Category: English

I have a superpower. After killing someone, I can inherit their memories from the last three years. Before my SATs, I killed my genius boyfriend and got into my dream university. 1 When did I first discover this? When I was nine, my parents divorced. I was given to my mom. I loved my mom, but actually, I loved my dad more. I often secretly visited my dad to play with him. But one day, when I went to see him, I caught him kissing a woman. My parents avoided me when I was little; it was my first time seeing a man and a woman kissing. The woman’s lips were so red, red like she wanted to eat someone. I felt very angry. Even at a young age, I understood that Dad had done something wrong, which was why they divorced. Dad was a bad person. I angrily ran into Dad’s car and threw a lot of marbles inside. I wanted them to hurt Dad’s butt, wanted the woman to fall. But the marbles got stuck under the brake pedal, causing brake failure. The woman went into a coma, and Dad died on the spot. The police checked the surveillance and found that I put the marbles in the car. But a nine-year-old child didn’t understand anything and had no criminal liability. Plus, losing my father, I cried my heart out, completely broken. No one blamed me; everyone thought I was pitiful. But while crying, a lot of memories flooded into my mind. I saw the woman’s face in the memories. So Dad had done bad things that early. I saw Mom and Dad arguing, saw Dad secretly taking money from home. I saw the woman and Dad entangled, saw them disgustingly intertwined. I vomited. Mom and the police thought I was crying too hard and my body couldn’t take it. Only I knew, I felt disgusted. At such a young age, I saw two entangled beasts. 2 Unexpectedly, my sadness dissipated quickly. What lingered was disgust. At the same time, I realized my uniqueness. Little me dared not speak, grown-up me didn’t want to speak. As I slowly grew up, I realized what this ability meant. In middle school, I was in the same class as the neighbor’s girl, Zoey. We were very close. We went to school and back together, inseparable even to the bathroom. Teachers jokingly called us Siamese twins. Zoey didn’t have a great personality, but she was very pretty, much prettier than me. I sometimes heard people say, this is the princess and her little follower. I didn’t care much, but Zoey was always very proud. I think this is one of the reasons she had such a good relationship with me. People are always most unwilling to be outshone by those close to them. Zoey liked the feeling of suppressing me, which in a way also showed that she truly treated me as a close person. I was very good to Zoey, so good that she couldn’t leave me. Zoey’s grades were always better than mine, except for English. So I always wrote Zoey’s English homework for her, neatly. For small quizzes, as the English class representative, I helped the teacher grade papers in the office. At these times, I would secretly change a few answers for Zoey and add some points. Until this matter was discovered by the teacher. The English teacher didn’t blame me for changing grades but blamed Zoey instead. The English teacher always disliked the pretty and dressy Zoey, plus her English grades were indeed poor, so the teacher disliked her even more. “All day long, your mind isn’t on studying, but on these crooked ways!” “A girl like you won’t have a future.” Zoey’s eyes turned red instantly. She pushed the desk with a bang and ran out of the classroom. The English teacher snorted disdainfully at first, but seeing Zoey didn’t return for a long time, she got scared something might happen. She lectured for a while, then impatiently asked me to go check on Zoey. I knew where Zoey was. She was in the utility room next to the pantry on the third floor. Every time Zoey encountered something unhappy, she would hide there. I gently opened the door of the utility room, squeezed in, and shrank next to Zoey. Zoey didn’t look at me, and I didn’t look at Zoey. I understood her; she didn’t want me to see her in such a state. After sitting for a while, Zoey spoke. “I don’t like Mrs. Crabtree.” Mrs. Crabtree was our English teacher’s name. “I don’t like Mrs. Crabtree either.” I said, sharing her hatred. Hearing my childish words, she couldn’t help but smile. “Let’s go back.” “Okay.” Zoey and my relationship got better and better. 3 But sometimes I had to admit that learning is a matter of talent. I tried hard, but I really had no talent for studying. Zoey and I stayed together every day, spending almost the same amount of time studying. But Zoey’s grades were getting better and better, steadily rising in all subjects, even English was about to surpass me. Sometimes she would actively offer to tutor me, but I couldn’t understand at all. Mom would often compare me with Zoey. I didn’t want to disappoint Mom. I only had Mom. Seeing my grades not ideal, I was a little anxious. A vague, dark thought also appeared in my brain. What if I killed Zoey? If I killed Zoey, then I would have Zoey’s memories of middle school for these three years. There are many things you shouldn’t think about. Once a thought appears in your brain, it lingers. I had an idea. Just last year, the school installed new air conditioners with very good cooling effects. Many seniors cursed jokingly that the school installed AC as soon as they graduated. Zoey was short and always sat in the first or second row. And I sat in the fifth or sixth row. Summer was approaching, and the school also turned on the AC one after another. I often shouted that it was so hot, then walked to Zoey’s desk during breaks. While talking to Zoey, I would very naturally set the AC to 60 degrees Fahrenheit with high wind. When the class bell rang, I would leave. Sometimes Zoey remembered to adjust it back, sometimes not. So Zoey often blew cold wind for a whole class. A few days ago, I went shopping with Zoey. I said Mom asked me to stock up on some cold medicine and asked if she needed any. “Why buy cold medicine in the summer?” “My mom said I blow AC at home and in the classroom, and sweat outside. The temperature difference indoors is large, easy to catch a cold. She told me to buy some medicine just in case.” Zoey hesitated, thought it made sense, and bought the same medicine as me. Seeing Zoey blowing her nose and saying she had a headache. I knew my chance had come. After school, Zoey and I walked home together as usual. “Let’s go sit on the lawn by the riverbank for a while.” I suggested. 4 We often went there to relax and chat on the way home from school. This wasn’t strange. I pulled Zoey forward, specifically choosing a place captured by the nearby convenience store’s surveillance. I asked Zoey to open her backpack. Zoey opened it and saw two bottles of alcohol inside, looking like high-proof ones. She took the alcohol out of her bag. “Ta-da! My surprise for you!” “We’re about to become high schoolers. Don’t you want to try?” I turned sideways, covering my mouth with my hair. I understood Zoey. She was a girl with a bit of rebellion in her bones. Zoey’s parents were always strict with her. She just didn’t have the chance for deviant things, but she always yearned for them. Zoey held the alcohol and handed one bottle to me. I turned around, making a look of sudden regret and fear. I waved my hand. “Maybe forget it? Zoey, will your parents be angry?” Hearing this, Zoey got even more excited. “It’s okay, just try it!” I made a hesitant expression until Zoey forcefully handed one bottle to me. We talked a lot. We talked about recent exams, about the future, about the annoying English teacher, and about the evening sunset. She apologized to me. She said sometimes she couldn’t help but treat me as a little follower. She said I was her best friend, forever. I said yes. Seeing the time was about right, I patted Zoey’s shoulder and said we should go home. I didn’t drink much alcohol. Several times bringing it to my mouth were actually just light sips. Zoey looked a bit drunk, stumbling when standing up. I asked beforehand. Zoey’s mom had to work overtime recently, and her dad had the night shift. Zoey was alone at home. I looked at Zoey. “Zoey, bye-bye.” “See you tomorrow.” “By the way.” I smiled at her. “You have a bit of a cold today. Remember to take cold medicine when you go back.” Zoey nodded with a smile too. Under the sunset glow, her eyes seemed to hold gentle flames. I calmly returned home, had dinner with Mom, finished homework as usual. Then fell asleep peacefully. The next morning, I had a splitting headache. I found more memories in my brain. I knew I succeeded.

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I used to be a poor, proud girl who only wanted Julian Thorne’s love. But after he blacklisted me from the industry, I learned my lesson. I became obedient, accepting the resources he threw my way. I just didn’t love him anymore. Later, he got into a car accident and was hospitalized. I was at Fashion Week in Paris, and when I returned, I went straight to set to film. When he recovered and was discharged, he pinned me against the doorframe, eyes red. “I was in a car accident…” I looked at him, puzzled, and said nothing. He gritted his teeth, his eyes full of undisguised grievance. “You didn’t come to see me… not even once.” 1 I always knew Julian Thorne and I were worlds apart. I used to think I didn’t want the resources he offered. I thought we were just a normal couple. He was my boyfriend, and I was his girlfriend. I liked him, and he liked me. But later, he was the one who personally tore my fantasy to shreds. On the tenth day of being blacklisted by Julian, my agent, Lisa, knocked on my door again, looking disappointed. When I opened the door, her angry face softened into shock at my haggard appearance. She closed her eyes, sighed, and walked in. “Scarlett, can’t you see it yet? You and Julian Thorne are not from the same world. Who is he? He’s the CEO of Thorne Enterprises. Who are you? You’re a star with no background.” She sat heavily on the sofa, trying to talk some sense into me. I listened expressionlessly while pouring her water. “What love? Is there any love between you two? If there was, how could he blacklist you with a single order? Look at yourself. Look at how pathetic you look now.” She pulled a mirror out of her bag and forced me to look at my disheveled reflection. “Is it uglier than that day?” My voice was hoarse, every word squeezed out of my throat. I looked at my reflection without emotion. She knew I was talking about the day of the Best Actress awards. In the video that was mocked all over social media, I was smiling as the host announced the winner. Back then, I was confident I would win. But in the end, it wasn’t me. The camera clearly caught my unsightly expression. Projected on the big screen, even though I reacted quickly and forced a stiff smile while clapping, I couldn’t avoid being called a sore loser. Hearing this, Lisa sighed again and continued, “I told you long ago that you two aren’t suitable. I told you to seize the time, use his resources and connections while you’re young, and climb higher. That’s what’s useful.” “You’re just love-brained. You won’t listen to anything. You’re pissing me off…” Because I had been drinking a lot these past few days, my brain felt sluggish. I don’t know if it was because of that, but I didn’t feel any pain in my heart. Julian and I got together in high school. In that elite school filled with the smell of money, it was hard for someone with grades but no background. But Julian held up the sky for me. That evening, he sat next to me, absentmindedly playing with my hair while I looked down and wrote. He suddenly leaned in, looking at me with burning eyes and a bright smile. “Hey, straight-A student, wanna date?” The bright, clear eyes of the teenager overlapped with the man who looked down at me with cold eyes in the garden years later. “Scarlett Brooks, don’t regret this.” The “don’t regret this” he referred to was when I accidentally heard him say behind a door that he and I had no future, and I cried and broke up with him. I used my ridiculous pride to maintain the so-called equal love between us. He often smiled and said I just needed to tell him what resources I wanted; I didn’t need to work so hard to fight for them. I liked to hug him, burying my face in his solid chest, poking him unhappily. “I don’t want that. I want to fight for it with my own efforts. That way, people won’t think I’m with you for impure motives.” Every time, he would helplessly pat my head. Now, I smiled, tears hitting the floor. To hell with love. … That night, I went to the “home” we used to share. I wore a black lace slip dress and sat calmly on the bed. Many decorations in the room were cute and colorful. A few plushies lay quietly on the sofa, just as they were when I left. Every inch here had traces of our love. There was surveillance in the living room, and my fingerprint hadn’t been deleted. He knew I would come back to find him. Just like he said to me back then, Scarlett Brooks, you will regret this. Yes, I regretted it. I regretted being so stupid back then, wanting some pure love. Before long, the sound of a car driving in came from downstairs. When I came back to my senses, the bedroom door had been opened. Julian stood at the door in a black haute couture suit, looking at me silently. My eyelashes trembled, and Lisa’s words echoed in my ears. “People in their circle will only marry someone of equal status in the end. Stop fantasizing about your so-called love. What is love? Can you eat it or spend it? He never thought about marrying you from the beginning. Silly girl, wake up.” I bit my lip, stepped on the floor barefoot, and walked towards him. I stopped in front of him. Reaching out to unbutton his suit jacket, he didn’t speak or stop me, just looked down at me. In the past, when we had a conflict, I would wait for him to come back, hug his waist and shake him. “Don’t be mad, don’t be mad.” He was a head taller than me. I stood on tiptoes and struggled to take off his jacket. Then I unbuttoned his shirt one by one. Inside revealed the firm chest muscles and abs of an adult male. I looked up at him, meeting eyes filled with desire. Then I lightly touched his bare chest with my lips. I wanted to reach out and undo his belt. The man’s breath hitched, and I felt weightless. He picked me up, placed me gently on the bed, and pressed down. He lowered his head and kissed my forehead, his voice hoarse. “Do you know you were wrong?” Hearing this, I lowered my eyes to hide the emotions, pursed my lips, and softly said “Mm.” I don’t know if my obedient appearance pleased him, but he grabbed my hand and placed it on the belt at his waist. Touching the cold metal, he nibbled my earlobe, his Adam’s apple rolling. “Undo it.” 2 When everything returned to calm, listening to the man’s even breathing beside me. I stared at the dark ceiling with open eyes, reached out to remove the man’s arm around me. Finally, I closed my eyes heavily. … The first project I got after my comeback was an S+ level historical drama. I sat in the RV, looking at the script in my hand. I thought: What was I being so high and mighty about before? Before, I was unwilling to please Julian, or rather, unwilling to please him for resources. Even when I first debuted and had no resources, running as an extra between various crews, I never thought of asking. I fantasized that if a drama exploded in the future and I leaped to become an A-list star, would his family change their opinion of me? I just forgot, wealthy families would only see me as an actress. No matter the status, just an actress. Really poor, fake high and mighty. The first snow in New York fell exceptionally early this year. I sat under the shed holding a hand warmer, reading the script. Suddenly, Lisa exclaimed, “Scarlett, look over there.” I looked over. Julian, wearing a black coat, was walking towards me step by step through the snow. Seeing him, I hid the coldness in my eyes, put on a surprised look, and then got up and ran over. He smiled and opened his arms to hug me full. I looked up and asked him softly, “Didn’t you say you’d be back tomorrow?” He brushed the snow off my head, then lowered his head to kiss the corner of my mouth. “A surprise for you.” I just smiled and said nothing. After a while, he said to me, “I’ll pick you up tonight to hang out.” Hearing this, I came out of his arms and said, “But I usually have to film until early morning, and with the recent snow scene, every crew is…” Before I could finish, he reached out and pinched my face. “I’ve already spoken to the director.” For a moment, my mouth was open, but I couldn’t say anything. Finally, I smiled and nodded. “I’ll listen to you.” In the evening, we went to a private room. The people inside were familiar faces. I had seen them in high school. They were Julian’s childhood friends. Before, I always wanted to gain their approval and tried my best to please them. Now, I sat quietly next to Julian. Too lazy to care about the various looks they exchanged. After a while, the protagonist of this gathering arrived. A woman walked in wearing a red trailing haute couture gown. It was Vanessa Cole. She was also the future mistress of the Thorne family in their mouths. She later went abroad for college. She just glanced at me lightly and sat next to Julian. A man teased her, “How come you got prettier after a trip abroad?” As soon as he said this, everyone started talking. Vanessa smiled and responded, “Oh, stop teasing me.” Then she turned her head and asked Julian coquettishly, “Is what they said true, Julian?” I looked down and drank my soda, not looking at Julian’s expression, only hearing a soft “Mm” at the end. After the dishes were served, I continued to eat with my head down. They talked about their childhood. I didn’t know them back then. Before, I would always feel sad because I couldn’t join the conversation and didn’t understand their tacit understanding. Not anymore. I don’t know who said, “Julian used to say Vanessa could only marry him back then.” Then, the private room fell dead silent. In the entertainment industry for so many years, I often emptied myself and deliberately didn’t listen to what I didn’t want to hear. Over time, it became a habit. When I felt the quiet atmosphere in the private room, I looked up in confusion. But I bumped into Julian’s dark eyes. Being with him for so many years, I could easily guess his