Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Even a Rabbit Bites When Cornered

Tristan Lawson’s handsome features darkened, his expression as black as ink. She was wearing his patience down to nothing.

"Noelle Sutton," he said, his voice low and frigid, his tone sharp. "Have I been too indulgent with you?"

He had made so many concessions, assuming she’d take the hint and back down.

And yet, here they were. Hah.

The man scoffed, grabbing Noelle Sutton’s wrist.

His grip was a little too tight.

A piercing pain shot through her, and before Noelle Sutton could even react, she was shoved into the car with immense force.

The door shut.

She tried to push the door open.

Tristan Lawson hit the locks, strode to the driver’s side, then unlocked his own door and got in.

Noelle Sutton seized the opportunity to reach for the door handle again, but Tristan Lawson snatched her back.

"Must you ruin the mood?"

Yesterday, he’d made Joshua Lawson copy *Wandering Song* a hundred times as punishment. The trip to the amusement park was supposed to be Joshua’s reward. He’d wanted to bring Noelle along so the family could go to an amusement park together for the first time. It was also an opportunity to teach Joshua to respect his mother.

He’d put so much thought into it, yet she couldn’t appreciate any of it.

In the seven years they’d been married, he’d always seen her as a sensible, virtuous wife who knew her place.

Lately, however, she had been disappointing him again and again.

Noelle Sutton signed, "You know I’m on my period. Do you really have to force me?"

A dark, malevolent look crossed Tristan Lawson’s face. His voice turned icy. "We are going to the amusement park today. You’re going whether you like it or not! What right do you have to say no to me, hmm?"

She was wearing his last nerve thin.

’He’d conquered the business world; how could he not handle one woman?’

Tristan Lawson’s thin lips formed a grim line. He grabbed the seatbelt, yanked it across, and slammed it into the buckle with a sharp, grating CLICK.

Noelle Sutton looked at the cold, aloof, handsome man before her, a faint, wry smile touching her lips.

’The gentle man from last night must have been a figment of my imagination.’

’Thankfully, I knew it was all just a fantasy. I didn’t take it too seriously.’

Ever since she married Tristan Lawson, she’d been acutely aware of the chasm between their social statuses. She had always tried to be sensible.

Combined with losing her voice as a child, her inability to speak in the face of constant ridicule and sarcasm had stripped her of any right to pride.

But everyone has a breaking point.

Tristan Lawson’s cruel, unyielding words were the knife that finally broke her.

’I’m a legal citizen. I have the right to say no.’

’Even if he’s my husband, he has no right to keep forcing me like this!’

The forbearance Noelle Sutton had built up over days instantly shattered. She signed furiously, "Is it because I’m mute that you think you can bully me? That you can be cruel and forceful with me? You’re so rich, so powerful, so damn tough—why don’t you go and heroically fight for your true love instead of using me as a shield? I may be mute, I may be disabled, but I am a person, not your tool!"

She didn’t care if she was enraging him. She kept signing, "So what if you’re so capable? In the end, you’re just a man who unscrupulously bullies a mute woman!"

The rage Tristan Lawson had been suppressing for days threatened to erupt. A terrifying hostility emanated from his handsome features. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Noelle Sutton knew she had made him angry.

The air inside the car grew deathly silent, but she felt no fear.

’I’ve never been this brave before.’

’I’m a dying woman. I have cancer. And every day, this father and son duo stabs my heart until it’s a bloody mess. What do I have left to fear?’

’Even a cornered rabbit will bite.’

’So what? The worst he can do is kill me. I’ll just die six months sooner.’

Tristan Lawson’s thin lips tightened into a straight line.

The way she kept calling herself "mute" grated on his nerves.

Noelle Sutton stared him down, unflinching, as if ready to face death, awaiting the volcanic eruption of his fury.

But then, Tristan Lawson laughed.

A deeply mocking smile played on his thin lips. He loosened his tie. "Do you have any idea what happened to the last person who offended me?" he sneered.

’I have no interest in knowing.’

’The worst that can happen is death.’

’The sooner I die, the sooner I can be reincarnated.’

’As long as I don’t have to meet him in the next life.’

Noelle Sutton turned her head away.

’Inwardly, she cheered for her own courage.’

In that moment of release, it felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her heart.

If Tristan Lawson refused to grant her a divorce, then they were headed for mutual destruction.

’Waiting to die?’

’Not anymore.’

’I’ll leave him, completely and as soon as possible.’

’I’ll cut all ties with him, make a clean break.’

Tristan Lawson’s hand shot out, grabbing her chin and forcing her infuriatingly stubborn face to look at him.

"Noelle Sutton," he murmured her name, his voice deceptively gentle and smooth, but his eyes were chillingly cold. "You’ve got a lot of nerve today. You said I only bully a mute woman, didn’t you?"

The pressure from his fingertips increased, and a sharp pain flared in Noelle Sutton’s jaw.

"Fine. Then I’ll show you what it really looks like when I bully you!" His voice was cold and severe. "Let me tell you, loud and clear, the price for defying me!"

He shoved her face away.

"I’d love to see how an ungrateful mute like you manages to survive without me!"

The man gripped the steering wheel with one hand, his posture still effortlessly handsome, his deep eyes fixed on her with a cold glare.

His thin, cruel lips parted to utter even crueler words. "Now, you can get out. And while you’re at it, get out of Westhill Villa."

Noelle Sutton had been waiting for these words for a long time.

Before she got out, she signed to Tristan Lawson, "The divorce papers I drew up are in the study drawer. Don’t forget to sign them, Mr. Lawson."

Noelle Sutton lowered her hands, got out of the car without a second glance at Tristan Lawson, and walked straight toward the villa’s main gate.

Tristan Lawson’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, his nails nearly tearing into the leather.

His eyes were as dark and deep as the dead of night.

The next second, he slammed his foot on the gas pedal, and the car shot forward.

He didn’t even tap the brakes as he sped past Noelle, the car brushing right by her side.

Noelle stumbled trying to get out of the way and fell, her palm hitting the ground. She winced in pain as she lifted her hand, a large patch of skin scraped raw.

Tristan Lawson saw her fall in the rearview mirror, and his foot momentarily eased up on the accelerator.

But a moment later, he stomped on the gas again, the back of the car kicking up a cloud of dust.

’So clumsy!’

’Can’t even stand on her own two feet.’

’So weak. How could she possibly survive without me?’

’It won’t be long before she comes crying back, begging for my forgiveness.’

’She’s gotten way too bold lately.’

’If I don’t let her suffer a little, she’ll never appreciate the good life she has with me.’

Noelle Sutton slowly got up, dusted herself off, walked out of the villa community, and stood by the roadside to wait for a car.

A flashy convertible sports car pulled up smoothly beside her.

Tessa Lawson took off her sunglasses and eyed Noelle Sutton with displeasure. "Where did you run off to a few days ago? Don’t you know Tristan was worried sick, looking for you everywhere?"

Noelle Sutton turned away, ignoring Tessa Lawson.

’If I’m cutting ties with Tristan Lawson, then I have even less reason to deal with Tessa Lawson.’

"Hey, what’s your problem? I’m talking to you, can’t you hear me?"

Noelle Sutton remained silent.

Just then, a taxi arrived.

Noelle Sutton raised her hand to hail it.

Tessa Lawson grew frantic and shouted after her.