On a variety show, the host randomly checked the seventh photo in the guests’ phones. I showed a picture of Arthur’s brand-new Rolls-Royce. The “innocent little white flower” actress instantly teared up: “Elena, I know you usually target me, but could you please not pretend to be associated with my boyfriend’s car?” I was stunned: “Since when did the guy at my house get a girlfriend without me knowing?” The little white flower cried and called Arthur right there: “Hubby, someone is bullying me…” There was a pause on the other end, then Arthur’s voice came through, deadly serious: “Who? Where are you? I’m flying back to the country right now to find you.” My jaw dropped. The internet exploded: [I knew Elena was just clout-chasing again!] [Bet you didn’t expect this! You can’t just use CEO Vance for clout!] [CEO Vance spoils her so much! You two need to get married right now! Make Elena choke on her jealousy!] No, seriously, I just didn’t know when my little brother secretly started dating my arch-nemesis! 1 My jaw-dropped expression was quickly turned into a meme and trended online. [Hahaha! Does Elena actually think Chloe is joking with her? Does she think Chloe is a clout-chaser just like her?] [Does she really think she can use CEO Vance for clout? LMAO, this meme is the best of the year!] [Hahahaha, this is so satisfying to watch! I love seeing this fake bitch get slapped in the face by Chloe!] The live stream chat was scrolling crazily. I immediately ran out of the studio and into my dressing room. [Is she too ashamed to show her face now?] [Seeing her get humbled is so satisfying!] I closed the dressing room door and immediately called Arthur. His voice sounded a bit rushed: “Sis, something urgent came up. We’ll talk later.” “Let me guess, your girlfriend is getting bullied?” Arthur froze: “Sis, how did you know?” “Are you out of your mind, dating a woman like her?!” “Sis, you don’t understand. She’s the most special girl I’ve met in my twenty-five years.” I almost choked: “She’s an actress! What can’t she act out? Let me tell you, I know exactly what kind of person Chloe is. Break up with her right now!” “She’s not acting!” Arthur sounded completely self-righteous: “Even when she’s drunk, she tells me she loves me!” I felt a block in my chest: “What’s so hard about that? I can act that out too. I love you, I love you, I love you!” “Are you crazy? What kind of psychotic fit is this?!” Arthur got goosebumps and hung up the phone directly. Puffing my cheeks in anger, I turned around, only to find someone already standing at the door of my dressing room. Chloe had one hand covering her mouth and the other holding her phone, looking incredibly innocent: “Sister, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were in here too.” I sneered: “Funny, I seem to recall you staring right at me when I walked into this room.” “Sister, you…” Chloe’s eyes instantly turned red. The live chat went crazy: [Ahhh! You psycho, stay away from Chloe!] [I’m so sick of this fake bitch. Terrible acting, terrible personality. She’s the one who tried to steal Chloe’s boyfriend first!] I had no interest in playing these petty games, so I turned and left. But unexpectedly, in the short time it took me to touch up my makeup, the trending topics exploded again. I clicked on it. It was a three-second video of my “confession” to Arthur. Trending Title: Arthur Vance: Are you crazy? What kind of psychotic fit is this?! Elena attempts to be the other woman, gets fiercely reprimanded as a psycho by Arthur Vance. My vision went black. 2 The dressing room had excellent soundproofing and privacy. The only person who could have filmed that video was Chloe, who opened the door at the very end. The video started recording exactly when I “confessed.” It made it look like I was crazily telling Arthur “I love you,” only for him to avoid me like the plague. Thinking of this, I sought out Chloe and showed her the three-second video: “You secretly recorded me?” Chloe quickly smiled: “Sister, don’t misunderstand. I just happened to be taking a selfie and accidentally…” “If you were taking a selfie, why was the camera pointed at me? And if it was an accident, why did you post it?” Chloe’s face paled. She just realized that admitting she filmed it was the same as admitting she leaked it. But her persona had always been the harmless, innocent little white flower. Her eyes reddened, and tears suddenly fell: “Sister, I’m begging you, please stop pestering my boyfriend, okay? I’ve tried to persuade you for so long, but you wouldn’t listen. I’m not good at arguing, and I really didn’t have any other choice, that’s why I… “This is the first time I’ve met a boy I like so much. I’m begging you…” I cut her off: “That act works on him, but it doesn’t work on me. “Play enough dirty tricks, and you’ll eventually be found out. It’s only a matter of time before he dumps you. Watch yourself.” With that, I turned and walked away. The premise of this variety show was experiencing rural life. As I was preparing for the next leg of our trip into the countryside, my manager called me: “My little troublemaker, can you please lay low? It’s only been a little while, and you’re already on your third trending topic!” I hurriedly opened my phone. The number one trending topic had a glaring “Explosive” tag next to it: Elena threatens Chloe Just moments ago, an audio recording was leaked, supposedly by a staff member of the show. It was the exact conversation I just had with Chloe. But I was absolutely certain that only Chloe and I were present at the time. My social media was being bombarded. [Lady, take a good look. Chloe is the girlfriend personally acknowledged by CEO Vance! And you’re telling her to watch herself?] [Homewreckers deserve to die, along with their whole families.] [I was wondering who it was. Turns out it’s you, you fake bitch. Well, that’s not surprising then. Hope your whole family drops dead soon.] … Meanwhile, Chloe started a live stream from her car. The corners of her eyes were slightly red, tears glimmering in them, yet she smiled “stubbornly”: “Everyone, please stop saying that. There must be some misunderstanding between me and Sister. “If anyone else gets hurt because of me, I’ll be very sad too.” The netizens were heartbroken: [Ahhh, baby, you can’t be too kind! Elena is targeting you on purpose! Don’t speak up for her! Ahhh!] [Baby is so sweet, my heart aches for her sob! I’m going straight to Elena’s page to curse her out!] [Protect the best baby in the world! Elena deserves to die a horrible death!] I sat in my car, my vision darkening repeatedly. So, I called Arthur. 3 “Break up with her. Break up with her right now!” I got straight to the point. Arthur was completely confused: “Sis, I told you, this is true love.” “Are you completely blind to her ability to manipulate public opinion against me? Have you even looked at the trending topics?” “Oh come on, Sis, when are you not getting cursed out online? I’m used to it for you.” …He actually had a point. “It’s fine, Sis. When I get back, I’ll treat you both to dinner and clear up the misunderstanding. Chloe is a really good person. She’s definitely not what you think.” “Forget it. I have more experience surviving in the entertainment industry than you have signed contracts.” “Isn’t your ‘experience’ just getting yelled at?” “You!” “Alright, alright, Sis. How about you just retire from the industry? Look at the terrible movies you’ve been starring in.” I argued back vehemently: “What do you mean terrible movies?! If I put effort into acting in them, they’re not terrible!” “Yeah, yeah, yeah, you put effort in, but you inherited Mom’s acting skills!” I had no comeback for that. Arthur laughed: “Alright, Sis, come back and take over the family business. You’d earn way more doing this than struggling in the entertainment industry. And it would make my life easier. Why suffer out there?” “No! I didn’t join the entertainment industry to make money. I did it for Liam!” “…” 4 It’s true, I had no need to enter the entertainment industry. My parents nagged me every day to take over the family business and work with Arthur to make the company even bigger and stronger. But I stubbornly chose the entertainment industry, all so I could get up close and personal with my idol, Liam Sterling. The star who was the same age as me and whom I had been a fan of for five years. To avoid unnecessary trouble, I never publicly announced my relationship with Arthur. I took my mother’s maiden name, while Arthur took our father’s. So for all these years, no one ever suspected we were related. I never expected things to turn into such a massive farce now. I suddenly felt deeply regretful. As the guiding figure in my younger brother’s life, I used to watch him like a hawk to ensure he didn’t date in high school. I didn’t realize that the consequence of missing out on young romance would make him so easily seduced by a manipulative woman. I sat in the car, rubbing my forehead in regret: “If I had known, I would have let him date more back then!” 5 However, the gloom in my heart was quickly swept away. Because the moment I stepped out of the car, I learned the identity of today’s mystery guest. “Liam?!” I cried out in surprise: “Is it him? Is it really him?” A staff member gave me a disdainful look, snorted coldly, and walked away. The entire production crew had been treating me coldly ever since I supposedly “stole” Chloe’s boyfriend. Later, when they realized this attitude earned them unanimous praise from netizens, they looked down on me even more. I didn’t care. After surviving in this industry for so long, I had endured plenty of eye rolls and mockery. Liam was the only one worth my attention. The moment Liam stepped out of his car, everyone let out a piercing scream of excitement. I dashed forward and handed him a gold-rimmed photo card: “Mr. Sterling, I’m a huge fan! Could I get an autograph?” He pulled down his mask and smiled: “Sure.” He took the card, casually scribbled something on it, and handed it back to me. Just as I was about to carefully put it away as a treasure, I saw what he wrote. Two words: [Dumb bitch] I froze. I looked up. He was glaring at me with contempt, letting out a cold laugh. “Liam!” An excited voice interrupted my thoughts. Chloe’s car had also arrived. The moment she stepped out of the car, she dashed over and threw herself into his arms: “It’s really you! Weren’t you filming somewhere else?” Liam caught her and spun her around in a circle: “I knew you were here, so I came specifically for you. Or, I just had a sudden whim to join this variety show. Which one do you want to hear?” The live chat scrolled frantically: [Let me say it! Let me say it! He came specifically for you! For you, for you, for you!] [So smooth! sobs…] Chloe pouted her lips, furrowed her brows, and feigned anger: “You’re teasing me again!” Liam smiled and tapped her nose: “Still so easily angered.” I frowned: “Don’t you have a boyfriend?” Liam protectively shielded Chloe behind him and gave me a disdainful smile: “Chloe and I are childhood sweethearts. We’ve supported each other since we were kids to get where we are today. “I hope Ms. Elena doesn’t project her own dirty mind onto everything she sees.” 6 The live chat started its carnival again: [Classic Liam! He can spot a bitch from a mile away!] [Quote of the day: Just because someone likes being a homewrecker doesn’t mean everyone else does, okay?!] [They are childhood sweethearts, they’ve always been like this. A certain someone named Elena shouldn’t be so quick to project her own flaws onto others.] I was furious. Just as I was about to say something, my assistant suddenly pulled me aside: “Elena, calm down. He just landed the lead role in a massive Hollywood IP. So many people are willing to back him up. If you clash with him, you’ll be the one who loses out.” “Massive IP?” I laughed out of pure anger. My assistant nodded: “Yes, a mysterious billionaire fan of his invested a fortune in him. I heard the billionaire has very high hopes for him. If you anger him, we can’t afford the consequences.” “Hah! The investment was because they respected his acting skills. Who said he gets to walk sideways and act like he owns the place?” My assistant smiled, looking at me with a hint of pity: “Elena, it’s better not to try and guess the thoughts of billionaires.” “I don’t need to guess,” I laughed coldly. “I’m withdrawing the investment right now.” “Elena, you… sigh!” My assistant sighed and shook her head: “How have you become so delusional that you can’t even tell who you are anymore?” With that, she turned and walked away. When she met a colleague, there was another sigh: “Elena has lost her mind. She actually thinks she’s Mr. Sterling’s investor. “Do you think getting yelled at so much recently has driven her crazy? First, she thought she was CEO Vance’s girlfriend, and now she’s hallucinating that she’s an investor.” I was already puffing with anger as I grabbed my phone and dialed my secretary, my tone decisive: “Withdraw the investment. You heard me right, withdraw the investment!” The secretary on the other end froze for a moment: “But President Vance, aren’t you Mr. Sterling’s biggest fan?” “Consider me previously blind. Withdraw the investment immediately. Cancel every single bid related to him!” “Yes, President Vance.” After hanging up, I finally felt a little better. As I walked towards the soundstage, the sight before me almost made me drop my phone— Liam was drinking a bubble tea, and on the straw was a lipstick mark in the exact same shade as Chloe’s! He took a sip and handed the bubble tea back to Chloe: “It is a bit too sweet. This place didn’t make it right.” Chloe naturally put the straw in her mouth: “I thought so too, but since you bought it, Liam, I guess I’ll just have to force myself to take a couple of sips~” “You’re so mischievous.” “Hold on…” I interrupted them both: “You have a boyfriend right now. Even if you are childhood sweethearts, shouldn’t you keep some distance?” Liam very naturally shielded Chloe behind him again: “I told you before, Ms. Elena, don’t project your own dirty mind onto everything.” My temper flared. I raised an eyebrow: “If some people are just inherently dirty, then anyone looking at them would find it disgusting, wouldn’t they?” “You!” Liam was genuinely angry now. Chloe’s eyes instantly turned red: “Sister, are you calling me dirty?” I raised an eyebrow: “Is there anyone else here besides you two?” Liam’s face instantly darkened. Thankfully, the director arrived just in time to stop the situation from escalating further. Terrified that I would “cause trouble” again, the production team unprecedentedly gave me a private room. But just as I had finished unpacking my luggage into the room, someone came to notify me: “You don’t need to film anymore.” My assistant was stunned: “Why? We signed a contract!” The staff member was utterly dismissive: “This is Mr. Sterling’s request.” My assistant deflated. She turned to me and sighed: “Elena, it looks like we really have to go.” I was so angry I laughed: “Fine. So he’s making arrangements for me now? “If I have to leave, I leave. Perfect timing, anyway. I’ve had enough of playing around in this entertainment industry!” That very day, I hit the trending topics once again: Elena finally forced to retire from the entertainment industry.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “391370”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

For my last three days before leaving this world, I decided to get along with Arthur and be the perfect wife he always wanted. I no longer got jealous over his first love, and I stopped throwing tantrums when he stayed out all night. On the first day, he scoffed coldly, “Glad you finally know your place. If you had acted like this sooner, everyone would be happy.” On the second day, his gaze became complicated, his voice thick with confusion, “Maya, why aren’t you angry?” I smiled faintly. “Isn’t this exactly what you wanted?” 1 Before I finally reconnected with the System, Arthur had been giving me the silent treatment for a week. “Host, you’ve finally decided to leave,” the System’s voice chimed, laced with a hint of schadenfreude. I didn’t blame it. Years ago, when I successfully conquered Arthur’s heart and chose to stay in this world, the System had tried its best to dissuade me. “According to my years of experience, hosts who choose to stay never meet a good end.” But back then, I was blindly confident that the love between Arthur and me was indestructible, and I firmly rejected its advice. Now, I could only smile bitterly. “How much time do I have left?” “I can pull you out in exactly three days.” I nodded, deciding to cherish these final three days and get along with Arthur. After the System went silent, I picked up my phone and called Arthur. It was our first time communicating in a week. The call was declined several times in a row. I mechanically redialed. Finally, Arthur’s voice came through, annoyed and irritable: “Maya, are you ever going to stop?” I froze. Even though I was already disappointed, my heart still stung. I deliberately ignored the hostility in his tone and asked gently: “Arthur, are you coming home for dinner tonight? I made your favorite pan-seared ribeye.” There was a long silence on the other end, followed by a light scoff: “I’ll come back, but Maya, I need you to lower your proud head and apologize to Chloe first.” … A week ago, Arthur celebrated his first love Chloe’s birthday. Chloe posted a photo on her social media story: [With you here, I’ll never have to envy anyone else.] In the photo, Chloe had a bit of frosting on her cheek, her hands clasped together making a wish. She was surrounded by designer gift boxes, and Arthur was standing right behind her. Under the warm yellow candlelight, she smiled with pure, innocent joy. Mutual friends commented below, gushing about how sweet they looked. Chloe replied with a shy smiley face. I also left a like and a comment: [I’m so jealous you have my husband to keep you company.] A few minutes later, the post was deleted. Arthur’s call came immediately after. He furiously reprimanded me: “Maya, are you sick in the head? Today is Chloe’s birthday. You purposely tried to ruin her day, didn’t you?” I could hear Chloe sobbing softly in the background. “Arthur, don’t blame Maya. