My Love Until the Last Goodbye (Mary and Maximus)

Maximus watched as his two children interacted. It was clear they had always been close-Lucius had always played the role of the protective older brother.

On the other hand, Amanda was taken aback by how different Sebastian was around his sister. The shy, reserved guy she knew was nowhere to be seen. This version of him was affectionate, protective, and constantly smiling. At that moment, she realized there was still so much she didn't know about him.

After a couple of hours, it was time to sleep. Maximus assigned two rooms for the guests before heading to bed himself. As he lay down, his thoughts drifted to the future. There was still a lot to do, still wounds that needed healing. He had made mistakes with his son-mistakes that Moriarty had known how to handle, but he hadn't.

One thought that crossed his mind was how awkward it would be when Serenity and Lucius saw each other again. His son wasn't a bad person, but that didn't mean he was free of mistakes. Sooner or later, they would have to talk-it was inevitable-but for now, he wouldn't push it.

Slowly, exhaustion overtook him. It had been a long few days away, and tonight, he was drained. As he drifted off, old fears crept into his dreams. Lucius was here now. The family was together, and it would stay that way—at least as long as Alexia stayed out of the picture.

But his mind wasn't just worried about Alexia. More than anything, he was concerned about his son Paul, whose true father had never come looking for him.

And for that, Maximus was grateful.

[Meanwhile in Versailles, France]

"Time of death?" a male voice asked.

"2:30 a.m., doctor," a female voice responded.

"Alright. Do everything necessary to prepare the body. I'll speak with the family." The doctor removed his gloves and sighed.

He finished taking off his protective gear and stepped out into the waiting room, where Pierre paced anxiously, looking like a caged lion.

"Mr. Legrand," the doctor called out.

"Yes! What happened? How is she? Is she stable now?" Pierre asked desperately.

The doctor met Pierre's anguished gaze but couldn't lie to him.

"Mr. Legrand, I'm very sorry to tell you that Ms. Levett couldn't hold on any longer. Her heart stopped. We did absolutely everything we could to save her, but her body was already too weak."

"What? No... she can't die. She was still strong-she was fine this morning," Pierre murmured, his mind racing back to the events of the day.

[Hours Earlier]

"Alexia, beautiful, wake up. Come on, it's time for breakfast," Pierre said, holding a tray of food.

"Pierre, I'm tired. I just want to sleep, please," Alexia mumbled, barely opening her eyes.

"My love, you need to eat on time. You know the doctors said it's important to stick to a routine. Come on, today I'll take you to the gardens. We'll walk a little, get some fresh air. You've had some long therapy sessions lately," he said cheerfully.

Alexia, however, felt more exhausted every day. It was true that she had regained some movement in her hands, but her body was drained. Deep down, she still believed that the best thing that could happen to her was to die.

"Come on, open up. I made you the food you've been liking lately," Pierre said, holding out a spoonful of mashed berries.

Alexia had slowly adjusted to her new diet, but she could never get used to living like this. She saw it as punishment for her entire life.

She had a man by her side who loved her, but she didn't love him. She had all the money and power she could ever want, but in her condition, what did it even matter? She wasn't free like she had been in her youth.

She often dreamed of the past, before she met Gabriel-when her biggest worries were which blouse to wear, what perfume to put on, and whether or not she'd see Maximus that day.

Physically, she was here. But in her mind, she was lost in a bittersweet past, back when she was young and oblivious to the pain that lay ahead.

"Pierre, I want to ask you something..." Alexia murmured, snapping out of her thoughts.

"Tell me, what do you need?" he asked, giving her his full attention.noveldrama

"I know it's selfish of me, but... I heard you're still trying to find a way to get close to Paul," she said with resignation.

"Alexia, he's my son. My only son. Of course, I want to find him. I've told you before—he's meant to inherit all of this. He should carry the Legrand name," Pierre said, keeping his tone calm to avoid an argument.

"Don't do it! Please. He doesn't deserve this. Don't do it now. Let him grow up. He's still a teenager, and trust me, if he finds out the truth now, both you and Maximus will lose him forever-just like I did with my actions."

"Alexia... You're asking me not to seek out my own son? That's incredibly selfish of you," Pierre said, his patience thinning.

"I know! But the damage we could do to Paul now would be far worse than if you wait until he's older and more mature to handle the truth," she argued, drawing from her own painful experience with Gabriel.

It wasn't like someone had dropped a bomb on her when she was younger, but meeting Gabriel at such a young age had led her to make countless mistakes in the name of love. If she had made those mistakes back then, she couldn't even begin to imagine what her son might do if he learned the truth now.

"Alexia, I don't want to waste any more time. I want Paul to come live with us, to

be part of the family," Pierre said with determination.

"Listen to yourself! You only want

my son so he can take over your business. He's just a kid. He's living a normal, peaceful life. Those photos you sent me show that happy, just like any other teenager. No, I can't let you take that away from him," Alexia snapped, her frustration rising.

"Alexia, my love! What's wrong? Are you feeling sick? Tell me, what's happening?" Pierre asked, his voice full of worry as he reached for the emergency button.

The love of his life had been on an emotional rollercoaster for days. No matter

how hard she tried, it was clear that her heart was growing weaker. And no matter what Pierre did, he couldn't stop what was coming.

[Present Day]

By midday, Alexia had been rushed to the hospital. The entire day had been an endless cycle-her condition would stabilize, then worsen, then stabilize again. Her body was exhausted. Physically and

mentally, she had nothing left to

give.

A few hours later, Pierre was finally allowed to see her. She looked calm. Covered

in tubes and wires, but calm.

Her eyes told him what he refused to accept this time, she wasn't going to make

it. She had been in and out of hospitals before, but this time felt... different. Alexia reached for his hand, squeezing it weakly. She looked at him with pleading eyes, and then-her heart stopped.

Alarms blared as a flood of doctors and nurses rushed in. They tried everything to bring her back. They took her to the operating room.

But this time-this time, Alexia finally won her battle.

She was gone.