Revenge of the Hideous Lady (Xyla Quest)
Chapter 2017

Right now, time was of the essence.

Stanley Batton needed to see Yaksha right away.

"He's on the mountain behind the house." The disciple pointed towards the back of the house while replying respectfully.

Stanley didn't reply and began running towards the mountain.

***

Meanwhile, Jeremy Quest was sorting through some newly bought baby clothes with Betty Starmount in the living room when he suddenly received a call from Sharon Lindt.

She told him what his daughter, Xyla Quest, was going through, leaving him dumbfounded upon hearing the news.

He collapsed on the couch, panting as his vision turned dark.

At the same time, Betty was equally shocked when she heard what Sharon said.

Did the demon fox do it?

It must be.

What else could have done such a thing in such a short amount of time?

Her hands trembled slightly by her side at the thought.

Seeing how sad Jeremy was made her hands tremble even more as she started to tear up.

"Honey, don't be like this. I believe they'll be able to replace the children," Betty said in a comforting tone.

Jeremy inhaled deeply before patting himself on the chest gently. "Betty, I want to see Xyla at the hospital right now. Get the driver." Betty nodded.

Jeremy's vision suddenly turned dark, and he collapsed on the couch, making her panic.

Falling to her knees, she nudged him repeatedly in an attempt to wake him up. "Honey, what's wrong? What's wrong? Say something!" However, Jeremy didn't react at all.

Betty shuddered as she quickly placed her hand under his nose, only to replace that he wasn't breathing.

She sprang onto her feet and backed away in terror, feeling her heart breaking apart.

Her entire body was trembling as guilt and sadness spread through her chest. She could barely stand straight.

Kneeling on the ground with her body still trembling, she gazed down at Jeremy. "Finally, the poison worked. It didn't kill Xyla's children, but it killed you.

"Don't blame me as I didn't have a choice. I felt bad for you because you've been so good to me. It's the first time I've felt what it's like to have a place to call home, to be loved and protected. If not for the demon fox, I believe we would've had a happy life together.

"I admit that I've developed feelings for you, as unimaginable as it sounds, but what can I do about it?

"Despite my feelings for you, the demon fox wants you dead. There's no other option because anyone who goes against it will die.

"Whatever I owe you in this lifetime, I'll repay you in the next if I can." With that, Betty closed her eyes as she trembled, hugging Jeremy tightly.

His familiar scent that made her feel safe wafted through her nostrils.

Memories of how they met and fell in love appeared in her mind a bit at a time.

The scenes that once brought her warmth and joy were now causing her pain.

She had to kill the person she loved the most, and the one who loved her the most, to protect herself.

Betty was truly disgusted with herself.

Tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision. At that moment, her heart was being torn apart.

She felt like she could die at any moment.

If they weren't destined to be together in this lifetime, she wished they could still replace each other and get married in the next one.

Right then, the door opened, and a maid walked in with a bag of groceries.

She was thoroughly shocked by

what she saw on the couch. The bag in her

and slipped from heret

and groceries scattered all over the floor.

She immediately stepped forward and addressed Betty. "What happened to Mr. Quest?"

Betty took a deep breath and looked up in sorrow. "He's dead."

"How-how did he die? What happened?"

The maid couldn't help but start sobbing.

Jeremy Quest was a kind person, always pleasant to the maids.

He never treated them as if they were inferior to him. Instead, he treated them like family.

She really liked Jeremy as her employer.

"He found out about some terrible news, and then this happened," Betty whispered.

She then hugged Jeremy's corpse tightly and sobbed as she spoke "Honey, wake up! Please wake up and look at me one last time. Didn't you say you wanted to visit Xyla with

me?

"Weren't we supposed to travel the world together? How could you go back on your words? You said you'd keep your promises."

Betty might have been saying these things for the maid's benefit, but she genuinely meant them.

Right then, she was overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions, feeling like she was going mad.

It was the first time she ever felt this helpless in her life.

The maid took a deep breath before placing a finger carefully under Jeremy's nose.

After making sure he wasn't breathing, she promptly dialed Xyla's number with trembling hands only to replace that her call went unanswered.

She then tried Stanley Batton's number to no avail.

Dashing out of the house, she drove to the hospital directly.

Upon arrival, she ran to Xyla's ward, pushing the door open without knocking.

Xyla was still sleeping soundly with Sharon Lindt accompanying her nearby, her eyes still reddened from crying earlier.

Sharon was shocked when she saw the maid. "Who are you?"

The maid rubbed her tears away and quickly stepped forward. "My name is Maryam Dowse, and I'm a maid from the Quest family. I'm here to tell Ms. Quest something. Could you please wake her up?"

"What do you want to tell her?" Sharon asked.

"Mr. Quest-Mr. Quest..." She couldn't finish her sentence as despair overflowed from her.

Sharon's heart skipped a beat. "What is it?"

"Mr. Quest is dead," she sobbed.

"What?" Sharon had a look of disbelief in her eyes.