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have shown off that you were celebrating with me.” Arthur immediately softened his tone to coax her. “It has nothing to do with you. She’s just picking a fight with me and using you as a punching bag.” His tone turned cold and hard again as he spoke to me: “But she overestimates her own importance. Nothing is more important than your birthday.” Every word felt like a knife slicing my flesh. I clenched my fists in anger and mocked, “Right. Your first love’s birthday is obviously way more important than your own wedding anniversary.” Arthur’s breathing hitched. He lowered his voice and asked, “Today is our anniversary?” But before I could answer, Chloe’s crying came through the receiver again. “Maya, it’s all my fault. I’ll come apologize to you in person right now…” The tiny bit of guilt Arthur had seemed to vanish instantly. He gently consoled Chloe, then continued to scold me: “It’s just an anniversary. We can celebrate it any year. This is Chloe’s first birthday since she moved back to the States. Maya, can’t you be a little more generous?!” I enunciated every word clearly, telling him that no, I couldn’t. Then I hung up. Intense love and a perfectly stable temper can never coexist, but unfortunately, Arthur didn’t understand that. On the ice cream cake on my counter, the two little kissing figurines had slowly melted, ruining the words “Happy 7th Anniversary.” I picked up the cake and threw it in the trash. My phone chimed with a new message. I opened it to find a provocation from Chloe’s burner account. [Maya, I told you long ago. When forced to choose, Arthur will always choose me. Do you believe me now?] A few hours ago, I didn’t. But now, it was an undeniable fact. Arthur didn’t come home that night. When I woke up the next morning, he was in the dining room eating breakfast. Seeing me, he cast a cold glance and said, “Come to the office with me later and apologize to Chloe. Because of your comment, she felt so guilty she couldn’t sleep all night.” I let out a scoff. “I’m not going.” “I’ve never heard of a rule where the actual wife has to apologize to the mistress.” “Maya, why do you have to be so vicious?!” He slammed his hand on the dining table. “Chloe is just my secretary. Her family is bankrupt, and she has nothing left. Do you not have a shred of sympathy?” The corners of my lips curled up as I looked at him mockingly. “A secretary who sleeps in your bed?” Arthur’s face flushed with fury. He flipped the table. Plates and silverware shattered across the tile floor with a deafening crash. I closed my eyes and turned my head away. The disappointment in my heart layered up, thicker and thicker. How did Arthur turn into this? Arthur growled with resentment, “Since you’re going to be this stubborn, let’s just take a break from each other for a while.” He slammed the door and left. He hadn’t been back for a week. I was so heartbroken I suffered through sleepless nights. But during this time, Chloe’s burner account never stopped updating. [My boss brought me on a business trip to the Maldives! So happy~] [Cry, I accidentally fell on the beach and scraped my knee on a rock. My boss heartachingly scolded me for ten minutes, but I punished him by making him go buy me cake~] [Bonus: A sneaky pic of his abs~ Will my boss hit me if he finds out I took this?] I didn’t argue or throw a fit. I just quietly saved all the screenshots. When someone has rotted to the core, you should throw them away promptly. This morning, Chloe’s post indicated they had returned from the Maldives. … Arthur’s voice continued to come through the receiver: “Maya, did you hear what I said?” My thoughts returned to the present. I replied indifferently, “Okay.” The noisy background on his end suddenly went dead quiet. A few seconds later, Arthur asked again, “What did you say?” I forced a smile onto my lips. “I said, I agree to go apologize to Chloe.” For these final three days, I will fulfill all your demands. And then, I will leave you forever. 2 I followed the location Arthur sent me. The private room at the club was bustling with people. The moment I appeared in the doorway, someone let out a low whistle: “Look who’s here.” The teasing voice was full of anticipation. Ever since Chloe returned, Arthur and I had been having minor fights every three days and major blowouts every five. Everyone in our social circle knew. I scanned the room and found Arthur sitting dead center on the leather sofa. Our eyes met, his expression unreadable. Chloe was sitting right next to him, leaning against him like a fragile little bird. “Sister-in-law, I heard you came to apologize to Chloe,” someone jeered. Arthur’s friends were the absolute best at blowing with the wind. When Arthur loved me, they called me “Sister-in-law” with respect and never dared to make jokes at my expense. Now that Chloe was back, anyone with eyes could see her status in Arthur’s heart. Naturally, they looked at me with a lot more contempt. I took two steps forward, my gaze sweeping over the glasses of liquor on the table. I gently picked one up. “To show my sincerity, I’ll down this glass as an apology to Ms. Thorne. Is that alright?” Arthur tilted his head, watching me with amusement, staying silent. The people around us looked eager, clearly enjoying the drama. “Maya, what are you doing?” Chloe suddenly stood up, acting like a startled rabbit, frantically trying to snatch the glass from my hand. “You just said a few mean things to me, which I deserved to hear anyway. How could I possibly accept an apology from you?” As she spoke, her eyes turned red. A flash of heartache crossed Arthur’s eyes. He stood up and pulled her back down to the sofa. “Why wouldn’t you accept it? With me here, no one is allowed to bully you.” Chloe’s eyes sparkled with unshed tears. She looked at Arthur with gratitude, waiting a few seconds before looking back at me. “Then just drinking this small glass is enough. Once you drink it, all our misunderstandings will be cleared up.” She smiled and handed the glass back to me. “Maya, Arthur is just too protective of me. Please don’t be mad.” I looked at Arthur, chuckled softly, and took the glass with absolute detachment. “Of course not.” I raised the glass. “Everyone here is a witness. In the past, I was too prone to jealousy and misunderstood Arthur and Ms. Thorne’s relationship, which offended her. I’m drinking this glass today as a self-imposed penalty to apologize to Ms. Thorne.” After finishing my piece, I swept my gaze over the crowd. Everyone was stunned. Someone whispered, “No way, is this really the Maya who never bows her head to anyone?” Even Arthur, sitting in the center, looked dazed for a moment. Ignoring the flash of astonishment in his eyes, I raised my hand and downed the entire glass of liquor in one go. I am severely allergic to alcohol. Others might not know it, but Arthur did. After downing that one glass, my body already felt like a piece of driftwood tossed in a turbulent river. Someone caught my arm. “Maya, don’t drink anymore.” His face was blurry. I squinted, finally recognizing him as Arthur’s close friend, Leo. He seemed to be the only person in the room who hadn’t joined in the mocking. “Thank you,” I whispered. Just as I was about to look up and ask Arthur if that was enough of an apology… I saw Chloe quickly shoot a glance at the rest of the group. Immediately, someone yelled out, “Sister-in-law has a great tolerance! But if you really want to show your sincerity, one glass isn’t going to cut it.” With a malicious grin, he pushed an entire bottle of red wine toward me. Then he looked back at Arthur. “Right, Arthur?” Arthur’s brows were already furrowed. He stared silently at the wine bottle being pushed toward me. Just as he opened his mouth to speak… Chloe’s sobbing voice interrupted him: “Don’t say that. The fact that Maya would lower herself to apologize to someone like me, whose family has lost everything, is already an honor. As long as she doesn’t storm into the office to humiliate me and disrupt company work anymore, I’m okay with anything.” Arthur raised his eyebrows, looking at her in disbelief. “She stormed into the office to humiliate you? When did this happen?!” His voice rose, silencing the entire room. 3 Chloe stammered, “It was… it was my first day as your secretary.” Anger surged in Arthur’s eyes as he looked up at me. I admitted it openly. “That’s right. I did go there that day.” Before that incident, I had fought with Arthur countless times over Chloe. In the middle of the night, Chloe would get a fever and demand he take her to the hospital. Chloe would get lost and demand he pick her up. Chloe would go shopping for clothes and send him pictures, asking which one looked best. We argued and screamed at each other. “Arthur, can you please care a little more about my feelings? I love you. I can’t help but mind when you get so close to another woman. It hurts me.” “You know perfectly well that you are the most important person in the world to me.” He would lovingly wipe my tears and promise me he would keep his distance from Chloe. But just a few days later, I received a text from Chloe: [Maya, what’s the point of you trying to stop him? I just shed a few tears, and Arthur agreed to make me his secretary anyway.] I thought she was just making things up to drive a wedge between us. I believed Arthur wouldn’t lie to me. But, fueled by a sliver of anxiety, I quietly went to Arthur’s office. And there I saw Chloe, sitting right in the secretary’s area. She absentmindedly twirled her hair, looking at me smugly. “Maya, do you like my earrings? Arthur gave them to me as a welcome gift.” The look on her face disgusted me to my core. I raised my hand and slapped her across the face. “Chloe, taking other people’s hand-me-downs… doesn’t it make you feel dirty?” Back then, she covered her cheek, but smiled at me arrogantly. “Maya, are you scared because you can feel yourself losing Arthur?” And now, Chloe was holding her perfectly fine cheek with red eyes, sobbing: “Maya just slapped me once that day. It’s okay. As long as Maya could vent her anger without taking it out on Arthur, I don’t care how much it hurt.” After hearing this, Arthur glared at me with a dark, terrifying expression. The rage in his eyes looked ready to swallow me whole. “Maya, I thought you were just being dramatic, that your possessiveness was acting up because you couldn’t accept Chloe coming back. I never imagined you had turned into such a vicious, malicious woman.” His icy voice carried not a single shred of pity. “Honestly, making you drink this whole bottle is letting you off easy.” I looked up in shock, staring at him. “Is that really what you think of me?” Arthur scoffed lightly. “Facts speak louder than words.” “You know I can’t drink alcohol!” I stared at him unblinkingly. Arthur sneered. “Then what the hell are you doing here today?” He looked toward the door behind me, his jaw tight. “If you aren’t actually here to apologize, you can leave right now.” It felt like a thousand needles had pierced my heart. A single tear hit the floor and vanished instantly. I was surprised to find that before coming here, I thought I had already mentally prepared myself to leave this world. Yet, it seemed a tiny thread of hope had still remained in my heart. Maybe it’s just a misunderstanding? Maybe… he still loves me. Unfortunately, that bottle of wine crushed my last lifeline. Arthur, I don’t want you anymore. I smiled as I looked at him. “If I drink this bottle, will you forgive me? Will you come home with me?” Chloe looked up at him too. Arthur’s dark eyes revealed no emotion. His voice was flat. “The person you need to apologize to is Chloe, not me.” “Maya, adults need to take responsibility for their actions.” I swallowed the bitterness in my throat and nodded numbly. “Okay.” But the next second, the wine bottle was snatched from my hands. “Arthur, a whole bottle will kill her!” It was Leo. Arthur smirked, ignoring him entirely, and looked only at me: “Maya, the choice is yours. I’m not forcing you.” My heart felt like it had already been shredded to pieces by the wind. Strangely, I didn’t feel any pain at this moment. “I’ll drink it.” I stubbornly took the bottle back from Leo, murmured a low ‘thank you’ to him again, put the bottle to my lips, and took massive, desperate gulps. As my mind began to blur, I thought I saw Arthur shoving through the crowd, striding rapidly toward me. The bottle was yanked from my hands, and my body collapsed heavily. Arthur, this wine is so bitter. 4 In my dreams, it felt like I was transported back to seven years ago. I had just transmigrated into this world. Back then, Arthur was repressed and ruthless. He was an illegitimate child, only brought back to the Vance family after his mother died. The System had briefed me on the plot. When Arthur was first brought back to the Vance family as a child, the other elite heirs despised him and constantly bullied him. Once, when a group of rich kids was shooting him with water guns, Chloe, wearing a little white princess dress, stepped forward to defend him. She became an unforgettable beacon of beauty in Arthur’s memory. What he didn’t know was that it was just a show of bravery and kindness Chloe put on to impress the male lead standing not far away. Arthur was nothing but a tool in her play. When I arrived in this world, Arthur had slowly begun to show his brilliance within the Vance family. But his temperament was violent, and his business methods were cold and brutal. The patriarch of the Vance family did not favor him. I appeared by his side as the youngest daughter of a close family friend, having just returned from abroad, set up on a blind date with him. At first, Arthur had no interest in me whatsoever. For an entire month, the mission progress bar didn’t move an inch. Until one day, I attended a major real estate negotiation in my father’s place. Arthur was also there. At the dinner table, a prominent figure intentionally made things difficult for me, demanding I toast every single person at the table. After one glass, my body had already started itching, and red hives began to appear. As I raised the second glass to my lips, a hand clamped down on my wrist. It was Arthur. He took the glass from my hand and smiled faintly at the crowd. “The Vance and Hayes families have been close friends for generations. I’ll drink the remaining glasses on behalf of my little sister here.” Amidst the clinking glasses, he smoothly redirected the conversation away from me, leaning in to whisper in my ear: “If it’s an alcohol allergy, I suggest you slip away right now and take some medicine. I’ll cover for you.” I froze. When I looked up, his eyes were shining brightly as he seamlessly blended into the crowd’s conversation. Confident, composed, and impeccably graceful. In that instant, I felt my heart skip a beat. I started intentionally appearing around him frequently. Using care and gentleness, I slowly melted the harsh spikes he wore as armor, and helped mend his relationship with Grandpa Vance. I also utilized my family’s network to help him secure deal after deal, increasing his leverage within the Vance Group. Our shared footprints of hard work covered the globe. During a negotiation in South America, we were caught in the crossfire of local cartels. We were trapped for three days and three nights. Just as we were about to make it out of the jungle, we encountered the cartel thugs. I threw myself in front of him, taking a bullet straight to the left side of my chest. In the nick of time, the backup we had arranged finally arrived, rescuing us from the desperate outlaws. In the ambulance transporting me to the hospital, Arthur’s eyes turned red for the first time. Huge tears fell onto my face. Trembling all over, he asked me why I was so stupid and begged me to hold on. He said, “We haven’t even had our wedding yet. You aren’t my wife yet. You can’t die.” At that moment, I truly believed I was going to die in that foreign land. I reached up, stroked Arthur’s face, and forced a smile: “Don’t cry, Arthur. I came to this world specifically for you anyway.” At the same time, the System notified me: “Host, mission progress has reached 100%. Congratulations, you have successfully conquered the target.” Miraculously, the bullet missed my vital organs, and I survived. After three months of recovery, Arthur married me in a grand wedding that made global headlines. In the countless late nights of passionate intimacy after our marriage, he whispered “I love you” in my ear over and over again. By then, Chloe had long been married to the male lead overseas. I truly thought that Arthur and I wouldn’t have any more obstacles in our world. … In a groggy haze, I felt someone changing my clothes. I stubbornly pushed them away. “Don’t touch me. I have a husband. My husband is Arthur Vance.” The hands unbuttoning my shirt paused, a thumb resting exactly on the bullet scar. The old wound had healed and scarred over years ago, new flesh replacing the old. But it forever immortalized that moment on my body. The person seemed stunned for a long time. He coaxed gently, “Be good, don’t fuss. Let’s get your clothes changed and get you a shower.” He rambled on, saying a bunch of other things I couldn’t hear clearly. I covered his mouth. “So noisy.” After saying that, a wave of profound sorrow washed over me, and I began sobbing uncontrollably. The person asked, “Why are you crying?” That one sentence pulled the thread that unraveled me entirely. I cried even harder. “My husband fell in love with someone else. He bullies me. I don’t want him anymore. I’m leaving.” The person seemed to freeze. After that, I don’t know what happened, as I fell into a deep sleep. When I woke up again, it was broad daylight. Sunlight streamed through the sheer curtains. Shadows played across the bedroom. The System’s voice sounded: “Host, you’re leaving tomorrow. Do you have any lingering regrets?” It warned, “The bastard Arthur is right outside.” As soon as the System finished speaking, Arthur appeared in the doorway holding a glass of honey water. His voice was slightly hoarse, and he looked at me with an unnatural expression. “Maya, you’re awake.”

