Author: Momo Chan

On the eve of my wedding, I caught my fiancé, Caleb, and my bridesmaid, Serena, tearing each other’s clothes off. The two of them didn’t even look guilty. Caleb looked me straight in the eye and said, “I don’t love you, Lyra. I only proposed to get my hands on your father’s throne as the leader of the Goldvein Pack.” I ripped up our marriage contract on the spot and told them both to get the hell out of my sight. As soon as the sun rose, I packed my bags. I swore I would never set foot in the Bramblefall Pack’s territory again. But just as my convoy crossed the border, we were blocked. Kian, the Alpha of the Ashford Pack, was standing right in the middle of the road with his men. This was the Wolf King—notorious for being cold, ruthless, and completely uninterested in women. He looked at me, his deep voice sending shivers down my spine. “Lyra, I’ve loved you from afar for years. I don’t want to take advantage of your pain, but I want to give you a marriage with dignity and all the respect you deserve. Marry me. Be the Luna of the Ashford Pack.” Heartbroken and exhausted, I nodded. Our alliance shook the entire North American werewolf community. Everyone said we were a match made in heaven. Kian was incredibly attentive. He gave me everything I could ever ask for. But after three years of marriage, I still wasn’t pregnant. Kian told me that because of his powerful Alpha lineage, conceiving was naturally difficult. He told me not to rush. To have a baby of our own, I drank bitter herbal medicine every single day for three years. Even when I was throwing up so hard I could barely stand, I never complained. Finally, in our third year, I got a positive pregnancy test. The whole pack celebrated. Kian treated me like I was made of glass. I genuinely thought I had stepped out of the shadows of my past and found real happiness. Until my eighth month of pregnancy. I went to the clinic for a routine checkup and overheard Kian talking to the doctor in the private consulting room. “Alpha Kian, the fetus is developing perfectly. The due date is in two weeks.” “But I still don’t understand… Luna Lyra is your true mate. Why did you insist on transferring your and Serena’s embryo into her womb?”

Kian’s voice was completely nonchalant. “Serena is just a low-ranking Omega. Her status is too low. A child born from her would never be respected enough to inherit my title as Alpha.” “Only by carrying the baby in Lyra’s womb can this child secure the inheritance.” “This way, Serena will be taken care of for the rest of her life.” I leaned against the freezing wall, all the strength draining from my legs. It was all an act. Three years of devotion, three years of sweet words… all a trap. A sick, twisted trap. Hearing footsteps approaching, I scrambled into the nearby emergency stairwell. Pressing my back against the cold concrete, I covered my mouth to muffle my sobs. Only after the hallway fell completely silent did I drag my numb body downstairs. The lobby was bustling with pack members. I stood there, my eyes burning with unshed tears. It didn’t take long for Kian to find me. He rushed over, his face pale with anxiety and concern. “Lyra! Why did you come down by yourself? I told you to wait for me in the room while I talked to the doctor.” “You weren’t answering your phone. You scared me to death.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead gently, his eyes filled with warmth. It was the exact same loving gaze he had given me for three years. But looking at his face now only made me feel icy cold. “I was looking for the restroom and got lost,” I said quietly, my voice surprisingly steady. Kian chuckled, tapping my nose playfully. “My little directionally-challenged Luna. What am I going to do with you?” Once we got into the car, he buckled my seatbelt and brought something up, trying to sound casual. “By the way, Serena’s birthday party is in a few days. The pack elders and our allies will all be there. What happened back then was years ago, and she’s just doing administrative work for the pack now. So…” “Sure, I’ll go,” I replied calmly. “I didn’t make a scene years ago, and I won’t start now. Don’t worry.” Kian visibly relaxed, a bright smile spreading across his face. “I knew my wife was the most reasonable woman. I’m so lucky to have you.” I turned my head to look out the window, watching the trees blur past to hide the coldness in my eyes. Right. Reasonable. He only married me because I was “sensible” enough to quietly carry his and his mistress’s baby, didn’t he? For the past three years, every time I choked down that bitter medicine, he would hold me tightly and say it was okay if we didn’t have kids. But then, he would “accidentally” mention how cute other Alphas’ pups were. Every single word was designed to make me willingly suffer for him. Late that night, after Kian fell asleep, I took his phone and crept into the study. The passcode was Serena’s birthday. The wallpaper was a photo of Serena in a white dress standing under a cherry blossom tree. I opened his photo gallery. It was packed with photos of her, taking up almost his entire storage. The very top photo was a group shot from years ago when I first introduced Serena to Caleb and Kian. I remembered Kian looking annoyed back then, complaining about taking “useless group photos.” But now, both Caleb and I had been cropped out of the picture. Only Kian and Serena remained. It was the same for all the other photos. Even the photos Serena posted on Instagram with Caleb—Caleb’s face was cropped out, leaving only her smiling face. Pack ribbon-cuttings, charity galas, and private dinners I had never heard about. In every single photo, his eyes were locked onto Serena with a tenderness that made my stomach turn. With shaking fingers, I opened their Snapchat history. He replied to her messages instantly. Always. He sent her huge sums of money on Venmo—all ending in the digits of her birthday. Even the dates of our pack’s business contracts were aligned with her birthday. And our wedding day… it was on Serena’s birthday. I had asked him back then if we could change the date. He told me the elders had calculated it to be the most auspicious day for the pack, telling me not to overthink it. There was no auspicious day. Even though I was the one wearing the white dress, he had made her the true main character of our wedding.

In our three years of marriage, he never allowed me to call him during work hours. Once, when I had severe abdominal pain during my early pregnancy, I called him in a panic. He blew up at me, calling me immature and accusing me of ruining a major business merger. I felt incredibly hurt, but I forced myself to be understanding because of his heavy responsibilities. Now I realized it wasn’t about the business. It was just me. I was never the one who mattered. I let out a bitter laugh and closed the phone. I dialed the private number of Chloe, my best friend and the chief physician of the Goldvein Pack. “Chloe, arrange a procedure for me. I want to terminate the pregnancy in three days.” Three days. That was enough time to say goodbye to this lie. I set a countdown timer on my phone as a silent reminder. Returning to the bedroom, I stared at Kian’s handsome face as he slept peacefully. The cruel truth replayed in my mind like a horror movie. Tears soaked my pillow. I didn’t sleep a wink. The next morning, I sat at the dining table, waiting for him. He came downstairs with his usual warm smile. “Why are you up so early, babe? Pregnant women need their sleep.” I smiled and said nothing. Just then, my phone buzzed. He caught a glimpse of the word “Doctor” on the lock screen and frowned. “A message from the clinic? Is something wrong with the baby?” I turned off the screen and acted natural. “Nothing. Just spam. Data leaks are getting out of hand these days.” “Didn’t you say the mining investors are coming today? Hurry up and eat so you won’t be late.” He wrapped his arms around me from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder. “I must have saved a kingdom in my past life to end up with a wife as perfect as you.” I forced a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “Wait until our anniversary, babe. I have a huge surprise for you.” “Great. I can’t wait.” He really went all out just to make sure I delivered his and Serena’s baby. But this marriage of lies was about to end. As soon as Kian left, I drove straight to the Pack Elders’ Council. The Elder in charge of marital contracts stood up immediately to greet me. When I told him I wanted to dissolve the marriage, his jaw dropped. He kept asking for the reason, asking how much territory and assets I wanted to claim in the divorce. “I don’t want a single dime,” I said calmly. “Just sign the papers. Effective immediately.” Under the Elder’s shocked gaze, I took the printed divorce agreement and left. On my way back, I stopped by Kian’s office building. Before I even reached the entrance, I heard the receptionists gossiping in the lobby. “Is that girl really the Alpha’s first love? She’s stunning. Better looking than most influencers.” “You have no idea. All the limited-edition jewelry and furs our pack imports are named after her. Last month, she casually mentioned she liked that million-dollar moonstone necklace, and the Alpha bought it at the auction without blinking.” “No wonder we keep renewing our unprofitable partnership with the Bramblefall Pack. It’s just so the Alpha can see his dream girl more often.” I didn’t stop. I walked straight up to the penthouse suite. The office door wasn’t fully closed. The muffled, heavy breathing coming from inside made me freeze. Peering through the gap, what I saw made my stomach heave. Clothes were scattered all over the floor. Serena was sitting on Kian’s mahogany desk, her pale legs wrapped tightly around his waist. “Kian, you’re the only one who truly cares about me. You knew carrying a baby would ruin my body, so you made Lyra do it for me. If I had to rely on Caleb, I don’t know how I’d survive.” Her voice was dripping with sweet triumph. Kian kissed her neck, gasping, “Does Caleb treat you well? Has he been hurting you?” “Oh, he’s obsessed with me. He gives me whatever I want. He just bought me that private island estate last week.” Kian’s voice carried a hint of bitterness. “As long as he treats you well, I can bear it.” Serena snuggled closer into his chest, her voice softening. “Kian, you’re so good to me. Since I can’t marry you, this is the only way I can repay you…”

Before she could finish, Kian pressed his lips hard against hers. I had never seen this side of Kian. With me, he was always disciplined, distant, and composed. But here, he was desperate, wild, and out of control. The disgusting scene made me want to throw up. I turned around and walked out of the building. Back at the villa, I ripped down every single wedding photo from the walls, smashed the frames, and threw them into the fireplace, watching them burn to ash. Kian didn’t come home that night. Serena posted a new update on her Instagram. Against a background of expensive silver fireworks, a pile of limited-edition designer bags and jewelry was on display. The caption read: [Someone decided to celebrate my birthday early. Just the two of us.] In the corner of the photo, a silver cufflink in the shape of a wolf’s head was visible. It was a custom-made coming-of-age gift I had personally designed for Kian. I let out a cold laugh and liked the post. Then, I turned off my phone and went back to packing my bags. The next morning, Kian finally called to explain. “Lyra, there was an emergency at the mine yesterday. I was working until 3:00 AM. It was too late, and I didn’t want to wake you, so I slept at the office.” “Yeah, it’s fine. Work comes first.” He let out a sigh of relief. “You’re the best, babe. I’ll have my driver pick you up for the birthday party tonight. Make sure to dress up beautifully.” After hanging up, I stood in front of the mirror. Looking at my exhausted face and my heavily swollen belly that could no longer fit into any elegant dress, I laughed at myself. Dress up? For what? No matter what I wore, I could never compete with the girl in his heart. That evening, the driver dropped me off at the birthday gala. Serena stood in the center of the crowd, her curves hugged by a stunning silver-white gown, surrounded by the luxury jewelry Kian had bought her. The moment I walked in wearing a loose, plain maternity dress, the surrounding wolves threw throwing-shade looks at me. Kian frowned, a flash of annoyance in his eyes. “Why did you wear that? I told you to dress up.” “None of my dresses fit anymore,” I said flatly. His expression softened slightly, but he quickly turned back to network with the Alphas of other packs. Serena walked over with a fake, sweet smile, grabbing my arm and offering to take me to the second-floor VIP lounge to rest. The moment the door closed, her fake smile vanished. She looked me up and down like I was a piece of trash. “Lyra, look at you. Pregnancy really ruined you, didn’t it?” “But I bet you didn’t know… the baby in your belly actually belongs to me.” “Kian couldn’t bear to see me suffer through pregnancy. He wanted our child to inherit the Ashford Pack legitimately, so he used you, the precious daughter of the Goldvein Pack, as a incubator.” “You should really thank me. If I hadn’t given you this chance, you wouldn’t even be the Luna of this pack. He wouldn’t even look at you!” I shook with anger. A sharp, stabbing pain shot through my abdomen, and my face went completely pale. A malicious glint flashed in her eyes. She grabbed a glass of red wine from the table and splashed it all over her own dress. Then, she let out a piercing scream. The door was kicked open. Kian rushed in and immediately pulled Serena into his arms. He glared at me, his eyes blazing with fury. “Lyra! What the hell are you doing?” “Serena was nice enough to bring you up here to rest, and you throw wine at her? You said you let go of the past, so why are you acting like a psycho now?” Serena whimpered in his arms, covering her face. “Kian, don’t blame Lyra… I just wanted to clear the air. I joked about wanting to be the baby’s godmother…” “But she… forget it. It was my fault for what happened with Caleb years ago. Just let this be my apology to her.” Kian’s face was terrifyingly dark. “Lyra, apologize to Serena. Right now.” I looked him dead in the eye. “Apologize? Shouldn’t the two of you be apologizing to me instead?”

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On our wedding day, the man made love to me three times in the backseat of the car. I lay there, weak and boneless, watching his back disappear through the entrance of the private club, my heart still sweet with happiness. Then I picked up the cuff link he had accidentally left behind and followed him inside. Before I reached the private room, I froze. My own breathless moans echoed from behind the door. “Julian, who would’ve thought Aria, the quiet little sweetheart, is such a wildcat in bed?” I stood rooted outside as the man who had whispered, *”A little louder,”* barely half an hour earlier lounged lazily against the sofa. “She really is,” Julian replied coolly. Someone turned to the man sitting beside him with a grin. “Hunter, making Julian pretend to be you and string Aria along for two whole years… that’s a hell of a move.” “And when she finds out even the marriage certificate is fake…” “…do you think she’ll lose her mind on the spot?” The blood drained from my face in an instant.

Aria’s POV On the day of our wedding, he took me three times in the back of the limousine. I was so thoroughly overwhelmed, crying and whispering between soft gasps, “Please, Julian… baby, stop.” Only then did he smile with deep satisfaction, kissing the tears from my swollen eyes. I lay slumped across the leather backseat, my body completely drained of strength, aching in every joint. Julian casually adjusted his designer suit, leaning down to plant a soft, lingering kiss on my lips. “I have a private celebration with the guys. Go home and get some rest first, okay?” I nodded weakly. I hated going to his parties anyway. His friends always looked at me with this strange, knowing smirk that made my skin crawl. I watched his tall, elegant figure disappear into the exclusive VIP club entrance, a sweet, warm flutter rising in my chest. For two years, from the moment our families set us up on that first date to our courtship and today’s wedding, he had spoiled me to the bone. Even though in the bedroom, he was always so insatiable, completely ignoring my pleas for mercy. My cheeks flushed at the memory. But I had to admit, he was incredibly skilled. He had endless stamina and a taste for variety. Over the past two years, he had introduced me to so many wild places and positions. He also loved recording videos. At first, I hated it. Every time he lifted his iPhone, I would turn my face away in sheer embarrassment. But he would hold me tight, whispering in his deep, husky voice, “When I’m away on business trips, I need to see you, Aria. Please?” And my heart would melt. I was always willing to make compromises for the man I knew as Hunter Vance. As the car door shut, I leaned back to rest. That was when I noticed the custom diamond cufflinks I had gifted him lying forgotten on the adjacent seat. Suppressing the ache in my lower body, I gathered my strength, grabbed the cufflinks, and headed into the club to return them to him. The VIP lounge door was left slightly ajar. Just as I reached out to push it open, a sharp, ragged gasp echoed from inside. I froze instantly. That was my voice. That was the sound I had made in the back of the limo just half an hour ago! “Jesus, Julian! Aria always acts like such an innocent, quiet girl in public. Who knew she was such a wild little slut in bed?” “Right? Listen to her moan. Damn, that’s hot!” “Come on, Julian, you’ve got a whole archive of these on your Snapchat, don’t you? AirPlay it! Let us all have a listen!” The room erupted into loud, malicious laughter. It felt as though a bucket of icy water had been dumped over my head. Every drop of blood drained from my face. Shocked, I peered through the crack at the man sitting in the center of the velvet sofa. Julian Carter?! Why were they calling him Julian? His name was supposed to be Hunter Vance! The man leaned back lazily, swirling a glass of whiskey, a cruel, mocking smirk playing on his lips as he tapped his phone screen. My voice was blaring right from his speakers. “She is quite wild,” he murmured indifferently, taking a slow sip. I could barely believe my eyes. Just thirty minutes ago, this exact man had held me in his arms, whispering, “Louder, baby, I love it when you scream my name.” The crowd laughed louder, turning to the cold, silent man sitting right next to him. “Hunter, you have got to admit, having Julian swap identities with you to play Aria for two whole years, that is the most genius scheme ever.” “Man, when she finds out her husband isn’t just a fake, but that fake marriage certificate you guys printed is a total sham, do you think she will lose her mind on the spot?” My brain exploded. A loud buzzing filled my ears, and my body broke into a cold sweat. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. Wasn’t my husband’s name Hunter Vance? Then who was the man they were addressing as “Hunter”? If that man was the real Hunter Vance… then who on earth had I been sleeping with for the past two years? What did they mean by “swap identities”? What did they mean by “fake marriage certificate”?! I stared, paralyzed, at the stranger sitting next to Julian. He had a cold, chiseled profile, and right beneath his ear was a very distinct, bow-shaped birthmark. In his hand, he was casually spinning a pink candy-shaped hair tie. My pupils dilated in absolute horror. I knew that birthmark. Twenty years ago, when I was still a little girl in the orphanage, there was an older boy named Seven who protected me. He had that exact birthmark. And that hair tie… it was mine. It was the parting gift I had given Seven the day his wealthy biological parents came to take him away. So… Hunter Vance was Seven?!

