The day Eleanor was recognized by her birth family and returned to their lavish mansion, I was packing my bags. She saw me and frowned. “Put that down. I’m only taking Ian and Mia. You can stay in the run-down part of town for now. I’ll send you five hundred a month for living expenses, and I’ll let you see Mia.” I nodded calmly. After all, I already knew she’d only take her first love and my daughter. In my previous life, I had clung to her, desperately following her to the mansion, making a scene. I thought I’d finally have a good life, but Ian, her first love, falsely accused me of theft. Then, my own daughter pushed me from the 18th floor. Before I fell, Mia screamed at me: “I don’t want a thief for a dad!” When I opened my eyes again, I was reborn. My phone buzzed with a text from a top-secret national research agency: “Alex, congratulations on your recruitment. Please note, you are not allowed to contact anyone outside for five years after joining.” I moved out of our old house and found a hidden apartment. But that very night, my front door was kicked open. Eleanor stood in the doorway, her white suit soaked through by the rain, her face dark and stormy. Behind her stood Ian, holding an umbrella, and my daughter, Mia, whom he held by the hand. Ian spoke, his voice laced with feigned indignation, “Alex, I know you’re upset, but you can’t just steal my mother’s keepsake. It’s the only thing I have left of her!” I felt like a lightning bolt had struck me, my blood running cold. I knew. This was the exact same scenario as my previous life. Trembling, I tried to stop them, but the bodyguards were already ransacking the apartment. Soon, a bodyguard pulled a necklace from the bottom of a box. Eleanor held up the necklace, the disgust in her eyes almost enough to kill me. A chill ran through me. I understood instantly. It was Ian again! Eleanor’s voice was sharp. “Caught red-handed, Alex. We were once married, so I’m giving you a chance to confess!” Confess? I looked up, a humorless laugh escaping my lips. “I’m not guilty. Confess to what?” Eleanor’s anger flared. She shouted towards the door, “Then help him confess!” Two burly men entered, gripping me tightly on either side. One of them pressed hard on the back of my neck, forcing me to bend low before Ian. “Get on your knees and confess!” Eleanor’s icy voice came from above me. I clenched my jaw, resisting with all my might. “It wasn’t me! Eleanor, I won’t confess!” But the bodyguard’s hand was like a vise, forcing my head down, slamming it into the ground. *Thud!* My forehead hit the rough concrete floor, a sharp, burning pain erupting. Eleanor commanded, “Apologize.” “I… didn’t…” I struggled to get the words out. *Thud!* Another blow. This time, the force was greater. I felt warm blood trickling down my forehead. Mia’s tearful voice piped up, “Dad, just confess, please. I’m scared…” My daughter’s plea twisted my heart in agony. She didn’t know. Every “Dad” she uttered was a thousand cuts to my broken heart. In my previous life, when she’d tricked me onto the rooftop and pushed me off, I died never understanding why my daughter, whom I’d loved for ten years, wouldn’t believe me, but instead believed a man who wasn’t even her blood relative. Eleanor’s voice was full of scorn. “See? Even your daughter is ashamed of you.” *Thud!* The third blow. My vision blurred. Blood and sweat mixed, dripping onto the cold ground. Ian feigned concern. “Eleanor, that’s enough… Alex might just be confused for a moment…” “Confused? I say he’s stubbornly unrepentant!” The bodyguard pressed my head down again. I mustered my last ounce of strength, lifting my head to glare at Ian. “I’m innocent!” Eleanor was utterly enraged. “Still talking back! Keep going! Until he confesses!”