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As promised, the system cured my terminal illness, erased every trace of my existence, and sent me abroad. I thought I would never see him again. But six years later, that same system found me. It told me that there was a role for a malicious supporting female character, and it needed me to play it. “If I become malicious, mean, and greedy, Oliver Vance… will you still love me?” 1 The plane slowly descended, and the familiar bustling traffic and skyscrapers of the city unfolded before my eyes. Looking at the view from the window, I let out a deep breath. If the system hadn’t threatened me with complete erasure, I never would have agreed to come back. After all, our breakup back then was incredibly ugly. He chased me all the way to the airport. The corners of his eyes were red as he screamed my name through the crowded terminal, just to beg me not to leave. Forty-nine times. Each one more desperate than the last. But until my back disappeared at the end of the security checkpoint… He didn’t get a single response. Back then, he truly loved me. He loved me so much that even when I told him to his face I only approached him for his money, he didn’t care. I sold everything he gave me, even that ring, and boarded the plane to a foreign country. Before blocking him on WeChat, I left him one final message: “Sorry, Mr. Vance. It was just for fun. Why did you take it so seriously?” In the airport, the slender boy hunched over, practically breaking down, hot tears falling drop by drop. When he was ostracized and gossiped about for being the illegitimate son of a wealthy family, the only person who stood by his side had now abandoned him too. The only beam of light in his oppressive life had suddenly extinguished. The blow to him was massive. The scene was captured by a bystander and uploaded to the internet. The hashtag “Boy in Black Chases Ex to Airport Begging for Reconciliation” instantly went viral. Oliver’s identity was exposed that very day. He was a wealthy heir from a prominent family, where just the hair tie on his wrist cost tens of thousands. Six years passed. People were still constantly posting comparison videos of Oliver. The miserable, defeated boy in the airport had grown into a powerful, influential tycoon, his features now carrying an arrogant, ruthless edge. The caption below the video read: “Does the girl from the airport regret it now?” 2 Did I regret it? Maybe. If I had just broken up with him a little more gracefully back then, the current mission wouldn’t be so tricky. [Detected that the female lead, Chloe Thorne, is currently at KK Bar. Host, please proceed to the location immediately. Use your identity as the ‘first love’ to mock and belittle her.] Chloe Thorne? The wealthy heiress who relentlessly pursued Oliver in our senior year of high school? When she found out I was Oliver’s girlfriend, she purposely came to provoke me. She tore up my exam papers, threw cold water on me, and tried to force me to break up with him. I twitched the corner of my mouth. [System, your taste in female leads is seriously terrible.] [Host, please just focus on completing the mission.] The system’s voice remained cold and detached. 3 The bar at midnight was lively and loud. Wearing a black fishtail dress, I swayed my hips to the beat of the music, blending in with the dancing crowd. Even with heavy makeup, the woman in the distance noticed me. Her gaze closely followed my every move. I flipped my hair and turned my face fully in her direction. Soon, two men in black suits pulled me away from the dance floor. “It really is you, Elena Miller. “I didn’t expect you to have the guts to come back.” She swirled her wine glass, looking me up and down with a contemptuous gaze. Her haughty tone was exactly the same as it was back then. I rubbed my wrist, sat down across from her, and looked at her with eyes full of amusement. “What, afraid I’m back to steal Oliver away?” “Afraid? Afraid of what?” She acted as if she had heard a joke, the corners of her lips turning up even more. “You’re the one who should be afraid. “You didn’t just scam him out of his money back then; you scammed his feelings. He looked for you for years and couldn’t find you. And now, you show up yourself. You should know, Oliver hates deception and betrayal the most. “Guess how a vindictive man like him will torture you?” Her eyes held obvious schadenfreude. “Oh, well, that doesn’t change the fact that I’m his first love.” My tone was light and indifferent. The smile on her lips noticeably faded. “That was in the past,” she emphasized. “At least I was, once,” I retorted, latching onto her point. Amidst the blaring background music, we stared at each other. The amusement in my eyes grew stronger. She finally cracked, leaning in closer, gritting her teeth. “Elena, have you no shame? “You’ve been gone for so many years. Oliver has been mine for a long time now. “The person he loves now is me! Me! I’m warning you, stop being so delusional!” Saying that, she opened her phone. She forcefully pointed at an entertainment news headline in bold red font for me to see. A-List Actress Chloe Thorne and Powerful Tycoon Behave Intimately, Suspected Romance Exposed. The photos were blurry shots of a man and a woman from behind—eating at a restaurant, walking side-by-side on the street, getting into a car one after the other. I tapped the screen, zooming in on the blurry side profile. “Stop doubting it. It’s Oliver.” She curled her lips into a triumphant smile. “I never said it wasn’t him,” I replied flatly. She scoffed, then opened her photo album to show me. The background looked like a family gathering. A woman stood next to a man, her head resting slightly on his broad shoulder, smiling radiantly. I glanced at it twice, pushed the phone back, and leaned against my chair. Fingers laced together in my lap, I slowly rubbed my index finger. In six years, he had completely shed his boyish aura. Dressed in a sharp black suit, he looked cold and dominant. The eyes looking into the camera were utterly freezing. He used to be aloof and unapproachable, too. But whenever I touched the small mole at the corner of his eye… His eyelashes would flutter, and he would indulge my actions with a slow, unblinking gaze. He never possessed this intimidating, oppressive aura he had now. A slightly unfamiliar Oliver. As if reading my mind, the system spoke up indifferently: [No one stays the same, Host. He couldn’t possibly retain all his past feelings. Your identity as the ‘first love’ is just a facade now. You just need to use this facade to complete the mission.] I paused, downed the drink in my glass, and smiled. “He might not remember everything, but he couldn’t have forgotten everything, either.” Just as I stood up to leave, the person behind me suddenly stood up and shouted, “Elena! He only loves me now! I’ll say it again, don’t show your face here! Or he’ll skin you alive!” So stubborn. I stopped, turned around, and smiled. “Well, that’s unfortunate. I just signed with Oliver’s company. Guess we’ll be seeing each other every day.” “Elena! You did this on purpose, didn’t you?!” she demanded, furious. “Yep, on purpose. I haven’t forgotten the things you did to me using your family’s money back then. Guess who the company will give the better resources to from now on—you or me?” I kept smiling. She turned pale with anger, picking up her wine glass to throw it at me. But the next moment, her footsteps halted abruptly. In a daze, it felt as if the music in the bar had paused for a second. Sensing something, I followed her gaze and turned my head. Amidst the noise, a blurry yet familiar figure froze in my pupils. The man wore a long, black trench coat, the buttons left undone. The hair on his forehead was slightly messy from the wind, as if he had rushed over from a meeting. Countless eyes were on him. But he just stood there, looking at me. Across the crowd and the noise, it felt like a dream. A long-awaited reunion. I thought he should hate me. But I didn’t see any hatred or resentment in his eyes. Instead, there was a surge of some obscure, unspeakable emotion. “Hi. Long time no see.” In the end, I was the first to speak, smiling and greeting him. 4 We ended up eating together anyway. Throughout the meal, Chloe kept serving Oliver food, every action designed to show how intimate her relationship with him was now. And Oliver barely said a word. His jaw was tight, his face expressionless. But his gaze was restrained yet burning. Looking closely, there was even a hint of caution. I had to admit, it created a stark contrast within him. When dessert was finally served, Chloe saw the three small orange mousse cakes and covered her mouth, laughing. “Oh, Oliver, you still ordered my favorite. I remember Elena is allergic to mangoes, right?” She shot a triumphant look in my direction. But as soon as she finished speaking, a waiter placed a different small dessert plate in front of me. “Miss, your chocolate mousse.” “Hmm?” I looked up at the man across from me. “For you.” His voice was very soft, but his eyes uncontrollably fell on me, carrying a faint anticipation. It was my favorite flavor from the past. I paused, put on a smile, and said politely, “Thank you, Mr. Vance.” 5 “Next mission: Sow discord between the male and female leads, and steal the female lead’s script.” In the restroom, I was carefully touching up my makeup in the mirror. I asked, surprised, “That simple?” The system paused. [Host, you’d better have a clear understanding of yourself. [Don’t forget how you abandoned the male lead back then.] I touched my freshly glossed lips and smiled. [System, I think you’re underestimating the destructive power of a ‘first love.’] In the mirror, those narrow, cold eyes suddenly met mine. “Is there something you need?” I put my lipstick back in my bag and turned around calmly. He pressed his lips together, looking at me silently, his eyes as dark as ink. His Adam’s apple bobbed as if he wanted to say something, but he remained silent. I chuckled and casually called his name, “Oliver.” The slightly raised intonation at the end was exactly the same as it was back then. His hands clenched tightly at his sides, his knuckles turning white. I just stood there, eyes smiling, watching him leisurely. [System, see that? [The first love doesn’t have to do anything. [The first love just needs to stand there, and it hurts him to his very core, agonizingly so.] The system was silent for a long time before saying, [Host, you are very cruel.] [Aren’t the ones who designed this mission cruel too?] I lowered my eyes indifferently. They insist on giving this interrupted story the worst possible ending. Forcing the boy to watch helplessly as everything from his past is destroyed in a tragedy. 6 I forget how we ended up kissing. I only remember that, as our breaths mingled and our eyes met, the emotions in his eyes churned like a stormy sea. The next moment, I was pinned against the wall. An oppressive, vindictive kiss fell upon me, urgent and fiery. Just as I was running out of breath, he gradually slowed down, becoming gentle, reverent, and cautious. Eventually, he held me tightly, his forehead resting against my neck, breathing deeply. He seemed incredibly wounded and fragile. My heart trembled slightly. My shoulder felt a little damp. I looked at his slightly messy hair and couldn’t resist reaching out to smooth it. “I have a room on the top floor. Want to come up?” “Yes.” His voice was muffled and raspy. 7 The lights in the room were off. My kisses fell on his neck, his collarbone. Unable to handle it, he fell back onto the sofa, panting heavily. I gently bit his earlobe, asking with practiced ease and a light laugh, “Oliver, do you like it?” His expression visibly froze. I was using him. Using his past feelings to manipulate him. His expression turned cold. Just before he could push me away, I kissed him again. I easily pried open his lips, gradually taking over. Slowly, the hand pushing me away lost its strength. … “What do you want?” His voice was hoarse, suppressing his emotions. The redness at the corners of his eyes hadn’t faded, and his large hands rested restrained on my lower back. I thought he would ask where I’d been all these years, why I didn’t come back, why I lied to him, or maybe settle old scores and say something harsh. But he didn’t. He chose to ask a question about the present. Asking what my motive was for approaching him. I rested my chin on one hand, my fingers casually tapping his abs. With a beaming smile, I said, “The lead female role in Chloe’s new drama. You know I don’t like her.” [Host, you’d better not be this direct.] The system couldn’t help but issue a warning. [No one would agree to your request under these circumstances.] Is that so? I looked at the man in front of me with those beautiful, smiling eyes. He pressed his lips together tightly, holding my gaze. I could even feel the rise and fall of his chest and his faint breaths. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds. “Can you do that?” I asked. The defenses he had built in his heart were effortlessly shattered. His Adam’s apple bobbed. He looked deeply at me and rasped out a single word: “Yes.” The smile on my lips deepened. “Thank you, Mr. Vance.” I straightened up, preparing to rise, and casually added, [System, I suggest you stay quiet while I’m doing my missions, otherwise the face-slapping every time…] Suddenly, two large hands grabbed my waist. Caught off guard, I fell back onto his lap. “Elena.” He buried his face in my neck, breathing deeply. I froze. My mind went blank for a second. A muffled, hoarse voice came from my neck, carrying a deep sense of helplessness and an indescribable longing. He said, “Please, stop playing with me. ” I can’t take being played like this.” 8 Oliver drove me back. The car pulled up smoothly in front of a hotel. Just as I unbuckled my seatbelt to get out, he suddenly reached out and grabbed me. “You’re staying here?” “Is there a problem?” He rolled down the window, looking at the neon hotel sign missing a letter and the unattended front desk. “It’s not safe.” “This hotel was investigated for some issues a few years ago.” The dim yellow interior light spilled onto the messy hair on his head. He looked at me, his Adam’s apple bobbing slightly, and asked, “Stay at my place. Please?” I didn’t answer. I just followed his gaze out the window. Old wooden windows swayed in the wind, and the surrounding area was completely deserted. Because the system had rushed me to the bar the moment I got off the plane, I didn’t have much time and just found the nearest hotel to drop my bags. I didn’t expect the hotel, which looked fine in the afternoon, to look so creepy at night. “It’s fine,” I swallowed hard. “I checked it out this afternoon. It’s livable.” At this point, I had secretly resolved to sprint upstairs as fast as possible, lock the door, and hide under the covers. Just as my hand touched the door handle, the person next to me spoke again, “I think I just saw a woman in a white dress with disheveled hair walk by.” Seeing me freeze, he added very softly, “She looked like she was floating.” After a brief second of hesitation, I decisively let go of the door handle and leaned back in my seat.

