30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 315: On the Edge of Madness

"The sudden downfall of the Carter Group has shocked the business world. No one knows what happened, and this may remain a mystery forever."

The reporter’s voice echoed from the hospital television.

Lily stood there, staring at the screen. For a moment, she was a child again—reading the headlines about her father’s company collapsing, her family name reduced to a scandal.

The Carter Group—once a legend, once the center of attention—had disappeared just as quickly.

A temporary flurry of news.

And then—nothing.

Like it had never existed at all.

"Miss Anderson... stop watching." Butler Aston sighed beside her.

The Carter family was finished. That was a fact no one could change.

Inside the Hospital Room-

When Lily reached Alice’s room, she was half-reclined in bed, staring blankly ahead.

Her eyes were empty, dull.

The moment Lily stepped inside, her footsteps jolted Alice from her trance.

Slowly, Alice turned.

And the second her gaze locked onto Lily, her expression twisted with hatred.

In one sharp motion, Alice ripped the IV from her arm.

She grabbed the pillow behind her and hurled it at Lily.

Then, the bedside lamp and the glass of water.

Anything within reach.

Objects crashed against Lily’s body and the floor, shattering on impact.

But she didn’t move. She didn’t dodge.

She just stood there—silent, unmoving—letting Alice unleash everything.

"Miss Anderson, be careful!" Butler Aston quickly stepped forward, trying to shield her.

A sharp edge of something had struck Lily’s forehead, leaving a thin trail of blood.

She barely reacted.

Her face was pale, her lashes wet, her expression unreadable.

There was no anger.

No resentment.

No blame.

Only silence.

"Lily Anderson—" Alice’s voice was raw and fury, and each word was venomous.

"People die every single day. Why the hell aren’t you one of them?!"

Lily’s body trembled slightly.

She lifted her gaze.

Alice’s hatred burned into her, dark and unforgiving.

Then, Alice grabbed the IV bag and flung it at her.

Her voice cracked as she screamed—

"I lost my child! My baby with Alex is gone! Are you happy now?! You tore us apart, and now my child is dead! Is this what you wanted?!"

The IV hit Lily’s shoulder with a dull thud before falling to the floor.

Happy?

What was there to be happy about?

Had she wanted this?

Had she wanted any of this?

Butler Aston hesitated, glancing between them anxiously.

He wanted to pull Lily away, but she stood firm, refusing to move.

Letting Alice break in front of her.

"Why was it my child?!" Alice’s voice cracked with grief.

"He was mine! Alex and I—our baby—he never even got to see the world, and now he’s nothing but blood on a hospital bed!"

Her hands clenched into fists as she staggered toward Lily, her pain morphing into rage.

"Why the hell aren’t you dead yet?! If you had died, none of this would have happened! Alex wouldn’t have left me! My child would still be alive!"

Lily’s hands trembled.

She closed her eyes.

Tears slipped down her face.

But she said nothing.

Her silence only made Alice more hysterical.

With a sudden burst of energy, she lunged forward, grabbing Lily by the collar.

Her face was twisted, her voice shaking with rage.

"Listen to me, Lily. I will never forgive you, not in this life or the next. You destroyed everything. My life, my family, my future. You took my husband, my son, my happiness!"

"Miss Anderson, we should go." Butler Aston finally stepped in, trying to pull Lily away.

But Lily didn’t resist.

She looked at Alice.

Her tear-filled eyes met the raw hatred in Alice’s.

And in those eyes, Lily saw it.

She saw herself through Alice’s perspective.

I saw a woman who had ruined everything.

A woman who deserved nothing but suffering.

A woman who should have never existed.

Lily laughed.

A quiet, bitter sound.

Her lips curled into the faintest, most broken smile.

Pain laced every inch of it.

A pain so deep that it bent her forward, as if she couldn’t even stand beneath its weight.

Tears slipped freely down her face.

And for the first time—She wondered if Alice was right.

"What did I do?"

Lily’s voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.

Her eyes were empty, holding nothing but despair.

"Give me back Alex and my child! Give them back!"

Alice’s screams shattered the space between them, her tears falling uncontrollably.

Lily looked at her.

"What did I do?" she asked again.

What had she done?

Had she wanted this?

Had she ever wished for things to turn out this way?

Had she ever tried to hurt anyone?

No.

But could she stop any of it?

No.

So why—why was it all her fault?

"Lily Anderson—why are you still alive? Why weren’t you the one who died?!"

Alice’s voice was raw, desperate, hysterical.

"Why wasn’t it you?!"

The words cut through Lily like a blade. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Lily stumbled back, her body swaying unsteadily.

Lily turned and walked away.

"Miss Anderson! Where are you going?!"

Butler Aston’s voice was laced with concern.

He wanted to follow her, but Alice was still thrashing, still screaming, forcing him to stay.

Lily didn’t stop.

Alice’s words echoed in her mind, looping relentlessly.

Step by step, she climbed the hospital stairs.

One floor.

Another.

Higher.

Maybe it really was her fault.

Maybe she had no right to be here.

Maybe she had caused all of this—

This chaos.

This destruction.

This pain.