emotions from his subtle expressions. He was unhappy right now. I didn’t know why he was unhappy. Then I heard Vanessa’s voice. “Oh, what nonsense are you talking about? Didn’t you see Julian’s girlfriend is still here?” I had a polite smile on my face, looked at Vanessa who had no apology on her face, felt nothing in my heart, mostly indifferent. I haven’t been Julian’s girlfriend for a long time. I’m a canary. A relationship between a canary and a sugar daddy that doesn’t require emotional investment. After returning to the villa that night, Julian drank some wine and smelled faintly of alcohol. This night, he was exceptionally rough, his upturned peach blossom eyes full of anger. I didn’t know what he was angry about. At first, I could still lift my waist to cater to him, but later it turned into crying and begging him to stop. 3 In the days that followed, I sent Julian a few WeChat messages, but he ignored me. I was too lazy to send more. I focused on filming. Due to the distance, I stayed in a hotel. One day, I was squatting on the ground making a snowman when Lisa ran over regardless of her image in a long down jacket, holding her phone. She handed it to me. The number one trending topic was: A Match Made in Heaven for the Wealthy. She clicked in, and the first thing visible was a picture of a woman holding a man’s arm. The background was magnificent; they must be attending some banquet. Vanessa’s beauty was bright and atmospheric. In the picture, she wore a gold dress, outlining her good figure, hair up, eyes gentle as water. Julian wore a black suit, tall and slender, with a seemingly nonexistent smile on his lips. I smiled and said, “They are indeed a good match.” I withdrew my gaze. If there wasn’t an extra me, it would probably be a beautiful story. However, whether there was an extra me or not, they would eventually be together. Just like in novels, the vicious female supporting character will always leave the stage, and the male and female leads will always end up together. Netizens are always particularly enthusiastic about wealthy families. Someone posted a very blurry photo, saying it was Julian and Vanessa. That day, I had just finished filming a night scene and got in the car. My agent held her phone all the way, frowning, staring at the phone as if trying to bore a hole in it. I leaned back slightly and closed my eyes. She suddenly reached out, pointed at the blurry photo on the phone, and asked me, “Is this you?” Hearing this, I opened my eyes leisurely and glanced at it casually. Seeing it clearly, I paused. This magnified, blurry picture should be under the light rail in Seattle. Back then, I went to Seattle to film, and he went there because of problems with cooperation abroad, staying for three months. Seattle was hot. The evening breeze by the river carried heat. I wore a loose tank top, blowing a small fan, and wanted to call him during the break. Afraid of disturbing his work, I took pictures of the river scenery for him and told him it was really beautiful and fun here. I sat on a small stool, looking down at the script, and drank a mouthful of ice-cold milk tea. Suddenly a shadow fell on the paper. I looked up in confusion. Julian, wearing a black T-shirt, looked down at me with a smile, the evening breeze blowing his slightly curly hair. Just then, the light rail whizzed by. I jumped up excitedly and hugged him. “You’re back.” “Didn’t you say it would take some time?” He held my waist with one hand, touched his forehead to mine, eyes smiling. “Isn’t this because someone said they wanted to use magic to bring me to your side?” “Magic appeared.” “Oh my.” My ears turned a bit red at his words, but not seeing him for so long, I really missed him. I bit my lip, unable to hide the joy in my eyes, signaling him to lower his head. He chuckled and obediently lowered his head. I smiled and asked him, “Did you miss me?” He smiled and nodded. “Mm.” Hearing this, my eyes curved into a smile, and I turned my head to kiss the corner of his lips. The picture froze here. It should be a netizen casually taking a picture of the light rail, and we standing under the light rail got into the frame. “Mm.” I responded and turned to look out the window. Outside, traffic flowed, neon lights rose, reflecting on the car window, overwhelming. From seventeen to twenty-six, I really thought we would make it to the end, get married, and have a child. But while I was thinking about our future, Julian had already thought it through and come up with the answer. Marrying me wasn’t worth it. 4 Julian and Vanessa were trending again today. The trending topic was: Thorne CEO drops 3 million just to make beauty smile. Just then, I had wrapped up filming and returned to the villa. I took a shower and lay in bed to sleep. When I woke up, it was completely dark outside. Julian had come back at some point and fallen asleep holding me. He slept lightly. I slowly turned over. Then, the arm around my waist tightened, his chest pressed against me, voice raspy. “Awake?” “Mm.” I responded softly, turned over, then opened my eyes with a smile, rubbing my head against his neck. “Julian, Director Zhang is filming a drama recently. I want to be the female lead.” His dark eyes stared at me, thoughts unknown. “Okay? Hmm?” I hugged his lean waist, looking at him expectantly with big eyes. Suddenly, he turned over and pinned me under him, looking at me with a half-smile. I thought for a moment, reached out to hook his neck, stared at his lips, and was about to kiss him. He got up abruptly, picked up the jacket beside him with a cold face, and walked out. I sat up in confusion, watching his sudden change, ran out of bed barefoot, and hugged him from behind. Muffled, I said, “What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly so angry?” Silence filled the huge room. My head rested on his back, a bit baffled. Did he get angry at Vanessa and come to vent on me? “Don’t you have anything to ask me?” “Huh?” He turned around and asked me an even more inexplicable question, staring at me intently. “Do you still love me?” “Mm, how could I not love you?” I lied without blinking, smiling to please my sugar daddy. But he didn’t seem very happy, just hugging me tightly, listening to the sound of his heart rising and falling. Then I heard him whisper, “Is that so?” I had a few days off. Julian didn’t give me a definite answer to what I asked last time. I sat on the sofa frowning, looking upstairs. Didn’t he say he would give me whatever resources I wanted except love? He wouldn’t even give me the female lead in a drama, let alone anything else. If he gets engaged to Vanessa in the future, I really won’t get anything. My eyes rolled. I suddenly remembered the picture my agent showed me last time. Whether that blurry figure was Vanessa or not, netizens didn’t know, but would those who knew Vanessa not know? “Sis, go do something for me.” I took out my phone and said with a smile to my agent opposite. I said, “Don’t worry, nothing will happen.” In this circle, I have seen many couples who were envied from the beginning. They never stingy about expressing love in front of the camera and in private, but in the end, they drifted apart in the fame and fortune field. This lesson of growing up, I think I’m going to graduate. When Mrs. Thorne blocked me in the dressing room, I had expected it. Compared to the panicked looks of my agent and the little assistant, I smiled and waved for them to go out. The exquisitely dressed wealthy lady looked me over coldly and let the bodyguards beside her go out. “Scarlett Brooks?” She called my name disdainfully and sat on the sofa. “Good tricks, even I was fooled.” I smiled. “Auntie, I don’t understand what you mean.” “Heh.” She sneered, throwing a picture on the table with a snap. “The woman in this is you, right? And you were the one who tried every means to let me see the photo, weren’t you?” Then, her index finger wearing an emerald ring tapped on the table. “Since you came to me, state your conditions.” Mrs. Thorne stared at me sharply. “Conditions for leaving my son.” I knew when to stop, opened my mouth slightly, and said softly, “I want resources that can make me an A-list superstar. All of them.” As soon as this was said, the dressing room fell silent for a time. She looked at me with a smile, her eyes cold. “Believe it or not, I can make Scarlett Brooks disappear from the entertainment industry tomorrow.” “I believe it, but Julian won’t. He likes me.” I hooked my red lips and smiled. “Auntie, we’ve been together since we were seventeen. No matter what, he won’t ignore me.” Hearing this, Mrs. Thorne’s face obviously darkened a bit. After a while, she said to me coldly, “I can promise you, but you must also do one thing for me.” I answered crisply, “Okay.” “You haven’t asked what I want you to do?” I tilted my head. “Doesn’t Madam want Julian and Vanessa to be together?” She was stunned for a moment hearing me speak without hesitation, then smiled and said, “Talking to smart people is easy.” She picked up her bag elegantly. “I’ll be waiting for Miss Brooks’ good news. After all, the plane for Fashion Week the day after tomorrow won’t wait.” I hooked the corners of my mouth. “Goodbye, Madam.” Compared to a woman who only wants love, a woman who wants money and benefits will make this wealthy lady more assured.

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My fiancée’s twenty-something assistant loved a good bet, and for the nineteenth time, she’d canceled our wedding because she’d “lost” to him. I warned her again, “Izzy, if you pull this again, I’m marrying someone else.” Isabella Moretti, the CEO of Moretti Global and the woman I was supposed to marry, just laughed, completely unconcerned. “Grant, you literally gave me a kidney. How are you going to marry anyone else?” She tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “And besides, who else would take on damaged goods like you?” On the morning of what was supposed to be our twentieth wedding day, the assistant, Chase Blackwood, sent her a picture of an airport departure board with a ticket stub visible in the corner. It was another one of their absurd wagers. “If you can’t find me in the next thirty minutes, you’ll never see me again, Izzy.” Seeing the flight’s destination—somewhere tropical, no doubt—Isabella’s face went pale with urgency. She ripped off her bespoke veil and sprinted for the door, headed for the airport. Thirty minutes later, Chase posted a story on Instagram: “Someone who truly cares will cross any ocean for you.” I watched the post without reaction, my face a cold mask. Then, I quietly dialed a familiar number. “Dahlia Prescott,” I said, my voice steady despite the tremor in my hands. “Was that promise you made to marry me all those years ago still good?” Her voice came back, bright with excitement. “Really? Of course, it’s good! If it’s you, Grant, my answer is always yes!” … The guests in the grand ballroom were exchanging bewildered glances. In the elite circles of Manhattan society, this was turning into the biggest scandal of the season—and a massive, embarrassing joke. My closest friends and family were fuming on my behalf. “Isabella Moretti is completely deranged, how can she cancel a wedding twenty times for a glorified assistant?!” “Seriously. Grant gave her everything, even a goddamn kidney! Mr. Kensington actually disowned him over it, you know.” Listening to the hushed, angry whispers, a bitter, hollow laugh echoed in my chest. Even strangers understood that this time, Izzy had gone far, far too far with her game. Mrs. Moretti, Izzy’s mother, scurried onto the stage, grabbing my arm. “Grant, darling, just keep the guests occupied. Tell them Izzy had a sudden corporate emergency. Get them to the buffet, please.” I looked at the older woman, the exhaustion in my heart bottomless. “Mrs. Moretti, I’ve used that exact excuse nineteen times. Izzy has walked out on this exact ceremony nineteen times! Do you think these people are fools?” Her expression soured. “We’ve done it this many times, what’s one more?” “You’ve been ‘desperately in love’ with my daughter for ten years,” she continued, a flicker of disdain in her eyes. “Seems like it was all talk.” The sheer entitlement in her tone made me feel physically ill. Memories flashed behind my eyes. Since Chase Blackwood started as Izzy’s assistant two years ago, our wedding date had become a sick, revolving door. Every time, on the day of our scheduled ceremony, Chase would challenge Izzy to a ridiculous wager. And every single time, Isabella would conveniently ‘lose.’ I wasn’t even sure anymore if the losing wasn’t intentional. The first time, she lost a bet and turned the wedding into a black-tie masquerade. Her dance partner? Chase. The second time, she lost again. Chase claimed he’d never worn a groom’s tux, so Izzy handed him my custom jacket and the boutonnière. They played out the entire ceremony, leaving the guests utterly stunned. The third, the fourth… it was always the same result. Her excuse was always a variation of the same lines: “Grant, you have to be understanding. As CEO, I have to be a woman of my word, or how will my staff respect me?” “Besides, Chase was headhunted at a high price. I can’t let him feel slighted.” Thinking back, it was obvious. They were playing a sick game at my expense, on the day I was supposed to have the happiest moment of my life. Did they really think I was that naive? The nineteenth time, their bet was that Chase had one minute to run from the lobby to the wedding stage. The distance was just over a hundred feet, and Chase is six-foot-three—he could have crawled that distance. Chase took his sweet time, sauntering onto the stage, his eyes sweeping over me with a sneer. “You indulge me so much, Izzy. Maybe you do want to marry me. Come on, let me wear the jacket.” Isabella gave him a doting smile. “Well, since you made it up here. I can’t let you leave empty-handed. That tux jacket really suits you.” That day, she even exchanged rings with him. Her explanation to me afterward? “Everyone’s tired from all the excitement. We can have the actual wedding next time.” I knew then that if I had been the man exchanging rings with her that day, our wedding would have gone off without a hitch. That was the closest I had ever come to happiness. Mrs. Moretti was still trying to get me to cover for Izzy. But before I could respond, the double doors swung open. Isabella and Chase walked in, arm in arm. “Izzy, you lost again, by just one second! You have to honor the bet.” Isabella’s tone was as soft as silk. “Fine, what do you want?” Chase feigned generosity. “You’ve had a stressful day. How about you make it up to me by joining me for dinner?” Isabella’s face instantly lit up. “Chase, you’re the only one who truly understands me.” Watching her casually toss the boutonnière and my ring into a nearby trash can, I realized I felt nothing. No anger, no pain. The last shred of hope was gone. I was finally, completely dead inside. I offered a final, polite warning. “Isabella, are you walking out on the wedding again?” She turned back, looking down her nose at me. “Grant, you’re making a fuss over nothing. The auspicious hour has passed anyway. We’ll reschedule the wedding for another day.” In front of every guest, she and Chase simply turned and walked away. A ripple of laughter swept through the ballroom. The son of the respected Kensington family, publicly shamed by a twenty-something assistant. Watching their retreating backs, I managed a genuine, if cold, smile. I called out to them. “Isabella Moretti, let’s make a real wager. I’m betting there won’t be a twenty-first wedding.” She turned back, visibly annoyed. “I told you, I only play these games with Chase. What makes you think you’re worthy of a bet with me?” Ignoring the rising tide of mockery from the guests, I slowly slid my own wedding band from my finger and dropped it into the trash can beside hers. “I’m betting that if there is, Moretti Global will be gone from Manhattan before you can walk down the aisle.” Hearing the threat, Izzy spun back, her eyes burning with hatred. She marched up and slapped me across the face. “Grant Kensington, you know how hard it was to build Moretti Global! You would actually curse my company just because of a canceled wedding?” “Chase was right about you,” she spat. “You are just a selfish, entitled leech.” I let out a soft, mocking laugh. “If you two have already slept together, just get married. Stop using your pathetic little wagers as an excuse to humiliate everyone else.” My voice wasn’t quiet. The entire ballroom was staring. Chase’s face flushed a deep crimson. “Mr. Kensington, Izzy and I maintain a strictly professional, superior-subordinate relationship. You have no right to slander us.” Then, he leaned in and muttered quickly in my ear. “Izzy didn’t let you touch her for ten years, but she was in my bed the first night we met. She could love anyone in the world, Grant, and it would never be you.” He straightened up, gave me a mocking smile, and walked back to Izzy. “Izzy, darling, you still haven’t honored the terms of the last bet. You promised to transfer Mr. Kensington’s shares to my boy Gus. Did you forget?” My blood ran cold. Gus was Chase’s dog. I stared at Izzy, waiting to see if she was truly twisted enough to insult me like this—to choose a glorified pet over the man who bled for her company. A flash of something—maybe hesitation—flickered in her eyes, but it was quickly gone. She pulled a document from her clutch and thrust it into my hands. “Sign it, Grant. I can’t go back on my word in front of my staff.” Her expression was deadly serious. A fresh pang of agony shot through me, but it was just a fleeting ache. I had been the architect of Moretti Global’s success. It was primarily my work that built the company. I remembered a time when her eyes were full of love for me. “Honey, the company is booming. You don’t have to work so hard. You just take care of me and our home, and I’ll give you the majority of the shares so you feel secure.” She couldn’t be apart from me for an hour back then; she’d video call me even during board meetings. Now, I was worth less to her than her assistant’s pampered dog. “Grant, sign it. Stop acting like a child. It’s just a little welcome gift for Gus.” My eyes widened in disbelief. How could she say that without batting an eyelash? “Isabella Moretti, you’re asking me to sign over forty percent of my shares to a dog?”

