took to force Aiko to hand over the antidote. But now, seeing Aiko in this state...

Lily was shaken. This woman wasn’t afraid of pain—she wasn’t even scared of being tortured to death.

"You don’t even resemble a human anymore. Are you still refusing to hand over the antidote? How much more torture do you want to endure?" Lily asked, her tone serious.

"If Ethan marries me, I’ll give you the antidote," Aiko said, her voice filled with venom. It was her only demand, her sole purpose.

"Fine, I’ll make him marry you. Where’s the antidote? Who has it? Or give me the formula," Lily replied without hesitation, her expression solemn and sincere. There was no hint of mockery in her tone.

"Miss Anderson..." Helen softly called out in alarm.

Aiko’s face was covered in cuts and bruises, a patchwork of bloodstains and dirt, utterly unrecognizable from the sunny girl who once appeared in sports advertisements.

"Let him marry me?"

"Yes," Lily affirmed.

Confusion flickered in Aiko’s resentful eyes before she stared intently at Lily and burst into laughter. "Haha... Hahaha..."

"What are you laughing at?" Lily asked coldly.

"Director Anderson... I studied acting, and your performance just now... was terrible," Aiko said, laughing weakly. Her pale lips curled into a smile, but the corners of her mouth were stained with blood.

Her laughter was unsettling, sending chills down the spines of everyone present.

"Do you insist on being tortured here? If Ethan loved you, he wouldn’t have had you beaten like this. What’s the point of wanting a man who doesn’t love you?!" Lily snapped, her frustration boiling over.

Dealing with a woman who wasn’t afraid of death or physical and mental torture...

Lily felt utterly powerless.

"If I can’t be Ethan’s wife this time, then when I return, I’ll lose my freedom anyway. I’ll die alone. Do you understand?" Aiko said, her voice filled with deep bitterness.

She had been raised to become the daughter-in-law of the Blackwood family...

She values freedom, but she loves Ethan even more. If she couldn’t have either, she would rather die here.

"I’ve already agreed to make him marry you."

"Pfft... Do you think I believe you?" Aiko scoffed, spitting blood in Lily’s direction. The bloody droplets landed on Lily’s face.

Lily reacted instinctively, slapping Aiko hard across the face. Aiko winced in pain but sneered. "Sister Lily, if you want to play rough, hit harder. Be like those men—punch me, whip me... I can take it."

"What on earth do you want?!" Lily shouted in frustration.

"I want Ethan to go to the civil registry with me and legally register our marriage. After that, I’ll give you the antidote," Aiko demanded. "I’m barely alive after all this torture, but I’m not stupid."

"I’ve never met anyone like you..."

"That’s because you’ve never experienced what I have," Aiko interrupted, tears welling in her eyes. "Sister Lily, I’m so jealous of you. Jealous enough to wish you were dead!"

"Crazy woman!" Lily spat, glaring at her.

"I am," Aiko admitted without hesitation.

Lily had nothing more to say. She turned her back on Aiko, signaling the bodyguards to take her away.

Helen watched as Aiko was dragged out, then walked up to Lily in disbelief. "That woman is insane!"

"Didn’t Ethan investigate Aiko’s background before? Does he know what she fears most or what she’s most vulnerable about?" Lily asked, rubbing her temples in frustration.

Aiko wasn’t afraid of anything—not pain, not death...

What could possibly terrify her?

"I’ll look into it again. Miss Anderson, what should we do now?" Helen asked, awaiting Lily’s following instructions.

"Is the legal team ready? Let’s start by petitioning the military for Ethan’s release."

"Understood, Miss Anderson. And what about the people here? If anyone traces this location back to the hostages, the consequences will be catastrophic," Helen said. It wasn’t cruelty—sacrificing the few to protect the many was a harsh reality.

"Separate them and relocate them. Don’t keep everyone here at the club. Assign more people to watch Aiko Nakamura—she’s cunning and knows some tricks. Don’t let her escape."

Lily refused to resort to killing as a solution. It was a principle she wouldn’t compromise.

"Understood, Miss Anderson," Helen said with a nod.

As Helen accompanied Lily out of the club, Lily suddenly stopped and turned to one of the bodyguards. "Is Bill Carter, the chairman of Carter Group, here?"

"Yes, he was among the first hostages transferred with Aiko Nakamura," the bodyguard replied respectfully.

"Good," Lily said with a slight nod. "Make sure he’s safe."

"Yes, Miss Anderson."

Bill Carter was unharmed, which was a relief. At least she could give Alex Carter an explanation. But if Bill were released now, his hatred for Ethan would surely lead to revenge...

For now, she had no choice but to keep Bill detained.

Back in the car, Helen immediately opened her tablet and began checking the next steps in their plans, making phone calls one after another.

Lily silently watched Helen’s busy figure leaning against the car window. The car’s gentle vibrations seemed to rattle her thoughts.

Outside the window, the scenery blurred as it sped past, like scenes from a fast-forwarded movie.