If she had never existed—

Ethan’s mother wouldn’t have died.

Her father wouldn’t have died.

Alex wouldn’t have become this.

Alice’s child wouldn’t be gone.

She had always believed that giving up was the most foolish, most cowardly thing a person could do.

But what had her so-called strength ever brought her?

Nothing.

No happiness.

No peace.

Only suffering.

For herself.

For everyone around her.

At the Blackwood Estate-

"Mmm... stop it, you’re so bad..."

"Come on, one last kiss before I go."

At the grand entrance of the Blackwood estate, Tommy Blackwood was leaning against the gate, his hands all over a maid.

His lips crushed against hers, ignoring everything around them.

A group of bodyguards bustled nearby, loading boxes into cars and preparing for departure.

Nanny watched from a distance, shaking her head in exasperation.

Even now, with everything happening, Tommy still found time to flirt.

A fleet of luxury cars roared into the driveway.

Nanny stepped forward as the lead vehicle came to a halt.

The butler rushed to open the door.

Ethan Blackwood stepped out.

His long strides were measured and precise.

His face—expressionless.

His gaze—was cold enough to freeze the air.

He looked at the estate’s entrance, and his eyes locked onto Tommy.

And the girl in his arms.

A flicker of disgust crossed his features.

Without hesitation, Ethan pulled out a gun.

And aimed it directly at the back of Tommy’s head.

Tommy froze.

His hands stilled on the maid’s waist.

Slowly, he raised both arms in surrender.

"Come on, Ethan—this game is not funny."

His voice was light, amused.

But there was a sharp edge of caution beneath it.

"Stop treating my house like your personal brothel." Ethan’s voice was ice.

Tommy let out a slow exhale.

"Alright, alright..."

He took a calculated step back.

Ethan’s gun remained steady.

The maid, terrified, scrambled away.

Tommy stayed still, his head tilted slightly, watching Ethan from the corner of his eye.

Ethan Blackwood’s expression was dark—dangerously dark.

His eyes were like shards of ice, his lips pressed into a thin line.

His fingers twitched against the gun.

As if, at any moment, he might pull the trigger.

Shit.

Tommy swallowed hard.

Ethan was furious—because of Lily.

And now, he was taking it out on him? That was insane. Tommy hadn’t even touched Lily.

"Ethan, come on. We’re leaving anyway. Does it really matter if this house is ’tainted’ or not?"

Tommy forced a casual laugh, trying to ease the tension.

BANG—!

The gunshot exploded beside his ear.

The bullet didn’t hit him—but it was close.

The shell casing clattered to the ground.

Tommy’s breath caught in his throat.

His pulse stopped.

He snapped his gaze to the smoking barrel of Ethan’s gun.

Did he just—

Did Ethan really fire at him?!

"You can’t touch what’s mine!"

Ethan’s voice was low, guttural, laced with unrelenting fury.

He fired again.

And again.

One shot after another, emptying the gun into the ground.

Until the chamber clicked, void of bullets.

Tommy didn’t move.

Didn’t breathe.

The ringing in his ears was deafening.

His entire body was tense, his hands slightly raised in surrender.

Slowly, he exhaled.

"Alright. I get it. I won’t touch it. I wouldn’t dare."

He took a careful step back.

This wasn’t good.

Ethan was losing control.

And when his third brother lost control, things tended to end badly.

CRACK—!

Ethan hurled the gun to the ground.

His chest rose and fell with each sharp breath.

His eyes were dark and unreadable, but his fury was palpable.

Tommy felt something he rarely did—fear.

Because this Ethan was dangerous.

A ticking bomb.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Tommy observed him carefully, gauging the storm inside.

Ethan was drowning in rage, hatred, something more profound.

And there was nothing—nothing—that could pull him out of it.

Alex Carter was dead.

But there was no satisfaction in it.

No sense of victory.

Because what had been taken from Ethan couldn’t be undone.

His world had been violated.

His woman had been touched.

And no matter how often Alex died—it wouldn’t change anything.

He should have fired more shots.

He should have made him suffer longer.

But what did it matter?

Nothing could be undone.

"Ethan, let’s go. Everything’s packed. When are we heading back to Europe?" Tommy asked, careful to avoid one name—Alex Carter.

That name was a landmine.

A single mention could set Ethan off again.

"If you want to leave, get the hell out yourself."

Ethan’s voice was sharp, cutting as he brushed past him.

Without another word, he stepped into the mansion, stripping off his jacket and tossing it to the floor.

Nanny silently followed, picking it up with a sigh.

Tommy frowned.

He quickly followed.

"Look, I can’t just leave without you. If I go back alone, our father will beat me half to death."

Tommy shuddered at the thought.

Dying wasn’t the problem.

It was the half-dead suffering that was terrifying.

Ethan said nothing as he entered the grand, empty living room.

His house.

His territory.

And yet, it felt like everything had been taken from him.

"You know how our father is, Ethan. He doesn’t wait. He gave you a deal—you got the antidote, he helped you wipe out the Carter Group, and now he’s pulling you out of this mess. He expects you back in Europe within a week."

Tommy’s tone was light, but his meaning was clear—

Defy him, and there will be consequences.