Aria’s POV The pieces of the puzzle began to violently crash together in my mind. Those men just said Hunter had Julian impersonate him. I remembered that on “Hunter’s” phone, there was always a pinned contact named Julian. So… The man I had actually married, the man who went to family matchmaking dinners, who courted me, who lived with me, was Julian Carter. He had used Hunter’s name to deceive me from day one. Hunter’s cold, mocking voice cut through my chaotic thoughts. “Just wait until Chloe’s birthday party. Julian, we’ll project Aria’s finest videos on the grand screen. I want the entire high society of New York to see what Christian King’s precious little sister really is behind closed doors.” “Let’s see if Christian still dares to look down on us.” “We are going to make sure Chloe gets her sweet revenge.” “Though,” Hunter turned to Julian, “Julian, man, thanks for putting up with this for so long.” Julian locked his phone with a click. “It was nothing.” “Chloe loved Christian so much back in college, but that arrogant bastard rejected her in front of the whole school, making her a laughingstock, and then had his military buddies humiliate her family. We had to settle this score for her.” The blood in my veins turned to solid ice. I clutched the door frame, gasping for air, my knees trembling so violently I could barely stand. The man who had shared my bed, comforted me when I was sick, and held me through the night for two long years… was a lie. His name was Julian Carter. When he kissed my eyes during our most intimate moments and whispered, “I love you more than life itself, Aria,” it was a lie. When he drove across New York in the dead of a winter blizzard just to bring me my favorite warm chestnut cake, it was a lie. The perfect husband, the perfect lover, the perfect romance… it was a meticulously crafted trap. But how? His eyes had been so warm. His passion had felt so incredibly real. How could anyone fake that for two years? I didn’t want to believe it. “Hey Julian, don’t keep them all to yourself! You only let us hear the audio. Let us see some of the videos too! You took tons of them, didn’t you?” “Yeah, Aria’s got a killer body. Let us appreciate it too!” Julian declined instantly, his voice sharp. “You’ll see them at the birthday gala. On the big screen. It’ll be much clearer then.” The group burst into another round of crude laughter. “Man, I can’t wait for Chloe’s gala in two weeks! Not only do we get to strip Aria of her innocent little mask, but we get to see the look on Christian’s face!” “Exactly! I’ve been waiting to see Christian King fall from his high horse. Every time my dad meets him at charity events, he comes home and lectures me, comparing me to him. It’s disgusting!” “Hey, after you guys are done playing with her, pass her over to us. Aria always acts so pure and untouchable, but she sounds like an absolute siren in bed. That kind of contrast must be insane to play with.” Hunter let out a disdainful chuckle. “You guys aren’t worried about getting dirty?” The vulgar jokes continued to pile up, suffocating me. Tears streamed down my cheeks, hot and bitter. I tightly pressed my hands over my mouth, desperate to stifle my sobs. My parents were national heroes, scientists who sacrificed their lives in a laboratory accident when I was very young. I grew up in an orphanage. Back then, when the older kids bullied me, Seven was the one who stood in front of me, taking the hits. When his parents found him, he held my pink hair tie tightly and promised, “Candy, I will come back for you when we grow up.” I still kept the wooden toy block he gave me in my most treasured jewelry box. Through all the hardships of my life, the memory of Seven had been my anchor, my hope. But I never could have imagined that when I finally met him again after twenty years, he would be the monster pushing me straight into hell. I kept screaming inside my head, This isn’t real. It can’t be. Julian’s voice cut through the noise, silencing the room. “That’s enough. Don’t bring up sharing her again.” “Why, Julian? Don’t tell me you’ve actually caught feelings for her?” Julian swirled his drink, his voice devoid of any emotion. “She’s just a toy. Why would I care about a toy?” “After the birthday gala, both she and Christian will never be able to hold their heads up in New York again.”

Aria’s POV I stumbled out of the club like a ghost. It was the dead of winter, and large snowflakes began to drift down from the dark sky, landing on my bare shoulders. Yet, I felt absolutely nothing. My body was numb; my entire world had shattered into a million sharp pieces. I was adopted by the King family. Christian was my foster parents’ only biological son, and he was my older brother. He had loved and protected me since we were kids. When I first arrived at the King estate, I was terrified, too scared to eat or play. My foster parents were renowned research scientists, practically living in their laboratories. It was Christian who took my hand, fed me, played with me, and introduced me proudly to everyone as his little sister. Chloe Albright was my high school classmate. She had been obsessed with Christian for as long as I could remember. At first, Chloe tried to get close to me just to grab Christian’s attention. But during our high school graduation prom, Chloe publicly confessed her love to Christian in front of the entire class. Christian rejected her flatly, and she was utterly humiliated. From that day on, Chloe became my worst nightmare. She put laxatives in my water bottle, making me a laughingstock at school. She stuffed dead rats into my locker to terrify me. She cornered me in the girls’ restroom, slapping my face, pulling my hair, and forcing me to drink dirty water from the floor. By then, Christian was already away at military academy. I didn’t want to worry my foster parents, so I endured it all in silence, never saying a word. But my silence only made Chloe more vicious. For five years, all through high school, Chloe bullied me mercilessly until I finally left for college in another city. I thought my nightmare was over. I had no idea I had never escaped. Two years ago, my foster father arranged a setup for me with the son of an old family friend from overseas. Hunter Vance. Or rather, Julian Carter pretending to be Hunter. On our first date, Julian was quiet but incredibly attentive. He asked about my food preferences and listened to my thoughts with absolute focus. Ever since Christian joined the special forces, no one had looked after me like that. Julian was different. When I was sick, he would show up at my apartment with medicine immediately, staying by my side all night. When I worked late at the news agency, he would wait downstairs in his car, sending me a text: “Here to take you home, sweetheart.” For two years, he treated me like royalty, placing me on a pedestal. I thought I had finally found the man I would spend the rest of my life with. But now, I knew it was all a staged performance. “Julian, you’ve got serious patience, acting the devoted husband for two whole years.” “It’s just acting. I tell her what to do, and she does it. Very obedient.” Their mocking words echoed in my head like a death knell. I clutched my chest, unable to draw in a single breath. I didn’t even know who to hate more. My legal fiancé, the real Hunter Vance, had never even shown his face to me. And the man I had slept next to for two years, I only just learned his real name today. No wonder Julian hated it when I called him “Hunter” in bed. Every time I cried out “Hunter” in his arms, he would grip me harder, pushing deeper, forcing me to call him “baby” or “Julian” before he would let me go. I staggered into a quiet bar down the street, ordering shot after shot, pouring the burning liquid down my throat. My mind became hazy, but the agonizing pain in my heart only grew sharper. Hours later, I stumbled back to the empty villa we called home. I dug out our marriage certificate from the safe, my hands trembling as I inspected it. The paper was cheap, the seal imitation. It was such a lazy forgery. But of course. If the man was fake, how could the marriage certificate be real? Everything was a lie. My tears soaked the fake document, smudging the names written on it. Suddenly, my phone rang. It was Helen, my foster mother. I respected my foster parents deeply, though we had grown distant over the years due to their endless research projects. “Mom,” I whispered, forcing down the sob in my throat. “Aria, sweetheart, how are you?” Helen’s voice was naturally quiet, but warm. “I’m doing great, Mom. Don’t worry about me.” I wiped my tears quickly. “How are you and Dad?” “We are doing well,” Helen said, her tone softening. “Aria, your father and I have made a decision. We’re getting older, and I’m retiring next month. We want to move abroad to Australia and live a quiet life by the coast.” “That’s wonderful, Mom! When are you leaving? I’ll come to the airport to see you off.” I fully supported them. They had given their lives to science; they deserved peace. “Aria, we want you to come with us. Your news agency has an international bureau in Sydney. You can request a transfer.” She paused. “Talk it over with Hunter. You two can come together. You have no other family left in New York besides us, and we don’t feel comfortable leaving you behind.” Hunter? My foster mother had no idea that the “Hunter Vance” they had introduced to me was currently plotting to destroy their son and daughter. If this were yesterday, I would have refused. I would have insisted on staying in New York with Julian. But now, there was absolutely nothing left for me here. “Okay, Mom. Let’s go together.” “Really?” Helen sounded overjoyed. “Wonderful! We’ll handle your visa and transfer paperwork. We leave in two weeks.” I hung up the phone and looked around the grand villa. This was supposed to be our marital home. I had designed every corner of it myself. I had handpicked every piece of furniture, every plate, and every curtain. I thought I was building a sanctuary of love. Instead, I had built a beautiful stage for my own execution.

Aria’s POV After hanging up, I collapsed onto the bed. Having spent hours wandering in the freezing snow, my body began to shake uncontrollably, and my forehead burned with a raging fever. I didn’t even have the energy to reach for a blanket. I drifted into a dark, heavy sleep. I don’t know how much time passed before I heard the click of the front door. Heavy footsteps approached, and my bedroom door was thrown open. “Aria, why are you still in bed at this hour?” Julian didn’t even notice my flushed, feverish face. He grabbed my arm and pulled me out of bed. “Chloe is back. Get up and come greet her.” I stumbled, nearly falling over as he dragged me into the living room. The sight before me instantly cleared my hazy mind. Standing in our living room were Chloe Albright and Hunter Vance. “Chloe heard we got married and flew back from London just to congratulate us,” Julian said, his voice softening unconsciously as he looked at Chloe. “And this is Chloe’s fiancé… Julian Carter.” I looked at the man introduced as “Julian Carter,” who was actually the real Hunter Vance, and quickly looked away. Hunter’s icy gaze swept over me with utter disdain, but when he turned to Chloe, his expression melted into pure tenderness. I clenched my fists. After all these years, Chloe was standing in my house, while I was shivering with a high fever, looking pathetic and weak. “Aria, long time no see.” Chloe stepped forward, wrapping her arm around mine with fake intimacy. She leaned in, whispering in my ear, “Still as pathetic as ever, I see. You look like a stray dog no one wants.” I yanked my arm back and took a step away, my eyes filled with defensive anger. Julian’s brow furrowed, clearly displeased by my reaction. Chloe let out a soft, delicate cough, looking incredibly frail. “The flight was so cold, and my stomach is acting up. Julian, could you ask your maid to make me some hot oatmeal?” “Aria, go make it,” Julian ordered immediately. “Aria’s cooking is great, Chloe. You’re in for a treat.” I stared at Julian. “I have a fever. I’m sick.” Julian’s face darkened instantly, his eyebrows knitting into a tight scowl. “Stop throwimg a tantrum. Chloe flew all this way for us. You didn’t even go to the airport, and now you won’t even make her a simple bowl of oatmeal?” Of course. In Julian’s eyes, because Chloe was here, my sickness was just a dramatic act. I let out a bitter, silent laugh. My body was entirely drained of strength. I didn’t want to waste my breath arguing with them, so I turned and walked into the kitchen. When the first bowl of oatmeal was served, Chloe took a bite and frowned. “It’s too salty.” I took a deep breath, took it back to the kitchen, and remade it. The second time, she said it was too bland. The third time, she complained about the texture. By the fifth time, Chloe walked into the kitchen alone, shutting the door behind her. “So, you know now, don’t you? About Hunter and Julian swapping places to play you like a fool?” Chloe smirked, her eyes gleaming with malice. “Then you must also know that Hunter is your precious ‘Seven’ from the orphanage, right?” She leaned closer, her voice dripping with venom. “He promised to protect you forever, yet he doesn’t even recognize your face now.” I kept my head down, ignoring her, but my hands began to tremble violently. “Want to know a secret? He thinks I am Candy. He’s been treating me like a queen all these years because of it.” Chloe’s laughter grew wilder. “I wonder… if Christian finds out his beloved little sister has been shared by two men for two years, will he lose his mind? Will he break his precious military codes and rush back to save you?” Before the words fully left her mouth, Chloe suddenly threw herself backward. She grabbed the pot of boiling oatmeal and poured it over her own hand. The skin of her wrist turned instantly raw and red. “Ahhh!” she screamed. The two men burst into the kitchen. Hunter rushed forward, catching Chloe in his arms, inspecting her hand with intense panic. “What happened? Chloe, are you okay?” He whipped his head around, glaring at me with murderous eyes. “I didn’t know Julian’s wife could be so vicious.” Julian’s face was even darker. Whether it was anger or jealousy over Hunter holding Chloe, his eyes were filled with disgust as he looked at me. “Aria, you and your brother bullied Chloe back in school, and she never held a grudge.” “I can’t believe that after all these years, you’re still this cruel!” Julian’s voice was freezing. “Go out to the terrace. Stand in the snow until you learn how to apologize.” I stared at him, my last shred of hope dying. “I didn’t push her.” “I have a fever. My knees can’t take the cold. You know this, Julian.” Julian knew about the chronic joint damage in my knees. He used to protect them carefully, never letting me get cold. For a second, Julian’s eyes flickered with hesitation. Even Hunter’s brow furrowed slightly when he heard about my knees. But Chloe chose that moment to whimper softly, “Julian, please, it’s fine. Aria clearly doesn’t want me here. I should just leave.” “Julian!” Hunter barked, warning his friend. Julian’s expression turned completely cold. “Take her coat. Put her out on the terrace.” Two burly bodyguards stepped forward. Without a word, they stripped off my heavy coat and dragged me toward the glass doors, shoving me out onto the freezing, snow-covered terrace.

Aria’s POV The snow was still falling heavily. Standing on the freezing stone floor in nothing but my thin indoor clothes, the cold bit into my bones, and my knees began to ache with a blinding, white-hot agony. When we were kids at the orphanage, Seven had fallen through thin ice into a freezing pond. I had jumped in without a second thought, dragging him out with all my might. Since then, I had suffered from chronic joint pain. Seven knew how much I feared the cold. Back then, he would wrap his oversized coat around me. “Candy, as long as I’m here, I’ll never let you freeze.” I also remembered Julian holding me on winter nights, whispering, “My sweet girl is so sensitive to the cold. I’ll never let you freeze.” Yet now, they had pushed me into the freezing winter night themselves. While they sat inside the warm, heated living room, whispering comforting words to Chloe. My heart died completely. The last spark of warmth in my soul was extinguished. I don’t know how long I stood there before my legs finally gave out, and I collapsed into the snow. When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in a hospital bed. The doctor looked at me with deep sympathy. “The chronic damage in your knees is severe. If you don’t take care of them, you might lose the ability to walk properly.” I nodded silently. The door opened, and Julian walked in, his face filled with worry and regret. Seeing him, the doctor scolded, “Are you her husband? How could you let her get this cold? Her joints cannot take this kind of trauma!” Julian looked incredibly guilty. He sat on the edge of the bed, pulling me into his arms and kissing my lips softly. “I’m so sorry, Aria. I didn’t mean to leave you out there for so long. It’s just… Chloe was in so much pain, and we had to rush her to the ER, so I…” I closed my eyes, refusing to look at him. So he simply forgot about me. Julian squeezed my hand. “You guys were classmates. Let bygones be bygones. You’re my wife now. You need to be magnanimous and kind, not petty and resentful.” My eyes remained dead and hollow. On the day I was discharged, Julian drove me home, only for us to find Chloe already settled in our villa. She was wearing my silk pajamas and my slippers, lounging on our sofa like she owned the place. I froze at the entrance. How could he? How dared he let Chloe move into our home? But Julian acted as if it were completely normal. “Aria, the Albright family has gone bankrupt, and Chloe has nowhere to go. Staying at a hotel is so lonely, so I invited them to stay with us for a while.” Hunter walked down the stairs, casting a cold, indifferent glance at me. “Is Julian’s wife really that fragile? A little cold and she ends up in the hospital?” Julian explained, “Aria has a chronic knee injury from childhood. She fell into freezing water and is extremely sensitive to the cold.” Hunter’s eyes flickered. He seemed about to ask something. But Chloe quickly interrupted, “I’m tired, Hunter. Let’s go rest.” Hunter’s expression softened. “Go on up, Chloe.” They walked up the stairs together, hand in hand. I watched them disappear around the corner of the hallway, listening to their bedroom door click shut. Forcing down the agony in my chest, I walked silently back to my own room. Julian saw the way I looked at Hunter. His face darkened, and he followed me into the bedroom, locking the door. He crawled onto the bed, pinning me down and biting my earlobe with a possessive grip. “Aria, your man is right here. Stop staring at another man’s fiancé, understand?” Anger flared in my chest. I wanted to scream the truth in his face, to tear off his mask of lies. But I forced myself to hold back. I had more important things to do. “I understand,” I whispered. Seeing my obedience, Julian’s mood seemed to improve. He stroked my hair. “We are married now, Aria. You need to drop your bad habits. Just be a good, obedient girl, okay?” I lowered my eyes, hiding the utter disgust in them. His hands began to slide under my clothes. “Aria…” My body went stiff as a board, a wave of nausea washing over me. “I’m on my period. It’s not convenient.” Julian frowned slightly, but eventually let go of me. “Fine. Just let me hold you.” Before long, the sound of his steady, heavy breathing filled the room. I opened my eyes, waiting until I was absolutely sure he was asleep before gently slipping his phone from the nightstand. I had never looked at his phone before, and I didn’t know his passcode. I tried my birthday. Error. I tried his birthday. Error. Finally, I typed in Chloe’s birthday. The screen unlocked.

Aria’s POV I let out a cold, silent laugh. Opening his photo album, I selected the hundreds of private videos and photos of me, hit delete, and permanently cleared the trash folder. Once it was done, I finally breathed a long sigh of relief. Next, I opened his Snapchat and found their private group chat with his wealthy friends. I scrolled up through the chat history. For two years, they had been mocking me behind my back. “Julian, Aria looks so pure and untouchable. How did you get her into bed so fast?” “Just a few sweet words and some flowers, and she lays down and does whatever I want.” I clenched my teeth, scrolling further. “Julian, make sure you don’t accidentally get her pregnant. You’ll never get rid of her then.” “I’d never let her carry my child. She isn’t worthy.” Every sweet memory, every gentle promise, and every midnight whisper shattered into worthless, ugly shards of glass. But the text that truly chilled me to my core was from Hunter: “Once you’re done playing with her, destroy her. If she tries to cling to you, I don’t mind disposing of her myself.” The boy who had promised to protect me at all costs now wanted to strip me of my dignity and throw me to the wolves. I was completely, utterly done. I exited the group chat and opened Julian’s direct messages with Chloe. “Chloe, Aria was begging me not to go on the business trip today. I told her I had an urgent board meeting.” “Thanks for putting up with her, Julian. Once the truth is out, you won’t have to deal with her disgusting presence anymore.” I scrolled up. On my birthday last year, Julian told me he had an emergency meeting in Chicago and left after giving me a cheap brooch. In reality, he had flown to Miami to spend the weekend on a yacht with Chloe. And when my grandmother passed away. I had called him dozens of times, crying, but he kept saying he was stuck in crucial negotiations in London. According to their chat logs, he was actually spending Christmas with Chloe in Paris. Not a single tear fell from my eyes. I put the phone back exactly where it was and stared at Julian’s sleeping face. This face, which I had loved with every fiber of my being, now filled me with nothing but absolute disgust. I never wanted to look at it again. The next morning, I was choked awake by thick smoke. I ran to the window and saw Chloe in the backyard, burning something in a metal bin. Once I realized what she was burning, my heart stopped, and I ran downstairs. “Stop it! Stop!” I screamed, rushing at her to grab the items from her hands. “Give them back to me!” It was a stack of old polaroids. They were the only photos I had left of my biological parents. Most of them had already been turned to ash inside the fire bin. Only a few remained in her hands. Chloe giggled, stepping back. “Give them back? Sure. If you give me the wooden block.” So that was why she had moved in. She wanted the wooden toy block Seven had given me, the ultimate proof of identity. “I lost that block years ago! Give me the photos!” “Lost? Oh, what a shame!” Chloe threw the remaining photos directly into the roaring flames. “You better hope you really lost it.” I ignored the heat, reaching my hands directly into the fire to pull out the burning photos. Chloe whispered maliciously, “Because even if you find it, Hunter will only believe you stole it from me!” Just then, the sound of a car arriving echoed from the driveway. Seeing this, Chloe quickly scratched her own wrist against the metal bin, then pretended to struggle with me over the fire. “What are you doing?!” Julian and Hunter rushed into the backyard, immediately pulling Chloe away from the fire. “It’s my fault… I thought they were just old, useless papers, so I wanted to clean up. I didn’t know they were Aria’s things…” Chloe sobbed hysterically. She wasn’t burned at all, but the scratches on her wrist looked red and dramatic. Hunter’s face darkened as he inspected her wrist. “Did she do this to you?” I was on my knees, frantically pulling the last half-burnt photo out of the ash, my hands covered in painful, blistering burns. I couldn’t care less about their drama. Furious, Hunter kicked me hard in the shoulder, knocking me flat onto the frozen grass. My blisters popped, and blood began to seep through the dirt. Julian stared at my bleeding hands, his brow furrowing slightly, but seeing Chloe crying so pitifully, he snapped, “Aria, Chloe didn’t do it on purpose, and she tried to help you save them! How could you put your hands on her!” I screamed through my tears, “She did it on purpose! Those were the only photos of my parents!” Hunter remained completely unmoved. “A dead person’s photo isn’t more important than a living person’s well-being. I can’t believe Christian’s sister is such a classless bitch.” Julian felt humiliated in front of Hunter. “Guards! Lock her in her room. She is not allowed to leave this house without my permission!” With that, the two men rushed Chloe inside to treat her scratches. I clutched the half-destroyed photo with my bleeding, raw hands, letting out a shattered laugh that turned into a quiet, painful sob. It was fine. In just a few days, everything would be over. And I would make sure every single one of them paid the price. I dragged myself back to my room and began to pack. The clothes Julian had bought me. I took scissors and cut them into shreds, hanging them back in the closet. The jewelry he gave me. I smashed them with a hammer, placing them back in their velvet boxes. The watches, cufflinks, and ties I had gifted him. I destroyed them all and put them back in his drawer. Our framed photos were torn into tiny pieces and left in a neat pile on his desk. The villa still looked beautiful and warm on the outside. But on the inside, it was already a graveyard.

