Pampered By My Three Brothers: The Return Of The Neglected Heiress - Chapter 1183

Chapter 1183: Dance with the devil
[PIERSON ISLAND]

Since they had been out in the “wild” all night, all the curtains in Zoren and Penny’s room were closed. The room had become dark, with only a little light filtering through the small gaps in the sides of the curtains. Zoren lay flat on his back, staring at the ceiling motionless.

“Penny,” he called quietly, turning his head to where she lay. Just like him, Penny was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling, deep in thought. “Aren’t you going to sleep?”

Penny hummed. “I want to, but I can’t.”

“Do you want to talk?”

“…” Penny didn’t answer immediately. She cast him a sidelong glance, then rolled onto her side. The injury on her leg ached slightly with the movement. Propping her elbow on the bed, she blinked a few times. “Did something happen?”

Talking until they fell asleep was a habit they had eventually picked up in this marriage. They didn’t know when or how it started, but they always chatted before sleeping. In other words, Zoren proposing it shouldn’t be suspicious. But somehow, she felt her husband had a lot on his mind. Especially now that everything was over, and it was just the two of them.

“Mhm,” Zoren hummed in return, moving until his back rested against the headboard. “Back there, when you were dragged away, Glenn and I had a brief conversation.”

Penny blinked, eyes on him. “About what?”

“The money, the island, the business, and life,” Zoren shrugged. “The conversation isn’t worth remembering, though. It was just words from a man whose views are so twisted, he’d rather twist the truth than admit his mistakes.”

“Then why are you bringing up that guy?” she asked, purely out of curiosity. “I know he’s the worst kind of human sewage, but… why are you bothered by him?”

This time, Zoren took his time before speaking. “Remember that time I told you I asked someone to hypnotize me?”

“Mhm.” Penny nodded. “And I told you not to do that again. It’s dangerous.”

“For some reason, I saw myself again — the younger me, when Glenn smashed the vase over my head.”

“What?” Penny pushed herself to sit up, moving closer to him. “Did you see and remember anything?”

“…” Zoren kept silent, staring at his wife.

Seeing his reaction and the lack of response, her mouth fell open slightly. He didn’t answer, but she already knew.

“Penny,” Zoren breathed out, reaching out to hold her hand. “Let’s stop the treatment.”

“What? Why?” Penny knitted her brows, her smile faltering. “Renren, you’re getting better after so long. We can’t just stop the treatment—”

“I burned down the house.”

The rest of her words caught in her throat as surprise and confusion washed over her face. “What… what do you mean by that?”

“That woman… it wasn’t her who set the house on fire,” Zoren said quietly. “It was me. And with this piece of memory vivid in my mind, I’m starting to get worried. Let’s stop the treatment. I don’t want to get better just to mentally decline again.”

Deep down, he knew he was better off this way. Not that he was sick. Tonight, he proved he was already better. He was able to fight, and his reflexes had returned. He could now act on his muscle memory without feeling weak.

His body, mind, and soul were screaming that this was as far as he could go. Going further might end in disaster, and he didn’t want to screw it up. If getting better would only torment him and everyone around him, then he’d rather stay where he was and not move another inch.

“I’m scared, Penny,” he confessed, his quiet voice somehow echoing. He squeezed her hand, but somehow, it trembled and felt cold. “I’m scared of what kind of memory I’ll remember, and what kind of person I truly am. I don’t want to lose you.”

Penny opened her mouth, but the words didn’t come out. Or, to be precise, there were no words she could say. All she could do was stare into his dark eyes, which swirled with all sorts of emotions, but uncertainty and confusion were the most distinct.

“In my first life, I almost killed someone by slitting her throat with a blade from a toothbrush.” After a moment, the words slipped from her lips before she could think about it. She paused, pursing her lips, and moved closer to him. “Before my incarceration, I was just Penelope Bennet — the unwanted child of the Bennet family, the overworked researcher of a miracle drug, and a foolish woman who allowed others’ opinions to have more weight than her own.”

“But in prison, I was just called the crazy bitch from a wealthy clan,” she continued with a light shrug. “I was already rock bottom, but prison showed me that there’s a place beyond rock bottom — much darker, lonelier, and scarier. I became someone I couldn’t recognize. I became someone even I was scared to face in the mirror. You’ve met her — drunk Penny. That was her tamed. She could be worse.”

Slowly, Penny reached out to him, wrapping her arms around his body. She rested her chin on his shoulder while brushing his broad back.

“When I woke up after my execution, I’ve always wished to not remember that Penelope Bennet. I wished every single night to forget everything: the pain, the disappointment, and how this world had wronged me. I wished for it to disappear from my mind, and when it didn’t work, I simply tried to make my head busy to forget,” she whispered. “But after everything, I’m grateful I didn’t forget. Remembering what I am capable of taught me to be headstrong so as not to fall for the same traps again. Along the way, I learned to forgive myself and open my heart to those who once wronged me.”

Penny drew her head back slightly, offering him a subtle smile as she cupped his face. “Then I met you, who made my heart beat so fast just because you did that little trick with me. Back then, I never would’ve fathomed that you’d make me trust someone more than myself. But… because of you, the lingering bitterness in my heart that kept me distant from my family disappeared without a trace.”

“Because of you, I could finally say with certainty that I forgave myself and entrusted a piece of my heart to you, hoping you wouldn’t crush it.” Her eyes softened as she brushed his cheek with her thumb. “We all have demons within us, Renren. I think I have twelve of them, but keeping them at bay isn’t so hard anymore with you around.”

“So, whatever demonic entity is within you, I won’t fight him. Rather, I’ll dance with the devil gracefully… just like how you danced with mine so elegantly.” Her smile stretched, nodding reassuringly. “We’re a team, and tonight, that pretty much proved we really are a good pair. If there’s anything I learned tonight, despite the horror that came along with it, it’s that there’s nothing we couldn’t overcome together.”

Zoren slowly touched her face with the back of his hand before pulling her gently into his embrace. Resting his jaw on her shoulder, his embrace tightened a bit. His wife was just too calming, and with her, all the tangles in his mind untangled on their own.

He closed his eyes briefly before partially opening them. “Penny.”

“Hmm?”

“There’s one more thing I’m concerned about.”

“What is it?”

Zoren carefully released her and looked her in the eye. “I’m concerned that if I get all better, I’ll remember my past life.”

“Huh?”

“I think, just like you and Finn, I, too, once had memories from my past.”

“…” Penny blinked rapidly before her eyes slowly widened in realization. She gasped. “Eh?!”