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I died three years ago. Tossed into the freezing pitch-black of the Pacific by the man I loved and the sister I trusted. Tonight, as the sleek, black cruise ship, The Acheron, sliced through the high seas, the ghost they thought they’d buried was finally ready to collect her debt. I hadn’t even had a chance to announce my return, but from my private suite on the second deck, I watched the main event unfold. My former fiancé, Greg Sullivan, had my half-sister, Brooke Dalton, draped over his arm as he addressed the glittering, oblivious crowd. “Tonight, ladies and gentlemen,” Greg announced, his voice dripping with smug theater, “I present all the surviving relics of Juliet Caldwell!” A cheer rippled through the black-tie crowd. “We’re starting the bidding at one dollar for everything! And yes, that includes her most intimate underthings!” Down on the main floor, I saw my mother, Helen Caldwell—three years his senior and now shockingly frail—pleading, trying to cling to the last shreds of my dignity. But her desperate whisper was met with Greg’s amplified cruelty. “Dignity for a dead woman? If you feel so sorry for her, Helen, why don’t you go join her?” I stood at the floor-to-ceiling window, the crystal wine glass in my hand fracturing beneath my grip. I had planned to wait until we hit the mainland. I had planned a subtle, surgical dismantling. But they had made it easy. They had brought the damn reckoning right to my doorstep. This account, I decided, would be settled with their lives. … 1 Snap! The harsh spotlight instantly centered on Greg. He held up a piece of pale pink lace—a silk chemise, something ridiculously expensive I’d bought in Paris—swinging it like a trophy. “Behold, everyone! The favorite battle-gear of the late, lamented, and clearly loose Juliet Caldwell!” He brought the lace to his nose, inhaling with a repulsive, theatrical sniff. His smile made me want to jump through the glass and claw the skin from his face. “Pre-owned, original scent, and the starting bid… is a single dollar!” The hall exploded in laughter and whistles. “A dollar? Sullivan, the Caldwell heiress’s value has definitely plummeted!” “I’ll offer a dollar fifty! I need a new chew toy for the bulldog!” Up here, in my soundproof VIP suite, I was hidden behind one-way ballistic glass. The crunch of the wine glass in my hand was the only sound I heard. Three years. Everyone believed Juliet Caldwell was fish food. They never imagined I was fished out by the King of the Deep, the true owner of this luxurious, floating hell. The real owner of The Acheron—this casino and pleasure palace—was right here, cold-eyed, separated by glass, already calculating their expiration date. Near the edge of the stage, my mother, her hair now white and her dress threadbare, was being wrestled to the ground by two hulking security guards. Gone was the elegant poise of the Caldwell matriarch. She was gaunt, but her eyes, bloodshot and frantic, were locked on that piece of lace. “That’s Juliet’s… Give it back! Please, give it back!” “What is that mad dog howling about?” Brooke, looking sickeningly chic in a designer gown, sauntered over. The sharp heel of her stiletto slammed down onto my mother’s hand, twisting viciously. “Ahhh!” Mom cried out, her body spasming, but she stubbornly refused to pull her hand away. “Brooke! That was your sister’s… How can you let your fiancé…” “Sister? We might share a father, Helen, but we certainly don’t share a mother.” Brooke seized a handful of Mom’s white hair, yanking her head back, forcing her to look up at the degrading display. “That short-lived fool is feeding the fish! If her cheap relics can earn Greg a little pocket money, it’s her damn blessing!” “If you love her so much, why don’t you buy it back? Oh, wait. Didn’t you spend your last penny on that pathetic little journal a moment ago?” I took a deep, shaky breath, fighting the seismic surge of homicide in my chest. For three years, I had trained in my Godfather’s compound—hell on earth—night and day. I morphed from a delicate debutante into the ruthless CEO of a multi-billion dollar syndicate. All for this moment. I was going to teach them the true meaning of poetic justice. “No cash, huh?” Greg seemed bored by the lack of true spectacle. He hopped off the stage and, like he was teasing an animal, dangled the lace in front of my mother. “Helen Caldwell, I’m feeling generous. I’ll give you a chance.” He pointed a shoe toward a spot on the marble where a guard had just spat a thick wad of phlegm. “Lick that clean, bark three times like a dog, and scream that Juliet Caldwell was a worthless tramp.” “Do that, and I’ll gift you this little scrap.” The hall fell silent for a beat, then erupted in the most insane chorus of cheers. “Lick! Lick! Lick!” Mom lay on the floor, trembling. That was her daughter. Even dead, she’d fight tooth and nail to protect her last shred of dignity. Now, to protect that single thread of memory, she’d have to personally grind it into the dirt. “I… I will bark…” Mom threw herself forward, grabbing Greg’s leg with the desperation of a true animal. “Woof! Woof! Woof!” “Juliet… Juliet was…” “Cut the crap!” Brooke slapped her face. “No curse, no gift! Security, burn the rag!” “No! I’ll curse her! I’ll curse her!” Mom shrieked in horror, slamming her forehead into the marble. Blood instantly bloomed. “Juliet is… is…” Tears poured down her face. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t utter the vile words, instead only repeatedly striking her head against the ground in utter, helpless despair. “Enough.” My eyes burned with unshed tears. My fingers pressed so hard into my palm that the veins stood out like cords. Devlin, my head of security, was beside me. He spoke into my ear, his voice low and tight. “Ma’am, shall we move?” “Not yet.” I watched Brooke prepare to light the lace on fire. A cold smile curled my lip. “Seal every exit. Take the ship to the deepest point of the international zone.” “The louder the laughter now, the sweeter the weeping will be later.” “No one on this boat leaves alive tonight.” 2 “Ugh, so anticlimactic.” Brooke wiped her hands with an exaggerated gesture of disgust and kicked Mom away. “If you can’t say the words, you don’t get the souvenir.” She snapped her fingers. A guard lit a lighter. “No!” Ignoring the blood pouring down her face, Mom clung to the guard’s leg. “Give it to me! Please!” “Get off!” The guard kicked her in the chest. Flames licked the delicate lace. The silk instantly curled into a puff of ash. Mom stared blankly at the dust, a choked, dying animal sound escaping her throat. “Stop the theatrics, it’s bad luck!” Greg straightened his tuxedo tie and returned to the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, the appetizer is over. Now, for the main course… Juliet Caldwell’s private journals!” He held up a thick, yellowed notebook. “Starting bid, still one dollar!” The crowd instantly erupted. “One hundred! I want to read what kind of dirty secrets this heiress had!” “Five hundred! I’ll use it as a bedside read!” Mom’s head snapped up. That was my diary from childhood—my deepest, most innocent secrets. They absolutely could not be desecrated. She fumbled with a small cloth pouch, spilling a handful of crumpled bills onto the floor. “I’ll buy it… I’ll offer everything I have…” She raised her blood-stained hand. “Three thousand two hundred dollars total… Please, give it to me…” “Three thousand two hundred?” Greg sneered, kicking the scattered bills away. “Trying to buy a yacht with spare change, Helen?” He looked toward a planted bidder. A balding man immediately shouted, “Three thousand two hundred and one dollar!” The room roared with laughter. Mom’s face went white. “I can write an IOU! I’ll sell my blood! Please, I beg you…” “Oh, Aunt Helen, no money means no power.” Brooke approached, sipping a glass of red wine. She pointed to a half-full sack of dog kibble in the corner. “See that? Our poodle, Bijou, passed away. It would be a shame to waste her food.” “Eat that entire half-bag—every single piece.” “And I’ll make a charitable donation to your cause by giving you the journal.” In the suite upstairs, Devlin’s hand clenched the hilt of his tactical knife, veins visibly bulging. I watched, expressionless. My nails dug deeper into my palms. Downstairs, Mom looked at the dog food, which was stale and covered in flies. Her stomach turned. But as Greg made a show of threatening to tear the journal, she had no choice. “Fine… I’ll eat it.” She crawled over, grabbing a handful and stuffing it into her mouth. Dry, rancid, gritty. “Gag…” She immediately retched. “Don’t you dare throw up!” Brooke ground her heel into Mom’s back. “Spit out one piece, and I’ll rip out one page!” “Nngh!” Mom clamped her mouth shut, forcing the disgusting mass down her throat. Her esophagus was scraped raw; every swallow tasted like blood. “Ha ha ha! Look, everyone! The former Caldwell Matriarch is eating dog food!” Greg shoved his phone in her face, snapping photos. “This video is going viral!” The flash went off like repeated slaps across her cheek. She mechanically grabbed, mechanically chewed, mechanically swallowed. Half a bag—over a pound of dry kibble. By the end, her mouth was a slurry of blood and crumbs. Her stomach was painfully distended. “Done… I finished it…” She weakly held out her hand. “The journal… Give it to me…” Greg casually tossed the book onto the floor. “Here, take your trash.” Mom clutched the journal to her chest like a newborn, rubbing the cover again and again. “Juliet… Mommy got it back…” As she tried to crawl away, Brooke suddenly stretched out her foot and tripped her. Thump! Mom fell. The journal flew from her embrace, landing directly in a decorative charcoal brazier. “Oops! Butterfingers!” Brooke covered her mouth with a feigned gasp, her eyes shining with malicious glee. Flames instantly devoured the paper. “NO!” Mom let out a soul-shattering scream. Without a second thought, she plunged both her hands directly into the burning charcoal. 3 “AUGH!” Mom writhed in pain, but those hands held the burning journal, refusing to let go. “She’s insane! A total lunatic!” The guests in the front row gasped at the gruesome sight. A few squeamish ones covered their eyes. Mom finally pulled the charred book out, curling into a ball around it. The hands that had once been meticulously manicured were now bubbling and melting, the skin peeled back to raw flesh. “Juliet… Juliet…” Huge tears splashed onto the blackened cover. “Tsk-tsk. Truly touching maternal love.” Brooke waved her hand, fanning the air, before turning to Greg. “Greg, darling, Aunt Helen’s hands look pretty bad. Shouldn’t we help her?” “Help? Of course.” Greg smirked, walking to the bar and grabbing a bottle of high-proof vodka. “They say liquor is the best disinfectant.” He walked over to my mother, unscrewing the cap. “Hold still, Helen. This is for your own good.” Without warning, he dumped the entire bottle of vodka over her already raw, bloody hands! “Aaaahhhh!” Mom screamed, rolling violently on the floor, banging her head against the marble until it bled again. “Ha ha ha! Doesn’t she look like a maggot?” Brooke laughed uncontrollably, filming the whole thing. “Stop yelling!” Greg, annoyed, jammed his foot onto her wrist and twisted. “This is premium vodka, you know! Disinfecting you is a privilege!” In the suite. Snap! The tactical pen in Devlin’s hand snapped in half. His eyes were bloodshot as he looked at me. “Ma’am! Are they even human?! Let me go down there and end this!” I stared at the screen, my fingernails piercing my palms. “It’s not time.” I ground the words out, each one a shard of ice. “I need them to believe they’ve won. I need them to show me all their cards.” “The only way to ensure they’re annihilated is to let them fall from the highest possible point.” Downstairs, Mom was beyond screaming. Her mouth was wide open, struggling for silent breaths. “Alright, enough. No need to kill the old bat; we have one last order of business.” Greg knelt, pulling a document from his inner jacket pocket and tapping Mom’s cheek. “Helen Caldwell, stop playing dead.” “I know you’re still holding on to the deed for the Caldwell ancestral home.” That was the last of my family’s foundation, the house where Mom and I lived for twenty years. Mom saw the transfer agreement and violently shook her head. “No… That’s for Juliet… That’s her home…” “Home? The person’s dead, who needs a home?” Brooke laughed coldly, leaning in close to my mother’s ear, dropping her voice. “Aunt Helen, if you sign this, we’ll show you the last auction item.” “It’s… a piece of your precious sister’s body.” Mom’s clouded eyes suddenly flashed with terrible clarity. “Body… Juliet…” “That’s right. Something the search team recovered with great difficulty.” Greg offered the lure. “Don’t you want to see it? Don’t you want to take her home and bury her?” “I do… I want to…” Mom grabbed the lure like a lifeline, struggling to sit up. “Show me… Please…” “Sign first.” Greg shoved a pen into her hand, pointing to the signature line. “Sign this, and I’ll give you the item.” Her burned hands couldn’t hold the pen. She trembled, clamping the pen between her two wrists, enduring the searing pain to scrawl her name in a shaky, crooked line. “It’s signed… Give it to me…” Mom pushed the agreement back, her eyes pathetically desperate. Greg snatched the document, checked it, and exchanged a look with Brooke. They exploded in triumphant, deranged laughter. “Ha ha ha ha! The Caldwell ancestral home is finally ours!” “The Caldwells are officially wiped out!” Brooke stuffed the agreement into her purse and clapped her hands. “Fine, since you were a good girl, we’ll give you a peek.” “Bring out the main event!” The lights dimmed. A hostess brought out a tray covered with a deep red cloth. The entire audience held its breath. Greg ripped off the cloth. It was a large glass jar, filled with pale yellow formaldehyde. In the center of the liquid floated a grayish-white human heart. “Everyone!” Greg’s voice echoed in the stunned silence. “This is the heart recovered during Juliet Caldwell’s autopsy!” 4 “My… My Juliet…” Seeing that heart floating in the formalin, the last spark of life seemed to drain from my mother. She stumbled toward the display, pressing her face against the cold glass, staring ravenously at the grayish-white tissue. “It’s Juliet’s… I knew she was still here… Mommy’s taking you home…” She was muttering incoherently, reaching out with her scabbed, burned hands to pick up the jar. “Hold on!” Brooke slapped her hand down on the lid. “Aunt Helen, this is our main event tonight.” She raised an eyebrow, smiling a blend of seductive and savage. “You want it? The starting bid is ten million dollars.” “Ten million…” Mom collapsed onto the floor in despair. The journal had drained her savings, the deed was signed away. She couldn’t even produce a single dollar. “I don’t have any money… I truly don’t…” She was on her knees, bowing and banging her head until her forehead was a bloody mess. “Brooke, Greg, please have mercy… Let me take Juliet home…” “No money?” Greg stroked his chin, his gaze running over my mother’s body. Then, a twisted, predatory smile stretched his face. “No money, no problem. We can trade, can’t we?” He pulled a sharp utility knife from his pocket and threw it, clang, onto the floor in front of her. “Helen Caldwell, they say, ‘a heart for a heart.’” “Since you want your daughter’s heart so badly, why don’t you… carve out yours and trade it with us?” The room burst into a horrified murmur. This was beyond cruel—it was psychological murder. Mom stared at the knife, her body shaking violently. But when her eyes returned to the glass jar, the fear vanished, replaced by a terrifying, desperate finality. “Fine…” She picked up the knife, gripping the handle tightly with both hands. “If it brings Juliet back… I’ll give it… I’ll give everything…” “No! Don’t do it!” “Juliet Caldwell is dead! You need to snap out of it!” A few guests, genuinely disturbed, shouted out. But Brooke, phone in hand, screamed excitedly, “Dig it out! Let’s see if the Caldwell Matriarch’s heart is black!” Mom ignored the noise. She looked at the heart in the jar, and a look of profound relief crossed her face. “Don’t be afraid, Juliet… Mommy is coming to join you…” The tip of the blade pressed against her chest. Blood instantly soaked her gown. “Juliet, Mommy is here…” She closed her eyes, bracing her muscles, preparing to plunge the blade deep into her own heart. In that critical, heart-stopping instant! “ZZZZZZZZ!!!” A deafening microphone feedback screech ripped through the hall! Everyone instinctively covered their ears. Then, every single light in the ballroom died. “Who’s there?!” Greg screamed in panic. “Security! What the hell is going on?!” No one answered him. The next second. WHUMPH! A blinding spotlight snapped on, aimed at the second-floor VIP balcony. The glare was so intense no one could see clearly. I stood in the center of the light beam, microphone in hand, looking down on the ants below. “Greg Sullivan. Brooke Dalton.” “Using a pig’s heart to mock my own?” “Did you truly think you could do that without my permission?”