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My EMT license was pending renewal. According to the regulations, I wasn’t allowed to perform any medical rescues off-duty during this transition period. But that day, in our neighborhood park, my neighbor’s toddler was choking on a whole grape. His little face turned from bright red to deep purple, and his cries completely cut off. How could I care about regulations at a moment like that? I rushed over and used the Heimlich maneuver, dragging the boy back from the brink of death. I thought I had saved a life. Instead, he immediately reported me to the board for “unlicensed and unauthorized practice.” The EMS Association fined me two thousand dollars. My company fired me, and I was blacklisted across the industry. But Richard didn’t stop there. He showed up at my doorstep with a bunch of fake medical reports, demanding fifty thousand dollars. “Who knows if those rough chest thrusts damaged my son’s internal organs? I’m just protecting my legal rights. Is there a problem with that?” Two weeks later, his son had a severe febrile seizure in the middle of the night. The boy was shaking violently, barely breathing, on the verge of death. Richard fell to his knees outside my apartment, banging his head against my door, begging me to just take one look at his son. I leaned against the doorframe, pulled out my phone, and calmly dialed 91

Then, looking down at him, I whispered: “I’m sorry, Richard. My license still hasn’t come through. If I accidentally hurt your precious golden boy, I definitely can’t afford another fifty-thousand-dollar lawsuit.” 1 “Ethan, don’t you dare talk to me about saving my son’s life! Your EMT license was expired, yet you still dared to touch him. That’s practicing medicine without a license!” I stood in the community association’s meeting room, my head spinning. Standing across from me was my neighbor, Richard Miller. He was holding his two-year-old son, Leo—the same boy who had almost choked to death on a grape in the park yesterday afternoon. Richard’s finger was practically poking my nose. “Richard, yesterday in the park, your son’s face was literally purple! You were on your knees, crying and grabbing my leg, begging me to save him!” I forced down the white-hot anger flaring in my chest and tried to reason with him. “I did it to save his life. It was an absolute emergency. I didn’t have time to think about paperwork!” “Cut the crap!” Richard raised his voice, his booming shout rattling the window panes. “You run safety training classes. Without an active license, you’re a rogue operator! Who knows if your technique was even correct?” He took a step back with a look of pure disgust, shielding his child. “What if you broke my son’s ribs? What if you damaged his internal organs? Don’t you know how fragile a toddler’s bones are?” My fists clenched so hard my knuckles popped. “You are twisting the truth! I pass my examinations every single year. It’s just that this year’s physical license is still processing in the state database!” Next to us, Mr. Vance, a representative from the EMS Licensing Board, cleared his throat and slammed a formal disciplinary letter onto the table. “Ethan, regardless of your intentions, the fact remains that your license was inactive at the time of the incident.” Mr. Vance spoke with a cold, bureaucratic tone. “According to board regulations, performing professional emergency procedures without an active license is a severe violation. You are hereby fined two thousand dollars, and a disciplinary notice will be sent to all industry employers.” I turned to Mr. Vance, unable to believe what I was hearing. “Mr. Vance, he wasn’t my patient! This was a Good Samaritan act in a public park!” “That doesn’t matter. You are a trained professional, which means you are held to professional standards,” Mr. Vance interrupted coldly. “You used professional techniques yesterday. That makes it a professional act. No active license means a violation. Period.” Richard raised his chin triumphantly, letting out a nasty sneer. “Hear that? Even the board says you’re wrong! I’m just looking out for public safety and following the rules. Am I wrong?” My wife, Chloe, who had been standing silently behind me, suddenly tugged hard on my sleeve. “Ethan, just apologize to him.” I spun around, staring at her in shock. “Chloe, what did you just say?” Chloe frowned, her face full of impatience as she whispered harshly. “You knew your license was pending! Why did you have to play the hero? That two thousand dollars was supposed to go toward our car payment this month!” My heart went cold. “I saved his son’s life, and you want me to apologize?” “Richard is just being a protective father. Is it a crime for a dad to be cautious?” Chloe shoved me behind her and turned to Richard with a desperate, fake smile. “Richard, I am so incredibly sorry. Ethan was just acting on impulse. Please don’t hold it against him.” Richard rolled his eyes, letting out a self-righteous snort. “Chloe, I’m only letting this go because we’re neighbors. Otherwise, I’d take my son for a full-body CT scan, and you’d be footing the bill!” “Of course, of course. Thank you so much for being so understanding,” Chloe nodded repeatedly, her voice dripping with gratitude. Staring at Chloe’s submissive face, she felt like a complete stranger. “I am not apologizing, and I am not paying that fine.” I shook off Chloe’s hand and glared at Mr. Vance. “You are rewarding a parasite.” Mr. Vance pointed a finger at me. “Ethan, with that attitude, your paramedic credentials will be permanently revoked. You will never work in this field again!” Chloe panicked and shoved me hard. “Ethan, have you lost your mind? Are you trying to ruin this family?” I stumbled back from her shove, hitting the water cooler. My back flared with pain. Richard held his child, watching me with a smug, victorious grin. “Ethan, I suggest you pay the fine quickly. I already posted the details in the neighborhood Snapchat group. Everyone knows you’re an unlicensed, dangerous fraud now.” I gritted my teeth, looking him dead in the eye. “Richard, aren’t you afraid of karma?” “Karma? I follow scientific parenting and legal regulations. What do I have to fear?” Richard let out a cold laugh, turned, and walked out. At the door, he threw one last comment over his shoulder. “Keep away from my son from now on. Who knows what kind of bacteria you’re carrying.” 2 The moment we got home, Chloe slammed the front door so hard the walls shook. “Ethan, did you skip your meds today? Would it kill you to just swallow your pride?” Chloe ripped off her coat, pointing a finger directly at my face. “Two thousand dollars! That’s almost my entire monthly paycheck! And you just threw it away to play the damn hero!” Looking at her throwing a tantrum, I felt a deep, bitter irony. “That was a child’s life! If I hadn’t stepped in, that boy would be dead!” “If he died, it would have been Richard’s own fault for not watching him! What does that have to do with you?” Chloe ran her hands through her hair in sheer frustration, pacing up and down the living room. “Now look at us! The entire neighborhood thinks you’re some unlicensed psycho. I’m embarrassed to even step outside!” I ignored her, pulled out my phone, and opened Snapchat. The neighborhood group chat was already blowing up. Richard had posted a massive, text-heavy story with a sensational headline: *WARNING! An unlicensed, rogue EMT is lurking in our neighborhood, using violent ‘rescues’ to assault children!* In the post, he vividly described how I had “ripped” his son from his arms and “brutally assaulted” the boy under the guise of the Heimlich maneuver. He even hinted that I had staged the choking incident in the park to drum up business for my private safety training courses. The neighbors were quickly jumping on the bandwagon. *”Oh my god, that’s terrifying. How did someone like this get hired in our community?”* *”I support Richard! We need to ban these unlicensed frauds!”* *”I heard the licensing board fined him two thousand dollars. He must have done something truly sick.”* Reading these venomous comments, my hands and feet went numb. Just yesterday afternoon, the reality was entirely different. Yesterday, I was walking my five-year-old Golden Retriever, Buddy, in the park. Suddenly, I heard blood-curdling screams from a nearby lawn. I ran over and saw Richard kneeling on the grass, holding his two-year-old son. The boy’s face was a dark, suffocating purple. His little hands were clawing at the air, his lips turning black, and not a single sound could escape his throat. An empty plastic container of grapes lay open on the grass next to them. An obvious airway obstruction. Without a second thought, I tied Buddy’s leash to a nearby tree and rushed over. I grabbed the boy from Richard’s trembling hands and positioned him. I wrapped my arms around him from behind, made a fist with one hand, placed the thumb side against the boy’s abdomen—just above his belly button—and cupped my fist with my other hand. I delivered quick, upward thrusts. One, two, three, four, five. *Cough!* With a weak, desperate cry, a whole grape flew out of the boy’s mouth, rolling onto the grass. The color slowly returned to the child’s face as he gasped greedily for air. Richard had collapsed onto the grass, clutching my legs, weeping hysterically. “Ethan, you’re a saint! You’re my son’s savior! I owe you everything!” Yet, in less than twenty-four hours, the “saint” had become a violent child abuser. “What are you looking at? Haven’t you embarrassed us enough?” Chloe snatched the phone out of my hand and threw it onto the sofa. “I just went down to the garage. Someone slashed my car tires!” She pointed out the window, her eyes bloodshot with rage. “It was definitely someone from the neighborhood! And it’s all because of you!” I looked at her coldly. “So?” “So you are going to apologize to Richard right now! Buy some expensive gift baskets, go to his house, and beg him to take down that post!” Chloe ordered, her voice shrill. “Why should I? I did nothing wrong.” “Nothing wrong? Being unlicensed is wrong!” Chloe stepped closer, her teeth clenched. “Ethan, let me make this clear. If you don’t apologize tomorrow, we are done!” I looked at the woman I had shared a bed with for three years. “Fine. Then we’re done.” 3 The next morning, the moment I arrived at the safety training center, I felt the suffocating atmosphere. Jenna at the front desk avoided my gaze, and several of my colleagues were whispering in a corner. Before I could even sit down at my desk, the owner’s office door flew open. Richard walked out, accompanied by three wealthy-looking young fathers, looking incredibly aggressive. “Everyone, look closely! This is your ‘star instructor’!” Richard held up an enlarged printout of the board’s disciplinary notice against me. “He doesn’t even have an active license, yet he’s out there violently compressing toddlers’ stomachs!” My colleagues immediately started whispering and pointing at me. Our boss, Mr. Peterson, followed behind them, sweating profusely and trying to pacify them. “Mr. Miller, please calm down. I assure you our center will handle this matter with the utmost severity.” “Severity? You’re keeping a dangerous fraud on your payroll?” one of the wealthy fathers sneered. “We paid premium tuition for our corporate safety training. If you’re going to let an unlicensed criminal teach us, we want a full refund immediately, and we will report you to the Better Business Bureau!” I walked over and snatched the printout from Richard’s hand. “Richard, have you had enough?” I stared into his eyes, my voice like ice. “I will say this one last time. You were on your knees begging me to save your son.” “Bullshit!” Richard yelled back, stepping into my space. “I was in shock! If I knew you were an unlicensed hack, I would have waited for the ambulance rather than let your filthy hands touch my boy!” He spun back to Mr. Peterson, demanding: “Mr. Peterson, if you don’t fire him today, I will make this local news. I’ll make sure your center goes bankrupt!” Mr. Peterson wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at me, his eyes cold. “Ethan, go to HR, collect your final paycheck, and don’t bother coming in tomorrow.” I froze. “Mr. Peterson, I’ve worked here for four years. I’ve trained thousands of students without a single complaint. You’re firing me over this ridiculous, manufactured drama?” “Ethan, the company has to look at the bigger picture,” Mr. Peterson replied, avoiding my eyes. “The fact is, your license was inactive, and you were fined. We cannot let your personal mistakes ruin our brand’s reputation.” “Hear that? Now pack your shit and get out!” Richard mocked, letting out a loud laugh. Looking at Mr. Peterson’s indifferent face, I realized any further explanation was pointless. “Fine. I’m leaving.” I packed my personal belongings into a cardboard box and walked out of the building. The cold autumn wind hit my face like tiny knives. I walked aimlessly around the city for two hours before dragging my exhausted body back to the apartment. I pushed the door open. The apartment was dead quiet. Usually, the moment I unlocked the door, Buddy, my five-year-old Golden Retriever, would run over, wagging his tail and leaning against my leg. Not today. “Buddy?” I set the box down and searched the living room and bedroom. Nothing. His bed was gone. His leash was gone. Even his food bowl was missing. Just then, the front door opened, and Chloe walked in carrying takeout. Seeing me, she startled. “Why are you home so early?” I stared at her. “Chloe, where is my dog?” Chloe avoided my eyes, putting the takeout on the table. She spoke in a casual, uncaring tone. “Oh. I gave him away.” “You did WHAT?!” I rushed over and grabbed her arm. Chloe shook me off impatiently. “I dropped him off at the county animal shelter. He’s not going to die.” My chest tightened painfully. “Are you insane? Buddy has been pampered his whole life. You threw him into a high-kill shelter?” “What choice did I have?!” Chloe suddenly screamed back. “Richard posted in the neighborhood group that dogs carry rabies and bacteria that could infect his recovery! He said the dog’s dander was a health hazard to his traumatized child!” She glared at me, completely self-righteous. “The HOA came knocking on our door this morning, demanding we remove the dog immediately! Should I have waited for them to fine us or break our door down?” “You actually believed Richard’s lies? Who the hell is he to dictate our lives?!” I turned and bolted for the door. “Ethan, stop throwing a tantrum!” Chloe grabbed my arm. “He’s just a stupid dog! Once this drama blows over, I’ll buy you a new one!” “Let go of me!” I snarled, ripping my arm away. 4 I searched the county animal shelter for three agonizing hours. The sky was pitch black, and the wind was freezing. The shelter volunteer told me they did receive a Golden Retriever matching Buddy’s description earlier that day. However, because they were short on cages, they tied him up in the yard temporarily, and he had managed to break his leash and escape. I searched the surrounding fields and woods, calling his name until my throat was raw. I couldn’t find Buddy. All I found in the brush was a piece of his torn, bloody leash. Clutching that torn leash, I felt an empty, hollow ache in my chest. Buddy was my dog before I even met Chloe. He had stayed by my side through my darkest, loneliest nights. And now, because of a malicious neighbor’s lie and a cowardly woman’s betrayal, his life was on the line. I stood up, wiped my face, and took a cab back to our neighborhood. As I crossed the courtyard, Richard suddenly stepped out from the shadows. He was holding a medical report, blocking my path. Several neighbors who were out walking their dogs immediately gathered around. “Ethan! Perfect timing!” Richard slammed the medical report against my chest. “My son has been complaining of stomach pain all day. The doctor said he has suspected internal bruising!” He pointed his finger at my chest, his face contorted in anger. “Your violent, amateur chest thrusts did this! You weren’t saving him; you were assaulting him!” I looked at the report. It was utterly ridiculous. “The Heimlich maneuver naturally causes abdominal soreness. That is a standard, non-life-threatening side effect. Compared to him suffocating to death, a little soreness is nothing!” “Soreness? My son never complained of stomach pain before you touched him!” Richard bellowed, ensuring the crowd heard every word. “Let me tell you something, Ethan. I’ve already consulted a lawyer. You are going to pay us fifty thousand dollars for his ongoing medical bills and emotional trauma!” He stepped closer, a cruel smirk on his face. “If you don’t pay, I’ll show up at your wife’s office tomorrow with giant protest signs. I’ll make sure she gets fired, and you both become social pariahs!” Chloe, who had just come down to look for me, heard his threat. Her face drained of all color. She rushed over, grabbing my arm and pulling me down. “Richard, we are so sorry! It’s all our fault!” Chloe’s voice was shaking with pure terror. “Please don’t come to my office. I beg you. We will pay. We will get you the money!” I shook her off with a violent jerk. Chloe stumbled back, then turned on me, screaming: “Ethan! Would it kill you to just bow your head? Are you trying to destroy my life?!” I froze. I slowly turned my head and looked at Chloe’s twisted, cowardly face. To protect her own reputation and job, she didn’t hesitate to throw me under the bus. I stood up straight and looked at her. “Fifty thousand dollars? In your dreams.” I turned to Richard, my voice incredibly calm. “Go ahead and sue me. Let’s see what a judge has to say.” Without another word, I turned and walked away. Chloe screamed my name in rage behind me, but I didn’t even look back.

