Chapter 6

Compared to Ryan's wild and reckless ways, Jonathan had always been cold and restrained. Jonathan seemed indifferent to almost everything. Over the years, he had never spoken kindly to Elena.

Elena reminded him calmly, "Mr. Pierce, we're done. I've paid back everything I owed you."

A crash came from the other end. Something shattered. I could feel his rage even through the phone.

After a few seconds of chaos, Jonathan's voice returned, low and gentle. "We're not done. Elena, you're talking in your sleep."

Elena cut him off softly, "You're drunk."

His voice grew broken and disjointed. "Yeah, I... I'm drunk. You should come get me. You always used to... come get me.

"Elena, you know I have a heart condition. If I drink and no one's around to take care of me, aren't you afraid... I'll die?"

Elena's hand trembled slightly as she held the phone. But her voice was steady. "I'll call the butler to pick you up. This is the last time. From now on, please don't contact me again."

He must have sensed she was about to hang up. His voice turned urgent. "Listen to me. Sharon is gone. I fired her."

This time, his words were clear. No slurring. So the drunk act was just a lame excuse.

He was like Ryan. They both thought it was beneath them to reach out to Elena and me.

Elena let out a soft laugh. "And what does that have to do with me?"

Jonathan firing his secretary, Sharon Stone, couldn't erase those five years of whatever they had.

It couldn't erase the fact that he killed the cat Elena had carefully rescued and taken in because of Sharon.

It all started because Sharon, despite Elena's protests, insisted on holding the cat. Sharon's long, manicured nails accidentally scratched the cat's belly.

The cat, startled, bared its teeth at Sharon, but never bit her. However, Jonathan grabbed it by the neck.

Elena cried and begged him to put the cat down. Tears streamed down her face. But her tears only made him more eager to follow through.

He had mocked her many times before. "How does anyone cry that much over such trivial things? It's ridiculous and amusing."

So, while Elena was still in tears, he threw the cat without a moment's hesitation. It hit the corner of the table and died right there.

Over the phone, Jonathan's voice grew softer. "Elena, I just didn't want the cat to hurt anyone or make things awkward for you. I didn't know it would die from a fall like that."

Elena's tone turned impatient. "What are you trying to say?"

His voice sounded lost and confused. "All because of a stray cat you kept for a few days? Are you really... giving up on me?"

He knew exactly why Elena had left. It was never just about the cat. But he chose to pretend otherwise.

Elena seemed to have run out of patience. She spoke coldly, each word slow and clear. "I'm saying this one last time. Mr. Pierce, I'm done with you. I'm done with Matthew. Both of you."

A long silence followed. Then, Jonathan let out a low, cold chuckle, full of unwillingness. "Not a chance. I'll bring you back soon enough."

Elena frowned. She didn't respond and just hung up. In the moonlight, I saw her get out of bed, take the SIM card out of her phone and drop it right into the trash.

It reminded me of the past few days. Ryan and Alex kept calling from different numbers even after I blocked them.

So, I got up too. I grabbed my phone, took out the SIM card, and tossed it into the trash.

When I looked up, I met Elena's gaze in the dim light. Her eyes were wet, but she looked resolute.

I moved closer and wrapped my arm around hers. I grabbed a tissue and gently wiped away the tears at the corner of her eye.

Then, I smiled and signed, "Let's go get new SIM cards together tomorrow. Maybe they'll give us a deal on the second one."

Elena smiled too, "Okay."

And that was that. Everything from the past ended there.