He had also blown up at her once, smashing a porcelain vase worth tens of millions. That was when she had stormed the Sullivan Family's home, ready to take them all down with her.
He had been at his most ferocious then, his eyes bloodshot and his hands covered in blood, but he hadn't laid a single finger on her.
This sudden concern scared her, so she had gathered her courage and asked him, quite heartlessly, "I have nothing. You're helping me so much, what do you want?"
They weren't even really friends back then. He lacked for nothing—power, money, you name it. He was the head of Azure Entertainment, an absolute authority in the entertainment industry. With his top-tier status, countless starlets fought tooth and nail to get close to him. For anyone else, such power and status would have been an irresistible temptation.
But he was different. He was a man of integrity, a class apart in the chaotic industry, completely clean. He never touched any of the women who threw themselves at him and had not a single shred of negative press.
This is how people in the industry described Ian Sheffield: In a world of filth, he alone remained unstained.
Someone had once tried something, and not a whisper has been heard about that person since.
A man like that was good to her—unconditionally good.
So good that she didn't dare accept this sudden kindness. Having grown used to being ignored by others, she was afraid to accept anyone's goodwill.
Back then, Ian Sheffield knew that Erin Lowell only wanted revenge. She only wanted to die.
So, after she'd asked, he had answered her, enunciating each word, "I want you to live a long life."
Ian Sheffield was only supposed to be fulfilling a promise to someone. But somewhere along the way, he'd failed to guard his own heart.
"It's cold out. You go inside first. I'll have Jocelyn come and stay with you." Only then did the tension in him finally ease, just a little.
Erin Lowell nodded. Standing two steps away from him, she said, "Don't bother her. She must be tired from filming."
She knew he was worried. After all, she really had been kidnapped before, right under his nose. That was why he had become so obsessively cautious.
"With her personality, if she finds out you were missing, she'll be like a walking time bomb. You should go calm her down."
Other people's feelings weren't the point. Ian Sheffield still couldn't relax.
Erin Lowell pursed her lips and agreed. "Okay."
"And charge your phone." From two steps away, Ian Sheffield glanced at the slightly messy bangs on her forehead, his tone growing heavier. "If there's a next time, I'll have someone watch you twenty-four hours a day."
'It sounded a bit over-the-top, but she knew he wasn't joking.' She shook her head. "I don't want that."
"You don't have a choice." He smiled anyway. Under the lights, they stood neither too close nor too far apart. His eyes held her reflection, a sight no one else could glimpse. "Alright, go on inside."
"Okay. Drive safe."
With that, Erin Lowell walked past him. Ian Sheffield waited until he heard the door open and shut, then turned to look. All he saw was the closed door.
Outside the hotel, Ian Sheffield first sent a text to Jocelyn Lawrence, then made a call. "Handle things at the police station, and book three plane tickets back home for tomorrow morning."
On the other end of the line was his assistant, Adam Holloway, who acknowledged the instructions.
After hanging up, Ian Sheffield glanced back one last time before his figure disappeared into the long night.
Just past midnight, Erin Lowell emerged from the shower wrapped in a bath towel. She walked straight to the fridge, took out a can of iced wine, and hooked a slender white finger under the pull tab, her expression unreadable.
Jocelyn Lawrence was lying flat on the king-sized bed with her legs up, a not-so-elegant posture. "So, where'd you go run off to today?"
"The mountains." She tossed a blanket over, which landed squarely on Jocelyn's legs. "To see the sights."
She walked to the sofa, found a spot to lean back, and took a sip of her drink. Her gaze shifted to the bed. A drop of wine clung to the corner of her crimson lips. The warm light fell on her face, creating a deceptively peaceful and beautiful scene.
The wine the hotel provided was weak. She didn't like it.
Erin Lowell took one last sip, then just held the can in her hand, not drinking any more.
"Why'd you ignore his calls on purpose?" Jocelyn Lawrence sat up. "You called the hotel, and they turned right around and reported it to Ian Sheffield."
Erin Lowell knew that. Her phone wasn't dead. She had notified the hotel at eight that she'd be back, but she hadn't returned his calls. Since Ian Sheffield was waiting at the door, it meant he had known all along and just hadn't called her out on it.
"I know."
"So why didn't you answer his calls?" Jocelyn Lawrence guessed, "Did you two have a fight?"
Erin Lowell leaned back against the sofa, can in hand, and shook her head. "This business with my revenge... I want to do it myself."
'I don't want to be a burden to him anymore.'
To her, Ian Sheffield was a friend, like family, but not a tool to be used. Whether it ended in mutual destruction or she took them down with her, it didn't matter. Destroying the Sullivan Family wouldn't be easy, and she didn't want to drag him into it.
'He's a man of integrity, like a noble scholar of old. He should stay clean. He shouldn't get his hands dirty for my sake.'
Jocelyn Lawrence paused for a moment, her tone unreadable. "And how are you going to do it yourself?"
"I'm not asking for much." Her tone was casual, a smile even playing on her lips, as if she were discussing errands. "A life for a life. Either Caleb Sullivan or Henry Sullivan will do."
After a moment of silence.
Jocelyn Lawrence put on her shoes, got off the bed, and walked over to her, her tone grave. "Don't do anything stupid."
Erin Lowell just smiled and said nothing.
'Stupid?'
'I lost the right to stay calm four years ago.'
'If it were possible, who wouldn't want to spend the prime of their life living in the light, surrounded by kindness?'
Jocelyn Lawrence's phone rang, and she went out to the balcony to answer it.
Erin Lowell held her phone and curled up on the sofa.
About five minutes later, Jocelyn Lawrence came back, sat down next to her, and snatched the drink from her hand. "Got our passports back. We have a ten a.m. flight back home tomorrow. We'll be just in time for Nancy's wrap party."
The Nancy she mentioned, Nancy Warner, was a woman who was elegant and gentle to her very core. She was another of Azure Entertainment's prized actresses, blessed with great resources, stunning looks, and superb acting skills. In the four years since her debut, she had racked up major awards left and right. Her career was a story of smooth sailing, and she had firmly established herself as Azure Entertainment's top actress.
"Going back sounds good." Erin Lowell had completely forgotten about the ticket in her pocket by now. "She's already wrapped? That was fast."
Jocelyn Lawrence wasn't the malicious or jealous type, so she stated the simple truth. "The woman is a great actress. She rarely needs a retake, so of course it was fast."
Hearing this, Erin Lowell turned her head to look at her, a teasing, mischievous smile on her face.
"..."
Jocelyn Lawrence understood instantly. She crossed her legs on the sofa, bit her lip, and put on a teary-eyed expression. "Erin, is it my fault my acting isn't good?"
Erin Lowell raised an eyebrow. "Your acting is pretty good right now."
"..." 'Seriously, who even talks like that?'
'So much for sisterhood. We're just fake friends.'
"The great ship of friendship sinks so easily," Jocelyn Lawrence said with a lazy yawn. "I'm going to bed. Have to be up early tomorrow."
After Jocelyn fell asleep, Erin Lowell took out her phone. The wallpaper was a family photo of three. She gently rubbed the pad of her thumb over the man in the picture. After a long while, she whispered, "Brother... I'm sorry." She buried her head in her knees, repeating the words softly, over and over.
'Once I've killed my enemies with my own hands, I can go straight to hell.'