Wrong Marriage and Sweet Love

On the cliff, behind a large rock.

Joyce leaned against the stone, trying to sleep but not daring to fully fall asleep. If she slept too deeply, she would lose consciousness, and any accidental exposure of her body or head could mean instant death. She only dared to close her eyes and rest.Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

From time to time, she called out to Clint to remind him not to fall asleep.

“Hey,” Joyce called out. When Clint didn’t answer, she raised her voice and called again, “Hey!”

“I have a name,” Clint finally responded. “I’m not asleep. Call me by my name, call me Clint.”

He wished she would call him like she used to.

Joyce ignored him. “If you’re not asleep, why didn’t you respond? Sniping is about endurance; hang in there. If you want to die, wait until this is over and undo the curse for me before you do.”

Clint remained silent.

She truly didn’t give him any kindness.

“You’re a sharpshooter. Do you understand long-distance sniping as well?” Clint tried to engage her in conversation. He was genuinely tired; after all, he had been shot, losing blood and energy.

“I didn’t before, but I learned a lot from my mother later on,” Joyce answered softly. She could tell from his voice that the bleeding had stopped.

“Being born into a military family makes you different. Joyce, you’re unlike any woman I’ve ever known,” Clint said softly, his voice carried by the wind.

“Heh. What do you know? Although I was born into a military family, I got lost as a child and grew up in an orphanage. For over twenty years, I never experienced familial love. I did everything alone. Even though I had a talent for shooting, the training process was grueling. No matter how sad or repressed I felt inside, I had no one to release my stress or confide in,” Joyce laughed self-deprecatingly. “Do you know that I’ve only been recognized by the Heath family for less than a year? Do you think I’m some high-and-mighty princess who grew up pampered and privileged like you?”

Clint turned his gaze towards Joyce. He could feel her breathing quicken.

He knew some of her past, but hearing it from her own mouth made the weight of it real. She had endured so much pain; her heart must be heavy.

“Do you know why I saved you? When I saw you floating on the sea back then, I remembered when I fell off a cliff into the ocean-vast and endless, with no end in sight, deep and unknown, not knowing life or death or future. That feeling of helplessness and confusion-I experienced it. I was rescued and survived. That’s why I saved you. Had I known you were deliberately floating there to lure me in, I wouldn’t have softened.”

Joyce spoke to herself.

Clint stayed silent; so that’s how it was.

“You claimed to have forgotten everything and were alone with no support, which reminded me of myself-not knowing my origins, having no family or support. That’s why I took you in. You took advantage of my soft heart and played me like a puppet.” She laughed bitterly.

“Do you know that my twin sons just turned one month old? How much I miss them? Do you know that I was separated from my daughter for four years? After going through so much hardship to rescue her from Athena’s hands, Iris refused to acknowledge me at first. It took all my effort for her to finally call me ‘Mommy.’ We had only reunited for a few months. Do you know that I’ve only been reunited with my parents for less than a year? I’ve never even had the chance to properly honor them. Do you know that Anderson and I rely on each other so much that we can’t sleep well if we don’t see each other for a day? Do you know how difficult it has been for Luther and me-how many storms we’ve weathered and misunderstandings we’ve overcome-to finally be together? Our wedding was delayed by four years. Even though I said it didn’t matter, deep down, I still hoped for it. I thought that after all the hardships were over, peaceful days awaited me. But you’ve ruined everything. You kidnapped me to a foreign land with no family around; I can’t hear their voices or see their smiles-I want to go home so badly that staying here even one more day feels unbearable. And yet you casually say I’ll stay here forever! To control me, you even resorted to using unheard-of dark magic.”

“I admit you’re the toughest opponent I’ve ever faced-I can’t kill you nor escape your curse. Clint, you’ve won; victors write history while losers are left speechless.”

She paused and took a deep breath. “Forget what I just said.”

She didn’t even know why she had told him all this-perhaps because time passed too slowly and boredom set in.

Clint quietly listened as she spoke about things he hadn’t known before-details he couldn’t have found in any information he dug up about her-and realized how tough her journey had been behind her glamorous facade.

“Are you crying?” He noticed something off in her voice-a hoarseness and pauses-so she hadn’t continued speaking.

Joyce turned away and tried hard to breathe deeply as she swallowed back her tears.

“Crying? Impossible! Crying solves nothing,” she said while secretly wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes-tears she refused to admit or let him see.

“Instead of crying, think about how you’ll deal with me once we get out alive,” she said bluntly.

“Do you really want to go back?” Clint asked softly.

“Of course! Do you think I’m like you-cold-blooded and heartless with no regard for kinship? You’re just a lunatic,” Joyce sneered coldly. “Now that we’re in this situation where survival is uncertain-are you satisfied? This is all your fault! Your country’s power struggle has nothing to do with me! What’s your hidden agenda? Why did you have to kidnap me? I’ll tell you this: even if I die here, I’ll never let you use the Heath family against us! Don’t push me too far; if cornered, I’d rather kill us both here.”

Joyce’s angry accusations echoed as death loomed nearby-what harm was there in speaking her mind?

Clint’s handsome face turned cold; did she really see him as an insane lunatic?

Did she hate him so much that she’d rather see him dead?

“Joyce,” he called out her name softly. “Why don’t you believe that maybe-I truly love you?”

Without hesitation, Joyce replied mockingly, “Love? What a joke! Do you even understand love? You’re not worthy of uttering that word.”

She laughed bitterly again. “You don’t actually like me-you just want an extraordinary trophy; I’m merely your chosen target because of my high value. Even if there’s some novelty about me for now-it pales compared to my immense utility value.”

Finally speaking with sorrowful resignation: “If only life were as simple as our first meeting-how wonderful would that be? How much do I wish you’d always remain Grayson instead of Clint… Saving you-I regret it.”

Clint had intended an earnest confession but found his heart chilled by her words.

In the end he opened his mouth but couldn’t utter another word.