Just then, Mia suddenly rushed forward and kicked my shoulder hard. “You’re a thief! I don’t want you as my dad anymore! Mia doesn’t like you anymore!” The kick wasn’t hard, but it froze me completely, making me forget to struggle. My own daughter, While I was being falsely accused of theft, while I was being forced to confess, she not only disbelieved me but came forward to deliver another blow. So this is what it feels like for your heart to die. Eleanor seemed startled by her daughter’s action too. She waved her hand, and the bodyguards released me. I slumped to the ground, blood continuously streaming from my forehead. She walked up to me, rain dripping from her hair. “Alex, for Mia’s sake, if you just admit your mistake and apologize to Ian, I’ll let it go.” I looked up, through my blood-blurred vision, staring intently at her, And at Ian, who stood behind her, wearing an innocent expression, and at my daughter, who looked at me with a stranger’s eyes. I smiled, blood oozing from the corner of my mouth. “I… did nothing wrong.” “And I will *never* apologize to Ian!” Those last three words, I directed at Ian, each one firm and clear. Eleanor erupted in fury. “You’re impossible! Drag him outside and make him kneel! He won’t get up until he confesses!” I was roughly dragged into the yard and thrown into the icy mud. The torrential rain poured down, washing over the wound on my forehead, a chilling, piercing pain. From behind, I heard Ian’s gently insidious voice. “Eleanor, it’s raining so hard. Maybe let Alex come inside…” And Mia’s innocent question, “Mommy, when will this thief confess?” Followed by Eleanor’s cold reply, “He brought it on himself.” A thief? Brought it on myself? The physical pain was nothing compared to the agony in my heart. The voices faded, and I completely lost consciousness. The smell of disinfectant was acrid. I regained consciousness amidst a sharp pain. Above me, the hospital’s stark white ceiling. As far as my eyes could see, several expressionless bodyguards stood. They surrounded my hospital bed like immovable pillars. “Awake?” An icy voice reached me. I struggled to turn my head and saw Eleanor standing by the bed, her face so dark it looked like it could rain. She held the necklace in her hand, her eyes devoid of warmth, filled only with scrutiny and disgust. She held up the necklace. “Alex, I’m asking you one last time, where did you hide Ian’s mother’s *real* keepsake? This one is fake.” Fake? My eyes widened in shock. I understood instantly. Ian! How utterly twisted he was! He used a fake item to solidify my theft charge. Whether I confessed or not, he had a backup plan waiting for me! The real necklace was probably long hidden or disposed of. He wanted not only to ruin my reputation but also to ensure I’d never recover! I opened my mouth, my throat dry and hoarse. “I didn’t!” My heart ached as if an invisible hand was squeezing it tightly, making it impossible to breathe. Why? Why, even after being reborn, could I not escape this fate of being framed? Why must I still bear this fabricated charge? Eleanor stared at me, seemingly judging the truth of my words. Moments later, her last shred of patience snapped, replaced by deep disappointment and ruthlessness. “It seems you won’t tell the truth unless I get a little tougher with you.” She took a step back and coldly instructed the bodyguards, “A thief doesn’t deserve his hands. Since he won’t hand it over, break his fingers, one by one. He’s in the hospital anyway; he won’t die.” I violently opened my eyes, staring at her in disbelief. She was going to… break my fingers?!
No! I couldn’t let that happen! I struggled, but the bodyguards held me down firmly. I couldn’t be without my hands! The national research institute! My future! I needed these hands to operate precise instruments! Without them, everything I had would be ruined! “Eleanor! You can’t!” I screamed, hoarse. “I didn’t steal! I didn’t…” But she merely watched, impassively, as if observing a silent film that had nothing to do with her. A bodyguard stepped forward, roughly grabbed my left hand, and squeezed my index finger. “No!” *CRACK!* A crisp sound of bone shattering echoed. The agonizing pain made my vision go black; I nearly passed out. It hurt! But this pain was less than a thousandth of the agony in my heart. I looked at the woman I had poured my heart out to and loved for ten years, at her beautiful profile, Now, I only felt disgust. I hated her! I hated myself even more! Why was I so blind back then, to fall for this woman who couldn’t tell right from wrong, this cold and heartless woman! To protect her fragile pride, I had hidden my top-tier university degree, even willing to give up my career for her. Ten years of devotion, ten years of youth, all for this outcome today! I truly regretted ever loving her! *CRACK!* The second finger was broken. “Ah!” I convulsed with pain, cold sweat instantly soaking my hospital gown. Eleanor stood there, expressionless. The third. The fourth… Excruciating pain surged like a tide, wave after wave, almost consuming my consciousness. I bit down hard, absolutely refusing to admit to that fabricated charge. One, two, three… The bodyguard grabbed my right hand. My future, my dreams, shattered inch by agonizing inch before my eyes. *CRACK!* When the ninth finger was brutally snapped, I no longer had the strength to even scream. My life, too, seemed utterly broken at that moment. But my dignity was not crushed. I had not confessed to theft! Eleanor looked at my pathetic state, frowned, and her face turned pale. She suddenly turned to the doctor. “Reattach them.” With that, she almost fled in haste, without another glance back at me.
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