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“If you ever want a divorce, you can have one anytime.” That’s what Arthur Vance told me on our wedding day. I believed him. Two months later, on the day his true love returned, I placed the divorce agreement in front of him. Arthur looked out the window, his expression flat. “It’s raining. “I’m in a bad mood. Let’s divorce next time.” Me: ??? 1 On the very night Chloe Thorne returned. Fueled by liquid courage, I slept with Arthur Vance. The trail of clothes discarded from the front door to the bedroom was proof of the urgency of our encounter. Arthur tried to maintain his reason, pushing me away. His eyes, slightly red, stared intently at me. His Adam’s apple bobbed slowly. “Elena, look closely. Do you know who I am? “If we continue, don’t regret it.” I was panting slightly. I looked up, grabbed him by the collar, stood on my tiptoes, and kissed him. What a joke. I was sleeping with my legal husband; what was the problem? Until the second half of the night, when I started to regret it. This guy’s stamina was terrifying. I tried to sneak away, but the person behind me grabbed my ankle and pulled me back. Warm breath tickled my ear. Arthur’s voice, deep and rich, ghosted over the back of my neck, sending shivers down my spine. “Be a good girl. Quitting halfway isn’t allowed.” 2 A night of absolute absurdity. When I woke up again, the person beside me was gone. On the nightstand sat a glass of milk, a sandwich, and a sticky note left by Arthur, its words brimming with gentle concern. Since we got married, Arthur had faithfully played the role of a good husband. I often had the illusion that I was actually loved. But reason always reminded me of the truth. The person Arthur liked was Chloe Thorne. She was the one who was supposed to marry him in this arranged union. But my always impulsive, free-spirited younger sister ran away. I heard Arthur chased her all the way to the airport that day. For some unknown reason, he ultimately didn’t get on that flight to France. Because he was acting out of spite. Later, when our families tried to shove me—the older sister he barely knew—onto him, he didn’t resist. It was only when I excused myself to the restroom that, faced with the relentless teasing of his relatives, he finally showed a hint of exhausted indifference: “Do I even have the right to refuse? “You’ve all already decided. I don’t care.” Because it wasn’t the person in his heart, anyone else would do. On our wedding day, the first thing Arthur said to me was: “If you ever want a divorce in the future, you can have one anytime.” I just didn’t expect that, a mere two months after the wedding, Chloe would come back. I’ve always known my place. Ignoring the breakfast on the nightstand, I picked up my phone and called Mia, my lawyer friend. “Prepare a divorce agreement for me.” I heard the lawyer’s exaggerated gasp on the other end. The sun was shining brightly outside the window, but suddenly, it started to pour rain. I couldn’t help but space out. 3 That very evening, I placed the divorce agreement in front of Arthur. In the quiet study, the man in the white shirt sat there, radiating an aura of noble gentleness. Completely different from the image I held in my memory. I had seen Arthur beat someone up once. It was in a filthy alleyway near the old campus of A University. To make it hurt more, he held a Zippo lighter in his fist, striking with ruthless, heavy blows. Until the sound of bones crunching echoed in the air, mixed with the man’s agonizing screams. The slightly boyish, handsome face of the youth looked somewhat demonic, splattered with crimson blood. That was the first time I met the person Chloe constantly talked about. The sole heir to the Vance Group. Violent, reckless, fearless. Perhaps because that summer was exceptionally hot and sticky, I inexplicably disliked him. My thoughts returned to the present. Arthur was still staring silently at that piece of paper. It had been so long I started to doubt his literacy skills. I couldn’t help but ask: “Can you not read?” Arthur finally moved. He turned his head to look out the window, his expression flat: “It’s been raining all day.” My gaze followed his to the damp windowpane. Okay, and? “I’m in a bad mood. Let’s divorce next time.” Me: ??? … For the past two days, Arthur and I had been locked in a bizarre tug-of-war. The chat history on my phone was still stuck on the message I sent this morning, reminding him to sign the papers. He had deliberately ignored me again. Me: [You’re avoiding this.] Arthur: [Avoiding it may be shameful, but it’s useful.] A few moments later, my phone buzzed again. Arthur: [Sleeping with me and then abandoning me. What a player.] What was that supposed to mean? Wasn’t I graciously making way for his true love? Arthur: [Did I make you uncomfortable last night, so now you’re mad? [Okay, I admit I lack experience, but doing this really makes me lose face. [Besides, you seemed to enjoy it later on /frantic emoji/.] His overly blunt words made my old face flush red. Me: [You were the one who said I could have a divorce anytime.] Arthur: [… [You talk too much. Blocking you for half a day.] I tried to reply again. The screen displayed a notification: The recipient has rejected your message. Me: ??? This guy is so childish. 4 I had originally planned to go back tonight, tie him up, and force him to sign. But halfway there, I received a call from my family’s main estate. Resigned, I turned the car around and headed back to the old mansion. As soon as I arrived, I heard a chorus of cheerful laughter coming from the living room. “Chloe, you’re getting prettier every day.” Chloe was surrounded in the center. Her face flushed red from the teasing and compliments of the relatives, looking exactly like a tender, translucent peach. “She’s such a perfect match for that Vance boy. What a shame.” “I told you, if you hadn’t run away from the wedding, you’d be the future matriarch of the Vance family right now.” Chloe quickly intervened: “Arthur is already married to my sister. It’s inappropriate to make jokes like this.” The relatives were dismissive. “What’s inappropriate? You can always divorce after getting married.” “As long as the Vance family is willing, swapping a person is no big deal.” These people were all my father’s relatives. They had always disliked me. Because I looked very much like my biological mother. That poor woman. She bet everything her father left her to help a down-and-out man rebuild his empire. Only to be betrayed time and time again. In the end, she fell ill from depression and died alone in a sanatorium. I scoffed, clapping my hands as I walked toward the crowd. “Since when did the Thorne family adopt the trend of encouraging people to steal their sister’s husband? “But you guys are right about one thing. “I’ve already given Arthur the divorce papers.” I stopped, my gaze finally locking onto Chloe’s innocent almond eyes. The corners of my mouth curled into a mocking arc. “Do you want to go act cute and beg him to kick me out faster, so you can take my place? “Just like your mother did.” Chloe’s face instantly turned pale, tears welling up in her eyes. Anyone seeing this pitiful display would feel their heart ache. “Insolent!” A furious roar came from my father behind me. I spun around, only to unexpectedly lock eyes with a pair of dark pupils swirling with inexplicable emotions. “…” Why was Arthur here? 5 As soon as the study door closed. My father raised his hand, ready to strike me. I didn’t move or dodge. I took the slap head-on, my left cheek burning with pain. “Who told you to unilaterally ask for a divorce? “Can you bear the consequences of angering the Vance family?” I lowered my eyes, my posture neither servile nor overbearing: “Isn’t Chloe still here? She and Arthur mutually love each other. It’s perfect…” “Nonsense.” My father irritably cut me off. “My, Richard Thorne’s, daughter never eats another person’s leftovers.” Another person’s? I laughed. “Back then, when you told me to marry him in Chloe’s place, did you ever think of me as your daughter? “Or perhaps, from the moment you dumped me with that ‘crazy woman’ 15 years ago, you never intended to acknowledge me again.” “Elena Thorne! “That ‘crazy woman’ you speak of was your mother.” Richard was furious, leaning on the desk, panting heavily. His health had been very poor lately. The man who was once invincible was now showing signs of old age. His shoulders slumped in defeat, and he waved his hand weakly at me. “If you want to divorce, fine. But don’t even think about getting anything from the Thorne family afterward. Weigh the consequences yourself. “I called you back today to tell you that Chloe will be joining the company next week. Keep an eye on her for me, and don’t let her run wild anymore.” Constantly using the inheritance to threaten people. What arrogant, self-righteous authority from a man in power. In his heart, he never truly intended to hand the Thorne family over to me anyway. I walked out of the study and stopped a passing servant. “Where is Arthur?” The servant hesitated for a moment, stammering that they saw the son-in-law and the Second Miss head to the third floor alone. That was Chloe’s bedroom. Perfect. I looked up at the empty staircase. This saved me the trouble of begging him for a divorce. 6 My ears were filled with deafening music. The dazzling lights turned the club into a world of intoxicating luxury. I drank in silence. Mia couldn’t stand watching me anymore. She reached out and snatched the glass I had just brought to my lips. “Even when your dad hit you, I’ve never seen your mood this bad. “I brought you here to relax, not to binge drink, Princess.” I remained silent, casually grabbing another glass of alcohol. Just then, a man approached to hit on me. Mia winked and gestured for me to seize the opportunity. The man sat right next to me, his hand resting on my waist slowly roaming as he spoke. I raised an eyebrow: “I’m married.” Mia tore down my defense: “Getting a divorce soon.” Hearing this, the man’s eyes turned suggestive, and he leaned in even closer. “Wives are more exciting.” His deliberately raspy “vocal fry” made me frown in disgust. Before I could lash out, the man suddenly screamed in agony. From behind the sofa, Arthur gripped the man’s arm, forcing him to stand up. His tone was bone-chilling. “Next time before you touch someone, think about how many hands you have left to chop off. “Get lost.” I was speechless. Was he auditioning for a mafia movie? The man cursed and fled. The atmosphere in our booth instantly became tense, with people stealing careful glances our way. I leaned back against the sofa, crossing my arms, and looked at Arthur. His expression was completely flat, his eyes dark, cruel, and unruly, slowly overlapping with the image of the boy from that hot, humid summer. “Elena, we aren’t divorced yet. Don’t let other men touch you.” Sure enough, no matter how well he pretended, his true nature was hard to hide. I didn’t expect him to remember me after comforting his true love. I must admit, I was almost touched. I shrugged: “It’s just a matter of time.” Arthur’s gaze was burning, his tone bordering on obsessive. “I won’t agree to it.” “Fine,” I smiled brightly, pointing at the dozens of shot glasses on the table. “If you finish all of those, I’ll tear up the divorce agreement.” I was certain Arthur wouldn’t drink them. Because he had a terrible alcohol tolerance. And he absolutely despised the drinking culture of the business world. In the two months since we got married, he had only been mad at me once. Because I drank myself into stomach bleeding at a business dinner. For that, a certain someone unilaterally gave me the cold shoulder for an entire day. Within five minutes, a crowd gathered around our booth to watch the show and cheer. Arthur’s face was flushed red, constantly pouring liquor down his throat. Glass after glass. His dark pupils reflected my stunned expression. Why on earth was he doing this?

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The year my adoptive parents passed away in a car crash. My adoptive older brother, Arthur, sensed my inappropriate, hidden feelings for him and gave me two words: “You disgust me.” Shortly after, our family’s company faced bankruptcy. To secure funding, he shipped me off to the Vance family in a strategic marriage, forcing me to marry their intellectually disabled son, Liam. Three years later, Arthur’s business empire expanded massively. He no longer needed the Vance family’s backing. With a wave of his hand, he orchestrated their downfall and sent Liam’s entire family to federal prison. He stood in front of me and reached out his hand: “Come home with me.” I just shook my head faintly: “You must be joking, Mr. Sterling. My husband’s last name is Vance. The Vance family is my home.” 1 My finger traced the photo in my wallet, as if the person in the picture was still right beside me, as if he had never left. Tears fell drop by drop. I quickly put the wallet away. I couldn’t let the person in the photo see me sad; it would break his heart. A voice next to me interrupted my thoughts at the worst possible moment. “Ms. Sterling, you’ve suffered in the Vance family for three years. Now the dark clouds have finally cleared. Mr. Sterling is already waiting for you. Please, just come with me.” I wiped the tear stains from the corners of my eyes, gave Arthur’s assistant a flat look, and shook my head. “I’m not going anywhere. I want to stay here.” This was the third time the assistant had tried to persuade me, and the third time I had rejected him. Unable to complete his task and knowing he’d have a hard time explaining it to his boss, he was incredibly anxious. “There’s not a single soul left here. It doesn’t make any sense for you to stay.” He was right. There wasn’t a single soul left. Even though just last month, Liam was right here in this garden, wrapping his arms around my waist, begging me to feed him oranges. The Vance family was all here too, sitting around the garden, laughing warmly. The person in my wallet photo was my husband, Liam. When the federal agents arrived and arrested his entire family, Liam was terrified. I had pushed his wheelchair in a panic and managed to help him escape the chaos. But after the dust settled, he went missing in the aftermath. I had no idea where he was, or if he was eating and sleeping well. This single photo carried the entire weight of my worry for him. “I can’t leave. I have to wait for Liam here. What if I leave and he can’t find me?” I turned my head to meet the assistant’s eyes. “Tell Arthur Sterling he doesn’t need to send anyone to pick me up anymore.” The assistant sighed and dialed Arthur’s number. I’ve always known Arthur was busy—either negotiating deals or flying around the country for corporate dinners. Because of that, the assistant had to call practically all night before the line finally connected. The assistant deliberately put the phone on speaker so I could hear. I couldn’t tell exactly what Arthur’s mood was from his voice, but it definitely wasn’t good. “What? Has she been out in the wild so long she’s forgotten where her actual home is?” I didn’t answer, instead looking out the window into the night. Right now, silence spoke louder than words. After a long pause, he issued a command through the phone. “Since she wants to stay there so badly, let her stay there for the rest of her life!” The moment he finished, the line went dead with a rapid beep-beep-beep. He didn’t want to waste a single extra word on me. He was probably even busier now. Busy crushing rival companies and sending anyone who posed a threat to him to prison. Liam was one of those people. Everyone on the news was saying the Vance family committed massive financial crimes, and that they were getting off easy if they didn’t get life sentences. But I knew the Vance family hadn’t done anything wrong. I understood Arthur’s methods too well. When he needs you, he can lower his head and abandon his pride. But once he’s squeezed every drop of use out of you, he’ll turn around and sell you out without a second thought. The night wind was freezing, but every time I thought about Liam wandering the streets out there, I couldn’t bring myself to go inside and sleep. I hadn’t eaten a bite all day. I just sat there in a daze, guarding the photo in my wallet and this empty house. Eventually, I don’t even know how I fell asleep. “Get up! Stop playing dead!” 2 Early the next morning, I was jolted awake by a sharp, piercing female voice. I squinted and saw Chloe Sterling standing in front of me. I had no idea when she arrived. Unlike my pathetic state, she was dressed in high-end designer clothes, wearing bright red lipstick, looking every bit the wealthy socialite. Seeing me slowly sit up, she looked down at me from above, a smirk on her face. “Haven’t seen you in three years, and look at the pathetic state you’re in. If anyone found out you were the adopted daughter of the Sterling family, I’d die of embarrassment.” “Anyway, Arthur specifically sent me to bring you home. If you still remember everything he’s done for you, you’ll hurry up and divorce that retard so you don’t have to live like a widow while he rots in prison.” “I am never getting a divorce.” I looked at her, letting out a cold laugh. “You’re just as mean and bitter as you used to be.” Chloe is my sister. But unlike me and Arthur, she didn’t grow up with us. When she was eight, she was abducted by human traffickers. By the time she was finally found and brought back, our parents had already passed away. Because of that, she lacked the refined elegance typical of old-money socialites. Instead, she carried a thick, street-smart hostility and was always the first to kick someone when they were down. A flash of undetectable anger sparked in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it. “So what? Do you actually think those words are enough to make me mad?” “Also, don’t think that just because you refuse to get a divorce, Arthur can’t do anything about it. I’ll tell you right now, he predicted you’d act like this. He sent me here not just to persuade you to come home, but to give you something.” A terrible feeling washed over me. I watched her pull a piece of paper from her designer bag and throw it mockingly at my feet. “Forced by your own brother to marry a retard, and now that the retard is in prison, you still want to wait for him.” “Evelyn, you are so incredibly stupid.” I ignored her taunts and quickly unfolded the paper on the ground. With a single glance, it felt like a bucket of ice water had been poured over my head, and my ears started ringing violently. The paper in front of me was a finalized divorce decree. I had never signed it, but my signature was right there at the bottom, mimicking my handwriting perfectly. That meant Arthur had forged my signature to finalize this legally binding divorce. He wouldn’t even let me keep the very last tie I had to Liam. “He can’t do this… how could he…” I gripped the paper, shaking uncontrollably. My stomach suddenly churned violently. My vision grew darker and darker. The massive emotional shock, combined with my physical exhaustion, caused me to collapse to the ground. My eyelids grew impossibly heavy… Right before my eyes closed, I saw Chloe panicking. She was terrified that if I died, she’d have a hard time explaining it to Arthur. I don’t know how much time passed, but several paramedics rushed in, and I was loaded into an ambulance. And at that moment, I completely lost consciousness. My surroundings slowly shifted, and I sank into a dream. The dream was very long. In it, I went back to the winter when I was twenty-two. My adoptive parents had just died in a car crash, and the company was facing a catastrophic crisis. Arthur stared at me like I was a piece of merchandise, and then… He used me as a bargaining chip, forcing me to marry Liam—the intellectually disabled son of the Vance family who no one else wanted—in exchange for their financial bailout. At that time, Chloe had just been brought back to the family. When she found out the price for the funding was marrying a disabled man, she screamed and cried like a lunatic, leveraging the twenty years of hardship she had suffered. And Arthur, forced to choose between his biological sister and his adopted sister, naturally chose me. By the time I found out, Arthur had already called my future in-laws to wait at the front door to pick me up. 3 That night, I ran to him, crying. “Arthur, why?! We grew up together! Does all that time mean absolutely nothing to you?!” “You know perfectly well that marrying into that family is throwing me to the wolves! Yet you’re abandoning me just to feed your own ambition! I’m your sister!” He stood in the shadows, his expression unreadable. “Evie, give me some time. When the moment is right, I will absolutely come bring you back.” Right at that moment, Chloe ran out to add fuel to the fire. “Evelyn, our family raised you for so many years. Didn’t you always say you wanted to repay Mom and Dad? Now that you have this perfect opportunity, why are you refusing?” “You’re fighting this so hard… don’t tell me you have a crush on someone?” The moment she said that, I went dead silent. The most humiliating thing in the world is having your deepest, most shameful secret exposed. I instinctively looked at Arthur. When my eyes met his, my face instantly drained of all color. His brow was deeply furrowed. He turned his head away, his expression laced with disgust. “You disgust me.” Seeing his reaction, what else was there to understand? Later, as time ticked away, he literally had his men tie me up, throw me into a car, and force me to get married. As the car window rolled up, the last thing he said to me was: “Evie, once you’re married, there’s no need for you to come back to visit. Mom and Dad only adopted you because they missed Chloe so much. Now that she’s back, it’s time for you to step aside.” His meaning was crystal clear: Don’t ever contact me again. I cried uncontrollably. It turned out he had noticed my teenage crush a long time ago. He despised me, and used this marriage as an excuse to cut all ties with me. I looked straight at him, my heartbreak indescribable. “Then I’ll just assume you’re dead.” And just like that, I married Liam, a handsome man with the mental capacity of a five-year-old. Life after marriage wasn’t nearly as unbearable as I had imagined. In fact, you could even say it was incredibly happy. Even though Liam only had the intellect of a five-year-old, he was kind-hearted, and… he loved me very much. “Pretty lady, are you my wife? Mommy said when you get a wife, you have to protect her! Pretty lady, I’ll protect you forever!” He said this to me with absolute seriousness, and then handed me all of his most treasured candies. In that moment, I felt like a ray of light had pierced through the total darkness of my life. Over the next three years, true to his word, the entire Vance family treated me incredibly well, especially Liam. We watched flowers bloom and the sun rise together. We did so many meaningful things. He never let me suffer a single grievance. He treated me even better than my adoptive parents and the brother who used to dote on me. He would always quietly follow behind me, proudly showing off to everyone that he had a wonderful wife. As time slipped by, moment by moment, I fell for him, sinking deeper and deeper. But Arthur ruined all of it. He clearly had everything he could ever want, but he simply refused to let go of anyone who had ever looked down on him when he was struggling. He completely obliterated my happy life until there was nothing but ash left. So I hated him. And I refused to go back home with him. My brother had already died in my heart three years ago. The dream collapsed the moment Arthur arrived. When I opened my eyes again, I was in a hospital. The person from my dream had crossed over into reality. Arthur was sitting by my bed, his gaze filled with tenderness. I turned my head away, refusing to look at him. He tried to act understanding, but his true goal was still to persuade me. “Evie, since you couldn’t make the decision yourself, I made it for you and divorced that Liam guy. This way, you don’t have to tie yourself to a retard anymore. He’s in prison anyway, so you…” “Arthur Sterling.” I cut him off, speaking every word with burning hatred. “My brother abandoned me three years ago. