I loved Dax Thorne for five years, and for every single one of those years, I’d been tormented. Until the Vance family empire collapsed, my loved ones died, and everything I held dear was systematically destroyed by Dax. Eventually, in a raging inferno, I set myself on fire, right there in front of him. Everyone outside thought Dax had finally gotten his revenge. Only he knew that the moment I died, he truly lost his mind. Muffled cries of pain echoed through the room. Dax was performing the most intimate act, yet his expression was colder than a winter storm, as if he were miles away, trapped in a frozen wasteland. I struggled to breathe, a terrifying sense of suffocation building inside me, and instinctively thrashed against him. Just when I thought I was about to black out, Dax suddenly released me. I gasped, gulping in air, but before I could catch my breath, his rough movements shattered the fragile calm again. The torment went on for what felt like an eternity, only stopping when I was on the verge of losing consciousness. My phone rang. Dax picked it up, a flicker of cruel satisfaction in his eyes as he looked at the screen. He answered. The voice on the other end announced the collapse of Vance Enterprises. My eyes, which had been half-closed from the agony, snapped open. I stared up at him, disbelief flooding my senses. “Vance Enterprises… collapsed? What happened?” My voice was hoarse, weak, yet laced with sheer shock. Dax noticed the terror in my eyes, and a cruel smirk twisted his lips. “Like it? That’s my first gift to you.” I gazed at his smile, a chilling realization dawning on me. “Dax… you did this? To Vance Enterprises?” He gripped my chin, forcing my face up until I was trapped in an intimate, yet utterly terrifying, proximity. “Yes. Do you have any idea how long I’ve waited for this day?” I ignored the throbbing pain in my jaw, my heart plummeting to my stomach. “Why? Why would you destroy my family?” Dax shoved me off the bed, watching me fall to the floor. His eyes, usually so carefully guarded, now blazed with raw, unrestrained hatred. “Elara Vance, the Vance family’s ruin? You brought this on yourselves! If your mother hadn’t forced Seraphina away, she never would have broken up with me, and she certainly wouldn’t have died because of you!” Because of Seraphina… He hated himself, hated everyone in my family. So all his past tenderness, his kindness, had been a lie. This was his true face. My heart clenched. “No!” My face was pale. “My mother didn’t force Seraphina to break up with you, and I didn’t hurt her!” Dax’s eyes turned venomous. “You think I’d believe a word you say?” Years ago, Dax had been with Seraphina Hayes, my family’s adopted daughter. But my mother, knowing I harbored feelings for him, had forced Seraphina to break up with him. Dax still remembered Seraphina crying, clinging to him, saying she had no choice. The Vance family’s vast empire was too powerful; if they didn’t break up, my family wouldn’t let her go. Dax had been heartbroken, but at the time, his own family lacked the power to stand against mine. He’d had no choice but to painfully break up with Seraphina and marry me. Yet, even after all that, I still hadn’t let Seraphina go. He remembered the scene of Seraphina drowning, and it made him want to slaughter my entire family. But he couldn’t avenge Seraphina, so he had to swallow his hatred and live a lie with me. Until today. Finally, he had the power to avenge Seraphina. Dax said nothing more. He dragged me downstairs, opened a small room in the corner of the first floor, and shoved me inside. I stumbled, falling to my knees. My eyes widened in horror as I looked up at the scene before me. On the table in the room sat a framed photo. The girl in the picture was beautiful and delicate, with a melancholic air. It was Seraphina Hayes. I tried to stand, but Dax’s foot lashed out, kicking me in the back of my knee. I crumpled to the floor. “In front of Seraphina, you only deserve to kneel.”
Dax took a few steps closer, his leather shoe pressing down on my bare foot. As I cried out in pain, he spoke slowly. “Tell me, do you think Seraphina felt this much pain the day she died?” I looked at Seraphina’s photo, propping myself up with my arms on the floor. A bitter realization dawned on me, and I suppressed a groan of pain. “Dax, I didn’t kill Seraphina.” Back then, Seraphina had found herself a man far wealthier than Dax and decided to break up with him. I felt bad for Dax, so I didn’t dare tell him the truth. But after I married Dax, Seraphina regretted it. I still remember sitting in Seraphina’s car. She’d said she had something to tell me, but instead, she stomped on the gas pedal, speeding toward the bridge. Seraphina’s expression was wild, her words sharp and venomous. She’d screamed that if I, Elara Vance, died, Dax would forever be hers. But something went wrong with Seraphina’s plan. After the car plunged into the river, I easily unlatched my seatbelt and escaped. Seraphina, however, got stuck in hers and drowned inside the car. And the scratches and marks from our struggle? In Dax’s mind, they became proof that I had deliberately wrestled the steering wheel from Seraphina. Dax pressed down harder, his eyes filled with dark malice. “You still dare to lie?! I saw you climb out of that river with my own eyes while Seraphina stayed at the bottom forever! Are you going to tell me Seraphina drove the car down herself?!” I gasped, a soft whimper of pain escaping my lips. It felt like my foot bone was about to snap under his weight. I shook my head frantically, not knowing how to explain it so Dax would believe me. Seraphina was dead, and her silence condemned me. Seeing my tormented expression, Dax let out a chilling laugh of pure satisfaction. “Before, I couldn’t touch you because