A Vengeful Ex-Wife
Chapter 458 You Are Lying

The investigation report shocked Cooper. It turned out that Maria had been staying at a nunnery near H City; she was going to shave her hair off and become a nun. He stood beside the window with his back against the ward while he was on the phone. "Are you sure about that?"

"Hundred percent. We even went there to confirm if it's actually true. At present, Ms. Song is preparing herself to shave her head and become a nun."

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Cooper said, "For now, try any means you can to stop her. Don't let her shave her hair and become a nun."

"As you wish, sir."

"Who's planning to become a nun?"

The sound of the hoarse voice made Cooper turn around. He had no idea when this man who had been comatose for nearly a week woke up. And to top it off, James was even looking at him.

After a moment of contemplation, Cooper decided that it would be better not to lie to his brother. "James, I'll call the doctors to do a checkup on you first."

"Who's planning to become a nun?" James' face was pale, and it seemed as though he would faint at any moment. However, he was determined to get an answer out of him first.

But Cooper still insisted on calling the doctors. He just wanted them to do an examination on James.

After all, his wound was life-threatening.

But as soon as the doctors entered the room, they saw that James was trying to get out of bed, and even Cooper couldn't stop him.

They hurried into the room to stop him. "Mr. Xi, you are seriously injured! Please, don't try to get out of bed."

James' face was growing paler and paler, but his eyes were bloodshot with determination. In a hoarse voice, he commanded, "Let me go!"

"James, just let me take care of it. For now, you need to focus on your recovery." Cooper couldn't do anything about the way James was acting. If he had known that James would wake up at this time, he would've gone outside to answer his phone call.

"Thanks, but that's not necessary." The second James said that, he began to coughing violently and fell back on the bed.

The doctors did their best to persuade him from moving. "Mr. Xi, please don't move rashly again."

James coughed over and over. His current state was so bad that he couldn't utter a word.

Never had he felt so humiliated before. He couldn't even lift his finger or say a single word.

The doctors pressed him back to his bed, but he refused to listen to their advice. It seemed as though he was determined to get out of bed.

Cooper stopped him from getting up. He raised his voice at him and said, "James, that's enough! Would you look at yourself? You're dying, and yet you keep trying to get out of bed! If you keep being stubborn, you might lose your life before you can even see Maria again!"

The moment he heard that, James lay back on the bed, panting heavily. Once he calmed down, he adjusted his breathing and closed his eyes. "Tell her to come see me one last time." Cooper was rendered speechless by his request.

In the JT Nunnery, a plainly-dressed woman was standing in front of the Buddha statue, lost in thought.

She was recalling everything that had happened to her since she was born.

Cooper, in a silver-gray suit, walked over from the high threshold, quietly standing side by side with the woman. Once he was there, he also gazed at the sacred Buddha statue.

After a long silence, Cooper said, "Maria, I once believed that you would cherish this relationship. After all, it wasn't easy to earn it."

Over the past ten years, Maria had gone through hell and high waters.

Now that every villain had been punished, a momentary peace ensued. Not only did she have a lovely son, she also had an unforgettable relationship.

But just like everyone else, Cooper never imagined that Maria would actually refuse James' proposal without hesitation. To top it off, she was now giving up her mortal life to become a nun.

Still unmoving, she said expressionlessly, "I don't want to love anyone anymore. Strictly speaking, I took all his help for granted. Arthur was also his son, and it was fair that he dealt with Rosa. I just used him to avenge Arthur." "Are you really willing to give up on my brother and

Bob?" asked Cooper.

"Am I not allowed to give up? I'm not worried about Bob because he has all of you take care of him." What she said was true.

She knew that as long as she wasn't with James, she wouldn't be able to see her child. And even if she were to stay in H City night and day, it would be ultimately useless.

"But the fact remains that a child can never be truly happy unless he lives with his parents," stated Cooper.

Maria fell silent.

Moments after the silence, Cooper continued, "Look, even if you don't want to be with my brother, you don't have to become a nun. There are other ways to live besides this one!"

"I've done so many bad things along the way. All I want is to live in abstinence and pray to Buddha for atonement for the rest of my life. Only in this way can I feel at ease." Although those people were guilty, they would be punished sooner or later. It wasn't her duty to be the judge, jury, and executioner, but she still did it nonetheless. Even though she didn't kill anyone, there was still a lot of blood on her hands.

"Maria-"

"Cooper, you can leave now. I've made my decision. The others have tried to persuade me too, but I won't go back no matter what," she said flatly. Summer, Peggy, and Sandra had visited Maria before Cooper. In the end, none of them succeeded in convincing Maria to come back.

"But my brother..." Cooper stared into her eyes intently. "He's dying. I'm only here to take you to see him for one last time."

'For one last time?' Maria was shocked to her core.

Her eyes gradually welled up with tears. "Even if I do visit him, what good would it be?"

If James were to die, it would be her fault. She would never be able to atone for this even if she repented for the rest of her life.

"Seeing you again will give him hope. I'm afraid that if you don't see him, it'll break his heart. Think about it, Maria. The woman he loves the most doesn't want to see him anymore. Do you think he'll have the courage to live on after knowing that?"

With a heart laden with guilt, Maria remained silent.

"Maria, please. Go and see him one last time. Convince him to live on, okay?" Cooper said in a gentle voice.

The sound of his voice made Maria feel like she was in a dream; and in that dream, Cooper came here to tell her that James was dying.

She then closed her eyes to cover the fact that she was almost breaking into tears. "Cooper, just go back!"

In the end, Cooper had no choice but to go back to the hospital. There, he found that James was sleeping, and Ethan was looking after him. The following day, James woke up again.

He looked at Ethan and asked, "Where is she?"

"James, don't you love me anymore? How could you ask for Maria the second you wake up?" Ethan replied, pretending to be nonchalant.

"Where is she?" James asked again.

It was then that Ethan decided to give him the answer he wanted. "When she came here, you were still sleeping. After she told us to take good care of you, she left." Staring into his friend's eyes, James said, "You're lying!"

Ethan was shocked. 'Am I not good at lying?'

James lifted the quilt from his body and said, "Help me up."

"James, you're still very weak. You can't even get out of bed!"

"I said help me up!"

Ethan didn't move. "Are you even aware of your physical condition? Have you given up on life just because of a woman? Tell me, is that really necessary?"

As if he didn't hear Ethan, James gritted his teeth and sat up.

Because of that, his wound opened up. To relieve the pain somehow, he winced and sat in a more comfortable position.

At this point, Ethan was agitated. "James, would you please just wake up to reality? Maria doesn't want to come. She already knows that you're dying, but in spite of that, she still doesn't want to be here. She is an ungrateful woman who takes you for granted. Why do you still struggle so hard for her?"

James' gloomy eyes fell on Ethan's face. "You can't speak ill of her!"

Ethan was on the verge of breaking down. "She used you for revenge. And now that she has gained vengeance, she threw you away like an old piece of gum! Don't you get it?"

Without even casting him another glance, James tried to get out of bed again.