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t have a brother.” “And my home with you was destroyed a long time ago. The only home I have left, the only one that matters, is the one with my husband.” His expression stiffened, and an inexplicable surge of anger radiated from him. “Evelyn, do you really love that retard so much?!” 4 “Yes, I love him very much,” I answered truthfully. Arthur’s anger intensified, his very breath feeling hot with rage. I instinctively reached for the photo in my wallet. It had become a habit—a way to long for Liam during our brief separation. Arthur caught this tiny detail. He snatched the wallet from my hand, glanced at the photo, his expression cold and his voice dark. “Evie, I truly never imagined you’d fall so deeply in love with him. It seems sending you to him was a mistake.” Saying that, he pulled a lighter from his pocket and, right in front of my eyes, slowly burned the photo to ashes. All the while, he watched me out of the corner of his eye, waiting for my reaction. I had no reaction. It wasn’t that I was okay with him destroying the object of my longing, but I knew that if I showed signs of a breakdown, it would be exactly what Arthur wanted. If Liam were here, he definitely wouldn’t want me getting angry over a photo. After all, he hated seeing me upset more than anything. I closed my eyes, forcing back the sorrow threatening to overflow. When I opened my eyes, the ashes had already scattered in the draft. Seeing me unmoved, Arthur grew even more irritated. He leaned in close and inexplicably dropped a sentence: “Since you like him so much, I’ll take you to see him.” What? He knew where Liam was?! I grabbed Arthur’s arm, my voice furious. “What did you do to him?!” Even though his words made me incredibly anxious, I also felt a surge of heartbreaking sorrow. This meant Liam had actually been captured by him and hidden away. I couldn’t even imagine how much Liam must be suffering right now. Seeing my expression, Arthur remained indifferent. He put a finger to his lips, making a “shh” gesture. Then, he spoke slowly: “So, you better be a good girl. Otherwise, I might not be able to control my men. Right now, without my explicit orders, they’re just keeping an eye on him. But if I’m in a bad mood one day, that retard is going to suffer.” “Arthur, you did this on purpose!” Seeing his smugness, I clenched my hands into fists, wanting nothing more than to tear him into pieces. He simply tilted his head, cracking his knuckles loudly. “Like I said, Evie, you’d better not defy me. Right now, I’m just teaching him a little lesson. But if you remain ungrateful, it won’t be so simple next time.” “I’ll tell you the truth. To climb to where I am now, I’ve lost count of how much blood is on my hands. So, I don’t mind adding one more body to the pile.” “You’re a psychopath!” I screamed at him, completely breaking down. He looked even more pleased with himself, leaving only the instruction to “think about it carefully.” After he left, I completely deflated, collapsing onto the floor, drenched in a cold sweat. After that, I finally agreed to go home. Naturally, I lost my freedom. I was locked in the house, and Arthur ordered several more bodyguards to stand watch outside my door day and night, terrified I might run away. I didn’t fight back. Day and night, I just watched the geese flying by in pairs outside my window, looking so lively and free. Sometimes, Chloe would come looking for a fight, throwing insults at me, but I treated her like she didn’t exist. As for Arthur, whenever he got off work early, he would come back to see me. Just like today. He brought me a skewer of candied hawthorn berries and handed it to me. “Evie, you used to love these the most. Try it, see if it tastes like when we were kids.” I shook my head. I remember the third month after I married into the Vance family. I was still trapped in the agony of being betrayed by my family. Whenever I cried from the pain, there was always a man following behind me. I found him annoying and ignored him, but he didn’t care whether I paid attention to him or not. Every single day, he brought me different sweet treats—sometimes cotton candy, sometimes sugar figures. He told me: “I don’t know why you’re crying, but I asked around, and everyone said Evelyn loves sweet things the most. So I’m giving these to you, hoping they make you happy.” “I don’t understand all that scheming and plotting people talk about, but I know that anyone who bullies my wife is a bad person, and they need to be taught a lesson!” His goofy, silly earnestness finally made me laugh, and I stopped crying. But ever since Liam was taken from me, I lost my taste for sweets. The things Arthur brought couldn’t even compare to a fraction of the sweetness from back then. I don’t know if it was psychological, but I suddenly felt incredibly nauseous. Eventually, I couldn’t control it and threw up all over the floor. Arthur panicked instantly. He called the bodyguards and rushed me to his private clinic. The doctor gave me a quick ultrasound. What he said next shocked everyone in the room. “Mr. Sterling, Ms. Evelyn is pregnant. Looking at the scan, the fetus is about a month old.”

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Grandpa declared that whoever gets married first—my stepsister or me—would be the sole heir to the Sterling family estate. I looked calmly at my perpetually single stepsister. After all, my childhood sweetheart, Liam Crawford, had sworn he would only ever marry me. But the day before the heir was to be announced, he dropped to one knee in public and proposed to her. “Mia, will you marry me?” Just as panic began to set in, floating text—like comments on a live stream—suddenly materialized before my eyes: [“LMAO, Liam has been sleeping with Mia for ages. He’s complete trash.”] [“Girl, go find Ethan Vance! That boy has been secretly in love with you for ten years. He literally has the wedding bonuses ready.”] Half-doubting the bizarre phenomenon, I stormed right into the executive suite of Vance Corp, grabbed my long-time rival by his silk tie, and asked, “Ethan Vance, want to get married?” He set down his fountain pen, looking up at me with profound amusement. “You want me to play pretend with you? Have you figured out my compensation?” Much later, at our actual wedding, he got down on one knee. “The act is over. Now, it’s your turn to play this part with me for the rest of our lives.” 1 I sat in the dim corner of the banquet hall, swirling the champagne in my glass, listening to the hushed gossip of the guests around me. “Tonight is the younger Sterling daughter’s birthday bash, and it’s massive. She’s definitely going to be the heir, right?” “Not necessarily. Old Mr. Sterling made it clear: whoever ties the knot first takes the company.” “I heard Mia has never even had a boyfriend. But the older sister, Chloe, has that childhood sweetheart who’s obsessed with her.” The crystal chandelier overhead was blinding. I was only here to make an obligatory appearance. Just as I was about to slip out, I saw Liam holding a massive bouquet of red roses. He dropped to one knee right in front of my stepsister. “Mia, I’ve had feelings for you for a long time. Will you marry me?” Mia’s triumphant gaze cut through the crowd, landing precisely on me. She put on a flawless innocent act. “Liam, if you propose to me, what about my sister?” Liam followed her gaze. Meeting my ice-cold stare, a flicker of guilt crossed his face. “She’s always been too competitive, like a tomboy. She could never compare to how gentle, sweet, and understanding you are.” Mia covered her mouth, giggling coyly as she tilted her head at me. “Sister, you’ll give Liam and me your blessing, won’t you?” I stared at the two of them and let out a cold laugh. I slipped off the promise ring Liam had given me and tossed it straight at them. I was unnervingly calm. “My blessing? Since you love collecting my garbage, you can have this, too.” The ring rolled right to Mia’s designer heels. The inside bore a glaring engraving: L Loves C. Mia’s smile stiffened for a second, but a determined glint remained in her eyes. “Sister, Grandpa is announcing the heir tomorrow. I hope you aren’t late.” I stood frozen in place, feeling as if a boulder was crushing my chest. It stung bitterly. Sterling Corp was built from the ground up by my late mother. I could lose Liam, but I absolutely refused to lose my mother’s legacy. I swallowed the fury burning in my throat and scoffed. “Have you ever seen an award ceremony where the winner doesn’t show up?” Without waiting to see their reactions, I turned on my heel and walked out of the hall. My words were tough, but honestly? I had zero backup plan. Where on earth was I supposed to find a husband on a few hours’ notice? 2 Just as my head felt like it was about to split open from stress, lines of glowing text began scrolling across my vision: [LMAO, Liam has been sleeping with Mia for ages. He’s complete trash.] [Go find Ethan Vance! That boy has been secretly in love with you for ten years. He literally has the wedding bonuses ready.] I forced down the shock of the floating words, my eyes glued to the name Ethan Vance. Wasn’t he my ultimate college rival? He had a crush on me? It felt more like he despised me. We had practically spent four entire years of college locked in a bitter cold war. During our freshman year, Ethan and I represented our respective colleges in the debate championship. Dressed in a sharp navy blazer, I stood at the opposition podium and delivered a cutting remark: “Mr. Vance hasn’t even held a girl’s hand before. How can he be so certain that love developed over time is more reliable than love at first sight?” Ethan had just pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, firing back with a cold smirk. “I don’t need a relationship to know that. I just have to look at how Ms. Sterling acts around her childhood friend.” That single sentence had completely destroyed my argument. Because back then, my devotion to Liam was borderline pathetic. The result? I lost to Ethan by a single vote. [Lmao, she actually thought Ethan was attacking her back then.] [Hahaha, Ethan was probably grinding his teeth into dust out of pure jealousy.] [How could the female lead ever be good enough for my Ethan when she was busy being Liam’s doormat?] [To the comment above: She was a doormat because she lost a game of Truth or Dare. The penalty was acting like Liam’s ultimate simp for a whole semester.] I snapped my attention away from the floating text, suppressed my racing heart, and drove straight to Vance Corp. Parking my car downstairs, I bypassed security and headed straight for the top-floor conference suite. After taking a deep breath outside the CEO’s office, I pushed the door open and walked in. Ethan was signing documents. His pale, elegant fingers gripped a Montblanc pen. Under the cuff of his black tailored suit, the faint blue veins on his wrist flexed. He didn’t even look up at the sound of the door. I walked briskly over to his desk. Reaching out, my slender fingers gently lifted his chin. I didn’t miss the intense flash of shock—and thrill—in his dark eyes. I leaned in close, so close I could feel the heat radiating from his skin. With a lazy, upward lilt in my voice, I cut to the chase. “Ethan Vance, want to get married?” 3 His entire body went rigid. His Adam’s apple bobbed, and the tips of his ears turned violently red in seconds. He instantly pushed his rolling chair back, putting distance between us. Leaning back, he looked at me with a teasing smirk. “Chloe Sterling. You want me to play pretend with you? Have you figured out my compensation?” [Ethan’s pride is thicker than a brick wall, I swear.] [The CEO’s ears are totally red! He’s obsessed with her.] [Chloe just has to curl a finger and CEO Vance turns into a loyal puppy.] I froze at his words. Compensation? I had stormed in here on a total impulse because of the floating comments. I hadn’t thought about paying him. Rather than stand here and let him mock me, it was better to just leave. I’d just pretend this whole embarrassing thing never happened. But just as my hand touched the door handle, Ethan’s long legs cleared the space around the desk. His strong, well-defined hand clamped around my wrist. With a firm tug, he pulled me directly into his chest. A subtle, familiar scent of lime and cedarwood filled my senses. It smelled incredible—the exact same scent he wore in college. I swallowed hard, suddenly very aware of the proximity. Sensing he had crossed a line, he immediately stepped back. He turned around, putting his back to me. [Hahahaha, Ethan literally can’t stop smiling.] [Look at him acting tough. He almost scared his own wife away.] I watched the comments and raised an eyebrow. He was… smiling? In the four years we spent as rivals, I don’t think I ever saw him smile. I honestly thought he lacked the facial muscles for it. Intrigued, I quickly stepped around him before he could react, catching him off guard. His eyes were crinkling at the corners, his gaze as soft and warm as a summer evening. He looked unbelievably gentle. Meeting my eyes, his pupils contracted. Clearly embarrassed, he brought a fist to his mouth and coughed lightly. “I can help you with this,” he said, his voice deep and raspy. “We can discuss the compensation later.” I looked away, feeling my own cheeks heat up, and nodded in agreement. Once I secured Sterling Corp, I could afford whatever price Ethan Vance demanded. Seeing me still standing there, he teased, “Is the great Ms. Sterling lingering because she wants to buy me lunch?” I instinctively went to nod, but a loud commotion erupted outside the door. The next second, the office door was thrown open. A girl in a fluffy pink designer dress and sparkling heels barged in. Seeing her, the words slipped out before I could stop them. “Stella Dupont? What are you doing here?” She froze, equally shocked. “Chloe Sterling? What are you doing in my Ethan’s office?” 4 I scoffed. “None of your business.” Stella rolled her eyes with a loud dramatic sigh. “What? You spent four years losing to Ethan, and now you’re here to humiliate yourself post-graduation?” I kept my face perfectly neutral and ignored her. She was my other college nemesis. They say a castle can’t hold two queens. We were both daughters of prominent, wealthy families, constantly compared to one another since childhood. More accurately, Stella constantly compared herself to me. Spoiled rotten by the Dupont family, she demanded to have everything I had. I thought I was free of her after high school, but we ended up at the exact same university. Not only were we in the same major, but we were assigned to the same dorm. It was a nightmare. For four years, I had to exhaust myself fighting Ethan for the top spot, while constantly guarding my back to ensure Stella—the perpetual third-place runner-up—didn’t overtake me. I couldn’t relax for a second. College was more stressful than high school. Seeing I wasn’t going to take the bait, Stella turned to Ethan, her voice suddenly sugar-sweet. “Ethan, a new exclusive Michelin-starred place opened up downtown. I hear it’s amazing. Can I take you to lunch?” Ethan’s expression had been utterly blank since she walked in. “No,” he said flatly. “I’m having lunch with my girlfriend.” Stella’s voice jumped an octave. “Girlfriend?! Since when do you have a girlfriend?” Ethan reached out and pulled me to his side. “Since today.” Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. “But Chloe has her childhood sweetheart, Liam! Why would she be your girlfriend?!” Then, as if a lightbulb went off, she gave Ethan a knowing, pitying look. “Oh, Ethan. We all know how it is. If you just wanted to make someone jealous, you didn’t have to use Chloe.” I instantly looped my arm through Ethan’s, flashing a sugary smile. “Do you really think you’re that important? That we’d put on a play just for you?” Stella’s eyes immediately welled with angry tears. Before storming out, she threw a parting shot. “Don’t get too smug, Chloe! You two are going to break up eventually!” “I’m afraid you’ll be waiting a lifetime,” I fired back smoothly. She stomped her designer heel and bolted out the door in tears. I dropped my hold on Ethan’s arm, teasing him. “Who knew CEO Vance was so irresistible? You’ve got the Dupont heiress chasing you all the way to the office.” Ethan’s brow arched. His sharp, handsome face suddenly leaned dangerously close to mine, a low laugh escaping his lips. “And yet, a man as irresistible as me was still easily claimed by you.” My heart skipped a beat. I quickly looked away and stepped past him on the right. Dodging the tension, I kept my tone strictly professional. “Didn’t you say we were getting lunch? Let’s go.” After a surprisingly pleasant lunch with Ethan, I dropped him back at Vance Corp and drove home to the Sterling estate. 5 Right at the entrance, I bumped into Mia and Liam walking out of the mansion. They were disgustingly close. The moment Liam saw me, he looked incredibly awkward. Mia, however, offered a sickly-sweet smile. “Sister, how do you still have the mood to come home? If I were you, I’d be running around in a panic by now. Oh, right. You probably don’t have anyone left in your contacts to call, do you? Why don’t I introduce you to someone? I heard the second son of the Preston family just moved back from Europe. Maybe you two should grab a drink?” I gave a cold laugh. “You’re awfully invested in Wyatt Preston’s schedule. Don’t tell me you’ve got your eye on him?” Mia choked on her words. Everyone in our social circle knew Wyatt Preston was a complete disaster—he swung both ways, burned through trust funds, and brought chaos wherever he went. Anyone with an ounce of dignity avoided him like the plague. No one in their right mind would want anything to do with him. Mia really couldn’t stand the thought of me being happy. Liam looked at me with deep disappointment, immediately stepping up to defend her. “Chloe, how can you be so toxic? Wyatt’s itinerary is plastered all over social media. How could Mia possibly be interested in him!” I looked at Liam and delivered three simple words: “Not worth it.” Hearing that, whatever lecture Liam had loaded in his chamber withered and died on his tongue. I bypassed them and walked straight into the house. The second I collapsed onto my bed, my phone buzzed with a text from my friend Harper. Harper: [Chloe! Our CEO is getting married! He literally just handed everyone in the company a $500 bonus envelope.] Image attached: Pink envelope.jpg Harper: [It’s so out of nowhere. I’m dying to know who managed to bag the untouchable ice king of Vance Corp.] Before I could even type a reply, the floating text appeared in my vision again: [Omg, Ethan is secretly losing his mind with joy!] [LMAO, why did this man already have stacks of cash envelopes ready in his office?] [Ethan is the king of secret crushes. He is fully prepared for this life.] Picturing Ethan lugging a briefcase full of cash bonuses around the office, I actually burst out laughing. After calming down, I texted Harper back: [Is there any chance… that person is me?] A second later, my screen was entirely filled with question marks. I gave her the heavily abridged version of the morning’s chaos, which resulted in a barrage of exclamation points. Harper: [You are insane! I bow to you!] I didn’t reply. Instead, I opened Ethan’s contact and sent him a message. “The banquet starts tomorrow at 11 AM at the Starlight Country Club. Should I send a driver for you?” He replied instantly. “No need. I’ll drive myself.” “I heard you handed out wedding bonuses to your entire company?” This time, there was a long pause before the typing bubble disappeared and a message finally came through. “The company had a great quarter. It was a performance bonus. Don’t flatter yourself.” I rolled my eyes at the screen. If I didn’t have a magical stream of comments narrating his inner thoughts, I might have actually believed his nonsense.