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The moment I pushed the door open, coming home early from my business trip, my blood ran cold. Chloe, my precious wife whom I wouldn’t even let lift a finger around the house, was leaning cozily in the arms of Austin—the executive assistant I had personally promoted. She was running her fingers down his face, her voice sickeningly sweet. “Austin, babe, as soon as I transfer all of Ethan’s assets under my name, I’ll divorce him. Then we can finally be together in the open.” Austin, the guy I built up from nothing, had teary eyes. He squeezed her hand, looking the picture of guilt. “But Chloe, Ethan has been so good to me. He trusts me. How can I take his wife away from him?” Chloe let out a scoff, her voice dripping with sheer disdain. “What is he? He’s nothing but a glorified cash machine who only knows how to work.” I stood in the shadows of the foyer, watching this absurd, sickening scene. My hands clenched into tight fists. That young man wearing the limited-edition designer suit I bought, with his hair perfectly gelled, was Austin. A year ago, he was begging for an internship at the lobby of my company, clutching his resume, saying he didn’t even need a salary just for a learning opportunity. I appreciated his drive, broke the rules to hire him, and personally mentored him on major projects. And this was how he repaid me? Sleeping with my wife, living in my house, and scheming to swallow the inheritance my parents left me? Clap. Clap. Clap. I sneered and clapped my hands as I walked out of the shadows. “What a touching love story. Truly beautiful.” Hearing my voice, Chloe gasped, leaping off the sofa like she had been shocked. Austin turned pale instantly, frantically letting go of her hand. “Ethan… babe, why are you back early?” Chloe stammered, panic flashing through her eyes, though she quickly tried to play it cool. I walked toward them step by step, my gaze landing on the familiar diamond ring on her finger. That was a family heirloom. My mother gave it to me on her deathbed, wishing for me to put it on the finger of the future Mrs. Miller. “Chloe, you’re using my mother’s heirloom ring to profess your love to a boy toy. Who gave you the audacity?” I spat out every word through clenched teeth. Chloe froze, but instinctively stepped in front of Austin to shield him. “Ethan, don’t be so dramatic! What boy toy? Austin actually understands me way better than you ever did!” She lifted her chin, acting completely righteous. “Besides, you’re the only son of the Miller family, and yet we’ve been married for three years and I haven’t even gotten pregnant! What right do you have to blame me?” I laughed out of sheer anger at her shamelessness. “I didn’t get you pregnant?” I stared at her coldly. “Chloe, did you forget that I’m the one who picks up your medical reports every year? Do you really want me to describe your medical condition in front of a third party?” That was Chloe’s biggest insecurity. The truth hit her like a slap, and her face flushed crimson. “Ethan! Stop using that to control me! We are married. Your money is my money! My name is on the deed of this house too!” She pointed at Austin and yelled, “I’m telling you, I want to be with Austin! He doesn’t care if I can have kids. We care about real love! If you’re a real man, just let us go and sign the divorce!” Austin stepped forward too, looking me straight in the eye. “Ethan, Chloe is right. I don’t care about what society thinks. You’re so successful, you can find any woman you want. Why hold onto a woman who doesn’t love you?” Looking at his smug, righteous face, I lost all control of my anger. I grabbed a bottle of Romanee-Conti worth twenty thousand dollars from the bar cart and threw the wine right at their faces! Splash! The dark red liquid drenched them completely. Austin’s expensive, custom-tailored suit was instantly ruined. Chloe shrieked, taking several steps back in sheer humiliation. “Let you go?” I pointed directly at the front door and roared: “Take off that ring, pack your things, and get the hell out of my house with this parasite!”

“Ethan! Have you lost your mind!” Chloe wiped the wine from her face, screaming at me in a rage. She frantically grabbed some tissues to wipe Austin’s suit. Looking at his ruined clothes, her eyes welled with tears of anger. “Do you have any idea how much this suit cost? I bought this for Austin’s birthday! How dare you ruin it!” Austin patted her hand, his voice calm but laced with calculated hurt. “It’s fine, Chloe. Ethan is just angry. I understand.” Hearing this, Chloe’s fury reached a boiling point. She marched right up to me, shoving her finger in my face. “Ethan, you cold-blooded monster! What else do you know besides work? Have you ever actually cared about me? Have you ever given me romance? Austin is a hundred times the man you are!” I stared at her coldly, not backing down an inch. “So your idea of romance, Chloe, is using my money to treat another man to candlelight dinners?” Chloe choked on her words, unable to counter. She gritted her teeth, grabbed Austin’s hand, and headed for the door. “Let’s go, Austin! Don’t waste your breath on this lunatic! Tomorrow I’m getting a lawyer. I’m going to make him spit out half of his fortune!” Before slamming the door, she turned back to glare at me with venom. “Just you wait, Ethan! When you’re old, lonely, and miserable, you’ll regret this day!” The front door slammed shut with a deafening bang. Standing in the messy living room, I took a deep breath to suppress my boiling anger. I pulled out my phone and called my private banker. “Cancel all secondary credit cards under Chloe Miller’s name immediately. Freeze all our joint accounts. Starting right now, she doesn’t get a single penny without my authorization.” After hanging up, I called my company’s CFO. “Lock down every single expense report Chloe submitted over the past three years. First thing tomorrow morning, I want a third-party auditing team to do a full investigation.” After setting everything in motion, I sat on the sofa, closed my eyes, and massaged my temples. Chloe, did you really think my money was that easy to steal? Since you want to play dirty, don’t blame me for ruining you. The next morning, during a board meeting, my phone vibrated like crazy. It was Chloe. The moment I picked up, her screeching voice echoed through the speaker. “Ethan! You bastard! Why did you freeze my cards!” In the background, I could hear the polite but awkward voice of a luxury store sales associate: “Ma’am, do you still want these three limited-edition bags? If the cards aren’t going through, we have to release them to our other VIP customers…” I leaned back in my leather chair, casually spinning my pen. “What’s wrong? Can’t afford your bags anymore?” I sneered. “Chloe, did you forget that all those cards are linked to my account? When I’m happy to spoil you, you’re Mrs. Miller. When I’m not, you’re nothing but a broke nobody who can’t even afford a purse.” “You!” Chloe’s voice shook with rage. “Ethan, don’t push me! Do you really want to burn all our bridges!” “You burned them first.” My eyes turned cold. “Chloe, I’m giving you until the end of the day to return that ring. It belonged to my mother, and you don’t deserve to wear it.” With that, I hung up and immediately blocked her number.

In the afternoon, just as I pulled up to my villa, I saw a battered, rusty pickup truck parked right at my gate. The doors opened, and a burly, middle-aged man in a cheap floral shirt and a younger guy with bleached yellow hair and face piercings climbed down. They were hauling dirty duffel bags and looking around my property with greedy eyes. “Holy crap! So this is the mansion my girl lives in! Damn, it’s huge!” The older man shouted in a loud, boisterous voice, slapping his thigh in excitement. The yellow-haired kid’s eyes lit up too. Hanging a cigarette from his lip, he smirked, “Dad, Austin really scored a rich sugar mommy this time! We’re going to live like kings!” I frowned and walked up to them. “Who are you? What are you doing on my property?” The older man sized me up, rolling his eyes. “Who are you? This is my daughter-in-law Chloe’s house! My son Austin is her absolute favorite. He’s going to run this place now!” So, these were Austin’s trashy family members. I scoffed. “Chloe’s house? You’ve got it wrong. This house belongs to the Millers. And your freeloading son was kicked out yesterday.” “Bullshit!” The yellow-haired kid spat his cigarette onto my driveway, pointing his finger at my nose. “Chloe said half of this place is hers! Who the hell are you to kick my brother out?” Just then, Chloe’s car pulled up, with Austin in the passenger seat. Seeing me, Chloe looked slightly uncomfortable, but she quickly squared her shoulders and got out. “So what if you froze my cards, Ethan? I still own half of this house. I have every right to let Austin and his family move in!” She pointed at me and turned to Austin’s dad. “Gary, this is my useless husband. Ignore him. Just take your bags inside!” Gary instantly put his hands on his hips and spat on the ground near my shoes. “Ha! So you’re the pathetic loser who couldn’t even keep his woman! No wonder Chloe chose my Austin! Let me tell you, my son is the master of this house now. This place belongs to him!” With that, he gestured to the yellow-haired kid, Tyler, to push past me. I blocked the entrance, staring them down with a deadly gaze. “Take one step inside this house, and you will regret it.” My aura was so intense that Gary and Tyler froze, instinctively backing up a step. Chloe, feeling embarrassed in front of Austin’s family, flew into a rage. She rushed forward to shove me out of the way. “Get out of the way, Ethan! This is my house, and I’ll let whoever I want live here!” She pushed me hard, but I didn’t push back. I simply stepped aside, making her lose her balance and stumble. Austin took this chance to lead his father and brother past me, walking right into my house. “Woah! This couch is so soft! Look at the size of this TV!” The moment Tyler walked in, he dragged his mud-stained boots all over my expensive Persian rug and crashed onto my million-dollar Italian leather sofa. Gary looked around like a stray dog entering a palace. Finally, his eyes locked onto the master suite downstairs—the room where my late parents used to sleep. “Oh, this room is huge! It has the best view too! Austin, I’m taking this room. Once I’m settled, I can help you guys watch the kids!” He picked up his smelly, greasy duffel bag and marched toward the master suite. “Stop right there!” I roared, rushing over to block the door. “That was my parents’ room. Nobody goes in there.” Since my parents passed away, I had kept that room exactly the same. I cleaned it myself every day and never allowed anyone to desecrate it. Gary sneered at me, talking in a mockingly loud voice. “Dead people’s room? What a waste of space! It’s bad luck anyway. Let me sleep in there to clear out the bad vibes!” “I’m going to say this one last time. Get the hell out of my house.” My voice was like ice. Chloe walked over, pulling at my sleeve impatiently. “Ethan, stop being dramatic! It’s just a room for dead people. Gary came all this way to support us. What’s wrong with letting him have a nice room? Don’t be so cheap!” I violently ripped my arm away and slammed my fist into the drywall next to her, leaving a deep dent. Chloe shrieked and jumped back, terrified. “Chloe, take one more step, and I won’t be responsible for what happens to you.” I stared into her eyes, speaking slowly and deliberately. She was completely terrified by my dark expression, her lips trembling, not daring to say another word.

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My mother-in-law, Elizabeth, spent three years turning me into the perfect obedient trophy wife of a wealthy family. I thought she despised me — until she personally dragged me to a high-end restaurant to catch my husband in the act. She didn’t scream or make a scene like some unhinged woman on the street. Instead, right in front of the other woman, she made one phone call and cut off every card my husband had. She pulled me behind her, her eyes cold as a blade: “The heir I spent three years grooming with my own hands was not meant to be disrespected by trash like you.” I thought my mother-in-law was my salvation — my ally, the one who would pull me out of the quicksand of my marriage. But years later, when I held complete control of the entire corporation, the woman who had disappeared for so long called me out of nowhere — and revealed a truth that sent ice down my spine. “Evelyn, hold those tears back. Crying is the most useless thing in this world.” Outside the private dining room of an upscale French restaurant, Elizabeth shot me a cold glance. She wore a perfectly tailored dark gray couture suit, a flawless luxury watch on her wrist, and carried herself with an authority that was almost suffocating. I bit down hard on my lip, my whole body trembling. Just on the other side of that door, my husband William was having dinner with a young, beautiful girl. Her name was Daisy — a new intern at his company. Half an hour ago, Elizabeth had suddenly pulled me out of the house without a word of explanation and brought me straight here. Through the gap in the door, I watched with my own eyes as William cut a piece of steak and fed it into Daisy’s mouth, his gaze so tender it could melt. That tenderness. He hadn’t shown it to me in a very long time. “Mom…” My voice came out hoarse, my mind completely blank. Bang! Elizabeth ignored me and kicked the door open. The crash startled everyone inside. William spun around, and the moment he saw us, his knife and fork clattered onto his plate and the color drained from his face. “Mom? Evelyn? What are you two doing here…” Daisy looked just as stunned, shrinking into her chair like a frightened rabbit, her eyes going red almost instantly. Elizabeth didn’t shout. She didn’t lunge forward. She walked in on her heels, one deliberate step at a time, and stood over the table, looking down at William. “The Wellington here is excellent. Too bad you don’t deserve it.” Her tone was flat, but it carried a chill that cut to the bone. She took out her phone, dialed a number, and put it on speaker. “Alfred, cancel every supplementary card under William’s name and freeze his personal accounts. Also, notify Legal — pull his signing authority on the North District project. Effective immediately.” The voice on the other end confirmed without hesitation. William shot to his feet, panic breaking through. “Mom! What are you doing? If you have something to say, we can talk at home — don’t do this here—” “Home?” Elizabeth let out a short, cold laugh. Her gaze swept across Daisy’s face like a blade. “Do you still have a home? I spent three years personally grooming a daughter-in-law to help protect this family’s legacy — not so you could go out and embarrass me with something like this.” Daisy flinched as if she’d been struck, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Ma’am, you’ve got it wrong, Mr. Sterling and I are just—” “Shut up.” Elizabeth didn’t even look at her. “Who do you think you are, speaking to me like that? Go handle your resignation tomorrow and get out of the company. Otherwise, I’ll make sure you can’t find work in this city — not even waiting tables.” With that, Elizabeth turned and grabbed my wrist, her grip startlingly strong. “Did you see enough?” She held my gaze, each word deliberate. “That is the man you’ve devoted yourself to for three years. Let’s go.” I followed her out of the restaurant like a puppet on a string.

Back at the sprawling, hollow villa, I collapsed onto the couch, my mind flooded with images of William and Daisy together. William was a self-made star in the business world — he’d founded Sterling Group in his early thirties and built it into a billion-dollar empire. I, on the other hand, came from an ordinary family. When I married him, everyone said I’d won the lottery. After the wedding, Elizabeth ordered me to quit my job. “A Sterling wife has no business working outside or putting herself on display. Your job is to take care of Will and take care of this home.” From that point on, she scheduled every hour of my life. She had me up at six every morning to make breakfast and iron clothes. Mornings were for cleaning the house and accompanying her to the salon. Afternoons were filled with etiquette lessons and wine tastings, or playing hostess at her social gatherings. And every evening, I had to come up with new, elaborate nutritious meals. Elizabeth had severe OCD and mysophobia. Not a single hair could be on the carpet. Every cup handle had to face the exact same angle. One small mistake, and she’d tear me apart with her cold, cutting remarks. “You can’t even mop a floor properly. What’s the point of Will bringing you home?” “This soup tastes like plain water. Are you trying to starve us?” I swallowed my grievances every time. Whenever I poured my heart out to William, he’d hold me gently and speak to me in that soft, soothing voice of his. “Eve, my mom raised me on her own. It wasn’t easy. She’s got a difficult personality — just be patient with her. You’re the only one I care about.” “Baby, you work so hard at home. Once things settle down at work, I’ll take you to the Maldives.” His tenderness was the only comfort I had in that cold, hollow mansion. I believed we were in love. I believed that if I endured enough, I would eventually earn this family’s acceptance. But now I understood. William’s tenderness was a lie. So was his “busy schedule.” He was out there cutting steak for another woman, while I sat alone at home, drowning in endless loneliness. “Done crying?” Elizabeth had changed into a loungewear set at some point. She walked toward me, a glass of red wine in hand. I looked up. My eyes were so swollen they felt like they were about to burst. “Elizabeth, why did Will—” “Because men are dogs at their core.” Elizabeth cut me off, her voice flat and cold. “Feed them a five-star meal every day, and they’ll still go sniffing around for street food. You think waiting on him hand and foot would make him grateful? Wrong. It just makes him think it’s your job. Like you’re some soulless housekeeper with no life of your own.” Her words hit like a blade straight to the chest. “So what am I supposed to do? Get a divorce?” My voice was shaking. “Divorce?” Elizabeth let out a cold laugh and looked down at me. “You walk out with nothing, and that little home-wrecker moves right into your house, spends your husband’s money, and sleeps in your bed. Is that really what you want?” I clenched my fist so hard my nails dug into my palm. It stung. No. Absolutely not. I gave three years of my life to this marriage. Why should I be the one to step aside and make room for someone else? “Then get up!” Elizabeth snapped. “Tears won’t give a man a conscience. In this world, the only thing that can protect you is the leverage you hold in your own hands.” She walked to the liquor cabinet and pulled out a document, slapping it down on the coffee table. “This is a share transfer agreement for five percent of Sterling Group. Sign it, and starting tomorrow, you come to the company with me.” I stared at it, stunned. “Are you… what is this?” “I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing this for the family’s interests.” Elizabeth’s gaze was sharp. “William has completely lost his mind. I’m not going to stand by and watch him let some woman destroy this company. I need you to pull him away from her — and then crush him under your heel.” I stared at the document, my heart pounding. Then, without warning, a violent wave of nausea surged up from my stomach. I clapped a hand over my mouth and bolted to the bathroom, retching over the sink. Elizabeth followed. She leaned against the doorframe, her eyes dropping to my stomach. “How many days late is your period?” My whole body went still. I counted the days. A week. I was a week late. “Go check.” She held out a pregnancy test. Five minutes later, I was sitting on the bathroom floor, staring at two bright red lines, sobbing so hard I could barely breathe. On the night my marriage fell apart, I found out I was pregnant. Elizabeth stepped in and looked at the test. Her face was unreadable. “Good,” she said simply. “Now you have the strongest leverage of all.”

From that day on, Elizabeth put me through what could only be described as boot camp. She stopped asking me to do any housework. Three housekeepers were hired to take care of the estate. My entire daily schedule was restructured. Six in the morning — morning runs with her. “Your body is your most important asset. You’re carrying two lives now. Take care of yourself.” In the mornings, she brought in a top-tier financial advisor and a business mentor to teach me how to read financial reports and analyze market trends. “You have to keep control of the money yourself. If you can’t even read a balance sheet, how are you going to hold your own against William?” Afternoons were packed with intensive courses — etiquette, negotiation tactics, and psychology. “Wipe that pitiful look off your face. Straighten your back, lift your chin. You are a co-ruler of this family, not William’s accessory.” In the evenings, she would personally walk me through Sterling Group’s recent operations, breaking down every decision William had made. I was like a dried-out sponge, soaking up everything desperately. I stopped crying, because Elizabeth was right — tears solved nothing. And William? After that night at the restaurant, he completely fell apart. His cards were frozen, his signing authority stripped, and at the company, Elizabeth had him boxed in at every turn. He came crawling to me for peace. He started coming home on time every day, buying me designer bags, jewelry, even dropping to his knees begging for forgiveness. “Eve, I was wrong. I swear, things with Daisy are completely over. That day, I only took her to dinner because I felt sorry for her…” I sat on the sofa, watching him sob and break down, and felt absolutely nothing. If this had been before, I would have caved immediately. But now, all I felt was a deep, nauseating disgust. “William, do you think that just because I’m pregnant, I can’t leave you?” I stared at him, my voice ice-cold. He froze for a moment, his eyes shifting away. “Eve, how can you say that? I genuinely love you. I love our baby…” “Save it.” I stood up and looked down at him. “Starting today, we sleep in separate rooms. You’d better pray you don’t make any mistakes at the company — because if your mother can freeze your cards, I can have you thrown out of Sterling Group entirely.” William stared up at me, like he was looking at a stranger. He probably never imagined it — that the wife who had once bent to his every wish could turn into someone like this. Elizabeth watched it all unfold, a faint, cold smile tugging at the corner of her lips. She began lifting me up in every public setting she could. She brought me to top-tier business dinners, introducing me to the heavyweights of the industry. “This is my daughter-in-law, Evelyn Woods. Going forward, she will be taking full charge of several of Sterling Group’s investment projects.” At first, the looks people gave me were dismissive — they assumed I was just some trophy wife who’d secured her position by getting pregnant. But after a few exchanges, they realized I could negotiate entirely in English without missing a beat, and I could pinpoint the weak spots in any deal with precision. My reputation began to spread through the circles. I was no longer Mrs. Sterling. I was Ms. Woods. The way William looked at me shifted — from guilt, to shock, and finally to a deep, uneasy mix of wariness and flattery. He was beginning to see it. The business empire he was so proud of was slowly being carved away, piece by piece, by me and Elizabeth. He started working overtime to prove himself, desperate to win me back. He took over every chore around the house, fussed over my every need, and if I so much as furrowed my brow, he’d spend the next half hour on edge. But I knew the truth. He wasn’t afraid of losing me. He was afraid of losing his position. “That’s how men are. The more you give in to them, the less they value you. Leave them out in the cold, and suddenly they’re begging.” Elizabeth said, cradling her coffee, watching William wash my car in the driveway, her tone laced with mockery. I looked at her, and something complicated stirred inside me. “Why are you helping me like this?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking. Elizabeth was quiet for a moment, her gaze drifting somewhere far away. “Because I don’t want you to end up walking the same road I did.” Her voice dropped. “William’s father was exactly the same. I built this company with him from nothing, side by side. And on the day it went public, he walked in with his mistress right in front of me.”