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In the world of modern dark fantasy novels, I was the “Starter Girlfriend”—the one with zero screen time and a predictable fate. My boyfriend, Silas, was the Chosen One. Three years ago, when the Red Mist first descended and the world fractured, he awakened. He fought through the Rifts, became a savior, and naturally, gathered a “harem” of brilliant, powerful women. I was just the childhood sweetheart—boring, patient, and perpetually waiting at home. Until that thunderstorm night, when I broke the rules and opened the door for a soaking-wet, beautiful boy. From that moment on, the script didn’t just change. It shattered. 1 The rain slammed against the glass like a frantic drum. Through the peephole, a beautiful boy stood there, his clothes in tatters. His voice was cold, thin, and carried a hint of fear: “Hello? Is anyone there?” I glanced at him, then at my phone. My wallpaper was a jarring blood-red with distorted black text: [MIDNIGHT.] [DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR TO STRANGERS.] The time was [11:54 PM]. I watched him for a moment. He was strikingly handsome—sharp features, red lips, and a pale complexion that looked almost fragile. He had a broken beauty that made people want to pity him. “Hello,” I whispered, opening the door after a beat of hesitation. “Can I help you?” “Hi… Sister.” He looked down, his ears flushing red. “Could I have something to eat?” When I didn’t answer, his lashes trembled. He looked at me with clear, pleading eyes and tugged on my sleeve. “I’m really hungry.” “Come in.” I checked my phone: [11:58 PM]. I stepped aside, and he brushed past me. A wave of biting cold radiated from him. I locked the door just before the clock struck twelve. He stood there barefoot on the floor, his damp hair veiling his eyes. “Are you lost?” I asked, finding him a pair of men’s slippers. He didn’t move at first. He stared at the shoes on my feet, then stepped into them with an eerie, uncoordinated grace. “Yes. Thank you, Sister.” Outside, the horizon turned a sickly red. A crimson mist was surging through the city like a flood. 2 The kitchen light was bright and clinical. I sat Caleb down at the table and watched him. “What’s your name?” “Caleb.” “Caleb?” I paused. “Is it a bad name?” He looked down, his fingers curling. “No, it’s beautiful. Why don’t you take a hot shower?” I led him to the bathroom. When I grabbed his wrist, I felt him shaking. “Are you sick?” I pressed my palm to his forehead. Caleb’s lashes fluttered. He stared at my neck, his tongue flicking out to lick his red lips. So sweet… I want to eat her. He parted his lips, revealing teeth that were white and sharp—far stronger than any beast. “Your head isn’t hot,” I said, pulling back. Caleb instantly reverted to his harmless, shy state. “Sister, I’m hungry.” He was thin but tall. Since the “Anomalies” started three years ago, the world had been a mess. Looking at his rags, I wondered if he had been abandoned. I patted his head. “How long has it been since you ate?” “A long time.” But today, he thought, I’ll have a feast. I started a bath for him and brought a silk robe. “My boyfriend doesn’t live here,” I explained. “You’ll have to make do with this.” “Boyfriend?” Caleb repeated the word, his voice dropping into a register I didn’t recognize. “Yes.” I turned to leave. He caught my wrist. “Don’t lock me in.” “It’s just a shower,” I said gently. He wouldn’t let go. “Can you teach me? I don’t know how to wash.” Outside, the Red Mist hit the building. Eerie whispers began to echo in the hallway. I looked at the boy and nodded. I showed him the soap and the bubbles. “See? It’s easy.” Caleb stood dangerously close. I noticed a small mole below his lip—identical to the one my boyfriend had. “Can you take your clothes off?” I asked. He looked at his shirt. “Do I… tear it?” “No, you unbutton it.” I reached out and undid the top button, revealing a sharp collarbone. Caleb nodded. He tried to mimic me, but his movements were clumsy. Pop. A button flew off. “I’m sorry…” He flushed. “It’s okay.” With my help, he managed the rest. Beneath the rags was a body of lean, corded muscle. But there was a jagged scar over his heart and another on his palm. “Does it hurt?” I touched the scar on his chest. Caleb’s eyes turned a hazy red. He craved the touch. The monster told its first lie: “Yes. It hurts.” I kissed his palm. “There. A kiss to make it better.” “It hurts here too,” he said, pressing my hand to his heart. I smiled but pulled away. “I’ll cook. You shower. What do you want to eat?” “Meat,” Caleb said, his eyes dark. “Fresh meat.” 3 The wind was howling now. The Red Mist smeared the windows. Occasionally, a massive talon would scrape against the glass. I started some steak and peppers and a pot of pumpkin soup. Suddenly, my phone buzzed. It was a call from my boyfriend—the hero of this story: Silas. Caleb stepped out of the bathroom, water dripping from his hair. “Sister?” I picked up the phone. Silas’s voice was deep and cold. “Still awake?” “Yeah. Had a nightmare.” “I’ll be back tomorrow,” Silas said. “Do you want anything?” “No.” Silas sounded annoyed. “You’re quiet tonight. Nothing to say to me?” In the mist outside, a giant crimson eye pressed against the glass, peering in. It locked onto Caleb and contracted in pure terror before vanishing. A loud crash came from the kitchen. Caleb was staring at a broken plate. He had grabbed a piece of raw steak and was about to shove it into his mouth. “It’s not clean when it’s raw,” I said, snatching it away. “Who was that?” Silas’s voice sharpened through the phone. I could hear the flirtatious laughter of women and the shrieks of monsters in his background. “Nobody,” I said, wiping a tear from Caleb’s eye. “Just a lost kid. He’s a bit of a crybaby, but he’s cute.” “A kid?” Silas growled. “That sounded like a man.” “You always have women around you, Silas.” “That’s different—” “How?” I interrupted. The sound of a building collapsing echoed on his end. Silas hung up. Caleb was staring at my phone. “Can I play with it?” I handed it to him. In the living room, Caleb’s grip on the phone tightened. Why did she talk to him for so long? She should only look at me. Shadows bled from his feet. Thousands of eyes opened on the walls, all fixed on the kitchen with primal hunger. I’ll have to kill him, Caleb thought. 4 “How is it? Good?” I asked Caleb. “Sister…” His forehead was damp with sweat. He was panting from the spice of the chili, tears in his eyes. “So spicy.” “Beef and peppers. Of course it’s spicy.” I turned to get milk. Caleb was suddenly right behind me, teeth bared. I pinched his cheek and rubbed his swollen lips. “Drink some milk.” He blinked, stunned by the touch, and took the milk. When I brought out a massive plate of celery and beef, his eyes lit up. “Meat raw is bad, cooked is better?” I asked. “Yes,” he nodded. “Eat your vegetables.” He tried to refuse, but I was firm. “Or I won’t cook for you again.” He pouted but ate. “Every day?” Caleb whispered, thinking about the word. “Yes. Every day.” I dried his hair. Caleb looked at the leftovers. The feast would be later. The monster was patient. 5 Caleb helped wash the dishes. He learned fast. At 2:30 AM, I went to my room. Caleb pushed the door open. “I want to sleep with you.” His eyes were pure. A monster doesn’t know shame. “No. It’s not appropriate.” “Why?” He hugged my waist, rubbing his head against me. “Sister, I’m scared.” I sighed and made him a bed on the floor. He still pouted. “I want to hold you.” “Not yet.” I kissed his forehead. “Be good.” As I slept, something cold wrapped around my waist. Someone bit my shoulder. I murmured “It hurts,” and the grip tightened. So fragile. So delicious. 6 I woke up at 9 AM. The mist was gone. Cleaners were removing monster remains from the street. I told Caleb to stay home while I went to buy groceries. “I want to go too,” he said, wearing my silk robe. He looked like a girl from behind, but he was clearly a boy. I found Silas’s old high school uniform in the closet. “Wear this.” Caleb emerged in the blue-and-white uniform. He looked clean, sharp, and incredibly innocent. “Is it weird?” he asked, his ears red. “No. It fits perfectly.” 7 I gave Caleb a mask and a hat before we left. He held my hand tightly as we walked. I bought him clothes and then headed for the grocery store to stock up on meat. At the entrance, Silas was there. Beside him was Gwen, an heiress and one of his harem members. They were laughing. “Why are you leaving?” Silas caught my wrist, his voice deep and confused. “Just buying food. Sorry for interrupting your date.” “It’s just a coincidence,” Silas explained. Gwen stepped forward too. “Don’t misunderstand, Lyra.” “I don’t,” I smiled. “I know you’re ‘just’ friends for now.” I pushed my cart away. Silas followed. “Are you sure you can eat all this meat?” “A kid is staying with me,” I said. “Lyra!” He pulled me into his arms to kiss me. I dodged. Suddenly, the Red Mist rushed into the mall. Screams erupted. Silas’s phone rang—it was Gwen, sobbing. In the original book, Silas saves Gwen here, and their romance blooms. I wasn’t even supposed to be here. “Wait for me,” Silas said, looking at me. “I won’t,” I replied, stepping out of his reach. “I didn’t ask you to choose me.” Silas hesitated, then gave me his black star charm. “Stay here.” He ran into the mist. I took the charm and threw it on the floor. A worm-like monster lunged at me. I pulled a knife from my bag and hacked it in half. 8 Monsters were everywhere. The blood was thick and foul. I slashed through another creature. Blood splattered my face. Behind the corpse, a shadow appeared. It was Caleb. “Sister!” He hugged me, ignoring the blood. “I almost lost you. I’m glad you’re okay.” The smell here is disgusting, he thought. But my food is still sweet. He remembered the other monster he just killed in the mist—the one that tried to touch his food. “I smell bad,” I said. “No. You smell good.” I dropped my knife and hugged him back. 9 Dinner was a feast: ribs, pork hock, beef brisket. Caleb ate until his face was messy. I wiped it with a silk scarf. “Don’t eat so fast.” His eyes were dark. My hands were soft. He wanted to bite them. Something slimy brushed my ankle. I looked down—nothing. Caleb looked excited. Later, I gave him a tablet to watch TV. He watched a romance show where the leads kissed. “Can I be your boyfriend?” he asked, holding a teddy bear. “Why?” “I want to kiss you.” “Only boyfriends do that.” “Did your boyfriend kiss you?” Caleb asked, a lethal glint in his eyes. “Not for a long time.” “Then break up with him. Let me do it.” “No,” I whispered. “I haven’t officially ended it yet.” “Does it have to be official?” His eyes welled with tears. “I really want to, Sister.” I kissed his cheek to stop the crying. 10 My parents died when I was in high school. My grandparents followed soon after. I was alone. I once sat under a peach tree with a knife, ready to end it. Silas stopped me. “Are you crazy?” he asked. He took the knife. His hand bled, staining the soil. “If you die, take me with you.” He became my boyfriend that day. He was gentle, protective, and clingy. But then he started entering the “Rifts.” He became a hero. He had enemies, teammates, and women. I couldn’t follow him into that world.