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The year Carter and I were most in love, he died in a car crash. Everyone thought I would completely break down, but I didn’t cry or make a scene. Two years later, I bumped into him at a private VIP booth in a club. Carter had his arms around a young girl, kissing her passionately. His frat brothers immediately rushed over to explain: “Liv, the car crash was really bad. Carter was in a coma, and he just woke up with severe amnesia… We didn’t want you to live in constant anxiety, so we kept it a secret.” Carter pushed the girl away, walked up to me, and frowned. “I hear you’re my fiancée? Even though I don’t remember you, seeing how you clearly can’t let me go, I’ll honor my promise and marry you.” I gave a faint smile and replied, “They’re lying to you. We don’t know each other.” Carter didn’t know that on the exact day he faked his death, I received a video. In the video, Carter was laughing and telling his friends: “The thought of only sleeping with Liv for the rest of my life? I just can’t do it. “I’m going to fake my death and play the field for a few years. You guys make sure to comfort her, don’t let her do anything stupid.” He also didn’t know that during the two years he was ‘dead’… I had found myself another man. 1 Our mutual friends froze for a second before they all started trying to persuade me: “Liv, how can you say you don’t know Carter? We were the ones who hid it from you, it has nothing to do with him.” “Yeah, Liv, we did it for your own good. We didn’t want you worrying sick. Now that Carter is finally awake, please don’t throw a tantrum.” The booth was suddenly filled with people blaming me. Before I could even speak, a loud scoff cut through the noise. Carter stood up from the leather sofa, a cigarette between his fingers, looking lazy and incredibly smug. “If we don’t know each other, then forget it. Saves me the trouble of being responsible.” The young girl beside him immediately clung to his arm, looking up at him with a shy, nervous face. “Carter… I know you. She’s just ungrateful. I’ll marry you, okay?” Carter didn’t reply immediately. He just shot me a cold, dismissive glance, then wrapped his arm around the girl’s waist and leaned down to kiss her. Seeing this, his friends quickly stepped in to block my view. They tried to comfort me: “Liv, Carter has amnesia. You know he loved you the most.” “Exactly, Liv. You need to care for him more so he gets his memory back faster. Stop being so petty.” I opened my mouth, about to tell his ridiculous friends exactly what I thought of them, but a sudden, sharp cramp seized my stomach. My face instantly drained of color. I didn’t stick around. I turned on my heel and walked out of the booth. I left so quickly that no one inside even had time to react. Once I was completely out of sight, they sighed and turned to Carter. “Carter, you took it too far. Liv is genuinely jealous and furious. She turned pale. What if she really dumps you?” Carter sat back down on the sofa, a smirk playing on his lips. “Liv is easy to coax. It’s been two years, there’s no way she doesn’t miss me. “Besides, I’ve got amnesia right now. Once I’m done having fun, I’ll just tell her my memory is back and say none of this was my intention. I won’t even need to apologize. I’ll just snap my fingers, and she’ll come running.” 2 Once I was out of the club, I couldn’t hold it in anymore and crouched on the pavement. Wave after wave of cramps hit my stomach, leaving me without even the strength to walk to the restroom. Suddenly, a shadow fell over me. A familiar voice drifted down: “What, heartbroken? Hoping to rekindle an old flame?” I looked up to see Weston Cole leaning against the doorframe a few feet away, his arms crossed, watching me with a cool expression. He was dressed entirely in black. Under the dim streetlights, his high nose bridge cast a shadow that hid the emotion in his eyes. The light caught the sharp, elegant line of his thin lips. In that moment, an overwhelming wave of grievance washed over me. I felt entirely wronged. Tears, completely betraying my pride, started falling down my cheeks. Weston panicked instantly. He dropped his arms and hurried over to me. “Don’t cry. I won’t say it again.” He was incredibly fit and surprisingly strong. With one arm, he scooped me up from the ground. A crisp scent of cedarwood filled my senses, tugging at my heartstrings. I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck and whispered, “My stomach hurts…” Weston paused slightly. “Your period came early?” I nodded, my lips accidentally brushing against his jaw as I rested my head on his broad shoulder. Weston carried me to his car. After turning the heater on full blast, he said, “Wait in the car. I’m going to buy you some supplies.” He shut the door, turned, and walked away. The amber glow of the streetlights spilled over his tall, broad-shouldered silhouette. A few minutes later, a FaceTime call popped up on my screen. It was Wes. “They’re out of your usual brand. Do you see any here that work?” I was just about to point one out when a familiar, shocked voice rang out through the phone’s speaker. Carter, with his arm around the young girl’s waist, had strolled into the convenience store. He looked Weston up and down in absolute disbelief. “We invited you out for drinks tonight and you bailed. Turns out you’re in a pharmacy buying stuff for a woman? “Are you on FaceTime with her?! Let me see! Who is this absolute goddess that finally got our CEO Cole to thaw out?” Carter reached out, trying to snatch Weston’s phone. I immediately yanked my face out of the camera’s view. But Carter never got his hands on the phone. Weston merely shot him a single, freezing glare, and Carter instinctively pulled his hand back. “Alright, alright, keep your treasure hidden. Just remember to bring her out to meet us next time. “Oh, by the way, Wes, I ran into Liv. She walked into the wrong booth and caught me kissing another girl. Scared the hell out of me, but luckily the guys thought fast and said I had amnesia. I’ll play around a bit more, then ‘recover’ my memory later. “And seriously, Wes, you’re a lifesaver. I wasn’t done playing the field back then, and giving me the idea to fake my death was pure genius. Worked like a charm.” The camera shook violently for a second. The next moment, the call was disconnected. 3 Weston came back to the car ten minutes later. He didn’t dare look at me. He just handed me the bag of supplies, quickly got into the driver’s seat, and locked the doors. “I had someone deliver hot ginger tea to the house… are you… coming back with me?” There was a cautious, almost fragile edge to his voice. It honestly made me want to laugh. Weston Cole was one of the most prominent, untouchable billionaires in the city. He was also Carter’s absolute best friend. Back when I used to attend dinners with Carter, Weston was always there. He had always been incredibly cold to me. Especially whenever people teased Carter and me to show some PDA, Weston wouldn’t even spare us a glance. He looked purely disgusted and annoyed. To the point where everyone in their social circle genuinely believed he hated me. That was, until the day Carter ‘died’ in that car crash, and I received the video. It was Weston who had sent it to me. But I never would have guessed that the entire fake death scheme was Weston’s idea in the first place. This man was dangerously calculating. 4 The moment we arrived at Weston’s mansion, my feet barely touched the ground before he scooped me up into a bridal carry. After I finished up in the bathroom, he laid me down on his massive bed and handed me my phone to play games. Once I finished the ginger tea, he casually took off his shirt, lay down beside me, and began gently massaging my lower stomach. The soft ambient lighting draped over his defined abs like a thin veil. Every line seemed to hide a secret, making it impossible not to want to touch. So, I did. Weston’s eyes instantly darkened. He caught my wandering hand and pinned it down. “Behave.” I didn’t listen. He cupped the back of my head and crashed his lips down onto mine. Two years had been more than enough time for him to memorize every inch of me. In the heat of the moment, he intertwined his fingers with mine. “Help me,” he rasped, his voice rough with need. I already knew perfectly well how terrifying Weston’s stamina was—I found that out the first time I got drunk and slept with him two years ago. It wasn’t until my wrists were painfully sore that he finally finished. Just as he was about to carry me to the bathroom to clean up, the phone sitting on the edge of the mattress rang. It was Weston’s phone. As I shifted, I accidentally bumped the screen, hitting the ‘accept’ button. “Wes! I’m planning to throw a massive engagement party with Maddie, just to piss Liv off. What do you think? “Can you believe her? She finds out I’m alive, and instead of caring about my health, she just throws a jealous fit and hasn’t contacted me once! “Looks like she grew a spine over the last two years. I need to torture her a little, let her experience the pain of losing me all over again. I’m going to plan something huge, and I need you to…” Carter’s voice echoed loudly into the quiet room. But he cut off abruptly. Because I couldn’t stop a sharp gasp from escaping my lips. Not because of what Carter was saying, but because something against my thigh had definitely woken back up. It even twitched against my hand. 5 I glared at Weston, feeling equal parts annoyed and completely flushed. Carter’s voice returned through the speaker, sounding shocked. “Whoa! Wes, what are you doing right now? You have a woman in bed with you?! Tell me right now, is it the girl from the FaceTime call today?” It had been two years since we last spoke, and I had only let out a single, muffled sound. Plus, Carter had been surrounded by a revolving door of women lately, so he completely failed to recognize my voice. Weston clearly had zero intention of replying to him. His dark eyes were locked onto mine, burning with obvious intent. I shot him a warning glare, shoved myself out of his arms, and tried to crawl toward the far side of the massive bed. But before I could even make it one foot, Weston wrapped his hand around my ankle and dragged me right back under him. Carter kept talking: “Bro, you absolutely have to bring her out so I can see what kind of goddess finally made the iron tree bloom! And since you’re finally in the game, you can’t reject the girls I introduce to you anymore! “Oh, right, the engagement party. I was going to ask you to invite Liv for me, but since I know you’ve always hated her…” Before Carter could finish his sentence, Weston impatiently hit the end call button. He tossed the phone onto the mattress, effortlessly scooped me up with one arm, and carried me toward the bathroom. By the time we emerged, it was three hours later. Weston looked thoroughly satisfied. I glared at him, collapsing onto the pillows, completely refusing to speak to him. I grabbed my own phone and saw a new text. It was from one of Carter’s frat brothers. Two years ago, Carter had integrated me into all of his social circles. [Liv, Carter is actually getting engaged to another girl in seven days. You need to come stop him! I don’t want him doing something he’ll regret when he finally gets his memory back!] I glanced at the message, swiped left, and deleted it. I wasn’t the type of person who had nothing better to do than invite drama into my life. Who cared if Carter got engaged? Weston reached out, trying to pull me back into his chest. I shot him a death glare and quickly scooted to the very edge of the mattress. I absolutely was not going for another three-hour marathon.