I stared at her, stunned. I had never known — that someone as formidable as Elizabeth had once carried a humiliation like that. “I didn’t cry. I didn’t make a scene. I spent five years methodically stripping him of every decision-making power he had, and in the end, I pushed him out of the company completely.” Elizabeth turned to look at me, her eyes sharp as a blade. “Eve, remember this — marriage is a game. There’s no such thing as both sides winning. Either you win, or you lose. Never put your faith in a man’s conscience.” Daisy hadn’t given up. A woman who had spent her life using men as shortcuts — how could she ever let go of a tree that had been feeding her so steadily? When William cut off her money, she found other ways to harass him. When he stopped answering her calls, she kept dialing from different numbers. And then, one Saturday afternoon, a call came through on the house landline. At the time, Elizabeth was in the living room having tea, and I was going over documents for an acquisition deal. William had just come downstairs. The butler answered the phone, then paused. “Ma’am, it’s a call for Mr. Sterling.” William’s expression shifted instantly. He crossed the room in a few quick strides, reaching for the phone to hang up. But I was faster. I walked over and hit the speakerphone button. “Will! Why are you ignoring me? I’m pregnant!” Daisy’s sharp, wailing voice echoed through the spacious living room like a bomb going off, sucking all the air out of the space in an instant. The color drained from William’s face. His knees buckled, and he nearly collapsed to the floor. “What the hell are you talking about?! We’ve been over for a long time!” he screamed at the phone, his voice shaking. “I’m not making this up! I’m two months along! Will, you can’t just abandon me — you told me you’d divorce that frump of yours and marry me…” I listened calmly. Strangely, I didn’t feel even a flicker of anger. Just a hollow kind of amusement. I glanced over at Elizabeth. She set down her teacup, rose slowly and deliberately, and walked over to William. Crack. A sharp, vicious slap landed across William’s face. He stumbled from the force of it, blood immediately trickling from the corner of his mouth. “You disgusting piece of trash.” Elizabeth’s eyes were ice cold. “You’ve dragged this family’s name through the mud.” “Mom, I didn’t know — I swear I didn’t know she was pregnant…” William pressed a hand to his face, his words tumbling out in a panicked mess. “You didn’t know?” Elizabeth let out a cold laugh. “You couldn’t keep yourself in check, so now you deal with the consequences. Call the lawyers. Now. I want the remaining thirty percent of Sterling Group transferred entirely into Eve’s name.” William’s head snapped up, his eyes wide with horror. “Mom! Are you out of your mind?! That’s the backbone of the company! If you give it all to her, what does that leave me?” “It leaves you nothing — because that’s what you are.” Elizabeth jabbed a finger at him. “Starting today, you’re just a salaried employee. Eve is Sterling Group’s majority shareholder. And if you don’t like it, get out of this house right now. Go find your little mistress and figure it out on your own.” William completely fell apart. He knew Elizabeth never made empty threats. He dropped to his knees in front of me with a thud, wrapping his arms around my legs and holding on for dear life. “Eve. Honey. Please. Talk to my mom for me. I can’t lose the company — I can’t. I will never acknowledge that child, I swear. I’ll make her get rid of it right now. The only child I’ll ever claim is the one you’re carrying.” Watching him grovel like that made my stomach turn. I shook him off with a firm kick and looked down at him. “William, you’re pathetic.” I turned toward the phone. “Did you hear that, Daisy? He wants you to terminate the pregnancy. If you want money, take him to court. Though I’ll warn you — there’s nothing left in his name.” Then I pulled the phone cord out of the wall. That afternoon, the lawyers arrived. William signed the share transfer agreement with red-rimmed eyes and trembling hands. From that moment on, I was the true power behind Sterling Group. And William became just another salaried employee working under me.

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Three years ago, for the sake of my fiancé Jason Grayson’s bright future, I willingly took the blame for a hit-and-run and went to prison. On the day I was sentenced, he sobbed uncontrollably through the iron bars, swearing that when I got out, he would give me the most magnificent wedding and lay everything he had at my feet. Three years later, I was released early for good behavior. I was overjoyed, wanting to surprise him—only to see on the city’s largest LED screen that he was hosting a live stream with millions of viewers. In the stream, he was tenderly pushing a wheelchair carrying my “sickly” younger sister, Amy Lowe, announcing their engagement to the whole world. I let out a cold laugh, hailed a taxi, and headed straight for that glittering live event. 0″Let’s give a round of applause to Mr. Jason Grayson and Ms. Amy Lowe! Mr. Grayson’s devotion to Ms. Lowe is truly a model of modern romance!” The host’s passionate voice traveled clearly through the heavy doors of the hotel ballroom. I stood outside, glancing down at my faded old clothes, then at the dazzling light spilling through the crack in the door. A bitter, ironic smile tugged at my lips. I pushed open the heavy doors. Before me was a scene of suffocating luxury. Streaming equipment from top influencers was set up all over the venue, with countless cameras aimed at the center of the stage. Jason Grayson stood there in a tailored suit, tall and handsome, wearing that gentle smile I once knew so well. He leaned slightly forward, his hands on the handles of a wheelchair. In it sat my sister Amy, dressed in a pure white gown, her delicate makeup designed to look fragile and ill. “Jason, thank you for taking care of me all these years,” Amy said, her eyes reddening, her voice so frail it seemed a gust of wind could knock her over. “If it weren’t for you, I might not have made it. My sister… if she knew how happy we are now, I’m sure she’d be happy for us too.” “Don’t mention her. Today is our day.” A flicker of barely concealed disgust passed through Jason’s eyes, then he gently slid a diamond ring the size of a pigeon egg onto Amy’s finger. “Amy, I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for all the suffering you’ve endured.” On the big screen, comments scrolled wildly. The whole internet was weeping over this perfect, fairy-tale romance. I took a deep breath and stepped forward, walking into that light that didn’t belong to me. The click of my heels echoed across the marble floor. At first, no one noticed this uninvited guest. Not until I reached the edge of the stage and, from a stunned crew member, took a spare microphone. Screech— A sharp feedback screech cut through the room, drowning out the soft background music. Dead silence. Every camera, every pair of eyes, locked onto me at once. Jason and Amy’s smiles froze on their faces, as if struck by lightning. The color drained from them, leaving them pale as paper. “Mr. Grayson, Ms. Lowe. Quite the performance.” I gripped the microphone, stepped up onto the stage, and walked right up to them, my eyes cutting into Jason’s hypocritical face like knives. “Anyone would think I’d died in there.” “Amanda?! How… how are you out?!” Jason was the first to react. He instinctively shielded Amy behind him, his handsome face twisting with fear and rage. “Security! Where the hell is security?! Get this crazy woman out of here! Cut the stream! Now!” I watched the panic in his eyes, and it felt incredibly satisfying. Crazy woman? Yeah, in their eyes, I went to prison for him, and seeing this, I was supposed to throw a tantrum like a hysterical mess. But I wouldn’t. I turned to the camera, flashing a brilliant smile, my voice steady and clear: “Hello, everyone watching online, and all the media friends here. My name is Amanda Lowe. I’m the former girlfriend of this deeply devoted Mr. Jason Grayson. And I’m also the ex-convict who took the blame for his hit-and-run three years ago—and was just released from prison.” The ballroom erupted like a bomb had gone off. “Oh my god! She took the blame?!” “What did she just say? Jason Grayson was the one who did the hit-and-run?!” “This is huge! Record it! Hurry!” The security guards froze, unsure what to do. “Sis…” Amy finally snapped out of it. She struggled to stand halfway from her wheelchair, then collapsed back into it weakly, tears streaming down her face like broken beads. “Sis, please don’t say that! I know you hate me for taking Jason, but… but you were the one driving that night! Don’t destroy everything Jason has built just because you’re jealous!” She looked so pitiful, sobbing like that, that it stirred a protective instinct in many of the onlookers. My mother, Karen Shaw, rushed out from somewhere, grabbing my arm with nails digging into my flesh. Through gritted teeth, she hissed at me: “You ungrateful child! You had to show up now of all times?! Your sister is sick—she can’t handle this stress! Are you trying to kill her? Get out of here right now!” I turned to look at my biological mother. Her eyes held only tenderness for her younger daughter—and disgust for her elder one. I yanked my arm free, so hard she stumbled back several steps. “Don’t touch me. You make me sick.” I looked at her coldly, then turned back to Jason, raising the mic to my lips, mimicking the tone he’d used with me three years ago in that visitation room: “Jason, what are you so nervous about? Three years ago, you said to me through that glass—’Amanda, trust me, wait for me.’ So now I’m waiting. And what do I find? You using the money from selling my freedom to marry my sister?” Jason’s body went rigid. Sweat beaded on his forehead. “Amanda, what the hell do you want?!” he hissed, voice low enough for only the three of us to hear. “Is it money? I’ll give it to you! Ten million—is that enough? Take it and get out of the country. Forever.” “Ten million?” I laughed, the sound carrying through the microphone. “Grayson, do you think three years of my life—and an innocent person’s life—is worth ten million?” I stepped back, facing the flashing cameras, and dropped the biggest bomb of the night: “Since my sister says I’m jealous, as her older sister, I should give her an engagement gift. Here it is—the original footage from the dashcam from that accident three years ago, the one you two tried so hard to destroy. Jason, guess what’s on it?” Jason’s pupils shrank. He looked like he’d been plunged into freezing water. The bomb had detonated. I didn’t give them a chance to respond. I tossed the microphone to the floor with a harsh thud. And with everyone’s shocked, curious, and frantic eyes on me, I straightened my back, walked out of the ballroom like a victorious queen, and never looked back. Behind me was utter chaos—and Jason’s furious roar. 0

The night air hit me as soon as I stepped out of the hotel. Only then did I realize my back was soaked through. The rush of revenge faded like the tide, replaced by a deep exhaustion and wariness. I knew that once my words spread online, Jason would come after me like a rabid dog. I had to disappear. Now. I hurried into a dead-end alley with no cameras and was about to pull out my SIM card when my phone screen lit up. A text from an unknown number. Just one line: “The dashcam footage you mentioned—is it the original copy?” My heart sank. My blood ran cold. The only people who knew about that dashcam, aside from me and Jason, were a few of his trusted people from back then. Jason wouldn’t text me like this—he’d just send men to grab me. So who was this? They were in the shadows. I was in the open. Not only did they know I had leverage, but they were even questioning whether I’d been bluffing on that live stream. The word “original” hit me right where it hurt. I didn’t reply. I shut off the phone, yanked out the SIM card, snapped it in half, and flushed it down a sewer grate. I couldn’t go home—that place belongs to Karen and Amy now. I didn’t reach out to any old friends either. I knew Jason’s methods too well. I couldn’t drag anyone else into this. With the little cash I had left, I found a small motel on the outskirts that didn’t require ID, then bought a cheap burner phone and an untraceable prepaid SIM from a used electronics shop. By the time I was done, it was late at night. The room was small and damp, smelling of mold. I sat on the stiff mattress and stared at the neon lights blinking outside the window, my eyes cold and empty. Less than half an hour after I turned on the new phone, it rang. I looked at the unknown number flashing on the screen, let out a cold laugh, and answered. “Amanda, where the hell are you hiding?!” Jason’s voice on the other end was hoarse and distorted with rage and fear. He had already tracked down my new number that fast. I clearly underestimated his reach in this city. “Mr. Grayson, in such a hurry to find me—are you inviting me to your wedding?” I leaned against the wall, my tone light as if we were talking about the weather. “Cut the crap!” Jason was breathing heavily. “Let’s talk. Name your price. How much do you want for the footage? Houses, cars, cash—just name it. But don’t make me do this the hard way. You know what I’m capable of.” “The hard way?” I scoffed. “Like what you did to my brakes three years ago?” Silence. Dead silence on the other end. “Listen to me, Jason.” I dropped the smile, my voice cold as a blade dipped in ice. “Three years ago, you tricked me into taking the fall, promising to take care of my mom and sister. Now, I want the penthouse downtown—the one worth eighty million. By noon tomorrow, I want to see the deed transferred to my name. One dollar short, one minute late, and you’ll be dealing with the police.” “Eighty million?! Amanda, you’re insane! That’s extortion!” Jason completely lost it. With his company’s current cash flow, pulling out eighty million in a single day would be like ripping out his spine.. That was exactly what I wanted—to make him hurt, to make him panic, to make him lose his cool. “Then don’t pay. We’ll see each other in court.” Without another word, I hung up and blocked the number. I could picture him smashing up his office in helpless rage. But this was far from over. I put down the phone. The mysterious text message came back to mind. Then my phone buzzed again. Same unknown number. This time, they were calling. I took a deep breath and answered. “Miss Amanda Lowe, hello.” A low, raspy male voice came through—weary, but sharp. “I’m Leo Meyers. My father was the truck driver killed in that accident three years ago. I think we need to meet.” My eyes went wide. Leo Meyers. The boy who’d stared at me in that courtroom with bloodshot eyes, wanting to tear me apart. 0

Leo’s words hit me like lightning, cutting through the fog. If it was him, it all made sense. He had every motive to investigate the truth, and every reason to hate Jason to the core. “When and where,” I asked with no hesitation. “Tomorrow, 8 a.m. The abandoned auto shop garage south of the city.” I couldn’t sleep all night after I hung up. The next morning, I arrived at that desolate, rusting garage on the south side. The air stank of oil and rust. Leo stepped out from behind a beat-up van. Three years had aged him—stubble, weary lines—but his eyes were as sharp as a hawk’s. He looked at me, his gaze complicated—hatred, yes, but also a trace of curiosity. “Ms. Lowe. Brave of you to come alone,” he said flatly. “You reached out to me. That means you’ve found something. My enemy’s enemy is my friend. Why wouldn’t I come?” I held his gaze without flinching. Leo paused, then pulled a thick stack of papers from his worn backpack and tossed them onto a rusted oil drum. “See for yourself.” I stepped forward and opened the files. After just a few pages, my hands began to tremble uncontrollably. Financial statements. Money trails. A few shady double contracts. “My dad wasn’t just a truck driver,” Leo’s voice echoed through the empty garage, heavy with suppressed rage. “He was an early logistics contractor for Jason’s company. He stumbled onto evidence that Jason was using shell companies to launder money—massive commercial fraud. My dad was an honest man. He was going to report it. And on his way to the police station—that ‘accident’ happened.” My mind went blank. Commercial fraud? Money laundering? Murder?! I stared at those documents. The cold numbers and signatures slithered like vipers. So that wasn’t just a hit-and-run. Jason wasn’t just afraid of jail—he was covering up a premeditated murder. And I, like a complete fool, had taken the fall and even felt grateful to him. A wave of nausea and dread shot up from my feet. “Jason cleaned up the scene well. Cameras were broken and no witnesses,” Leo continued, his voice cracking, eyes bloodshot. “You took the blame. He played the victim’s family and gave me a settlement check like he was being generous. Amanda, do you realize you helped a killer escape justice?” “I didn’t know…” I whispered, my nails digging into my palms so hard they drew blood. “I really didn’t know…” “Now you do.” Leo took a breath, steadying himself. “I’ve been digging for three years. These documents prove financial crimes, but they’re not enough for a murder conviction. But your dashcam footage can change that. If it proves he was driving, proves he hit my father on purpose—then he’s done for.” I looked at Leo, the same fire igniting in my eyes. “Okay. I’ll work with you.” I said each word deliberately. “We’ll make him pay.” After I left Leo, I didn’t go back to the motel. My prison-honed instincts told me I was being followed. I deliberately took a winding route through a residential area, and sure enough, spotted two shady men in black trailing me. Jason was faster than I’d expected. Using my knowledge of the area, I lost them and immediately contacted Leo. He picked me up and took me to a basement apartment he’d rented on the outskirts. “You’re safe here for now.” Leo handed me a bottle of water. “What’s your next move?” I turned on my phone. Online, the tide of public opinion had already flipped completely. Jason’s PR team had moved fast. They’d not only buried the buzz from my live stream, but they’d turned it against me. The top trending post was a video of Amy crying in a hospital bed. Pale and fragile, she said: “My sister was under a lot of stress in prison, her mental health has been unstable. She just loves Jason too much. I don’t blame her—I just hope she gets the help she needs…” Then came my mother Karen’s interview. She wept on camera: “My eldest daughter has always been extreme and violent. I failed to raise her right. I’m so sorry she did this to her sister and brother-in-law…” They’d painted me as a lovesick, mentally unstable lunatic. The comments poured in—thousands of people cursing me. Someone even doxxed me, vowing to take matters into their own hands. “Those animals!” Leo slammed the table. I stared at my mother’s hypocritical face on the screen, and felt nothing. Shockingly calm. When you’re past the point of caring, nothing hurts anymore. “Let them talk.” I turned off my phone, a cold smile curling at my lips. “The higher they climb, the harder they fall. Leo, I need a micro camera and a drone. Tomorrow, I’m sending Jason a special gift.” I used the burner number to text Jason: “Tomorrow 3 p.m. Abandoned chemical plant, west side. Bring five million in cash. Come alone. Otherwise, the dashcam footage goes to every police department in the city.” 0