of your family’s power. But now Vance Enterprises has fallen. Let’s see who can save you now! And your mother and your sister? I won’t let a single one of them go!” “Are you… are you going to kill them?!” A sudden terror seized me. I tried to pull away, but his foot pinned me down. “Dax Thorne, murder is a crime!” “You killed Seraphina, and the law didn’t punish you, did it?” Dax half-crouched, reaching out to grab my hair, forcing my gaze toward Seraphina’s photo. “Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. Death would be too easy. I’ll make sure you live a long, miserable life, atoning for Seraphina.” After that, Dax kept me imprisoned in his mansion. My phone was confiscated. My left foot bone was indeed broken, just as he’d promised. But he wouldn’t allow a doctor to treat me. Helpless, I had to suffer in silence, crudely bandaging my foot with a piece of wood, hoping it would heal on its own. Imprisoned, I became Dax’s plaything. My fractured foot was repeatedly tormented by him, shattering any hope of it ever healing properly. Dax pinned me against the cold floor, unleashing his wild, raging desire. The floor was freezing, but Dax’s body was scorching hot. I shivered, caught between the cold and the heat, struggling to breathe. I placed my hands on his arm, which felt like an iron bar wrapped around my neck, and pleaded, my voice breaking. “Dax… you can do anything you want to me… just please, can I see my mother and sister… just once?” Dax’s hand slowly tightened. “Do you want to see their corpses?” My eyes widened in horror. When I spoke again, my voice was choked with tears. “No… no, I don’t… please, my family is innocent, don’t hurt them…” “Your family is innocent? Was Seraphina not innocent?” With that, Dax thrust hard, and a cry of pain escaped my lips. Dax left after he was finished. I slowly got up from the floor, stumbling my way to the bathroom. Warm blood trickled down my thigh and dripped onto the tiles.
I sank into the bathtub, my lower body screaming in burning agony. My face was ashen, and I stared blankly at my horribly deformed left foot. From now on, I’d be crippled for life. I lay in bed, unable to sleep all night. I watched the sky outside gradually lighten. Suddenly, I heard faint sounds. Curiosity stirred. I sat up, limped downstairs, and saw the living room TV was on, broadcasting the city’s top news story. I stood in the living room, frozen. The news headline on the screen read: “Former Vance Enterprises Head Dies of Heart Attack at Home.” The reporter’s camera panned to a sobbing young girl. It was Willow, my little sister. My ears roared. Tears blurred my vision, but I kept my gaze fixed on her frail figure. How could this be? My mother’s health had been improving, hadn’t it? Why would she have a heart attack now? And Willow… she wasn’t even an adult yet. How would she survive out there, all alone? Without thinking, I tried to rush out, but the bodyguards outside pushed me back. No matter what I said, they wouldn’t let me leave. Not until evening, when Dax returned. The TV was still on, playing the evening news, filling the silent living room with a strange clamor. Hearing footsteps, I looked up, staring directly at Dax as he entered. I didn’t know why, but he suddenly felt like a stranger. I’d loved Dax for over a decade, but when had he changed like this? Dax walked over, and a sharp slap landed across my face. My head snapped to the side from the impact. I heard Dax’s voice above me, cold and unforgiving. “You don’t deserve to look at me like that.” A red, swollen handprint bloomed on my pale cheek. I felt no pain, only stared at him with wide, empty eyes. “My mother… did you kill her?” Dax met my gaze. “She deserved it. If she hadn’t forced Seraphina away, Seraphina never would have broken up with me!” Then, Dax sneered. “Rather than saying I killed her, it’s more accurate to say you killed her. If you hadn’t been so desperate to marry me, how would she have died?” My face went white. I couldn’t hear Dax’s continued mocking. Only his words echoed in my mind: *my mother was killed by me*. Yes, wasn’t my mother killed by me? It was my delusional hope, my naive belief that I could win Dax’s heart, that brought about this catastrophe. It was my stupidity, my self-righteous love, that destroyed the Vance family. Salty tears slid past my lips. I mumbled, “I was wrong. It’s all my fault…” After that, I completely gave up fighting. I no longer thought of escaping, nor did I dare mention wanting to see my sister, terrified Dax would hurt Willow. I became a caged bird in Dax’s mansion. The food I ate came back up again. One night, while in bed, I told Dax about it. His frantic thrusts stopped. He’d clearly thought the same thing I had. After he finished, he called his private doctor. The doctor examined me and finally concluded: I was indeed pregnant. One month along. Dax spoke. “Get rid of it.” My hands rested on my lower belly, my expression eerily calm. Dax’s words didn’t faze me. His decision was exactly what I expected. Knowing his personality, he would never allow this child to be born. I suppressed a flicker of sadness in my eyes. This child came at the worst possible time. I didn’t want to bring him into this world to suffer. The doctor hesitated. “We can’t perform the procedure here, Mr. Thorne. Do we need to go to a hospital?” Dax suddenly smiled. “No need.” He dismissed the doctor and called a bodyguard upstairs. The bodyguard entered, carrying an iron bar. My gaze fell on the bar, and a sudden dread filled me. “What are you going to do?” Dax said calmly, “It was my oversight, allowing you to get pregnant.” He gave a look, and the bodyguard stepped forward, pinning me down. I struggled, but couldn’t break free from his grasp.
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