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I was seven months pregnant when my cover was finally blown. The man who once claimed to cherish me—the crown prince of the Moretti Syndicate—didn’t hesitate. He shattered my teeth with the butt of his rifle, broke my ribs with his boots, and dragged me into the pits of a black-site dungeon. I miscarried in that cold, dark cell. He took the tiny, lifeless body away, and I never saw him again. Five years later, a little girl crawled into my cage and whispered: “Mommy, Daddy’s drunk. He’s crying, and he says he misses you.” 1 Five years ago, Silas Moretti beat me until the world went black, carried away my stillborn child, and vanished from my life. Since then, my world has been four damp walls, a bucket, and the endless dark. On the nights when the silence became a physical weight, I’d catch a rat just to have someone to talk to. It’s a miracle my mind hasn’t completely snapped. But my body? My body is a different story. Years without sunlight, the moldy air, the rancid scraps they call food—every joint, every old break, every inch of me screams in perpetual pain. This little girl is the first living soul to speak to me in half a decade. She said: “Mommy, Daddy’s drunk. He’s crying, and he says he misses you.” I stared at her, uncomprehending. Why was she calling me Mommy? Who was her father? I tried to answer, but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out. My vocal cords had withered from years of disuse. Panic flared in my chest, triggering a violent coughing fit. A spray of blood splattered across the girl’s pristine white dress. Terrified, she scrambled back and fled into the shadows. Great, I thought, slumped against the stone. More trouble. Usually, when the guards were bored or frustrated, they’d break in just to use me as a punching bag. They still haven’t forgiven me for the intel I leaked five years ago—the bust that crippled their empire, killed their men, and forced Silas to flee across the border with a handful of survivors. When they found out I was the mole, I became the Syndicate’s favorite target. They called me a traitor. I almost want to laugh. I never betrayed my badge. How could I be a traitor? Silas used every torture technique in the book on me. I begged him to kill me. “No,” he had growled back then. “I’m keeping your pathetic life. As long as you’re breathing, Leo will come for you.” Leo Vance. My husband. He was a detective, my partner, and my soulmate. His head is the only thing Silas Moretti wants more than my suffering. 2 Clang. Clang. The heavy iron gate groaned open. Steady, rhythmic footsteps echoed against the damp stone floor. This wasn’t the guard who usually tossed my slop through the slot. I retreated into the furthest corner, my eyes wide with a primal fear. The intruder held a half-empty bottle of bourbon. The sharp, boozy scent instantly filled the cramped cell. He put a cigarette between his lips. The flare of a lighter cut through the dark. The flame illuminated a face of sharp, chiseled angles and eyes that burned with the cold, predatory hunger of a wolf. Five years had passed, but I knew him in a heartbeat. My former “lover.” The king of the Moretti Syndicate. Silas. He leaned against the rusted bars, exhaling a cloud of smoke. The only sound was the faint crackle of the tobacco. “Elena. It’s been a while,” he rasped, his voice like gravel. I didn’t speak. I had forgotten how. “We’re moving,” he said, talking more to himself than to me. “The heat is picking up in this sector. We’re heading further out. We’ve made enough money to disappear forever. The men… they want me to leave you behind. They want me to put a bullet in your brain.” Do it, I thought. End this misery. “But I want your death to serve a purpose,” he continued. He stepped into the cell, gripping my chin and forcing me to look at him. His breath reeked of whiskey. The pressure he exerted was suffocating. “I need you to bring Leo Vance to me.” I met his gaze with absolute stillness. No anger. No joy. No hope. The void in my eyes infuriated him. He lashed out, his palm cracking against my face. Suddenly, blood began to pour from my nose. He hesitated, his hand hovering. “I didn’t even hit you that hard…” He hadn’t. The blood wasn’t from the blow. It was the sickness. I could feel my body shutting down. Death was already knocking. If I was going to die anyway, why would I ever help this monster hurt my husband? Silas used the sleeve of his expensive white shirt to wipe the blood from my face, then suddenly hauled me into his arms. I tried to struggle, but he held me in a death grip, resting his chin on my matted hair. “Elena, listen to me. Just listen,” he whispered, his voice dripping with a lethal kind of persuasion. “Did you see that girl? Her name is Mia. She’s your child. That baby five years ago? She wasn’t stillborn. She survived. You help me take down Leo, and I let Mia live. If you don’t… I’ll make you watch as I throw her into the sea.” I stopped struggling. My heart froze in my chest. 3 For the first time in five years, I was dragged out of the pit. The moment the morning sun hit me, I shrieked and scrambled for cover like a blind animal. Silas didn’t care. He dragged me by the arm, hauling me into a sprawling, opulent villa. Several women in heavy makeup were lounging on the massive leather sofas in the living room. “Silas…” they cooed, standing to greet him. One of them immediately pressed herself against him, kissing him deeply. Right in front of me, Silas returned the kiss with a savage, performative passion. “Bianca,” he said to the woman, “take her upstairs. Clean her up. Get rid of the smell.” Bianca shot me a look of pure venom. “Move it, bitch.” It took Bianca and two other women an entire afternoon to scrub the filth and the shame off my skin. Hot water hit my skeletal frame, revealing every jutting rib. I looked like a ghost draped in pale skin. Five years of hell had turned Elena Vance—the bright, fierce star of the DEA—into a hollow shell of a woman. Bianca roughly brushed my hair, her voice a low, sharp hiss. “Don’t get comfortable. Silas isn’t the man he used to be. If you want to survive another day, you stay invisible.” “Bianca. Out,” Silas’s voice boomed from the door. She gave me one last warning look and scurried out. Silas stood behind me, watching my reflection in the mirror. His long, calloused fingers traced my jaw, my neck, my collarbone. Then they began to slide beneath my collar. I winced, my disgust flashing across my face for a split second. His hand stopped. Suddenly, he grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head back. “Look at you!” he spat. “You’re a walking corpse! No man would even look at you if you were naked!” “Daddy!” a small voice rang out from the hall. Silas’s grip instantly loosened. He let go of my hair. “Daddy! You finally let Mommy out!” Mia ran into the room, looking at me with wide, earnest eyes. “Mommy is so pretty! But she’s too thin. You need to eat more, Mommy.” I looked at her, and my vision blurred. Was she truly mine? Could this beautiful, innocent thing have come from my broken body? “Mia, how about Daddy takes us out for steak tonight?” Silas asked, his voice transforming into something terrifyingly tender. “Yay!” Mia cheered, jumping with joy. I couldn’t understand how a child could be so pure in a den of vipers. On the drive to the restaurant, she never stopped smiling, her eyes glued to the world passing by the window. Silas spoke to her with a gentleness that seemed impossible for a man who had broken my ribs. I watched them—this “father and daughter”—and my mind drifted back twenty years. To when I was five years old. 4 My father was a cop. He was always on duty, undercover, away from home for two hundred days out of the year. Every time he came home, I was overjoyed, clinging to his leg and peppering him with questions. On my fifth birthday, my parents promised to take me to McDonald’s. I was sitting on the back of my father’s bicycle, holding a colorful pinwheel. The wind made it spin and spin. The gears of fate began to turn with it. I only remember a series of deafening bangs. I tumbled off the bicycle. The world turned into a blur of blinding red. My parents lay in a pool of blood. I don’t know how long it was before a man ran over, scooped me up, and covered my eyes. “Don’t worry, sweetie. It’s okay. Don’t be afraid.” … That man took me home. At first, I didn’t eat, didn’t speak, and didn’t cry. I was an empty shell. The man had a son, Leo. Every day, Leo stayed by my side, talking to me, trying to make me laugh, playing Cops and Robbers with me. Later, we went to school together, did our homework together, and eventually entered the same police academy. After graduation, we joined the same precinct as homicide detectives. We solved major cases together, bled together, and sweated together. One year, I was injured on a mission. Before I was pushed into the operating room, Leo held my hand, crying as he told me he loved me. “Elena, you have to survive. I’m going to marry you.” Neither of us had ever dated anyone else. We knew we were waiting for each other. After I recovered, Leo took a day off on Valentine’s Day to take me to the St. Jude’s botanical gardens to see the winter roses. The snow sat heavy on the red petals. It looked like a classical painting. Under the winter roses, Leo proposed. We held each other and vowed to protect one another forever. 5 As we were leaving the gardens, a young man in a sharp black suit brushed past us. My heart skipped a beat. I pulled on Leo’s sleeve. “Does he look like someone we know?” Leo nodded. “I noticed too. Silas Moretti.” The Moretti Syndicate. We had been investigating them for two years, but they were shadows. We could never find a way in. But here was Silas, delivering himself to us. I wasn’t letting him go. “You go back,” I told Leo. “I’m going to tail him and see what he’s doing here.” Leo knew my temper. Once I decided on something, there was no turning back. “I’ll wait at the bottom of the hill. Stay safe. Do not engage.” I followed Silas into a small chapel. He knelt before the altar, lighting three candles and whispering a prayer. What, was he trying to seek redemption? Impossible. Silas Moretti was the iron fist of the syndicate. He was cold, ruthless, and psychotic. Heaven doesn’t take devils like him. He finished his prayer and left. I couldn’t tail him further, so I approached the usher. “Does that handsome guy come here often?” “Yes,” the usher replied. “A few times a month.” I had a bold idea: I would get close to Silas. I would infiltrate the Moretti Syndicate. Leo was violently opposed. I threatened to call off the wedding if he didn’t let me take this shot. “Leo,” I said. “This is the last one. Once the Morettis are gone, I’m quitting. I’ll take a desk job, marry you, and have your kids. Deal?” Leo didn’t speak. He was still furious. I staked out the garden for two weeks before Silas returned. I stood not far from him while he lit his candles. When he stood up, he turned and locked his piercing gaze onto mine. He walked toward me. Good. You caught his attention. “You’ve been watching me,” he said. “Do I know you?” “Maybe we should get to know each other,” I replied confidently. “Why?” “Because… you’re very handsome.” I made sure to blush as I said it. “Ridiculous,” Silas muttered, turning away. But every time he came to the chapel after that, I was there. Finally, one day, he said, “Beautiful, let me buy you dinner.” 6 I became Silas Moretti’s “girlfriend.” He brought me into hidden clubs and underground casinos. I fed every scrap of intel to the precinct. My superiors were terrified. They wanted me out. Silas was too dangerous. But three days later, Silas was taking me to a high-level meeting. It was the jackpot. I promised my captain that after this, I was done. I got the intel. I witnessed a massive illegal arms deal with an international cartel. After the deal, Silas was riding high. He had been drinking. He looked at me, a dark fire in his eyes. “Elena. You have an incredible body.” I felt a cold chill. In the two months we’d been together, he hadn’t touched me. He didn’t fully trust me. But today, he had let me into his inner circle. He trusted me now. And I had to prove my “loyalty.” He pulled me onto his lap and started unbuttoning my shirt. I grabbed his hand. His eyes narrowed. He picked up the gun on the table and pressed the barrel against my forehead. “Strip.” … I walked home in the light rain, my coat wrapped tightly around me. Leo had called eight times. I finally answered. “Leo… we need to break up.” I turned over all the evidence on the Morettis, filed my resignation, and disappeared. Seven months later, when Leo finally found me, my stomach was heavy. I was seven months pregnant. He held me tight. “Elena, the Morettis are gone. You’re safe. Marry me. Let me take care of you forever.” We chose a small restaurant in a neighboring town for a quiet wedding. Mostly Leo’s family and friends. His captain officiated. The weather was terrible. Dark clouds gathered in the afternoon, and by evening, a storm was raging. “Leo Vance, do you take Elena More—Elena Vance to be your wife? To love and protect her, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?” “I do.” 7 The memories faded as the car continued to move. The scenery outside grew more desolate. This didn’t look like a place to get steak. Finally, the car stopped in front of an abandoned factory. Silas told his men to watch Mia, then dragged me inside. “Before dinner, we have a little business,” he told me. “The cops caught my brother. I agreed to a prisoner exchange. You for him.” He turned on his radio. “Snipers in position. Once the exchange is made, the moment the cops try to take Elena away, open fire. Leave no survivors.” He grabbed my hair. “Tell me, do you think Leo Vance is the one coming for you? Your precious Leo?” I smiled. “You better pray he isn’t. He’ll bury you.” My smile enraged him. “You goddamn traitor!” Traitor? I never betrayed my faith. Twenty minutes later, the radio crackled. “Boss, they’re here!” Silas and his men racked their guns. The factory door opened. Three men walked in. The man in the middle was Silas’s brother, Marco. The other two? I didn’t recognize them. But they had the look of my former colleagues. Silas narrowed his eyes. “Where is Leo? Why didn’t he come?” “Silas Moretti! We brought your man!” the plainclothes officer shouted. “Let’s make the trade!” “I said Leo Vance personally! Are you screwing with me?” Silas roared, cocking his pistol. The tension was a physical weight. “Si… Silas.” It was the first time I had spoken in five years. “K-keep Marco. Let the two officers… go.” He shot me an icy look. “Why the hell would I do that?” “I’m not leaving. I’m staying with you.” He ignored me. I slowly dropped to my knees, begging. “Don’t make me go. I want you. I want Mia. Let the three of us go… far away. Please?” His cold expression cracked just a fraction. He finally lowered his gun. “Leave Marco. You two cops, get the hell out!” On the drive back, Silas sat in a stony, dark silence. Mia was quiet too, playing with her toy. It was a realistic-looking toy gun. Back at the villa, Silas barked, “Bianca, take Mia upstairs!” As soon as they were gone, Silas spun around and slapped me across the face. “You think you deserve to be Mia’s mother?” He squeezed my throat. “If Leo doesn’t show his face, I’m going to kill you myself, you demon!” I just laughed. Blood poured from my nose into my mouth, staining my teeth. I probably did look like a demon. Silas let go in disgust, and I collapsed. I was dragged back to the hole. Familiar dark. Familiar damp. Familiar silence. I almost felt safe here. I curled into the corner, staring. I had learned how to zone out over the last five years. When I did, the memories would float and shift. Leo, Silas, my parents, my adoptive family. They were all so real. Clang. Clang. The iron gate again. It wasn’t mealtime. A flashlight beam cut through the dark. Behind it was a woman. It was Bianca. “Elena. Come here.” She gestured to the bars. She shoved a plastic bag into my hand. “Painkillers. They might help.” I didn’t understand why she was suddenly kind. Before she left, I asked her to leave the flashlight. I pulled a photo from under my pillow. By the light of the flash, I looked at the man in the picture. The only photo I had left of him. A handsome face in a police uniform. Bright eyes. A sunny smile. Leo, it’s been a long time. My mind drifted back five years.