The abandoned chemical plant on the west side was overgrown and crumbling. I arrived at 2 p.m. I hid the micro camera on a rusted iron shelf on the second floor, with a clear view of the entire open area below. Leo was parked in a car a few miles away, piloting the drone as it circled above the plant, monitoring every movement in the area in real time. So we have a Plan B stand by. At exactly 3 p.m., a black Maybach pulled up in a cloud of dust. The door opened and Jason Grayson stepped out, carrying a silver briefcase. He wore a black trench coat, his eyes dark and predatory. I stood in the shadows on the second floor, watching him coldly. “Amanda! I’m here! Get out here!” His voice echoed through the empty building. I walked down the rusted iron stairs, step by step. The clang of my heels on the metal was sharp and unnerving in the silence. “Mr. Grayson, punctual as always.” I stopped about fifteen feet away. Jason’s eyes were fixed on me, burning with murderous intent. He threw the briefcase on the ground—thud—and flipped it open. Stacks of cash. “Five million. Every dollar.” He ground out the words. “Now give me the footage. Take the money and disappear.” I stared at that suitcase of cash and suddenly started laughing, so hard tears nearly came. “Five million? Jason, are you tipping a waitress?” I stopped laughing, my eyes cutting like blades. “All that money you laundered through shell companies, the life you took to cover it up—that’s worth five million to you?” Jason’s face went pale, his pupils contracting. “What… what the hell are you talking about!” “Am I talking nonsense? Was Leo’s father’s death really an accident?” I stepped closer. “You were afraid he’d report you, so you ran him down on purpose. Then you used my feelings for you to make me take the blame. Jason, you’re a monster.” “Shut up!” Jason, cornered, finally dropped all pretense. He raised his hand and four burly men with iron pipes rushed in from outside, surrounding me. “Amanda, you had your chance! Did you really think I’d come alone?” Jason’s face twisted into a manic grin. “Since you know too much, go keep that dead truck driver company! Beat her—leave her breathing, and find that footage!” The four men closed in. Then, at that exact moment, the factory doors were shoved open again. “Stop! Jason, no!” Amy was in her wheelchair, pushed by my mother Karen, both of them rushing in with panic written all over their faces. “Amy? Mom? What are you two doing here?!” Jason froze. Amy threw herself at Jason, gripping his arm desperately: “Jason, you can’t kill anyone! My sister just made a mistake—please let her go!” Karen rushed forward too, jabbing her finger in my face. “You jinx! Are you really going to drag this whole family down with you?! Just give him what he wants and walk away! If you want to destroy yourself, don’t you dare take us with you!” I stared at the scene unfolding in front of me and felt nothing but a hollow, bitter amusement. How did they know to come here? The answer was obvious — either Amy had been following Jason, or Jason had brought them here on purpose. Amy was putting on a show. In front of Jason, she played the role of the gentle, caring angel. But underneath it all, she couldn’t wait to see me gone. And my mother — she had always been Amy’s most loyal accomplice. “Family?” I laughed coldly and stepped back. From my pocket, I pulled out a black USB drive and held it high. All eyes locked onto that tiny device. Jason’s eyes lit up with greed. “You want it?” I looked at them, a wild smile on my lips. “Amanda, don’t do anything stupid! Give it to me!” Jason lunged forward. “Stay back!” I shouted. Then, in front of all of them, I smashed that USB drive onto the ground. Crack! The USB drive exploded into pieces. I lifted my foot and ground every last fragment into dust with my stiletto heel. Dead silence fell over the room. Jason froze. Amy froze. Karen froze. A few seconds passed, Jason burst into manic laughter: “Hahaha! Amanda, you stupid bitch! You just destroyed your only evidence! Now what are you going to threaten me with?!” He raised his hand and barked at his men: “Grab her! I’ll make her wish she was dead!” I watched his smug, ugly face, completely calm. And then I gave him a look of pure pity. “Jason, do you really think three years in prison rotted my brain?” I smiled, speaking slowly and clearly: “Did you really think I’d carry the original on me? It was a throwaway drive with a couple of pop songs on it.” Jason’s laughter died in his throat. His face went rigid. “Ten minutes ago, the real dashcam footage—along with all the evidence of your financial crimes—was personally handed over to the detectives at the Economic Crimes Division and the Criminal Investigation Division by my partner.”

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I always thought I was an ordinary high school student—until a third eye opened at the back of my head. This eye has no blind spots. It sees through people, and it caught my scumbag father cheat with my vicious tutor in the act. They didn’t just want to kill my dying mother—they wanted to stage an “accident” and sacrifice me, all to cash in a expensive insurance payout and buy a house for their bastard son. Cute. They really thought I was a pushover? So I flipped the script and started the hunt. But when I finally stood over their corpses, thinking I could reunite with my mom at last, I uncovered a truth that froze my blood. I’m not a human at all. “Clara Croft, are you hiding? Daddy’s coming to find you!” Walter Croft’s gentle voice drifted in from outside the bedroom door. I clamped a hand over my mouth, crammed into the huge closet in the master bedroom, not daring to breathe. Today was my fourteenth birthday. Dad had taken half a day off specially, saying he wanted to play my favorite game—hide and seek. Just as I waited, giddy, for him to pull the closet door open, a tearing, stabbing pain shot through the back of my skull. Then a strange new field of vision unfolded in my mind. I could see straight through the closet’s thick wooden door—clear as day, I saw everything outside. At the back of my head, a third eye had opened. Walter wasn’t looking for me at all. He yanked his tie loose, desperate, and pulled my young, pretty private math tutor, Evelyn Hayes, into his arms. The two of them tumbled straight onto the big bed where my mom slept. “You devil, your daughter’s still home!” Evelyn scolded coyly, giving him a push—but her eyes were pure seduction. “What’s there to worry about? That girl’s clueless. She’s probably crammed in some corner right now, holding her breath.” Walter sneered, his hand already sliding under Evelyn’s skirt. My whole body went cold. My stomach churned. My mom was lying in the ICU, hovering between life and death, and my so-called wonderful father—the one who normally preached morality and never even raised his voice at me—was rolling around in her bed with another woman. I bit down hard on my lip, forcing back the urge to burst out and claw those two hypocritical faces apart. The third eye recorded it all like an HD camera, no blind spots. When they were finished, Evelyn lay against Walter’s chest, tracing little circles with her finger. “When is your wife actually going to die? Didn’t the doctor say it’d be any day now? This baby in my belly can’t wait. You really want your son born as a bastard?” A flash of cruelty crossed Walter’s eyes. “Soon. I’ve already paid off the people at the hospital. Cutting her meds is a matter of days. As for that little dead weight, Clara…” He paused, and his tone turned so cold it sent ice through me. “I took out a high-value accidental death policy on her, I’m the beneficiary. Next week I’ll take her for a drive on the mountain roads. The brakes just have to ‘fail’ a little. We lose the burden, and the payout’s enough to buy our son a big downtown apartment in cash.” Evelyn’s eyes lit up. She smacked a kiss on him. “Babe, you’re so smart! Then we’ll send the mother and daughter off together. At least they’ll have company on the way down.” I crouched in the dark closet, shaking like a leaf. Not from fear. From excitement. A bloodthirsty kind of excitement. You want to kill me? Fine. Let’s see who dies first.

I pretended nothing had happened. By the time I climbed out of the closet, the two of them were dressed together. Walter patted my head, all tenderness. “Clara, you’re so good at this. Daddy looked forever and couldn’t find you. Come on, let’s go see Mom at the hospital.” I nodded obediently, pulling a sweet smile across my lips. “Thanks, Dad.” At the hospital, the room reeked of disinfectant. My mom, Diane Croft, was wasted to nothing, her eyes sunk deep in their sockets—like a withered yellow rose. When she saw us, a faint light flickered in her clouded eyes. Walter instantly put on a face of tender devotion, taking my mom’s hand, his eyes going red. “Diane, how are you feeling today? Clara came to see you.” I looked at his sickening expression and sneered inside. I walked to the bedside and took my mom’s other hand, thin as a stick. Her hand was cold, without a trace of warmth. “Mom, I’m fine, don’t worry,” I said softly. She looked at me, her eyes full of longing and reluctance. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end only shook her head weakly. I couldn’t tell her about Walter and Evelyn’s plot. Her body couldn’t take a blow like that right now. When we left the hospital, Walter took a call. His face shifted, and he made an excuse about an urgent matter at the company and rushed off. I knew it. He was going to see Evelyn. I walked home alone, my mind racing. I was only fourteen. Call the police? With no evidence, who’d believe a fourteen-year-old girl? Tell them I’d grown an eye on the back of my head? They’d just lock me up as a psych case. If the law couldn’t punish them, then I’d do it myself. I got in touch with a seller on the dark web and paid a steep price for a few packets of high-dose rat poison. Back home, I dumped all of it into the single malt whiskey Walter loved. That done, I sat on the couch and quietly waited for my prey to come home. But for days, Walter didn’t touch that bottle. Evelyn was even more wary. Every time she came over, she wouldn’t drink so much as a glass of water. They seemed to have sensed something. And what I sensed was far more dangerous than that.

On the weekend, Walter suddenly suggested taking me hiking in the countryside. “Clara, school’s been stressful lately. Daddy wants to take you somewhere to relax.” He smiled, all warmth. I sneered inside. Here it comes. Mountain roads. Accident insurance. Brake failure. Only he didn’t know—this time, I was the one who’d set the trap. “Okay, thanks, Dad.” I slung my backpack on and climbed into the car, obedient. The car pulled out of the city. The roads grew emptier, the scenery on both sides more and more desolate. Walter drove faster and faster. At a sharp turn, he suddenly wrenched the wheel hard, sending the car straight toward the edge of the cliff. “Oh no! The brakes are out!” he shouted, faking panic. Just as the car was about to break through the guardrail, he shoved the driver’s door open and jumped out. My door, on the other side, had been locked from the start. Bang! The car slammed hard into a big tree at the cliff’s edge. Smoke billowed from the hood, and then flames leapt up. The fire spread fast. The temperature inside the car shot up. I beat at the window, putting on a show of terror, screaming my lungs out: “Dad! Help me! Dad!” Walter stood a few yards from the car, watching me coldly. There wasn’t a trace of pity in his eyes—only the giddy thrill of getting what he wanted. “Clara, don’t blame Daddy. Blame yourself for standing in your brother’s way. Get a better life next time around.” The fire swallowed the cabin completely. The smoke choked me until I couldn’t open my eyes. The heat seared my skin. Just as I thought I really was about to burn to death, a miracle happened. A faint blue glow rose over the surface of my body, sealing the flames and smoke out. I didn’t feel any pain. Even my breathing came easier. What was going on? Was I not made of flesh and blood after all? Before I could think it through, the car suddenly went up in a violent explosion. Everything went black, and I lost consciousness.

When I woke again, I was in a hospital bed. The harsh fluorescent light made my head spin. “A miracle! It’s nothing short of a miracle! A fire that size, and this child only has a few surface burns!” The doctor’s astonished voice rang in my ears. I slowly opened my eyes and saw Walter standing by the bed, his face white as paper. When he saw me wake, he looked like he’d seen a ghost and jerked back a step. A police officer came over with the routine questions. “Sweetheart, do you remember how the crash happened?” I looked at Walter, the corner of my mouth curling into a sneer too faint to catch. He swallowed nervously, his eyes full of pleading. “Officer, I… I can’t remember clearly. I only remember the car suddenly went out of control, and then it caught fire. My dad got hurt trying to save me.” I put on a weak, frail act, tears rolling down my cheeks. The officer comforted me a little, then turned to Walter. “Mr. Croft, you’re lucky your daughter survived. But we’ll be investigating the cause further, so please stay available to cooperate.” After the officer left, only Walter and I remained in the room. The air was dead silent. “What… what exactly do you want?” Walter’s voice trembled. The way he looked at me was the way you’d look at a monster. I put the tears away and fixed him with an icy stare. “Walter, did you really think your plan was airtight? When you jumped out of the car, I saw every bit of it.” His legs went weak; he nearly dropped to the floor. “Clara, Daddy was wrong! Daddy lost my mind for a moment! Won’t you forgive me?” He threw himself at the bedside, begging, a mess of snot and tears. “Forgive you? Sure.” I sneered. “I want you to change the beneficiary on that accident policy to my name. Right now. And I want a supplementary card with no limit. Otherwise, I tell the police exactly how you tried to murder your own daughter.” Walter nodded over and over like a man granted a pardon. “Yes! Yes! Daddy will do whatever you say!” The moment I had the money and the insurance, the first thing I did was go to a flower shop and buy a big bunch of the brightest yellow roses. Then I went to my mom’s hospital room. I pushed the door open and froze. The room was thick with the scent of roses. In the vase by my mom’s bed, there was already a fresh bunch of yellow roses. “Mom, did someone come to see you?” I asked, startled. When she saw me, panic flashed in her eyes. She struggled upright and grabbed my hand, her voice urgent. “Clara, listen to me. You’re in danger right now. Go! Get away from here!” I was completely lost. “Mom, what are you talking about? I’ve already got Walter under control. He wouldn’t dare hurt me.” She shook her head, tears spilling over. With trembling hands, she fished a silver fidget spinner out from under her pillow and pressed it into my palm. “Take this! Spin it counterclockwise three times and you can go back to the past. Spin it clockwise three times and you can go to the future. Remember—you only get three chances. Run! Run as far as you can!” I stared at the finely made spinner in my hand and was sure the illness had muddled her mind. “Mom, don’t scare me…” “Clara, happy birthday, my baby.” She suddenly cupped my face and pressed a cold kiss to my forehead. The next second, the heart monitor let out a piercing, drawn-out wail. A flat line. My mom was dead.

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I died ninety-nine times on a luxury cruise ship. Every single time, the ship struck the rocks and sank at exactly midnight. And every single time, I failed to find the traitor responsible for the disaster. Ninety-nine loops. Trapped in a cycle with no way out, my body worn to nothing and my mind on the edge of breaking. When the hundredth loop began, I gave up. I stopped fighting. All I wanted was to spend my last few hours holding my brand-new wife in my arms. But the moment I pulled her close, my hands found something hidden beneath her elegant evening gown — something ice-cold, hard, and already inflated. A miniature life vest. Suffocation. My lungs felt like they were being stabbed by hundreds of red-hot needles all at once. The freezing seawater was alive — coiling through my nose and mouth, forcing its way down my throat like serpents. I thrashed wildly, arms and legs flailing in the pitch-black deep, grasping at nothing but empty water. My consciousness began to slip. The world around me dissolved into a vast, endless blue. Then — silence. Dead silence. … “Haah—!” I jolted upright in bed, gasping, my entire body soaked through with cold sweat. The soft velvet blanket slid off my shoulders. No salt, no brine — just the faint, calming scent of premium agarwood incense drifting through the air. No crashing waves — just the low, steady hum of the cruise ship’s engines. I wasn’t dead. I was back. I turned my head and stared at the priceless Patek Philippe custom clock sitting on the nightstand. The second hand ticked steadily. 8:00 PM. This was the hundredth time I had woken up at this exact hour, in this exact bed. “Eleanor, did you have a nightmare?” The bathroom door swung open softly. Victoria stepped out in a cloud of warm steam. She wore a silky wine-red robe, her damp hair falling loosely over her bare shoulders, her breathtaking face full of concern. Just the sight of her made my racing heart begin to slow. For the past ninety-nine loops, I’d run around this ship like a madman. I’d tried warning the captain. I’d tried forcing the ship off course. I’d even tried blowing up the engine room to stop it entirely. None of it worked. No matter what I did, the moment midnight hit, that deafening crack would tear through the hull. Water would rush in. The ship would capsize. And everyone would go down screaming. I was exhausted. Too tired to even lift a finger. If fate couldn’t be changed, then I wasn’t going to spend my last four hours fighting it. I just wanted to be with the woman I loved most — and go quietly. “It’s nothing. Just a bad dream.” I managed a tired smile, threw back the covers, and walked straight toward her. I opened my arms and pulled her close. Her body was soft, carrying the clean scent of her body wash — a smell I had never stopped loving. I wanted to bury my face in the curve of her neck and breathe in this last moment of warmth. But the second I tightened my arms around her, my hand caught on something at her back. Beneath the soft silk of her robe — something hard. Something that had no business being there. It was… After ninety-nine times fighting to survive in the water, I recognized the feel of it instantly. A compact, body-hugging, military-grade inflatable life vest！ And it was already partially inflated — primed and ready to deploy. It was 8:00 PM. Four full hours before the ship would hit the rocks. Outside, the sea was perfectly calm. The sky was full of stars. So why was my brand-new wife wearing a hidden life vest under her robe?

“Ow, Eleanor — you’re holding me too tight.” Victoria pulled back with a soft pout, trying to wriggle free from my arms. I forced down the icy dread spreading through my chest and slowly let go. “Sorry. The nightmare felt too real. I’m still not quite myself.” I stepped back half a pace and kept my voice easy, my eyes catching the brief flicker of unease in hers. Ninety-nine brushes with death had sharpened my instincts. She was nervous. “Let me pour you something to take the edge off.” She turned and walked quickly toward the bar in the corner of the room. Watching her go, my mind shifted into overdrive. The ship striking the reef. A situation with no way out. A wife who had already fastened her life jacket. None of this was a coincidence. Could it be — the one who caused this ship to go down wasn’t some stranger hiding in the shadows. It was the woman who shared my bed. How could that be possible?！ We’d been together three years. She stood by me through the darkest days of Vance Group. She was gentle, warm, and endlessly understanding — the only light in my life. But what I felt on her back when I held her was real. If you want to keep up the act, I’ll play along. I wanted to see what she was truly hiding underneath that soft, loving face. “Vicky, I want that bottle of ’82 Lafite. It’s at the bottom of my suitcase.” I sank onto the sofa, my voice lazy and unbothered. “Of course. I’ll go grab it.” She set down her glass and disappeared into the walk-in closet. The moment she crouched down and started digging through the suitcase, I shot to my feet and crossed the room to her vanity table. My eyes went straight to her Hermès makeup bag — the one that never left her side. I unzipped it. Lipstick, foundation, perfume… everything looked perfectly normal. But I didn’t stop. I pressed my fingers firmly along the bottom edge of the bag. Click. A faint, sharp snap. The bottom of the bag swung open, revealing a hidden compartment. Inside, lying completely still, was a black satellite phone. No brand markings. No logo. I drew a slow breath, picked it up, and pressed the power button. The screen lit up. No lock screen — it went straight to the home screen. One message. Received ten minutes ago. Sender: [Hound] “Bottom explosive device is armed. Timer set: 23:59. Target asset transfer protocol is active. Put your life jacket on and wait for extraction.” It hit me like a bomb going off inside my skull. Explosive device！ Asset transfer！ Target！ There was no reef. This ship was deliberately blown up. And I — I was the “target.” All ninety-nine times I nearly drowned. All ninety-nine times I clawed at the edge of madness and despair. Every single one of them had been a carefully planned murder. A savage rage at being betrayed by the person I loved most slammed into a bone-deep grief, and together they swallowed me whole. I gripped the satellite phone so hard my knuckles turned white. “Eleanor, I’ve got the wine—” Victoria stepped out of the closet, red wine in hand. Her words died in her throat. She saw what I was holding. The warmth drained from her face in an instant. Her pupils shrank to pinpoints. The air in the room dropped to absolute zero.