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My husband’s “first love” was raped and pregnant, and I, the lawful wife, also happened to be pregnant. On the day of delivery, Gavin Sterling handed me a divorce agreement at my bedside. “Lila wants to make a comeback, there can be no scandals. You have to make room for her and the child.” I picked up the pen and signed cleanly. In my previous life, I refused to divorce, holding my son and crying on a live stream, ruining her future. She was cancelled by the whole internet, lost all her family assets, and slit her wrists. Later, Gavin handled her funeral calmly. Then he tacitly allowed her followers to create an “accident”, burying the lives of me and my child. It wasn’t until the moment I closed my eyes that I understood the chill in his eyes when he turned away. He wished me dead. Opening my eyes again, I returned to the moment he handed me the divorce agreement. Chapter 1 Because of premature birth, my son Leo was sent to the NICU as soon as he was born. Gavin handed me a divorce agreement at this time. “You know, Lila was a Prima Ballerina before the accident. These months have already made her miss the performance season.” “If the scandal of having a child out of wedlock breaks out again, her dance career will be completely ruined.” I just came out of the operating room, now every slight movement pulled the stitches on my abdomen. Since I was reborn to this day, it means God wants to give me a chance to choose again. “Divorce is fine, but handle the child’s birth certificate first, and I want compensation.” Gavin had prepared a long speech to persuade me. Now hearing me accept calmly, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, two hundred thousand, enough right?” Gavin is the heir to the group, but only willing to give me two hundred thousand. I pinched the edge of the sheet, knowing it was useless to argue more, could only nod. He went to handle the certificate, I signed after confirming it was correct. Getting the agreement, Gavin couldn’t wait to find Lila. Not even a thought of looking at our child. In the next ward there was laughter and joy, family taking pictures around the newborn. Only I was alone, husband at this moment had become a stranger. Two days later Leo came out of the NICU. I wrapped the child in a soft swaddle, preparing to leave the hospital. Before getting in the car, I received a message from the secretary: “Miss Serena, please cooperate with forwarding the group’s statement.” Not yet officially divorced, I was already unworthy of the title “Mrs. Sterling”. To maintain Lila’s image, Gavin asked me to declare to the public that the divorce was due to fading feelings. I agreed, but my phone was about to die, planned to deal with it after going home. Back to the villa, I asked the butler to turn up the AC temperature, but no one answered. Holding the child towards the nursery, I heard them whispering in the kitchen. “Shameless, daring to bring back a child born of an affair.” “Young Master was soft-hearted not to pursue, she is not grateful but wants to split the property!” My steps paused, under heavy loungewear, cold sweat soaked my back. Agreed on fading feelings, how did it become me cheating? “What nonsense are you talking about!” I pushed open the kitchen door. The servants who used to respectfully call me “Young Madam” looked up, eyes full of contempt. Mrs. Zhao, the nanny, was the boldest, snorting directly at me. “Who’s talking nonsense? The statement is out, you were unfaithful in marriage and won’t let people say?” I hurried back to the room, turned on the news after charging the phone, the trending topic was “Sterling Heir Divorce Announcement”. “Due to Ms. Serena’s unfaithful behavior during the marriage, Mr. Gavin Sterling has terminated the marital relationship, hereby declared.” My brain roared, temples throbbing. Gavin, to pave the way for Lila, didn’t hesitate to completely ruin my reputation! Just as I wanted to defend myself in the comment section, the phone suddenly vibrated, waking up Leo in my arms. After answering, that familiar police officer’s voice was excited: “Ms. Serena, there’s a breakthrough in the case! You were taken from The Hamptons!” “We have combined with local police to screen missing children files, you need to come for a DNA test ASAP!” Heart broken by Gavin suddenly rekindled hope, tears fell silently. Since being kidnapped to this city at six, I haven’t felt the warmth of family again. I thought marrying Gavin was a new life, unexpectedly it was another disaster. But now, I might find my biological parents, my child can also have relatives who truly love him! Hanging up, I quickly packed simple luggage, turned to the nursery to get some necessities. Just holding the doorknob, the villa door was pushed open violently. “Serena, who allowed you to touch the things inside?” Gavin frowned, looking displeased. “I just want to get some change of clothes for the child.” “Those are prepared for Lila’s child, buy your own if you need.” Every item in the nursery was carefully selected by me during pregnancy. Now he wants to give them all to Lila’s child. Even though that child has no blood relation to him. I suppressed the bitterness in my heart, didn’t argue at this moment. Mrs. Zhao suddenly grabbed me with a stern face, dragging me out: “Young Master ordered us to go to the rehab center to take care of Miss Lila.” I was pulled until the wound hurt, said urgently: “I also just gave birth, need to rest!” Gavin didn’t look back: “So you have experience.” “Stop nagging, you grew up working hard, body is good, don’t need postpartum recovery.” He sat in the sedan, I was pushed into the van heading to the rehab center. Upon arrival, Lila was leaning on a recliner, five or six nursing staff attending. Seeing me, she pretended to get up: “Sister-in-law is here, please sit, hard work giving birth…” Gavin gently held her down, glanced at me: “She could get out of bed with a fever before, this is nothing.” “Serena, as long as you take good care of Lila, I’ll add another fifty thousand, good deal right?” Adding fifty thousand, indeed tempting. I bit my lip: “No, my child is alone at home unattended.” A trace of impatience flashed in his eyes, but Lila pulled his hand softly. “Brother Gavin, if Sister-in-law doesn’t want to take care of me, don’t force her, I don’t want to make it difficult for you.” Gavin held her hand tight, looking at me with only disgust: “Letting you take care of Lila is giving you a chance. You, an orphan with no one to rely on, marrying me brings no benefit, can’t even do this little thing well. Now serving Lila well is your only value.” He habitually belittled me, completely ignoring my pale face. Waved hand to let Mrs. Zhao go back to take care of the child. But Mrs. Zhao always looked down on me, how could she take care of the child sincerely! Gavin ignored me, ordered me to feed Lila nutritious meal. I looked back at the closed door, knowing I couldn’t leave for now. Had to drag my weak body to prepare meal for Lila. A spoonful of stew just sent to her lips, she suddenly leaned back, crying out in pain: “Hot!” Gavin snatched the bowl and threw it at my feet, soup splashing wet my pant leg. “What temper are you throwing! Burning Lila, you don’t think about eating today!” Lila leaned on his shoulder, teary-eyed: “Brother Gavin don’t be angry, Sister-in-law didn’t mean it…” “Don’t call her Sister-in-law, go handle divorce procedures tomorrow!” I was left aside, covered in stains, but no one cared. Chapter 2 The next day Gavin took me away from the rehab center and handled the divorce procedures. Walking out of the registration office, he got into the car on his own. “I’m going to order performance costumes for Lila, go back yourself.” He said with a dark face: “Serena, if you don’t arrive at the rehab center within forty minutes, bear the consequences yourself.” Car drove away, I turned to hail a taxi back to the villa. Just entering the gate, heard baby crying from the backyard storage room. That’s where gardening tools are stored! I rushed in, saw Leo casually placed on the cold stone platform. Beside clearly had prepared formula and diapers, but his little face was purple, crying weak. He probably hadn’t eaten since yesterday! Nor changed diaper! No time to argue with Mrs. Zhao, I picked up the child to feed and change. While burping him, Leo gave me a blurry smile, my eyes heated up, tears falling on his clothes. Lila’s child is cared for by everyone, my child is forgotten, even food and warmth are problems. “Leo don’t fear, Mommy takes you away.” Suddenly smashing door sound from outside, I just opened the door, Gavin’s slap arrived. “Serena! You dare bring shady people home!” I protected Leo, pushed into the living room by Gavin. Lila wrapped in shawl, surrounded by nursing staff followed in. Scene inside shocked me: Several strange men lying on the carpet in disorder, smell of alcohol soaring. Home in mess, seemed just experienced revelry. People sleeping in bedroom and study, even three people lying on master bedroom bed, clothes messy. I shook head in panic: “Not me! I didn’t enter the main house yesterday at all!” Mrs. Zhao stepped forward, heartbroken said: “Young Master, a group of people broke in last night, said Miss Serena gave them key card, invited them to party…” “They disliked baby crying noisy, so moved child to storage room…” I trembled all over, defended urgently: “I don’t know them! And yesterday I was at rehab center, how to give them key card?” “Yeah… Sister-in-law was taking care of me yesterday, Brother Gavin, why not ask these people?” Lila gently pulled Gavin’s sleeve. His cold face slightly eased, ordered to wake up the nearest man. “Who let you in!” Man drunk: “A woman named Serena gave key card, said this house empty, invited us to play… open another bottle!” What he shook in hand was exactly my access card, with a Chinese knot I braided myself hanging on it. I subconsciously touched pocket, empty. “No, my card lost, not me!” “Still dare to quibble! If not for Lila worrying about you, insisting coming back to stay, I wouldn’t know you had such dirty thoughts!” “You clearly wanted to fool around with these people here!” Gavin more impatient, ordered Mrs. Zhao to lock me into storage room. Behind came Lila’s soft persuasion: “Brother Gavin, Sister-in-law just playful, don’t be angry…” “Not punishing won’t remember! This house dirty, we go to South City apartment!” Storage room door locked dead, I watched through window as they drove away. Lila in the crowd looked back, giving me a victor’s smile. Late night, finally coaxed Leo to sleep, light suddenly went out. Thought storage room wiring aging, I opened phone to check ticket. Suddenly heard unlocking sound, Lila appeared under cold moonlight. Without others, her eyes surged with naked viciousness. “Divorced still want money? Serena, how are you so shameless!” I immediately protected Leo retreating to corner, narrow space nowhere to escape. “Lila, I never offended you, why press me repeatedly!” “Never offended? If not for you, the one marrying Gavin should be me!” I froze. Indeed, a person of unknown origin like me didn’t deserve entering Sterling family. Back then Grandpa Sterling had sudden brain hemorrhage fell on street, I sent him to hospital paid medical fee. Old man to repay kindness, threatened severing relationship to make Gavin marry me. We only registered, didn’t even have wedding. After marriage Gavin treated me as air, until one night he drunk broke into my room. Hit jackpot once. Grandpa Sterling died when I was two months pregnant, my last reliance gone. So Lila determined I stole her life? “You already got what you wanted, why kill all?” “No! If not you registered with Gavin, how would I go to bar drink, how have this bastard seed!” “All blame you! Serena, I want you to pay with life!” She grabbed corner gardening shears stabbing over, I dodged in panic. Next second she suddenly screamed shrilly, slammed hard against iron shelf edge, fell to ground. Gavin rushed in: “Serena! Are you crazy!” Lila’s arm bleeding, weakly fell in his arms: “Brother Gavin, I feared Sister-in-law uncomfortable here, came specially to visit…” “Who knew she scolded me as dancer, and hurt me…” Gavin pressed her wound distressedly, glaring at me: “Serena! Lila yields everywhere, why you push your luck!” “She still has to return to stage, you want ruin her dancing life!” Leo scared crying non-stop, I comforted while questioning: “Gavin, you believe whatever she says?” “Who else besides you! I saw enough of your poor and vicious face!” Gavin picked up Lila, signaled Mrs. Zhao to restrain me. “Go to hospital with me! If Lila scars affecting performance, I make you pay double!” Chapter 3 In hospital corridor, Mrs. Zhao lazy to mind me, went to end scrolling phone. Leo crying non-stop, I coaxed low, but he hard to calm due to fright. A lady with gentle temperament walked out from neighbor clinic, seeing me holding baby, handed a pack of tissues. “Wipe sweat, child maybe hungry.” Lady smiled gently, I nodded gratefully. Stranger’s kindness actually better than child’s biological father. Just changed diaper, seeing Mrs. Zhao still looking at phone, I held Leo wanting to go to stairwell. But ran into Gavin bringing Lila hurriedly. Moment looking up, another slap. “Bitch! Should have confiscated your ID earlier!” I stumbled from hit, Mrs. Zhao also surrounded. When I stood steady, Lila’s arm wrapped in gauze, sobbing in public: “Sister-in-law, before you divorced Gavin, we were just old acquaintances.” “How can you slander me as third party online, ruining me like this, better let me die!” Gavin held her, under eye signal, Mrs. Zhao took chance snatching Leo. “Return child to me!” I rushed forward, but Gavin choked my neck hard. Until I breathing difficult, face red then let go. “Start livestream now, admit you cheated, me and Lila innocent!” “Otherwise, you never see child again!” I gasped heavily, glimpsed Mrs. Zhao under Lila’s hint, covering handkerchief on Leo’s mouth and nose. She wants to suffocate my child! Leo’s crying weak, Gavin turned blind eye! He never treated Leo as biological flesh and blood! I knelt in terror: “Okay! I agree! Beg you don’t touch my child!” Before livestream camera, I held child, tears like rain admitting all “crimes”. “I am Gavin Sterling’s ex-wife Serena, divorced due to infidelity in marriage. Ms. Lila is innocent with him, everything is my rumor, my shamelessness, my jealousy…” Livestream ended, Gavin threw a new phone. “Sensible enough. This is new number, convenient for Lila to contact you.” “Lila soft-hearted, afraid you starve outside, left you nanny position…” I took phone obediently, sat in arranged car. Then taking advantage of red light interval, threw phone, held child ran straight to airport. Taxi sped in rain, my heart hit chest violently with wiper swinging. Leo twisted uneasily in arms, seemed to feel mother’s anxiety. I dared not look back, afraid that familiar black sedan followed behind like ghost. I knew, since Gavin confiscated my ID and phone, must thought I couldn’t fly. But he didn’t know, in previous life to cure Leo, I secretly sewed a interlayer in Leo’s small quilt, inside hidden that pair of jade earrings Grandpa Sterling gave me when married, and some private cash I saved these years. Arrived airport, bought a nearest flight ticket to The Hamptons with cash at counter. No ID was big trouble, luckily that police officer before to let me go over ASAP, sent me a police electronic investigation letter and extraction code for temporary ID, I operated trembling hands on kiosk for long time, finally got that thin paper. Until plane rushed into clouds, looking at city gradually becoming small outside window, I dared to let out a long breath. That city, buried my previous life, also almost buried my current life.