Lily remembered something her editing professor had once told the class:

"Life is like a black-and-white documentary. It’s long, tedious, and worst of all... you can’t cut out the sad parts."

At the time, the entire class had burst into laughter. But now, reflecting on it, she realized how profoundly sad those words were.

If life could be edited...

Her documentary would probably be very short.

Dad... Ethan...

Leaning against the window, Lily felt her eyes grow wet.

"Miss Anderson, um..." Helen suddenly turned around to speak, but when she saw Lily’s tears on her face, she froze. "Are you alright?"

Lily quickly wiped her tears away and put on her sunglasses. "I’m fine. What were you going to say?"

"The central government and military are refusing to meet with us for detailed discussions," Helen said. "They know very well that if we manage to get Mr. Blackwood out now, they won’t have another chance to capture him."

A deadlock, then?

"Is the press conference still ongoing?" Lily asked.

"Yes, but the questions are incredibly sharp. The PR team is struggling to respond and has been criticized for being evasive," Helen said worriedly. "That useless PR team... If I were there, things would be different."

She was already overwhelmed, juggling Lily’s needs and the countless urgent matters. Usually, when Mr. Blackwood was absent, she was the one he trusted most to handle everything.

"Take me to the press conference immediately," Lily said.

"What?" Helen was stunned. Was Miss Anderson planning to attend the press conference herself? The questions would be brutal...

At the Blackwood Enterprise press conference aimed at clarifying the scandal, countless domestic and international media outlets packed the grand conference hall to capacity.

Outside the venue, amid the city’s bustling streets—

A sleek white sports car sat quietly in the traffic. Inside, a tablet was propped up, streaming the live press conference. On the screen, the Blackwood Enterprise. PR spokesperson was visibly struggling to answer the deluge of questions from the media, repeatedly saying, "No comment on that matter."

Alex Carter sat in the driver’s seat, watching the scene unfold with a calm, elegant smile on his lips. His eyes glinted with amusement, and his demeanor radiated wealth and sophistication.

Ethan Blackwood.

Blackwood Enterprise.

It’s all over. Heh.

His phone suddenly rang. Glancing at the screen, Alex saw Alice Johnson’s name. The amusement in his eyes faded as he muted the tablet and answered the call.

"Alex? What are you doing?" Alice asked cautiously.

"I’m watching the Blackwood Enterprise press conference. Why?" Alex replied, his tone gentle.

"Why does the central government know about the hostages being held at the villa? Did you... do this?" Alice asked hesitantly, her voice trembling.

Alex’s gaze lingered on the tablet screen where the Blackwood Enterprise was. PR spokesperson was visibly overwhelmed. He couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

"How could I?" he replied smoothly, his voice gentle.

"Then why were you meeting with my father in his study for hours the other day?" Alice pressed a trace of suspicion in her voice.

"We were discussing our wedding," Alex said with a smile, his tone unbothered. "Alice, are you getting cold feet? Don’t let little things like this stress you out, okay?"

Suddenly, Alex’s eyes sharpened as he noticed a group of bodyguards on the screen maintaining order at the press conference. They cleared a path for a woman in a trench coat, long hair cascading over her shoulders, and oversized sunglasses shielding her face as she was escorted into the venue.

It was Lily.

Her figure, her movements—Alex recognized her instantly, even from her silhouette.

What is she doing at this press conference?

Alice hesitated on the phone, her voice filled with relief. "As long as it wasn’t you. I almost thought you were behind it. You scared me, Alex. If it really were you, that would be insane. They still have your father in their custody."

"Of course not. I value family deeply. I’d never put my father in harm’s way," Alex said warmly, though his eyes remained fixed on the screen.

"What are you doing now? Do you want to go try on our wedding outfits?" Alice asked eagerly.

"I’m busy at the moment. I’ll call you later," Alex replied.

Hanging up, Alex let his phone slip from his hand.

Turning the sound back on, he watched the live broadcast.

On the screen, bodyguards escorted Lily to the podium. Flashes from the cameras lit up her face as reporters snapped photos incessantly.

Ethan Blackwood’s mess..., and now she must stand before everyone to clean it up.

Even in the worst situations, she had managed to keep her face hidden from the public. And yet, for Ethan, she was now stepping into the media’s spotlight again.

Alex’s expression turned cold as he stared at the screen. His hand slowly clenched into a fist, the veins on the back of his pale hand bulging.

At the press conference—

All the lights were focused on Lily, who stood at the podium, facing the packed conference hall filled with reporters. Her sunglasses obscured most of her face.

"Miss Anderson, are you sure about this?" Helen whispered nervously beside her. "Maybe I should handle this instead."

Lily was only 22 years old. How could she possibly manage such a massive situation?

"Feel free to ask me any questions," Lily said into the microphone. Her slightly hoarse voice echoed through the hall.

She had never faced a crowd like this before, but she had her own methods for dealing with reporters.

The bodyguards maintained order, ushering the reporters back to their seats. However, the room was so packed that half the reporters were left standing, and the cameras and equipment filled every inch of the space.