“What is this?” I held up the satellite phone, my voice so calm it even scared me. Victoria stood frozen, her body trembling slightly. But within two seconds, the panic on her face disappeared — replaced by a chilling composure I had never seen from her before. “Since you’ve already seen it, I won’t bother pretending.” She casually tossed the priceless bottle of wine onto the carpet. The red liquid spread across the fibers like blood. “Eleanor Vance, you’re a sharp businessman. But you’re too sentimental — and that is your fatal flaw.” She walked to the sofa and sat down, elegantly lighting a slim cigarette. “Who put you up to this?” I gritted my teeth and stepped toward her. “You don’t need to know that. All you need to know is that by the end of tonight, everything in Vance Group will change hands.” She blew a slow smoke ring, her eyes full of mockery. “You think you can kill me on this ship?” I laughed coldly. Over the course of ninety-nine loops, I had honed my skills to the level of a trained assassin. Taking down one woman? Three seconds, tops. “Kill you? No, no, no — why would I want to get my own hands dirty?” Victoria laughed so hard she nearly doubled over. “You’re going to ‘accidentally’ die in a shipwreck, right in front of the entire ship — the tragic CEO who never saw it coming.” Just then, the doorbell rang. Ding-dong. “Eleanor, it’s the Captain. Your dinner reservation is ready.” The voice from outside the door was deep and steady — the voice of this cruise ship’s captain. In previous loops, I had begged him for help countless times. He always brushed me off with the same dismissive, by-the-book indifference. I walked over and yanked the door open. The Captain stood outside in a crisp white uniform, wearing his professional smile. Behind him, two waiters pushed a service cart. “Eleanor, this is the French baked lobster you specially requested—” “Shut up.” I cut him off cold, my eyes fixed on his face like a blade. “Captain, I remember very clearly — at the welcome dinner on the first night of this voyage, you told me personally that you have a severe shellfish allergy. You said even the smell gives you hives.” I pointed at the enormous red lobster on the cart and said, word by word: “So tell me — why are you the one personally delivering this to my cabin?” The smile on the Captain’s face froze. Fine beads of cold sweat instantly broke out across his forehead. “I… I…” He stumbled over his words, his eyes darting uncontrollably toward Victoria on the sofa. “Because he’s not the real Captain!” I slammed my foot into the service cart and sent it crashing to the floor. Scalding broth splattered all over both waiters. “You’re all in on this together!” It finally made sense. Why no matter how many warnings I gave, the crew never reacted. Why the ship had drifted so far off course without a single person finding it strange. Because everyone on this ship — from the captain down to the waiters — was a player in this murder plot. Clap. Clap. Clap. Victoria sat on the sofa and applauded slowly. “Brilliant. Truly brilliant, Eleanor. You’re even sharper than I gave you credit for.” She stood up and stubbed her cigarette out in the ashtray. “But even now that you’ve figured it all out — what does it change? Do you really think you can escape?” Her words had barely left her lips when the two waiters — still grimacing from the scalding broth — suddenly reached inside their jackets and pulled out silenced pistols. The barrels pointed straight at my head.

“Kneel.” The fake captain tore off his mask of civility, his face twisting with rage as he screamed at me. I stared down the two dark gun barrels and didn’t move. My mind was running at full speed — calculating distances, angles. “I said, kneel!” He stepped forward and raised his radio, swinging it down toward my head. Now！ I ducked sharply, dodging the blow, and launched myself forward. I grabbed the wrist holding the radio and twisted hard. Crack. The sound of bone snapping was sharp and clean. “AHHH—!” The fake captain let out a blood-curdling shriek. I swung his massive body in front of me, using him as a human shield. Phff. Phff. Two muffled shots. Both bullets hit the fake captain square in the chest. Blood bloomed instantly across his white uniform. In the split second the two hitmen hesitated, I shoved his body aside, rolled into a tactical dive, and snatched a dinner knife off the floor. It left my hand like a flash of lightning. The blade buried itself in the left hitman’s throat. He clutched at his neck as blood poured between his fingers, then dropped straight down. The hitman on the right went pale. He barely started to swing his gun around before I was already on him — a vicious knee strike connecting hard with his jaw. Thud. He flew off his feet and slammed into the wall, out cold. Five seconds. Start to finish. This was muscle memory forged across ninety-nine deaths — beaten into me through countless beatings and killings. I was breathing hard. I picked up the handgun from the floor, turned around, and pointed it straight at Victoria. She stood completely still, staring at the blood and bodies scattered across the floor. Not a trace of fear on her face. Instead, she smiled — a strange, unsettling smile, like someone who already knew exactly how this would end. “Nice moves, Eleanor.” She even stepped forward, pressing her forehead directly against the barrel. “Go ahead. Shoot me. Kill me.” Her eyes were full of challenge. “You think I won’t?” I kept my finger on the trigger. Rage burned in my chest. “Oh, you would.” Victoria’s lips curved into a mocking smile. “But if you kill me, you won’t make it out either.” A mocking smirk tugged at the corner of Victoria’s mouth. “Eleanor — doesn’t it seem strange to you? Why do you always wake up again at eight o’clock every time you die?” My pupils snapped tight. She… how did she know about the loop? I had never told a single person. “Did you actually think this was God giving you a second chance?” Victoria laughed — loud, raw, and cruel. “Don’t be naive. There is no such thing as a time loop.” “Everything you’ve been experiencing — this ship, this ocean, me — all of it is fake！” She threw her arms wide, like she was unveiling a masterpiece. “Welcome to the Abyss System, Eleanor.” “It’s a virtual reality interrogation chamber hardwired directly into your brain.” “You’re not at sea at all. Right now, you’re lying in a stasis pod in Vance Group’s underground lab, with electrodes planted all over your skull.” The words hit me like a wrecking ball. Virtual reality？ Neural interrogation？ The room spun around me. “That’s… that’s not possible…” My voice came out barely above a whisper. The gun trembled in my hands. “Why not?” Victoria pressed closer. “You’re holding the highest-level master access codes for Vance Group. We’re talking about wealth large enough to buy a small country.” “But your willpower is too strong. Standard truth serums and physical interrogation don’t work on you.” “So they built this system.” “To put you through the most hopeless deaths imaginable, over and over, in a virtual world. Grinding down your mental defenses one loop at a time.” “Until you break completely — and hand over the codes.” She pointed to the clock on the wall. “The ship sinking at midnight is the system’s forced restart protocol. Every restart causes irreversible damage to your brain.” “Ninety-nine times, Eleanor. Your neural pathways are stretched to the breaking point — like a rubber band about to snap.” “This is the last loop. If you don’t hand over the codes, your brain will flatline at midnight tonight. And in the real world, you will be a vegetable. Forever.”

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For three years, I played the perfect invisible wife at Sebastian Cross’s side. Everyone knew Sebastian was devoted to his childhood sweetheart, Evelyn — and that he treated his actual wife like she was nothing. What no one knew was that I could hear Sebastian’s thoughts. He’d mock me out loud, calling me “worthless.” But in his head, he was screaming, Look at me, baby. I told myself that if I just held on long enough, I could melt the ice around his heart. Then came the charity auction. He took the piece I treasured most — my late mother’s work — bought it without a second thought, and handed it to Evelyn. In the argument that followed, I lost my voice. Permanently. With nothing left inside me, I slid the divorce papers across the table and walked away. And Sebastian — the untouchable, all-powerful Sebastian Cross — stood alone in that empty mansion and completely fell apart. The lights blazed inside Veridian City’s most prestigious charity gala. My eyes were locked on the necklace displayed on the stage — a sapphire piece called Blue Reverie. It was my design. Three sleepless nights of work, poured into every detail for this event. “Five million dollars.” A low, cold voice cut through the silence of the hall. The room erupted. Every head turned toward the man sitting beside me. Sebastian Cross — the youngest powerhouse in Veridian City’s business world. And my husband. I looked at him, caught off guard. Sebastian’s profile was half-swallowed by shadow, his jaw sharp, his expression unreadable. Murmurs rippled through the crowd around us. “Mr. Cross really does look out for Mrs. Cross — five million for his wife’s work? That’s his way of showing support.” “Who said Mr. Cross and Mrs. Cross had a bad marriage? He just threw five million dollars at her.” Something stirred in my chest. A feeling I hadn’t felt in a long time. Three years of marriage, and he’d rarely given me any dignity in public. Was tonight different? Was this for me? The moment the host’s gavel came down and announced Sebastian as the winning bidder, he stood up. He took the gleaming necklace from the presenter — and didn’t walk toward me. He walked straight to the front row, to a woman in a white gown, delicate and fragile as a wilting flower. Evelyn. Sebastian’s childhood sweetheart. The daughter of his late mentor. “Evie.” Sebastian’s voice was quiet, but the people nearby could hear every word. “The color of this necklace suits your complexion perfectly.” Evelyn covered her mouth, her eyes going glassy. “Seb, this is too much — and this is Ellie’s work. She put so much into it…” Sebastian let out a short, contemptuous laugh. His gaze swept over me, cold and dismissive. “Her work?” His lip curled. “It’s cheap. Tacky. The kind of thing that doesn’t belong in a room like this. Consider it a little toy.” “Put it on. I won’t say it twice.” The whispers around us flipped in an instant — each one landing like a slap across my face. “So he bought it for Evelyn…” “God, poor Mrs. Cross. Her own husband buys her work just to give it to another woman — and then tears it apart in front of everyone.” I pressed my hands into fists at my sides, my nails cutting into my palms. And then Sebastian’s inner voice detonated in my ear. 【That necklace my wife designed — no one else was getting their hands on it. I wasn’t about to let some other man walk away with it tonight.】 【Evie’s just holding onto it for me. She ran interference with the drinks all evening — this is just me being polite. The second we get home, I’m taking it back and putting it on my wife myself.】 【Baby, look at me! I just spent five million dollars on your design. Aren’t you even a little touched?】 I stared at his cold, hard face. I listened to him gloating in his own head, practically bouncing with pride. Three years. For three years, I had forgiven every cruel thing that came out of his mouth — because I could hear what was underneath it. I told myself he was just guarded. That he didn’t know how to show what he felt. That a difficult childhood had twisted the way he expressed himself. I told myself I could fix him. But now, watching Blue Reverie — my necklace — rest against Evelyn’s collarbone, I felt something in me go very, very quiet. I was exhausted. This push and pull, this gap between what he said and what he thought — I was done with it. I stood up. I walked toward him, meeting his startled gaze head-on. “Since Sebastian thinks my work is so cheap,” I said, my voice steady, “then stop torturing yourself. Stop being tied to someone as cheap as me.” “I want a divorce.”

Sebastian’s pupils contracted sharply. Evelyn let out a soft gasp and leaned into Sebastian’s side, her voice trembling. “Ellie, please don’t be upset — this is my fault. I never should have accepted it. Don’t say things like that. You’re not serious…” Sebastian grabbed Evelyn to steady her, his expression darkening instantly. “Elodie, what the hell is wrong with you?” “Making a scene over something this small — where are your manners? Without me, who would ever want a useless woman like you?” His words cut like poison-tipped blades. But his inner voice was trembling wildly. [Why does she want a divorce? Is she jealous?] [I already told her this is just a toy! How could she just walk away from me in front of all these people!] [Baby, please — don’t say things you don’t mean. It’s killing me.] I looked at him calmly, without softening the way I used to whenever I heard his thoughts. “Sebastian, I know exactly what I’m doing.” “I’ll have my lawyer send the papers to your office tomorrow.” With that, I turned and walked out of the venue. I didn’t look back at Sebastian’s ashen face or the curious stares from the crowd. I returned to the empty villa and dragged out my suitcase, starting to pack. I didn’t have much. Three years of marriage, and I’d lived like a guest who was only passing through. Half the closet was filled with Sebastian’s tailored suits. The other half held a few simple outfits of mine. I didn’t take a single thing that was his — just a few of my own old clothes. Finally, I walked to the study, opened the safe, and took out a worn, yellowed sketchbook. It was the only thing my mother had left me — filled with unfinished jewelry designs she’d drawn before she passed. I had just placed the sketchbook into the suitcase when the front door was kicked open with a violent bang. Sebastian stormed in, cold fury radiating off him, with Evelyn trailing close behind. His eyes landed on the suitcase sitting on the floor. A flash of panic crossed his face — but it was quickly buried under rage. “Elodie, look at you. You actually packed your bags?” His inner voice was deafening. [She’s really leaving? She already packed everything?] [No. I won’t allow it. What am I supposed to do if she’s gone?] [Baby, don’t go. I got the necklace back — just look at it, please.] He glared at me, but what came out of his mouth was: “You think I’d care if you left? You were nothing but a prop I used to keep my father off my back.” I zipped up the suitcase, my voice completely flat. “If I’m just a prop, then you should be glad the prop is resigning.” I pulled my luggage and walked out. Sebastian snatched my wrist, gripping it so hard I thought he might snap the bone. “I didn’t say you could leave. Try walking out that door and see what happens.” Evelyn stepped in, her voice soft and coaxing. “Ellie, don’t be like this. Come on, Seb — didn’t you mention before that you’d let me borrow that sketchbook your mother-in-law left behind? I’m working on a new collection and I’m completely stuck for inspiration…” I spun around and stared at Sebastian, unable to believe what I was hearing. Sebastian hesitated, clearly caught off guard that Evelyn had brought it up now. But with me glaring at him like I wanted to tear him apart, he was too proud to back down. He forced a cold smirk. “So what? Everything you have was provided by the Cross family. If Evie wants to look at it, you hand it over.” My whole body was shaking. I had never been this furious in my life. “Sebastian, you bastard!” I wrenched my wrist free and clutched the suitcase tight. “That belonged to my mother. What gives you the right to hand it to her?” Sebastian’s expression twisted. [I was just saying it — I didn’t actually mean it!] [Don’t look at me like that, baby. It scares me.] [But you’re cursing me out over a stupid notebook. You don’t love me anymore, do you?] Shame curdled into rage. He lunged for the suitcase. “There’s nothing I want that I can’t take. Give it to me.” “No.” We struggled violently at the top of the staircase. Evelyn rushed over to help. “Ellie, stop it — I just wanted to borrow it for a few days…” “Get away from me!” I shoved her hard. Evelyn let out a cry and stumbled back two steps, landing on the floor. The palm of her hand scraped against the ground. “Evie!” Sebastian’s face went white. He spun toward me and shoved me — hard. “Elodie, you vicious bitch!” I had no time to react. My balance vanished, and I fell — straight down the staircase.

In the moment the floor disappeared beneath me, I saw Sebastian’s eyes go wide with terror. Thud — I tumbled down the stairs and hit the bottom hard. My neck slammed into the sharp metal edge of the art sculpture standing in the first-floor living room. A searing, tearing pain exploded from my throat and spread through my entire body. The agony nearly knocked me unconscious on the spot. I lay face-down on the floor, gasping desperately for air, but it felt like my lungs had sprung a leak. Warm liquid poured from my neck in a torrent, soaking into the wool carpet beneath me, turning it a deep, vivid red. “Ellie!” Sebastian came flying down the stairs like a madman, dropping to his knees beside me, frantically trying to press his hands over my wound. His hands were shaking. His whole body was shaking. His inner voice was nothing but desperate, anguished cries. [My wife! You’re bleeding so much!] [How did this happen? I didn’t mean to — I didn’t mean to push you!] [Please don’t scare me like this. I’m begging you, don’t scare me!] I opened my mouth, trying to say it hurts — trying to say help me. But no sound would come from my throat. Only broken, ragged breaths, and the nauseating stench of blood. “Seb… it hurts so much…” At the top of the stairs, Evelyn cradled her scraped hand, her eyes glistening with tears. Sebastian froze. He looked at me. Then he looked at Evelyn. His inner voice tore itself apart. [My wife is badly hurt — I need to get her to the hospital!] [But Evie’s hand… she’s a pianist. My teacher entrusted her to me on his deathbed. If her hand is ruined, how could I ever face him?] [My wife’s injury is just surface-level. Evie’s hand can’t wait.] Sebastian clenched his jaw and shot to his feet. He stood over me — over my body lying in a pool of blood — and looked down with eyes cold enough to cut glass. “Elodie, you brought this on yourself.” “If anything happens to Evie’s hand, I’ll make you pay for it.” He turned away. Without a moment’s hesitation, he scooped Evelyn into his arms and strode out of the house. The front door slammed shut behind him, sealing me off from the rest of the world. I stared after him, eyes wide with despair, watching him disappear. The blood kept flowing from my throat. I tried to drag myself toward my phone, lying just a few feet away. But the pain had drained every last drop of strength from my body. All I could do was lie there as my vision slowly, steadily blurred. So that was how little I meant to him. I wasn’t even worth as much as a scratch on Evelyn’s hand. Sebastian. You win. I’m done. In the final second before the darkness swallowed me whole, one thing flashed through my mind — something he had said to me once. “Elodie, I’m the one who gave you this life. You owe me a debt you’ll spend every lifetime repaying. You’ll never leave my side.” When I opened my eyes again, everything was blindingly white. The sharp smell of antiseptic filled my nose. I shifted slightly, and a stabbing pain tore through my throat. “You’re awake?” Sebastian’s hoarse voice came from beside the bed. I turned my head. His eyes were raw and red from sleepless nights, dark stubble shadowing his jaw. He looked completely wrecked. The moment he saw my eyes open, he lurched to his feet, reaching toward me — then stopping himself, like he was afraid to touch me. “You… how do you feel? Does it still hurt?” There was a tremor in his voice that he probably didn’t even notice himself. His inner voice came rushing in like a tide. [She’s finally awake. God, I was terrified — I thought I was going to lose her.] [The doctor said her vocal cords are damaged… This is all my fault. I deserve to rot for this.] [Yell at me. Hit me. Just please, please don’t look at me like that — like you’re already dead inside.] I looked at him in silence. There was nothing stirring in my chest. No anger. No hurt. Just a stillness, flat and cold as standing water. I opened my mouth and tried to speak. No matter how hard I pushed, the only thing that came out of my throat was a faint, hollow hiss of air. I went still. The color drained from Sebastian’s face in an instant. He grabbed my shoulders, his voice urgent. “Don’t try to talk. The doctor said your vocal cords are injured — you need to rest.” I watched his eyes slide away from mine, and a quiet dread settled in my chest. I reached for my phone on the nightstand. Sebastian moved to stop me, but I pulled away from his hand and grabbed it myself. I opened the notes app and typed. My throat. What’s wrong with it? I held the screen up in front of him. Sebastian stared at it. His throat worked as he swallowed hard. “It’s just… temporary. You’ll get your voice back in time. I’ve already found the best doctors — they’ll fix this. I promise.” He was lying. I could hear it in his thoughts. [I’m so sorry. The doctor said the damage to your vocal cords is severe. It might be… permanent.] [But I’m not giving up. I don’t care what it costs — I’ll find a way to fix this.] [Please don’t find out the truth. I don’t know if you could take it.] Permanent. I was mute now. Because of the push that sent me falling. Because he had chosen to take Evelyn to get her little scrape bandaged first. I closed my eyes. A single tear slipped down the side of my face. Sebastian panicked, frantically wiping my tears with his hands. “Don’t cry, Ellie, please don’t cry. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have pushed you. I just—” He tried to explain, but no explanation could hold up against what he’d done. I picked up my phone again, typed one word, and held it out to him. Divorce.