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For twenty years, I had been a single mother to three children, and I thought the hard part was finally over. The kids were grown. We were finally breathing. I was wrong. My youngest, Daisy, had just been diagnosed with a serious illness, and my eldest, Chelsea, was planning her wedding. That’s when she hit me with the demand. “Mom, Brent’s family is giving us thirty thousand for the bride price. I just need you to match it, maybe a little more, say thirty-two thousand for my moving allowance,” Chelsea said, her tone perfectly reasonable, as if asking for thirty-two thousand dollars was the same as asking for a ride to the grocery store. “You don’t want me to look cheap in front of his family, do you?” I kept my voice calm, though my chest felt tight. “Chelsea, I’m not touching your fiancé’s money. Your brother, Noah, is still in college, and your sister, Daisy, is sick. I simply don’t have thirty-two thousand dollars to give you for a car or whatever you’re planning to use it for.” Her pleasant expression immediately soured. “Daisy isn’t on her deathbed, is she? Can’t her treatment wait?” she argued. The sheer audacity of the question stole my breath. “And Noah? Can’t he take out student loans? Why do you always play favorites? What kind of mother doesn’t provide a nest egg for her daughter’s wedding? Honestly, what is the difference between this and just selling me off?” Ignoring the sudden, icy dread in my stomach, she kept going, her voice rising in pitch. “If you couldn’t afford us, you shouldn’t have had so many children! Not having kids is a kindness when you’re poor, but having them just to make them suffer—that’s cruel, Mom! That’s just being awful.” She stared me down, her gaze flinty. “If you don’t come up with that money, consider this the end. You won’t have a daughter in me anymore.” I felt a monumental weight lift off my shoulders, immediately replaced by a terrible, empty ache. I let out a slow, heavy exhale. “Fine. Then from today forward, I don’t have an eldest daughter.” 1 Chelsea froze, then her eyes welled up with performative, angry tears. “I knew it! You never loved me, not once, my whole life!” she shrieked, the sound cracking with manufactured indignation. “If this were Daisy getting married, you wouldn’t just cough up thirty-two thousand, you’d sell a kidney for sixty! I bet I was found in a dumpster!” Her outburst grew louder and more hysterical, drawing the attention of our elderly neighbors in the hallway. My chest was pounding; a heavy, suffocating sense of failure and exhaustion clogged my throat. Never in a million years did I think the child I risked my life to bring into this world would, twenty-five years later, feel like a bullet tearing through my heart. She saw none of it. She saw none of the years of agonizing work, the constant state of near-poverty, the humbling and dirty jobs I took just to keep a roof over their heads. She saw only an evil, withholding mother who refused her a cash prize for getting married. In a white-hot flash of pure, reactive fury, I pointed toward the apartment door. “That’s right! I did find you in a dumpster! Now get out! Get the hell out of my house!” The neighbors started to intervene, telling me not to say such wounding things, while also trying to reason with Chelsea. “Chelsea, your mother has raised three kids on her own for decades, got you all into college—that’s a miracle in itself,” Mrs. Henderson said gently. “With Daisy’s medical bills right now, you have to be understanding. It’s not that she doesn’twant to give you the money, it’s that she simply can’t.” Chelsea didn’t listen. She sniffled dramatically, shoved the neighbor aside, and slammed the door hard enough to shake the old plaster. Hollowed out, I let myself cry a few silent, ice-cold tears, then quickly wiped them away. I had to get Daisy’s dinner ready and take it to the hospital. On the bus, my son Noah texted me. “Mom, I found a part-time job. You don’t need to send me my allowance anymore.” “It won’t affect my classes, I promise. Don’t worry about me.” Right after the text, a thousand dollars popped into my account, with instructions to use it on good food or supplements for his sister. The contrast struck me like a physical blow. They were both my children, conceived and raised in the same house, but separated by a staggering, cruel gulf. When I arrived at the hospital, Daisy wasn’t resting. She was sitting up in bed, an IV drip attached to her arm, working on her laptop. She was only in her first year of college, but she had already picked up some freelance work online. Two weeks ago, they found the benign tumor. The doctors were clear: an immediate operation was necessary, or it would quickly turn malignant, and no amount of money could buy back a life then. To get her the surgery as fast as possible, I had negotiated with my employer, taking a three-year advance on my salary—a flat twenty thousand dollars—the very week Chelsea made her demand. I had no choice. Daisy’s life, not Chelsea’s wedding, came first. Suddenly, Daisy’s phone rang—a video call from Chelsea. I heard the instant, wailing accusation before Daisy could even say hello. “Daisy, you won’t believe how Mom is acting. Every other mother is throwing parties and setting up their daughters with trust funds. She’s giving me nothing, and she told me to get lost! It’s all about Noah. She’s keeping the money for him. She doesn’t care if we sink or swim.” 2 Daisy saw me enter the room and quickly tried to play mediator, looking embarrassed and frail. “Sis, you’ve got it all wrong. Mom treats all three of us exactly the same.” “The hell she does! If she treated us the same, would she send me off with nothing? She’s setting me up to be completely humiliated by Brent’s family!” Chelsea shouted, cutting her off midsentence. “Look, I don’t care what Mom says, she will give me the money,” Chelsea insisted, her voice now hard and demanding. “I’m not an idiot. I’m not letting her off the hook that easily. This is her responsibility to me as a mother.” I snatched the phone from Daisy’s hand. I was shaking with fury. “You drop this right now, Chelsea! You stop this vicious selfishness!” I spat into the phone. “You are a black hole of need! If you had a shred of decency, you wouldn’t be putting your sister through this right now!” I hung up before she could respond and turned to Daisy. “Don’t believe a word your sister says. You focus on getting better. The house and everything else is my problem.” Tears welled up in Daisy’s eyes. She held my hand, guilt radiating off her small frame. “If I wasn’t sick, you’d have the money for her. I’m so sorry, Mom.” It took a while for me to soothe her. After that horrible argument, Chelsea went silent for a few days, and honestly, I was too busy with work and the hospital to care. But the day before Daisy’s surgery, I caught something on her screen. She was transferring money. The amount stopped me dead. $32,000. “Where did you get that money? Why are you sending your sister thirty-two thousand dollars?” I demanded, my voice raw with disbelief. She couldn’t hide it anymore. “I took out a student loan—a campus-based private loan, Mom. I know I can pay it back once I graduate. I just… I didn’t want the wedding money to be the thing that tears us apart forever. We’re already a struggling family; I don’t want us to stop being a family completely.” I wanted to hug her for her kindness and shake her for her stupidity. “You sweet, foolish child. That’s a predatory loan. The interest will eat you alive!” Without another word, I found Chelsea’s chat history with Daisy. Chelsea had been feeding her a constant stream of self-pity, complaints about being the family’s neglected elder sister who raised the younger kids, and accusations about my failure as a mother. She had explicitly goaded Daisy into taking the loan. The coldness I felt was absolute. I thought Chelsea was just angry, saying hurtful things in the heat of the moment. Now I realized her heart was simply stone cold—a heart I had spent twenty-seven years trying, and failing, to warm. I immediately contacted the loan company and reversed the transaction. In less than 24 hours, the predatory fees had already cost us two thousand dollars. When Chelsea realized the money was gone, and that I was the reason, she showed up at my apartment the next morning, bringing Brent, and, worse, his parents. 3 Brent’s mother spoke first, her voice dripping with venomous sweetness. “Joanna, dear, Chelsea is the oldest. She must have helped you carry a lot of responsibility over the years, isn’t that right? Where I come from, even when parents give away an adopted daughter, they send her off with a new car and a down payment on a house.” She was implying I was worse than a stranger. My face darkened, but before I could respond, Brent’s father cut in with a horrifying bombshell. “Frankly, since Chelsea is already three months along, we’re mostly just doing a quick ceremony now. But we gave her thirty thousand dollars. It’s traditional for her family to show equal support. Without the matching fund, it’s just not right.” Chelsea, meanwhile, started sobbing, playing the victim. “You don’t want to help me, fine. But Daisy loves me and tried to get the money for me! Why would you ruin that for me? How am I supposed to hold my head up in my new family now?” The pent-up rage of the last few weeks erupted. I lunged forward and slapped her hard across the cheek. “You can’t hold your head up because you have no shame, Chelsea! Are you even listening to yourself? You forced your own sister—your sick, struggling sister—to take out a high-interest loan to fund your wedding ego trip!” Brent’s parents and Brent started screaming at me, pointing fingers. Chelsea shrieked back at me, her eyes manic. “You’re just hoarding the money for Daisy’s non-essential surgery and your precious son! I’m getting married! I’ve never asked you for anything big! This is my right!” I felt a cardiac event coming on. There was no reasoning with this bottomless pit of entitlement. “Get out! I am done with you! I do not have a daughter in you!” I yelled, clutching my chest. “I raised three kids on my own! You cannot be considerate of me for one second, yet you attack and demand like this? Even if I did have the money, I wouldn’t give a single cent to a selfish monster like you!” Chelsea continued to weep, still claiming I was playing favorites. “I won’t leave! This apartment was Dad’s! I have a share in it!” she insisted, her tears drying up fast. “You’re giving all the cash to Daisy, so give me the house instead! I’m not an idiot to walk away with nothing.” I stared at her, utterly cold. She wanted to strip me of everything. Driven beyond reason, I hit her again. “Are you trying to kill me?! Are you trying to destroy every single one of us?” I had rarely raised my voice to her, never struck her, always thinking of her fatherless upbringing. In that moment, I hated that I hadn’t been stricter. Chelsea glared at me, her eyes filled with wounded astonishment. “I just wanted my mother to give me something for my wedding. What is so wrong about that?” She pointed to the dilapidated room, the cracked walls, the patches of mold. “You won’t even give me this rat trap that no one would buy! You truly do not care about your eldest daughter!” She was right; the house was a wreck, scheduled for demolition years ago. Only people like us, barely making rent, were still living in the condemned building. But it was the only shelter we had left. The final insult came when Chelsea pulled out her phone, still crying, and dialed 911. “I’m three months pregnant and getting married,” she sobbed into the phone. “My mother just physically assaulted me because I asked her for a wedding gift.” 4 She showed the police officer the red marks on her face. I explained the medical emergency, the advanced loan, and the financial situation. Chelsea stood there, head held high, fully unrepentant. “I looked it up online. Daisy’s tumor is benign. It doesn’t have to be removed right now. Mom is making her suffer and cutting me out just to make a point!” I wanted to tear her apart. The police officer was holding me back. “Listen to yourself! What kind of human being says that about her own sister? It’s benign now! If it turns malignant, she dies! I don’t care if you love your sister or not, but I love her, and I will save her life! If it were you with this tumor, I would move heaven and earth to save you, too!” She just whined that I was cursing her. The officer tried to mediate: “Ma’am, marriage is a celebration, and hitting your daughter is wrong. The money for the wedding is negotiable, based on family income, not a right.” Chelsea couldn’t accept the officer’s impartial advice. “You need to take my mother in for a couple of days,” she demanded. “She needs to cool off and reflect on how she’s treating her daughter.” She claimed dizziness, emotional distress, and potential harm to the fetus due to my slap. The police took me to a holding cell. My first time detained. Because of my daughter. I spent fifteen agonizing days there. I pleaded with the officers to call Chelsea, to tell her about Daisy’s critical surgery. But she was unmoved. She even told the officer, when I compromised and offered her the dilapidated apartment: “I changed my mind. I don’t want that piece of junk. I want the thirty-two thousand dollars in cash.” I knew she was still only after the money I’d already given the hospital. When I was finally released fifteen days later, the worst possible news awaited me. Daisy wasn’t in surgery. She was discharged. Chelsea had secretly gone to the hospital and canceled the procedure, taking the entire surgery fund as a refund. I rushed to Daisy’s university. Her eyes were red and swollen. “Mom, just let it go,” she begged, holding my hands. “Let Chelsea have the money. If you don’t, she’ll never stop. I don’t want you to be miserable because of her. The doctor said since it’s benign, I’m safe for now. I’ll keep working and save up.” Looking at my sweet, self-sacrificing daughter, I felt a fresh flood of tears, but this time they were hot with fury. Though Daisy begged me to forget it, my heart was a frozen block of ice. I went to find Chelsea. She refused to return the money. In fact, she was smug. “I have my marriage certificate now. All the money is legally ours, a gift from my family to my husband and me. It can’t go back to the ‘family’ side,” she stated, totally brazen. “In fact, Brent and I are using the cash—yours and his—to buy him a luxury SUV tomorrow. He’s in sales; the car is part of his image. I need to support him.” I laughed—a sharp, cold sound that held no humor. I didn’t argue. I just told her, “Fine. I hope you never regret this.” The next day, I followed her to the dealership. I approached her and handed her a small stack of papers. The moment she saw them, her face went white with panic. She instantly collapsed. “Mom, I’ll give you the money back. All of it. I’m your daughter, please don’t do this to me!”

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1 After the miscarriage, I found new ways each day to torment Sebastian. I watched the cronut—one he’d searched all over New York to find—hit the floor for the third time. A faint smile still touched Sebastian’s lips. “You know, darling,” he said lightly, “you really are a handful.” He casually picked up the ruined pastry. “Jane heard about your miscarriage. She was so worried it would upset me that she… took care of her own little situation.” He paused, letting the words land. “You both lost a child. But the moment she was out of surgery, she was back home, doing my laundry, cooking for me, charming my business partners at dinner. Sweet as a kitten.” He looked at me, something unreadable in his eyes. “Not like you, ordering me around a hundred times a day.” Sebastian ruffled my hair as if I were a child, then told his assistant to buy ten different desserts. “But,” he grinned, “that fiery spirit is exactly what I love about you.” I stood frozen, a metallic taste of blood in my throat. In that shattering moment, I finally saw how pathetic I must have looked, boasting to other corporate wives that my Sebastian would never cheat. … “Lindsay, don’t look at me like that.” Sebastian sighed, gently brushing a stray strand of hair from my forehead. “It was a business dinner. Mr. Harrison set us all up with some aspiring models. I wasn’t going to touch her, I swear. But Jane told me… she said if I didn’t take her, the next man might be some old lech, a fat slob, or worse, someone who’d hurt her.” “The girl was in a pitiful state,” he said, his voice laced with false nobility. “I just let her stay with me. It wasn’t a betrayal.” The air conditioning was set to a comfortable 72 degrees, but a violent shiver wracked my body. Tears welled in my eyes, but my smile was pure acid. “You got her pregnant, and you’re telling me it’s not a betrayal? What is it then, Sebastian? A fucking charity project? Or just you getting your kicks on the side!” The shout ripped from my lungs, and a sharp, twisting pain shot through my lower abdomen. Panic flashed across Sebastian’s face. He rushed me to the sofa and pressed a glass of warm water into my hand. “You just had a miscarriage. You need to be careful.” He rubbed his hands together, blowing on them until they were warm, then gently placed them on my stomach. A faint warmth seeped through my clothes, and for a heart-stopping second, I was transported back five years, to a winter that felt just as cold as this one. We were crammed into a shoebox apartment in the heart of the city. A hundred square feet against the glittering, merciless New York winter. Sebastian would clutch a glass of boiling water, hissing through the pain as it scalded his palms, just so he could warm my hands, my feet, my belly. No matter how brutal the winter, he kept me warm. The memory softened the hard edges of my rage. I sniffled, my resolve wavering just enough to give him a chance to explain himself. “Darling, my relationship with Jane is like… a man and his cat. I saw this poor creature, took her in, and now she’s fiercely loyal. That’s all there is to it.” He continued, his tone infuriatingly reasonable. “Jane’s a good girl. She knows her place. She even swore that if she ever got pregnant again, she’d… take care of it… unless it was a girl, so it would never threaten your position.” Sebastian shrugged, a casual, easy smile on his face. “Which works for me. I’ve always wanted a daughter. A sweet, obedient one, just like Jane.” That was his explanation. They had slept together. They had created a child together. They were already dreaming of a future daughter together. And none of that counted as betrayal. My stomach churned violently. I summoned every ounce of strength I had left and slapped him across the face. A sob caught in my throat, choking off my words. The slap was hard. A thin trickle of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth. He calmly wiped it away with a handkerchief, his eyes darkening. “Lindsay, go ahead and ask any of your friends in the socialite circle. Ask them about the mistresses of other CEOs. They’re all nightmares. Some of them show up on the wife’s doorstep, others are popping out sons left and right to fight for the inheritance.” He leaned in closer. “Jane is quiet. She loves me, and she respects you. What’s so hard to accept? Get rid of her, and the next one might not be so manageable. Then you’ll really have something to cry about.” It took me a moment to process the true meaning behind his words. He was telling me that if it wasn’t Jane, it would just be someone else. I couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment his heart had turned. “Sebastian,” I began, my voice trembling, “if you don’t love me anymore, we should just get a—” His lips crashed down on mine, silencing me. It was a deep, desperate kiss. When he finally pulled away, he was breathless. He lit a cigarette, the flame illuminating a wild, reckless smile. “We’ve been through ten years of hell and back together. How could I not love you?” He took a long drag. “Lindsay, think of it like a meal. You like a little sweet with your savory, right? I’m the same. A little bit of spice like you, and a little bit of sweetness like Jane… it keeps things from getting boring.” He said he still loved me. Cheating was just… diversifying his palate. But real love doesn’t get boring. Sebastian glanced at his watch and shrugged on his overcoat. Like nothing had happened, he leaned down and kissed my forehead. “I’ve got another dinner with Harrison tonight. You be a good girl and wait for me to come home.” He left with a spring in his step. I never used to understand why he seemed so happy to go to those “business dinners.” I always pictured them as a chore: forced smiles, endless toasts, tedious negotiations. I thought his happiness came from closing a deal, from earning the money that would give our baby and me a better life. Today, I finally understood. Their “business” was a blur of booze, bullshitting, and young models. Of course he was happy. This world of cheap champagne and expensive lies was where Sebastian had rotted from the inside out. My hands trembled as I opened the tracking app my