Sebastian looked like he’d been struck by lightning. He froze completely. He snatched the phone out of my hand and hurled it at the floor. The screen shattered instantly. “I refuse!” His eyes were bloodshot, wild like an animal driven to rage. “Elodie, don’t you dare think about leaving me! You still owe me. What gives you the right to talk about divorce?!” “You hurt Evie, and you haven’t even apologized to her! You’re not going anywhere!” He lashed out with the cruelest words he could find, trying to hide the sheer panic underneath. [I can’t get divorced. I’d rather die than get divorced.] [If she leaves, what’s the point of any of this?] [I’d rather we tear each other apart. I’d rather she hate me. I’m keeping her by my side no matter what.] I watched him fall apart, cold and unmoved. Without my phone, I didn’t even have a way to argue back. But I knew. My mind was made up. Ten years of loving him in silence. Three years of marriage. It was over. I spent a month in the hospital. For that entire month, Sebastian never left my side. He canceled every social obligation and moved his desk into my hospital room. He clumsily taught himself how to make me chicken soup, how to peel apples for me. The cutting remarks stopped. When he spoke, there was even a careful, almost pleading softness to his voice. If I hadn’t known the truth, I might have actually been moved by how devoted he seemed. But I could hear his thoughts. Every day, the same loop played inside his head — guilt, fear, obsession. [She finished half a bowl of chicken soup today. Does that mean she’s forgiven me a little?] [Why won’t she look at me? Is she planning how to leave?] [I need to upgrade the security at the villa. I can’t let her run.] I watched his one-man show with cold, detached eyes. A month later, I was discharged. Sebastian drove me back to that villa — the one that felt like a cage. He took away my passport and my ID. He even unplugged the router. He watched me like I was a thief he couldn’t take his eyes off. Evelyn came by once. She had a small bandage on her hand. Her eyes swept over the thick gauze wrapped around my neck, and a flicker of satisfaction crossed her face. “Ellie, I’m so sorry. If it weren’t for me, none of this would have happened to you.” “Seb does care about you, you know. Don’t be angry with him — he just gets so worried about me sometimes.” Every word was a claim. Every sentence was a knife sliding between my ribs. I sat in my wheelchair and looked at her, my face completely blank. Sebastian walked in just then, carrying my medication. When he saw Evelyn, his brow furrowed hard. “Who let you in?” Evelyn bit her lip, her expression wounded. “Seb, I just came to check on Ellie…” “Get out.” Sebastian’s voice was ice. Evelyn stared at him in disbelief. “Seb, are you seriously snapping at me?” Sebastian ignored her. He walked straight to me, crouched down, and his tone shifted — suddenly, impossibly gentle. “Ellie. Time for your medicine.” Evelyn stomped her foot and ran out in tears. But Sebastian’s thoughts gave away exactly how irritated he was. [Why is Evie showing up now of all times? What if this sets Elodie off again?] [I’ve worked so hard to keep things calm. I’m not letting anyone ruin that.] I looked at the pills he held out to me, and a wave of disgust hit me so hard I couldn’t breathe. I swung my arm and knocked the medicine bowl out of his hands. The dark liquid splattered all over Sebastian’s shirt. He went still. I pointed at the door. A silent order to get out. Sebastian’s expression shifted. He forced the anger down. “Okay. I’ll go. Don’t get upset — I’ll have someone make a fresh batch.” He stood up and backed out of the room, looking rattled. I knew he was close to his breaking point. He was used to being in control of everything. Used to me falling in line. He wouldn’t be able to keep this up much longer. I needed a chance. A chance to get out.

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1 I went to a private school with my junior colleague Luke to configure their network. My bladder was bursting, so I used the first-floor restroom. On payday, instead of my twenty-five-thousand-dollar commission, I received a ten-thousand-dollar fine. Our newly appointed manager, Marcus, pointed his finger right at my nose, screaming. “Luke told me everything! You using the client’s restroom is just taking advantage of them. It completely ruins our reputation as a premium network service company!” “Using a client’s resources carries a fine of one thousand dollars a minute! You were in there for ten minutes, so that’s a ten-thousand-dollar penalty, and all your commissions are confiscated. Be grateful I’m letting you keep your job because of your seniority!” “We are in the service industry! If you can’t even hold your pee, why are you even working in the field?” These major clients were accounts I had built from the ground up over the past seven years. Every annual renewal was handled personally by me. Now, they were using them as leverage to rob me of my income. Seeing the cold glare in my eyes, Marcus slammed a document onto the desk. “Don’t like it? Then pack your bags and get out! But don’t forget, the service contracts for your accounts specifically name you as the designated technician. If you walk out, not only will we sue you for breach of contract alongside the clients, but we’ll also have you blacklisted from the entire industry!” Looking at his arrogant, sneering face, I let out a cold chuckle. I didn’t argue. But three days later, when those major service contracts were up for renewal, he was the one who panicked. “Don’t look at Marcus like that, Owen,” Luke said, poking his head out from behind Marcus. He put on a perfectly innocent face. “I only reported it because I care about the company. You were in that school restroom for ten whole minutes. The teachers outside were giving us some really weird looks. We’re there to fix their internet, not use their facilities.” I stared at the apprentice I had personally trained. Just last month, when he broke a highly expensive fiber tester in the server room, I was the one who paid out of my own pocket to cover for him. Now, to suck up to the newly appointed manager, he threw me under the bus without a second thought. Marcus crossed his arms, looking down his nose at me. “Hear that? Even the rookie has more professional awareness than you! Owen, you’ve been with this company for seven years, and this is what you’ve degenerated into? Confiscating your twenty-five-thousand-dollar commission and slapping you with a ten-thousand-dollar fine is a mercy. If it were up to me, I’d have fired you on the spot.” The office was dead silent. A dozen or so colleagues sat at their desks, ears perked, soaking in every word. I gripped the paper fine in my hand. “Marcus, the school’s facilities director explicitly told me we were welcome to use the first-floor restroom. How is that taking advantage of a client?” Marcus slammed his hand on the desk. “They were just being polite, and you took them literally? Do you have any concept of professional boundaries? You used their water, you used their paper. Is that not a resource drain? You were freeloading off our client!” The sheer absurdity of his logic made me laugh out loud. Luke quickly chimed in. “Owen, just apologize. Marcus is only trying to enforce proper discipline. We all know you’re getting older and your bladder isn’t what it used to be, but you can’t let your personal health issues ruin the company’s professional image.” A few colleagues who loved playing politics snickered behind their hands. “Seriously, using a client’s bathroom? That’s pretty trashy.” “Seniority doesn’t give you a free pass to behave like a slob.” I looked at their indifferent, mocking faces. Over the past seven years, I had pulled countless all-nighters to fix their mistakes and save their projects. Now, they were the first to throw stones. Marcus, seeing my silence, assumed I was intimidated. He raised his chin triumphantly. “Owen, since you recognize your mistake, you will write a formal apology and pin it to the company-wide chat. Also, starting today, your field transit reimbursements are canceled. That money will go toward compensating for the reputational damage you’ve caused.” Luke picked up the thermos from Marcus’s desk and handed it to him with a groveling smile. “Drink some warm water, boss. I’m sure Owen will reflect on his actions. He’s got a family to support, so he knows better than to bite the hand that feeds him.” I watched their little performance in silence. Arguing with fools was a waste of breath. I folded the fine and slipped it into my pocket. “Fine. Deduct the money. And I won’t file for travel reimbursements.” Marcus blinked, taken aback. He hadn’t expected the most headstrong engineer in the department to capitulate so easily. He let out a cold snort. “Smart move. Get that apology into the chat before the end of the day. A hundred-dollar penalty for every hour it’s late.” I didn’t bother replying. I turned and walked straight back to my desk. Behind me, Luke called out in a mocking, singsong voice, “Owen, if you need help writing that apology, there are plenty of templates online. Just don’t embarrass our department with bad grammar.” 2 My computer screen lit up, and the messaging icon in the bottom right corner began to blink. It was a message from Preston, the CEO of Aegis Networks, our primary competitor. “Owen, have you given any thought to my offer? If you join us, I’ll double your base salary and put you on our highest commission tier.” Looking at the message, a cold smile played on my lips. Aegis was a rapidly growing firm in the city, and they had been trying to recruit me for over a year. Out of loyalty to my current employer, I had always politely declined. “Mr. Preston, I’ll report to your office in three days.” A handshake emoji popped up instantly. “Fantastic! I’ll have HR draft your contract right away.” Locking my phone, I felt an incredible weight lift off my chest. For seven years, I had worked myself to the bone. To hit our department targets, I had lived in freezing server rooms even when I was running a high fever. But now, since Marcus wanted to play by these ridiculous rules, I would show him how well I could follow them. At three in the afternoon, Luke ran over to my desk, drenched in sweat and looking panicked. “Owen, the network at the Southside Plaza is completely down. I’ve been troubleshooting for hours and can’t figure it out. The client is losing his mind. You need to come with me right now.” I leaned back in my chair, not even bothering to look at him. “No.” Luke froze. “Owen, stop throwing a tantrum. This is a massive account, and the owner has a terrible temper. If he files a formal complaint with Marcus, we’re both screwed.” I picked up my mug, gently blowing on the steaming tea. “Marcus canceled my travel reimbursements this morning. He also made it clear that my aging bladder makes me unfit for field work. I think a demanding, high-profile task like this is best left to a capable young man like yourself.” Luke stomped his foot in frustration. “Owen! How can you be so petty? We’re a team. You can’t just leave me hanging!” I set my tea down, my eyes calm. “Go ask Marcus. If he signs a formal emergency dispatch order, I’ll leave immediately.” Luke grit his teeth and ran toward the manager’s office. Two minutes later, he trudged back, looking utterly defeated. Marcus didn’t know the first thing about network engineering; his only solution was telling Luke to figure it out himself. At exactly six, the moment the clock struck end-of-day, I saved my files, shut down my computer, and picked up my backpack. My colleagues stared at me in disbelief. Normally, I was the last one to leave the office. Luke, still pulling his hair out in front of his monitor, called out frantically, “Owen! You can’t leave! The Southside server room is still dead!” I didn’t turn around. “My shift is over. See you tomorrow.” Walking out of the office building, the evening breeze felt incredibly refreshing. At eight-thirty that night, I was sitting on my sofa, enjoying an old movie, when my phone began to buzz violently. The department group chat was blowing up with messages from Luke. “@Owen, please pick up your phone! The Southside system is totally paralyzed! The entire commercial street has no internet! The client says if we don’t fix it tonight, they’re terminating the contract and demanding a full refund!” Right after, Marcus’s name flashed on my screen. I put the phone on silent, letting it ring out three times before I finally answered. The moment I pressed accept, Marcus’s furious roar blasted through the speaker. “Owen! Get your ass down to the Southside server room right now! For every minute you’re late, I’m docking a week’s pay!” I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear. “Is there a problem, Marcus?” 3 “Don’t play dumb with me!” Marcus screamed over the line. “The client is ready to smash our equipment! Grab a cab and get down there now!” I swallowed a bite of my dinner, chewing slowly before replying. “Marcus, it is currently 8:35 PM. That falls well within my personal, off-the-clock hours. Furthermore, you personally stripped me of my field privileges this morning. Have you forgotten?” “I am your manager, and you will do as you’re told!” he shrieked. “I am ordering you to go! This is an emergency work requirement!” I wiped my mouth with a napkin. “According to Section 3, Article 5 of the employee handbook, any non-emergency overtime after hours must be approved in writing by a department head, guaranteeing time-and-a-half pay. Where is my digital approval slip?” The line went dead quiet. It took him several seconds to find his voice, his teeth practically grinding together. “Fine, Owen. You think you’re clever, don’t you? Just wait until tomorrow.” He slammed the phone down. The next morning, I clocked in right on time. The atmosphere in the office was suffocatingly tense. Luke was slumped over his desk with deep dark circles under his eyes, looking half-dead after pulling an all-nighter at Southside. Marcus stormed out of his office with a thick stack of papers, his face dark. “Everyone, conference room. Morning meeting, now!” He threw the documents onto the table with a loud slam. “Some people in this department think that just because they have seniority and a bit of technical know-how, they are above the team! Our clients lose money, and they’re snoring away at home! Starting today, we have a new policy: everyone must keep their phones active after hours. If you fail to respond to a call within ten minutes, you’ll be fined five hundred dollars!” My colleagues exchanged uneasy glances, but under his oppressive gaze, no one dared to speak up. Satisfied with the silence, Marcus cleared his throat. “Additionally, I’d like to introduce a new member of our team.” He turned to the door, and a young man with bleached yellow hair and expensive streetwear sauntered in. He cast a dismissive, arrogant glance over the room. The scowl on Marcus’s face instantly dissolved into a sycophantic grin. “This is our new Project Manager, Thomas. Thomas is young, but he has a brilliant mind and comes to us from a top-tier corporation. I expect everyone to fully cooperate with him.” Someone whispered in the back, “Thomas? Isn’t that Marcus’s nephew?” Marcus shot a lethal glare in that direction, then turned his gaze slowly to me. “Owen. Your accounts that are up for renewal, especially Apex Enterprises, are being reassigned to Thomas starting today. For the next few days, you don’t need to do any actual field work. Just shadow Thomas and teach him how to manage these high-profile clients.” I saw right through it. Apex Enterprises was a multi-million-dollar account. Signing their renewal would net a massive commission, easily reaching six figures. Marcus wanted to steal my hard work and hand the glory directly to his nephew. Thomas walked over to my desk, looking me up and down. “Let me see the renewal proposal you drafted for Apex.” I opened my laptop and pulled up the document I had prepared weeks ago. Thomas stared at the screen for less than a minute before scoffing. “What is this garbage? You honestly expect to present this outdated junk to Mr. Caldwell at the bidding conference?” 4 Luke scrambled over, eagerly placing a cup of freshly brewed coffee in front of Thomas. “You took the words right out of my mouth, Thomas. Owen’s getting older, and his thinking is completely rigid. He relies entirely on outdated methods. These days, winning clients is all about synergy, ecosystem matrices, and underlying paradigms. His proposal is practically prehistoric. If you ask me, we should approach it like this…” I watched Luke spin a web of meaningless corporate buzzwords. Stepping back, I raised my hands in mock surrender. “Since you find my proposal so lacking, Thomas, I’ll happily step back and let you take full charge of the negotiations. My old-school brain clearly can’t keep up with your modern pace. To ensure I don’t hold the company back, I’m washing my hands of the Apex project.” Thomas smirked, raising an eyebrow. “At least you know your place. Without you dragging us down, I’ll close this deal with my eyes shut.” “Thomas is a true leader,” Luke gushed. “Incredibly decisive.” For the next couple of days, I clocked in and out exactly on time. While Thomas and Luke locked themselves in the conference room trying to construct their absurd “ecosystem matrix,” the office fell into complete disarray. Finally, the last day of our current service contract arrived. I pulled out a cardboard box and began packing my personal belongings. My colleagues whispered and watched me out of the corners of their eyes. Marcus stepped out of his office, letting out a mocking sneer at the sight. “Well, well, Owen. What’s all this? Throwing a tantrum and packing your bags to gain sympathy?” He walked over, tapping his knuckles against my desk. “Let me tell you, your little guilt trips won’t work on me.” I carefully placed my small desk succulent into the box and brushed the dust off my hands. “Actually, Marcus, since our service contracts are officially up today, I’ve decided to resign. Best of luck with everything.” I picked up my box and walked out. Behind me, the glass doors slid shut, cutting off Marcus’s frantic, angry shouting. The following morning at nine, I stood in the sleek lobby of Aegis Networks, dressed in a sharp suit. Preston was waiting at the entrance alongside his entire executive team. “Welcome aboard, Director Owen,” Preston said, shaking my hand warmly. By two in the afternoon, I was sitting in the main conference room of Apex Enterprises. The air conditioning was running high, keeping the room icy cool. As the representative of Aegis Networks, I had arrived early, sitting quietly at the far, dimly lit corner of the long table, adjusting data on my tablet. When Thomas and Luke swaggered into the room with their team, they didn’t even notice me. I watched them take their seats opposite me. While sorting through his papers, Luke happened to glance across the table. The moment he saw my face, his entire body froze, and the pen in his hand slipped, clattering onto the desk. He frantically nudged Thomas. Within seconds, both of them were squirming in their seats, their faces turning a visible shade of pale. Just then, the conference room doors swung open again. Marcus strode in, finishing up a phone call and taking his place at the head of their team, ready to dominate the presentation. But as soon as he sat down, he noticed the terrified expressions on his team’s faces. Following Luke’s trembling gaze, his eyes locked onto mine. Marcus stared, not even registering the Aegis Networks nameplate sitting in front of me. His face contorted with rage. He slammed his hand onto the table, pointing a finger directly at my face in front of everyone in the room. “Owen?! Are you out of your mind?” he shrieked. “You’re a fired piece of trash! How dare you sneak into an Apex boardroom? Have you no shame? Get the hell out of here right now!”

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