friend had insisted I install on his phone. I’d once thought I would never, ever use it. But now… I needed to see. I needed to know what kind of temptation could shatter eight years of love so easily. Through the app’s remote camera, I saw him. In a private room, half-hidden by a screen, a group of executives laughed and joked. Sebastian was right there with them. Mr. Harrison pushed a glass of whiskey toward him. My first instinct was to burst in and stop them. In the early days of the company, we were dirt poor. He never let me go without my favorite cronuts, but he lived on instant ramen for three years straight. As the business grew, he pushed himself too hard, drinking his way through deals until he developed a stomach ulcer and started coughing up blood. His stomach was shot. One drink was agony. But before I could move, the girl beside him—Jane—acted faster. She snatched the glass and downed the entire thing in one go. Her pretty, pale face contorted in pain. It was obvious she couldn’t handle her liquor, but she’d taken the hit for him. She placed the empty glass back in Mr. Harrison’s hand, her smile shy. “I’ll be drinking for Mr. Vaughn tonight,” she said softly. “And to keep everyone entertained, I’ll dance for you. All I ask is that you gentlemen don’t push him to drink.” Without a second thought, she began to dance in the center of the room. She bent backward, dropped into the splits, spun like a top—a desperate puppet with no dignity left. The scene was sickeningly familiar. Five years ago, Sebastian landed a massive contract. For us, back then, it was a life-changing deal, the kind that meant we’d finally made it. At the dinner, the client, drunk and sloppy, slurred, “I hear your lovely Lindsay was the top-ranked arts student in the country. How about this: if she does a little pole dance for us, I’ll sign the contract right now.” The humiliation was a physical blow, but for Sebastian’s future, I thought it was worth it. But when I returned in the dance outfit, I found Sebastian screaming at the client. He’d smashed a glass, flipped the table, and thrown a punch. He spent three days in a holding cell and lost the deal completely. I cried, calling him a fool. But he just kissed away my tears. “Don’t be silly, Lindsay. Money bought with your dignity isn’t money I want.” His voice was a low whisper against my ear. “I’m going to buy you the most beautiful penthouse in this entire city, and I’m going to do it with clean money…” Tears blurred my vision, snapping me back to the present. The same scenario, but so, so different. The Sebastian I knew would never let me debase myself at a dinner table. Maybe he was telling the truth. Maybe Jane was just a pet to him, an obedient little thing he kept around. He didn’t love these other women. Eight years of love fought a brutal war against my own moral code. I couldn’t accept this grotesque mockery of a marriage, but I couldn’t bear to lose the man I’d loved for nearly a decade. I was desperately, pathetically trying to lie to myself: He feels differently about me than he does about her. I’m the one he truly loves. The next sound I heard was a glass shattering. Sebastian had grabbed Jane’s wrist, stopping her mid-spin. “You’re my woman,” he growled, his voice low and dangerous. “I barely get to see enough of you myself. Why the hell should you dance for them?” He shot a venomous, smiling glare at Mr. Harrison, his tone pure steel. “Harrison, if I ever catch you making a spectacle of Jane again, consider your lease on the Northgate property terminated.” His voice dropped, each word a threat. “She’s my woman. Not your plaything.” I gasped for air, my legs threatening to give out from under me. Mr. Harrison was one of Sebastian’s most critical business partners. Tearing up that contract would be mutually destructive. For a girl like Jane, Sebastian was willing to gamble with the one thing he valued most: his empire. I couldn’t watch anymore. Wiping away tears, I fled. Back home, I sat on the couch in the dark, waiting. Waiting for Sebastian to come home. Waiting for the final, soul-destroying confrontation. But Sebastian never came. Instead, a friend request popped up on my phone. The profile picture was a fluffy little lamb. The username was “Little Lamb.” It had to be Jane. The second I accepted, a picture came through. It was our bed. On it, Sebastian was asleep next to another woman. My heart seized. I typed with shaking fingers. “What is this? Are you trying to tell me he has other women besides you?” Jane sent a smirking emoji, followed by a message. “Oh, no, nothing like that.” “I just had my procedure, so I can’t really… take care of Sebastian. And you know how strong his needs are. So, I just found a clean girl for him.” Her words shattered what little was left of my sanity. To please Sebastian, she would go this far? She was a psychopath. A complete and utter lunatic. Rage burned through me. But another message arrived before I could reply. “But he didn’t even touch her.” “He gave her some money and told her to get lost. He said… besides me, he doesn’t want anyone else.” “Lindsay, when you were pregnant, he couldn’t control himself and came to me. But now, for my sake, he can resist temptation. Tell me, which one of us do you think he loves more?” I wanted to scream at this shameless woman, but I didn’t even have the strength to type. I curled into a ball on the sofa, tears streaming silently down my face. This was all a game to her. She was showing off. Showing off how, after her abortion, Sebastian stayed by her side, while he ignored dozens of my messages. Showing off how Sebastian could betray me—his first love, his wife—for her, and then, for her sake, remain faithful and never touch another woman. I bit my lip, fueled by a bitter, desperate need to wound her back. I sent a scathing reply: “Don’t be an idiot. If Sebastian really loved you, would he have made you get an abortion just because I miscarried?” The dark screen of my phone reflected my own twisted face, contorted with jealousy. Before I could sink into my self-loathing, her response came. “I think you’re the idiot here.” “You see, I didn’t have an abortion. I miscarried. It happened at that business dinner, after I drank too much for Sebastian’s sake. He cried all night, holding me and telling me how sorry he was.” “To make it up to me, he put something in the milk you drank every night. That’s why you started bleeding, why you miscarried. He said it was his compensation to me. That the firstborn heir of the Vaughn family could only come from me.” Clatter. The ceramic mug slipped from my hand and shattered on the floor. I felt hollowed out, a ghost in my own home. I stumbled numbly towards the door, needing to find Sebastian, to demand an explanation. Only then did I look down and see the trail of blood I was leaving behind me. Shards of ceramic were embedded in the soles of my feet. A raw, animalistic sob tore from my throat. It wasn’t the glass in my feet that hurt. It was the shards in my heart.

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Year-end bonus, five female directors each received $200,000. To thank me, the boss, the Sales Director specially arranged a VIP Clubbing & Spa Night. At the table, they toasted in turns, thanking me in various ways, saying they would work like horses for the company. I was drunk to unconsciousness, slept for a whole day. Wait until next day work starts, company actually looted empty, five of them all missing. Family members came to door, I was summoned to police station cooperate investigation. “We checked bank accounts of five directors, they didn’t receive bonus at all.” “You better confess honestly, what exactly did you guys do that night!” Chapter 1 “This year’s profit is so good, all thanks to Zoe! Without Zoe pointing out big direction, we bunch people simply can’t find the way! Come, come, let’s toast Zoe together!” Sales Director Vanessa greeted everyone to raise glasses. I stood up, smiling waved hand: “Economic environment not good this year, company can have such achievement can’t leave everyone’s effort.” “Don’t dislike year-end bonus small, one person $200,000, next year we continue work hard! Cheers!” I boldly drank up wine in glass, everyone applauded repeatedly. After three rounds of drinks, few people more and more attentive, took turns pouring wine picking food for me. “Zoe, I must toast you!” Gloria holding wine glass stood up: “Back then if not you stopped cooperation with that channel, we this year…” She spoke half voice choked: “Not mention, my gratitude to you all in wine!” Gloria is company’s Marketing Director, beginning of year an app suddenly exploded hot, she bent on connecting, I felt unreliable then, didn’t approve cooperation, sure enough not few days passed, this company person in charge arrested for Money Laundering. Her eye rims red, I patted her shoulder, happily drank wine in cup. Gloria just sat down, Finance Linda and HR Vivian leaned over again. “Zoe, we logistics departments can also get profit sharing, I really didn’t expect! I this person can’t speak, don’t dislike me straight, I just want say, I follow you work later! Where you go, I go! I Linda this life, just recognize you this boss!” “Boss, everyone happy today, words over fire, you adult have large measure, don’t take to heart! This glass count I represent sisters, apologize to you!” Glasses clinked, I drank two glasses continuously, heart exceptionally comfortable. Tech Director Chloe filled wine for me, whispered advise: “Zoe drink less, Vanessa also arranged KTV and Spa!” Her words heard by crowd, couldn’t help burst of teasing. “Hey, Chloe you this is looking down on Zoe! Year company just established, boss took me on wine table forcefully drank those people down, you don’t know! Our Zoe that is ocean capacity!” “Come, Zoe, I toast you!” “I also come!” Left right flattery endless, I raised glass repeatedly, almost refuse no one. After business stable, I long time didn’t attend wine bureau, even usually don’t drink much. Previous years company basically maintained balance, this year suddenly profited over ten million, I really happy, relying on surrounding all own people, simply opened drink. That night I played very thoroughly, I don’t remember how came back, only vaguely remember someone supported me to bed. Chapter 2 Sky outside brightened then black, I sleeping soundly, phone buzzing non-stop. I woken up, wanted hang up but accidentally pressed answer, receiver exploded an urgent roar. “Zoe, bad! Big trouble!” I was shocked ears buzzing, along with hangover made my brain burst sting, my voice also dyed a trace anger. “Today is weekend, why you anxious red face!” My cousin, Kyle responsible for Admin voice trembling: “Sister, company’s five directors with you or not?” “My place not hotel! Finished eating, of course each back each home, each find each mom!” Long silence later, Kyle muttering “Done, really accident!” My curiosity hooked up: “Don’t nonsense, what happened exactly!” Kyle voice floating, carrying obvious fear. “Boss… company’s five directors all missing! What exactly happened to you guys last night?” I was laughed by anger. “Five women, say missing then missing? Maybe slept in which hotel KTV, you try call them again!” “I tried, their phones all off! Early this morning Vivian husband called me, asked if I with Vivian. I thought she slept somewhere, perfunctory passed. Who knew noon, Linda and Chloe husbands also came ask me for people!” “Five living people missing same time, this not accident what can be!” Don’t know why, I holding phone, cold sweat flowing directly. “You come my place first, we meet then talk.” Hung up phone, my brain still a mess of paste. I vaguely remember last night we ate very happy, first drank two bottles Dom Pérignon, Gloria and Vanessa felt not enough fun, opened dozen bottles red wine again. Came out from restaurant, we took Uber went KTV, Vanessa found few familiar friends, opened foreign wine and beer. In box drank till 1 AM, I bit uncomfortable, went toilet vomited once. Finally how went home again? My brain a piece blank, how also can’t remember. Chapter 3 Kyle soon rushed to my home. He anxious walked back forth: “Sister, you really can’t remember?” I covered swelling head: “I drank blackout, remember nothing!” When we two big eye stare small eye, outside door suddenly came a burst noise. “Chloe you come out for me! Don’t think you safe hiding inside, dare stay out night, you still want this home or not!” Man voice sharp trembling, accompanied by violent door smashing sound revealed special panic. I rushed to door pulled a crack, haven’t opened mouth, outside a giant force, directly smashed door open. “Chloe, you come out now, I not count with you!” “Old Liu, I no time joke with you, did you go to ex-husband again last night! You come out say clear!” “Vivian what you mean, agreed get certificate today, call you not answer, I waited all morning! You marry me or not!” Five men came in outside, some messy hair, some only wearing pajamas, once enter door unscrupulously searched. After searched all rooms, confirmed home only me and Kyle two people, their faces suddenly became pale. Chloe husband dead grabbed my collar: “My wife? Where Chloe? Where you hid her!” “Brother-in-law, you calm down! I really don’t know where they are!” He eyes red, voice suddenly raised high: “You don’t know? “You are company boss! Last night you drank together, today my wife missing, you don’t think shirk responsibility!” He took out phone flipped a yesterday video, in picture I hugged Gloria drunk laughing loud, Chloe aside saying: “Gathering not over yet, I go back later, you sleep first.” Vanessa husband raised phone, flipped their last chat record. “My wife last sent location is here, no wrong!” “Right, Old Liu also sent me your wine bureau photo, last night always with you!” “Hand over my wife!” “Hurry!” I surrounded by crowd, Kyle looked at me about to cry. “Boss, what exactly happened last night?” Sequelae eroded by alcohol gradually faded, my brain fast turning. Suddenly boom a sound. Right, my door has surveillance ah! Because long term not use, I almost forgot! I rushed to study, opened computer called out villa gate surveillance. Picture showed 3:17 AM, a black business car stopped at my door, Linda and Vanessa supported me down from car, then Chloe came down from driver seat, leaned on car door smoking, Gloria and Vivian aside unknown saying what. About half hour later, Linda and Vanessa came out, Gloria and Vivian removed business car front back license plates, then five people got on car together, drove away. Picture stopped here abruptly, surrounding people all silent. Kyle scratched back head, eyes confused. “They this is going do what?” “You saw, when they few left my home not a bit matter! These one by one, more sober than me, even walking not swaying!” Good thing I have surveillance, picked myself out. But these few men recognized I was last person saw their wives, forcibly relied in my home not go. I sat on sofa, helplessly rubbed face once: “Did you call police?” Chloe husband stunned: “Call what police, we all thought person at your place, came directly.” Kyle aside hesitated speak, I watched annoyed. “When is it, you have words straight say!” “Sister… internet not said, person suddenly can’t contact, that isn’t that ma.” “What this that!” “Just men women that thing! They few sent you back, privately wanted do some activities, didn’t expect caught by police, phone confiscated, person detained! This makes sense!” Voice just fell, Chloe husband suddenly jumped up: “Impossible, my Chloe dare not do this thing behind my back!” “I don’t believe, Vivian won’t sorry me at this time!” “I believe my wife, she cherish own reputation most, absolutely won’t mess around outside!” Five men followed echoing, Kyle awkwardly touched nose. Just in case, I still called police station friend. Learned no one arrested because related issue in district last night, even system not a single car accident happened, everyone panicked. “Fine why not go home!” Vivian boyfriend constantly comforting himself: “Maybe they received urgent news, temporary business trip, how about… we wait again?” “Business trip?” “Sales business trip, Finance and HR join what fun! Surveillance not watched ma, they clearly left themselves, unless…” Gloria husband words not finished, gaze swept info on phone, fiercely sucked cold breath, fear in eyes almost overflowed. He stumbled ran to terrace, after a call, whole person paralyzed down. “Accident! Must be accident!” “Money in my card, Gloria bag, my brand watch, and gold bars she bought me all gone!” Expression on his face from panic to despair, finally covered face cried loud. Others instantly panicked, one after another took out phone check account. “My fund all redeemed, not a cent on account!” “What happened, my fixed deposit also transferred!” “Three gold Vivian kept for me just in drawer, how can not have!” My heart suddenly lifted. Five company female executives, drove unlicensed car away early morning, phones all off, WhatsApp not return, now even money at home gone. Body cold sweat soaked out, ignored other, I grabbed clothes straight ran company. Chapter 4 Arrived company, I completely dumbfounded. Company opened wide gate, hundred plus square meter office all moved empty… Except worthless office desk chairs, valuable things all gone! My body swayed, almost didn’t stand firm. Fuck! Gloria what exactly they want do! I took out phone, panicked dialed police number. Moment call connected, footsteps behind made me stiff all over. Few men wearing uniform flashed ID to me: “Zoe, we suspect you related to five female executives disappearance case, please go back with us assist investigation!” I pointed empty office, opened mouth but couldn’t emit a trace sound. Gloria, Vanessa, Vivian, Chloe, Linda. My brain silently chanting five people names. Where exactly they few went? Company looted empty by who again? And what exactly happened last night! This matter from head to tail reveals a strangeness! Behind disappearance case seems hiding a carefully planned collective escape. Chapter 5 Interrogation room light pale dazzling, I stared at five people photos on table, cold sweat slid down temples. “I drank blackout, what I know already told you all.” “We checked Gloria five people bank cards, they few didn’t receive bonus you so-called.” “Also, your five executives missing same time, you don’t feel strange?” Cold iron chair poked my back raw pain, I whole person like grew thorns, constantly moving. “Bonus amount set long ago, I approved Wednesday. Linda is Finance Director, why she didn’t transfer on time, I also don’t know.” Knock sound rang, a policeman pushed door in, after two whispered exchange, policeman unlocked cuffs on my hand. “Your home gate surveillance we watched, you temporarily can go home. But you currently still suspected Human Trafficking and asset transfer, recent don’t leave Los Angeles, we will find you cooperate investigation anytime.” I rubbed wrist: “My company surveillance, did you check? Things in company all gone, who moved exactly?” He looked at me, surprised raised eyebrow. “Surveillance shows, last night two something, was you arranged people move things.” “What?” I jumped up, voice carrying tremble: “Impossible! I drank too much last night, how possible go company move things!” “Must have problem inside! You check again! My company computers, printers, servers add up also million! How gone overnight!” “Miss Zoe, you calm down!” “I admit I drank too much that day, but I can confirm, I didn’t go company! Did you check or not!” “Please you calm down, calm down okay!” My tone more and more excited, his hand slapped on table hard, I fell sitting on chair, helplessly covered face. “We visited building property staff, they received exit slip with official seal then released.” “Also, you look, person in this video is you or not?” He turned computer screen on table to me. Only saw surveillance picture clearly show, I wearing yesterday clothes, commanding workers move company equipment one by one on truck. I dead stared screen, chill like vines instantly climbed full my back. “Me” in picture expression calm, movement natural, not a sign of drunk. Person on surveillance indeed me, but why I have no impression at all! Chapter 6 Walked out police station, Kyle waiting me at door. He handed a cigarette, conveniently lit for me. “Kyle, this not right!” “Sister… how say?” I spit out smoke, eyes narrowed: “I suspect Old Guo they targeted me long ago!” “But I want know more, exactly how big trouble they caused, not hesitate abandon family abandon husband also want run!” “You in company recently, did find anything wrong?” Kyle lit one for himself too. After careful thought he hesitated opened mouth: “One day last month, I drank with brothers, almost one o’clock when scattered, I went back company get things, Chloe actually still overtime. I said send her, she dead alive not let! Big winter, she anxious shirt wet. I remember expression on her face very weird, like afraid, fear.” Chloe is Phoenix girl from rural, her husband is baby kiss set by family. Why she afraid go home? I threw cigarette on ground, stepped out with foot. “Tomorrow go Chloe home with me.” I want see exactly what Chloe afraid of?

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After suffering from heatstroke, I felt extremely dizzy and hurriedly asked for leave in the company Slack channel. But as soon as I sent it, my colleagues exploded! “It’s snowing so hard today, I’m freezing to death, what kind of heatstroke do you have?” “Chloe, everyone is working overtime on the weekend, yet you fake illness to slack off, do you have no shame?” I looked out the window in astonishment. The sun was shining brightly, not a cloud in the sky, where was there any sign of snow? I thought they were joking with me, but soon, my boss Mr. Sterling video called me. He sat in his office, behind him the floor-to-ceiling window showed a vast expanse of white snow, without any trace of special effects. While behind me was a sunny day. “Great Chloe! I wondered how you could get heatstroke in this heavy snow? Turns out you faked illness to play in another city! I announce you didn’t pass the probation period, you’re fired!” I realized something must be wrong, hurriedly climbed out of bed, wanting to go to the company to check. My condition prevented me from driving, could only take an Uber to the company. But until I was hit and killed by an out-of-control truck, I didn’t see a single snowflake! Opening my eyes again, I was reborn to the moment I was about to ask for leave. I suspected people in the company were deliberately deceiving me, kept an eye out, asked in the group: “How is the weather today?” Mr. Sterling immediately @everyone: “Heavy snow, slippery roads, low visibility, everyone be careful on the way…” … How is this possible? If the boss united with colleagues, wanting to find an excuse to fire me, at least they should deceive me after I proposed asking for leave, right? I was fine at the dinner last night, impossible for them to predict in advance I would have heatstroke. Looking at the cloudless sunny sky outside the window, my already uncomfortable body felt even worse. “Received, thanks Mr. Sterling for reminder, arrived safely at company.” “Car stuck halfway, could only find a place to park, need half an hour to walk to company in this heavy snow.” “Still me smart, didn’t drive…” Colleagues in the group responded one after another, someone even posted photos. In the photo, that Millennium Park I often visit, was completely covered in snow, gloomy sky still fluttering with goose feather-like snowflakes. But in my previous life when I rushed to the company, I didn’t see snow at all! Just puzzling what was going on, Mr. Sterling @me in the group: “Chloe, people in your department are all here, when will you arrive?” “Everyone in the company is working overtime for the big project in your hands, get here in 10 minutes, won’t fine your money for being late this time.” Weekend overtime, indeed because I negotiated a big deal for the company. If I could persist working, I wouldn’t have asked for leave in my previous life. Plus the fear of being hit and killed by a car halfway, I dared not rush to the company rashly. But if I still use heatstroke as an excuse to ask for leave, the outcome will definitely be firing. My mom’s medical expenses depend entirely on the bonus of this deal, I must keep this job! I pretended not to see the message in the group, put it aside first. Then shook my head, dispelling those messy thoughts in my mind. I am very sure, my city is not snowing! As long as I find solid evidence of no snow, Mr. Sterling and others can’t use this absurd excuse to fire me. I hurriedly opened the Weather App on my phone, instantly dumbfounded. App showed my area is having a blizzard, simply ridiculous! Even if the boss has great power, he can’t make App data fake, right? But I didn’t see a single snowflake! At this time Mr. Sterling’s call came directly. I dared not ignore, pretended to just wake up. “Why does your voice sound so hoarse? Chloe, are you feeling unwell?” I can’t let the boss find an excuse to fire me, in desperation could only admit first: “Mr. Sterling I’m sick, feeling terrible, can’t go to company temporarily.” “Sick so serious? Must be didn’t pay attention to keep warm and froze.” “Then rest well at home, pay attention to stay online, let colleagues contact you, just don’t delay project progress.” Boss’s tone was very easygoing, no meaning of making things difficult. This made me even more confused. Not long after, HR in the group @me: “Mr. Sterling said you are sick, helped you ask for leave. Chloe, provide medical record and video, I help you process leave procedure.” I frowned in difficulty. I have heatstroke, this state simply can’t go to hospital, where to get medical record? Thought about it, I directly sent a selfie video to the group. “I woke up sick, haven’t had time to go to hospital yet.” My face was scary white, looked like a patient anyway, should be able to fool through, right? “No.” “Chloe, medical record can be supplemented later, but video must show something indicating your location.” “I remember we live in the same community, there is a large flower bed downstairs, retake a video on the balcony, capture both you and the flower bed.” I immediately climbed out of bed, went to balcony to shoot. But just touching sunlight, I sensed something wrong! My side sunny high, hot to death. If video sent, they didn’t see snow, wouldn’t they still attack me like in previous life? Are they deliberately making things difficult for me, wanting to find an excuse to fire me? I had doubts originally, my body always healthy, even if weather suddenly warms up, shouldn’t heatstroke suddenly. I even suspect they poisoned me, staged this to set me up! Only problem is I’m an intern, boss can fire me directly, I can’t defend rights, why would he spend such effort conspiring with whole company to deceive me? HR urged in group again: “Chloe hurry up shoot, I have other things to do.” I was dizzy with anger, couldn’t help exploding: “I didn’t use filter, can’t you see from this face I’m sick? Why still want me shoot other things?” “Just because I’m an intern, you deliberately target me?” HR sent a string of question marks. “Chloe what are you saying? Leave procedure is like this, everyone has to follow, what meaning for me to target you?” “You can shoot that flower bed standing on balcony, not difficult, is it because you have ghost in heart so stress response?” Other colleagues started mocking me one after another. “Just came less than two months, negotiated a big deal, feels different from us, wants privilege.” “Hehe, was fine at dinner last night, how come suddenly sick can’t work?” “We work overtime on weekend tired to death, she as project leader is resting, really interesting.” HR’s wording became stricter. “Chloe, send video within 5 minutes, otherwise I treat as absenteeism.” “Company rule, intern absent once will be fired, forfeit all salary and bonus!” I couldn’t help laughing in anger. Came for firing me, didn’t even act anymore. Just want video? Good! I shot one directly according to request sent over. Sure enough, just sent video to group, colleagues exploded again. “Chloe, everyone gave up holiday to overtime for you, you fake illness to travel, shameless?” “Our side heavy snow turned into blizzard, your side not a piece of snow, clearly not in same place, are you treating us as fools?” Boss also sent few angry emojis in a row. “Chloe, you so irresponsible?” Previous life I was foolishly deceived by them, dragged sick body to company to verify, resulting in death halfway. This life I retorted directly: “You are treating me as fool!” “Flower bed downstairs shot clearly, I am in my own community. Could it be whole city snowing, only missed my community, and has nearly 90 degrees high temperature?” “You want to fire me, please find a better excuse!” “I already screenshotted all our conversations, I’ll post to internet now, none of you can sell company products anymore!” My temper rose, left group chat directly, called best friend for help. After listening to my narration, best friend froze for several seconds before replying: “Chloe, are you sick confused? City is snowing ah, I’m trapped at home, date with boyfriend cancelled.” I was instantly struck by lightning. Could my best friend also be bribed? Impossible! My bonus not enough for boss to stage such big play! I hurriedly called my mom. Even if whole world deceives me, my mom won’t deceive me. Call just connected, mom said with concern: “Chloe, must wear cotton coat going out today, snow is so heavy, I feel cold at home…” So is it me having problem? Whole city snowing, only I can’t see? Absolutely impossible! Previous life when I took taxi to company, driver wore thin shirt, also said no snow, and looked at me like fool, didn’t understand why I asked such question. But fact is so weird… I afraid mom worry, perfunctory few words hung up, then asked others I know for verification. Result everyone insisted snowing, including my ex-boyfriend Julian who kept clinging to me like a pervert refusing to let go. I opened Instagram, full screen local people posting snow videos and photos. My whole body gradually cold to bone marrow, back oozing cold sweat, didn’t understand what happened exactly. Chapter 1 “Seeing lie of faking illness poked, started playing dead?” “Hehe, simply treating us as fools, even if plan go out play deceive us, at least check weather forecast right?” “She planned quite well, didn’t you see that flower bed looks exactly like original community? Estimate spent lot effort finding this community.” “Still clamoring hang us on internet, haha, is she angry from shame, anxious mental problem?” Looking at screen full of messages attacking me, I no longer felt angry, bottom of heart burst of deep fear. No one deceived me. In their eyes, I am the one lying! Boss sent a video shot in office to group, colleagues then stopped attacking me. Because boss started getting angry. “Chloe, open your eyes look clearly, except you, everyone in company is working at station.” “Snow outside window you can also see clearly.” “Given your irresponsible deceptive behavior, I announce you are fired, no need come to company in future!” I tried hard to control trembling fingers, clicked video to look. I contacted AI before, can determine video is real, no AI trace. That means, world in my eyes, and world in their eyes completely different! “Sorry boss, I know wrong.” “I didn’t go to other city travel, beg you give me another chance, I can rush to company within half an hour!” I don’t know where problem appeared. Only chance to clear misunderstanding, keep job, is I rush to company explain face to face. Could it be even if I stay with them, still see completely different picture? I forced myself support dizzy brain and weak sick body, went downstairs with fastest speed. When exiting building door my legs soft, almost fell, a kind aunt supported me. “Little girl, are you okay?” I subconsciously asked: “Auntie, is it snowing?” Auntie immediately let go of me, looked at me weirdly. “Little girl your brain no problem right?” “I hot wearing single layer, how can snow?” My perception no problem! Even if I sick broken brain, really hallucinated, but body feeling won’t lie. I clearly can feel scorching sun, flat ground can’t step on any snow. Flower bed downstairs also clean. Then where is problem exactly? I and auntie just now, and HR all live in same community. HR certain snowing, but me and auntie didn’t see… Weird feeling spread in my heart again. I dizzy head swollen brain, almost supporting wall all way, difficultly walked to community gate, drilled into taxi parked roadside. “Go to Skyline Tower.” Half hour drive, felt incomparably long. My sour swollen brain uncomfortable terrible, almost couldn’t maintain consciousness, could only hold on enduring torment. “Almost there little girl, 25 dollars, pay first.” Driver’s voice made me sober a bit, looked up, saw outside window was “Millennium Park”. Photo colleague sent in group morning, Millennium Park was already covered by heavy snow. But in my eyes, those big words under sunlight shine, appeared incomparably clear. Suddenly, a crisis feeling emerged in my heart! “Master, watch out for traffic!” Previous life was when near company, I was hit and killed by an out-of-control truck. And this life I set off much later than previous life, logically shouldn’t meet that truck, but uneasy feeling in heart grew stronger. “Little girl don’t fear, I am old driver for many years.” “Road no snow, absolutely won’t accident.” I irritably wanted remind again, boss phone suddenly called. I hurriedly answered: “Mr. Sterling, I almost at company.” Driver supplemented: “One intersection left.” Boss voice carried doubt: “One intersection?” “Are you stuck now?” I shook head: “No, not many cars on road.” Boss laughed coldly: “Chloe, you still treating me as fool?” “Blizzard getting bigger, half city roads paralyzed! Several streets near company blocked full cars, clients finding us hard move inch, you say not many cars?” Just no ah! I anxious to death, but didn’t know how explain. Anxious moment, I saw a familiar big truck rushing straight at us! I immediately shouted out: “Master, step on gas!” This life driver more experienced than previous one, reacted in instant of life death, forcibly accelerated avoided truck impact. Bang!

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