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I’ve had a crush on Silas ever since sophomore year of high school. When his team lost a major rivalry game, his teammates jokingly suggested I should go “distract” the opposing team’s star player to help Silas out next time. I looked at Silas, who was nodding along in agreement with his bros, and I just smiled. “Fine. I’ll give it a shot.” I grabbed a Gatorade and handed it to the guy who had just dominated the court. Later, that same guy absolutely crushed Silas’s team in the playoffs. 1 In the dorm, Maya finished her makeup and turned to me. “Hey Clara, aren’t you heading out yet?” “Where to?” I asked, confused. Maya acted shocked. “No way. Silas didn’t tell you the team has a big scrimmage tonight?” Everyone in the room looked over. It wasn’t a secret that Silas was the golden boy—star quarterback, straight-A student, and the guy every girl wanted. “Why would he tell me?” I played it cool. Maya teased, “I thought you guys were close? I figured he’d definitely want his ‘number one fan’ in the stands.” Close? I guess. We grew up next door to each other and went to the same schools since we were kids. In high school, I confessed to him. He told me, “Clara, I’m focused on scouts right now. Let’s see where we are in college.” I waited. We both ended up at the same university. But nothing changed. Silas was the same as he was in high school—always surrounded by pretty girls, but always calling them “just friends.” Eventually, I realized I was just another face in his “friend” rotation. Seeing my silence, Maya smirked. “Our department is playing the Engineering guys tonight. Come on, Clara, just come with me.” The rejection was on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t say it. Because of Silas, I still wanted to go. When we got to the court, one of his teammates spotted me. “Yo, Silas! Your shadow is here.” Silas looked up, his expression unreadable. “What are you doing here?” My heart sank. Was I really that unwelcome? Maya stepped in immediately. “Silas, I made her come. You only invited me, and I didn’t want to be bored.” Her voice was sweet, possessive. She was the invited guest; I was the intruder. 2 We sat in the front row, and the game started fast. Maya was screaming Silas’s name, cheering for every play. Silas kept glancing our way. Maya leaned in, whispering, “See how much he’s looking at me? I’m worried I’m distracting him.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Her worry was misplaced because Silas couldn’t have played worse if he tried. The Engineering team was a powerhouse. Their coordination and shooting percentage blew our guys out of the water. Half-time hit. Maya rushed over with water—only for Silas. He took it and drank, but before he did, he shot another look at me. The guys on the bench started talking about the other team. “Who is their number 7? Caleb Reed?” “He’s a beast. I heard he’s single. Maybe we should set him up with one of the girls from our department so he goes easy on us next time, haha.” Someone looked at me. “Send Clara.” Someone else nudged him. “Dude, shut up. You know Clara is into Silas.” “Even better. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?” “If he gets a girlfriend, he might not have the ‘stamina’ for the fourth quarter, catch my drift? Hahaha.” They made crude jokes at my expense, laughing loud enough for Silas to hear. Silas said nothing. Maya looked at him intentionally. “Silas, what do you think of that idea?” Silas shrugged, looking completely indifferent. “Yeah, why not? Whatever works.” Hearing that, the anger I had been holding onto suddenly vanished. It turned into cold clarity. I smiled. “Sure. I’ll try. I actually think he’s a much better player anyway.” Silas’s expression finally shifted. 3 I grabbed a cold bottle of water and walked toward the opposing bench. Caleb Reed was sitting there, laughing with his friends. I tapped his shoulder with the bottle. “Hey. Want some water?” The group went quiet and looked at me. I felt my face heat up. Up close, I realized he wasn’t just good at basketball—he was stunning. “Here we go,” one of his teammates muttered. “Caleb, another one. You gonna reject her—” The teammate stopped mid-sentence, eyes widening. Caleb smirked and reached for the water. Our fingers brushed, and I felt a jolt of electricity. I pulled back instantly. “Thanks,” he said, his eyes locked on mine. “No problem,” I said, turning to leave. A lazy voice trailed behind me. “Wait. You’re giving me water but going back to cheer for the other team?” I froze. The buzzer sounded for the second half. “Here, sit.” Caleb stood up to head onto the court, leaving his seat empty. His friend, Jackson, waved me over. “I’m Jackson. Who are you? You’re definitely not an Engineering major. You’re the first girl whose water Caleb has actually accepted.” The first? Well, at least the universe didn’t let me get rejected in front of Silas. Jackson was a chatterbox. He asked a million questions. “Doesn’t he get tired?” I asked, pointing at Caleb. He had played every minute so far. “Caleb? Man’s a machine. He could finish this game and go run a 5K just for fun.” Jackson’s exaggeration made me laugh, breaking the tension of sitting on the “enemy” side. Caleb suddenly jogged over. “Jackson, swap with me. You’re in for the fourth.” Jackson groaned. “Caleb, I’m beat.” “You seem plenty energized to me. You haven’t stopped talking for ten minutes. Get in there.” Caleb’s hair was soaked with sweat. He wiped his face with a towel and sat down right next to me. “What are you guys laughing about?” I blinked. “You were watching us from the court?” “I have great vision,” Caleb said, a confident tilt to his lips. “How else do you think I make those three-pointers?” 4 The result was a blowout. When Silas’s team came over to shake hands, he looked miserable. His eyes cut past Caleb to me. “You still haven’t left? Is it that fun sitting over here?” It was just a scrimmage. I didn’t get why he was being so aggressive. I shrugged and looked at Caleb. “I have to get back to my friends. See ya.” As soon as I got to Maya, she was prying. “Clara, did you know Caleb Reed before tonight?” “Just met him.” “Wow, Clara is just so popular with guys. I could never compete.” She said it loud enough for the whole group to hear. I frowned. She was laying the “pick-me” act on thick. Silas suggested getting late-night pizza. Maya looked at me with fake concern. “Clara, I’m going with the guys. You don’t mind walking back to the dorm alone, right?” “Fine by me,” I nodded. “You’re coming too,” Silas commanded. Maya’s smile faltered. In the past, if Silas invited me to dinner, I would have been over the moon. But tonight, I had no desire to watch him flirt with other girls. “No thanks. I’m tired,” I said. Silas acted like he didn’t hear me. “Don’t you love that new pizza place by the stadium?” I had sent Silas the link to that place the day it opened, asking him to go. He always said he was “too busy”—meaning he was busy with his new “friends.” I met his eyes. “That was a long time ago. I’m not hungry for it anymore.” Later, lying in bed, I scrolled through Instagram. Silas had posted five minutes ago. A photo of him and Maya. Caption: Lost the game, but won the girl. My thumb hovered over the screen. For years, seeing Silas with other girls hurt. But seeing this? I felt a strange sense of relief. Good for him. As a “friend,” I should be happy. 5 “Hey babies, pizza’s here!” Maya walked back into the dorm with two boxes. “This place is so good. I had to bring some back for you guys. Silas’s treat!” My other two roommates rushed over. “Silas is so sweet to you. We saw the post—is it official?” They glanced at me. “I guess the secret’s out,” Maya giggled. When I didn’t move, she walked over to my bed. “Clara, want a slice?” “No thanks, I already brushed my teeth.” “Too bad. I got this specifically for the room.” My phone buzzed. A DM from Silas: [I sent some food back to the dorm. Did you eat?] Silas was always like this. After he rejected me in high school, he brought me my favorite breakfast the next day, saying he “happened” to pass by the bakery. He gave flowers to another girl at a talent show, but waited an hour afterward to drive me home. He bailed on our graduation trip to go with a group that included a girl I hated. I didn’t speak to him all summer, but he showed up before move-in day to help me pack, promising my parents he’d “look after me” at college. One slap, one piece of candy. And I had eaten it up every time. I told myself he just wasn’t ready for a relationship in high school. I told myself I was special to him. But he didn’t love me. He just didn’t want to lose his safety net. It was time to wake up. 6 The next day, in the guys’ dorm. Caleb checked the time and shut off his PC. Jackson looked up from his monitor. “Caleb, where are you going? The raid is just starting.” “Class.” Caleb grabbed his phone and headed out. “Dude, it’s an elective! Who actually goes to those? Just stay and play!” Jackson yelled at his back. I had just sat down in the lecture hall when I got texts from Silas and Maya. Silas: [I’m skipping today. Sign me in.] Maya: [Silas and I are on a date! Can you cover for us and sign us both in?] I tapped out a quick “K” on my phone, feeling annoyed. Suddenly, a familiar voice sat down beside me. “Small world.” I looked up. Caleb. “Can I sit here?” he asked, pointing to the empty chair. I nodded. “Thanks for the water yesterday,” he said. My heart skipped. I prayed he wouldn’t ask why I gave it to him. He didn’t. He just pulled out his phone. “We should trade numbers. You know, for ‘class notes’.” I looked at him, skeptical. “Class notes?” Caleb grinned. “Or so I can save you a seat next time.” I looked around at the half-empty room. There were plenty of seats. The class was Film Appreciation. Today, the professor was showing a clip from Old Yeller. I knew I was in trouble. I’m a sucker for dog movies. Last week, she showed Eight Below, and I cried so hard the professor called on me to explain the “emotional resonance” of the scene in front of everyone. I decided to just look at my phone and ignore the screen. “Not watching? Afraid you’ll cry?” Caleb whispered. “How did you know?” “I was here last week. It was… memorable.” I blushed. Caleb chuckled and slid a travel pack of tissues across the desk. “It’s okay. You can cry. I brought backup.” 7 After class, I went to the restroom to splash cold water on my face. The professor had indeed called on me again. “Clara seems to have the deepest connection to these films. Clara, tell us the difference in the themes of loss between the two movies.” The whole class laughed. It was social suicide. I walked out of the restroom to find Caleb leaning against the balcony railing, scrolling through his phone. “You’re… still here?” Caleb put his phone away. “Waiting for you.” As we walked back toward the dorms, I couldn’t figure it out. Why was he waiting for me? Was he just this nice to everyone? I was so deep in thought that I didn’t notice the electric scooter zipping around the corner. Caleb moved fast, pulling me toward him. The girl on the scooter panicked, swerved the wrong way, and slammed right into Caleb’s leg. 8 Caleb was wearing shorts, and his knee was already turning a nasty shade of red. “Are you okay?” I asked frantically after the girl apologized and left. “We should go to the campus clinic.” Caleb laughed. “Clara, if I go to the clinic for a bruise, the nurse will tell me I’m lucky I didn’t die of a paper cut.” I turned red. I remembered a boba shop nearby and told him, “Wait here. Don’t move. I’ll be right back.” I bought two drinks and asked for a bag of ice. When I got back, Caleb was sitting on a stone bench. He smiled when he saw me. “I thought you went to buy me a ‘get well soon’ balloon.” “Very funny.” I handed him the ice. “Hold this on your knee so it doesn’t swell.” He took it, teasing, “You’re more worried about my leg than I am.” “Of course! You have a big game coming up. I can’t be the reason you’re off the court.” I sat next to him, sipping my boba. “The other one is for you… I didn’t know what you liked, so I got my favorite.” Caleb turned to look at me. “Clara, has anyone ever told you that you’re adorable?” I blinked. “Uh, yeah. Sometimes.” Then I realized what he was actually saying. My face went scarlet. The air between us felt heavy and quiet until Caleb spoke again. “Clara.” “Yeah?” “I was really happy you gave me that water yesterday. Come to the next game and cheer for me, okay?”

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My mother-in-law suddenly collapsed from a brain hemorrhage. I dialed 911 frantically, but a Maybach waiting at a red light ahead refused to budge for the ambulance. I recognized the car—it belonged to my husband, Silas. I called him immediately, screaming for him to move. But the voice that answered was his “True North,” Sarah, his first love who had just returned to the country: “It’s not like someone’s dying. Why are you in such a rush?” I screamed into the phone: “Someone is dying! It’s Silas’s mother in the back of this ambulance!” “She has a brain hemorrhage! If you don’t move now, she’ll miss the golden window for surgery!” Silas grabbed the phone and cursed at me: “Elena, are you insane? “Just because I’m out at lunch with Sarah, you’re making up stories about my mother being sick? I’m not moving an inch!” He didn’t just block the lane; he actively cut off the ambulance multiple times as we tried to navigate traffic. Later, my mother-in-law died in the back of that ambulance. Silas and Sarah ended up in prison. And I? I took over every single asset they ever owned. 1 My mother-in-law, Martha Sterling, was the Chairwoman of Sterling Global. She collapsed during a board meeting. I called 911 immediately, fighting for every second. But as the ambulance raced toward the hospital, we hit a gridlock at the intersection of 5th and Main. A black Maybach sat idling at the red light. Despite the blaring sirens and the air horn, the driver refused to pull into the intersection or move to the shoulder. I knew that car. I knew that vanity plate. It was Silas. I called him, my hands shaking. “Silas, move! Your mom is in the ambulance behind you! “She has a massive hemorrhage! Move now or we lose her!” I expected him to panic, to swerve out of the way immediately. Instead, Sarah’s voice purred through the speakers: “Elena, get a life. “I just got back to the States and wanted to catch up with an old friend. I’m not trying to ‘steal’ your husband. “Why are you being so toxic, claiming Martha is in an ambulance? “Besides, the light is red. What do you expect Silas to do? “There are only thirty seconds left. Can’t you wait? It’s not like the world is ending.” I felt like my own heart was going to stop from the sheer fury: “Are you an idiot? You don’t get ticketed for yielding to an emergency vehicle! You get fined for blocking one! “And is a potential ticket more important than Martha’s life? Do you think this family can’t afford a fine?” The EMTs in the back were sweating, shouting at me: “You said that’s your husband? Make him move! “The patient is losing too much blood. We need her on an operating table ten minutes ago. “If we miss the window, even a miracle won’t save her. Does he want his mother to die?” But on the other end, Silas didn’t believe a word. He thought I was playing a desperate game of jealousy. Sarah continued to whisper in his ear, her voice dripping with “logic”: “Don’t listen to her. If you run the light, you’ll get points on your license. “Sure, you can appeal it, but who has the time? “Especially a CEO-in-waiting like you—your time is money. “It’s only a few more seconds. Just wait. It’s less hassle. “Elena is so desperate she’s actually cursing your mother just to control you. I bet that’s actually her ex-boyfriend, Julian, the actor, in that ambulance.” “I told you, didn’t I? The tabloids said Julian was filming an action scene nearby and got hurt. “Elena is trying to save her ex by using your mom as an excuse. Silas, your wife is wicked. Don’t let her win.” 2 My head throbbed. Silas actually believed I was trying to save my ex? No wonder he wouldn’t move. I used to wonder why a trust-fund brat like him would care about a traffic ticket. The truth was, his time wasn’t worth anything. Silas had zero business acumen; he knew nothing about managing the company. He only knew how to race cars, hit the clubs, and play video games. Martha only chose me as her daughter-in-law because she saw him for the loser he was. She needed someone with my management experience to keep the empire from crumbling. She wanted me to be strong, yet she feared that once she was gone, Silas wouldn’t be able to handle me. That was why she was obsessed with her health—she claimed she’d live to be a hundred. She wanted me to have a son quickly so she could train the third generation herself. And now, her son was using the Maybach she bought him to block her only path to survival. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I screamed into the phone one last time: “Silas Sterling, if you don’t move, your mother is going to die! “And you will never, ever be able to take it back!” Silas sounded completely unbothered, practically whistling into the receiver: “Elena, give it a rest. My mom is fine. She was at the gym yesterday. “You want to save your actor boyfriend? Not on my watch. “Go ahead and plan his funeral. I’m staying right here.” 3 The ambulance driver looked ready to scream: “Is the moron in front seriously your husband? The light is green now! Why is he still blocking us?” The EMTs looked at me, their faces grim: “She’s fading. We need to get her to the ER now. Tell your husband the severity! “If he doesn’t move, it’s over. Is he really her son?” He was. Everyone else gave up on him years ago, and he proved them right every day. I looked at the call that had been heartlessly disconnected, then at my unconscious mother-in-law. I whispered in my head: “Mom, you have to hold on. Don’t die. “If you go, I can’t promise my ambition won’t take over. I’ll kick Silas out of the company so fast his head will spin. “You told me once—once a woman tastes power and wealth, she never wants to go back. I’m not immune to temptation. “Sarah probably knows exactly who is in this ambulance. She wants you dead. “If you’re gone, no one stands in her way of marrying Silas.” Martha was the one who kicked Sarah out of the country years ago. She saw through her. Martha used to say: “My son is a lost cause. My daughter-in-law has to be the backbone. “Otherwise, what happens to the legacy? “Don’t worry about Silas’s flings. Focus on the business. Learn the Sterling way. “I’m training you to take over. You’ll have a son, and we’ll raise him right together.” Sarah figured that if Martha was dead, she could manipulate Silas into divorcing me and throwing me out. She thought she’d become the new Mrs. Sterling and live the high life. Unfortunately for her, she underestimated me. If Martha died, I wouldn’t just divorce Silas. I would make sure both of them rotted in a cell for what they did. Then, I would take every single thing Martha built. 4 CRASH. The ambulance driver finally snapped. he rammed the back of the Maybach, forcing it out of the way. He looked at me in the rearview mirror, panic in his eyes: “Don’t make me pay for that! I can’t afford the paint job on a Maybach! “I’m doing this to save a life! It’s an emergency!” I said quickly, “You won’t pay a cent. Thank you, sir. Just drive.” He sighed in relief. “Copy that.” But the nightmare wasn’t over. As the ambulance tore through the intersection toward the hospital, Silas gave chase. I knew how good Silas was behind the wheel. He spent his twenties on amateur race circuits. He was a “pro.” If he wanted to block us, a heavy ambulance had no chance. The Maybach began weaving, cutting us off again and again, playing a lethal game of cat and mouse on city streets. I tried calling him again. This time, I hit Video Call. If he could see his mother—pale, intubated, dying—he would stop. But Silas wouldn’t pick up. I called once. Declined. Twice. Declined. The third time, his phone was turned off completely. The monitors in the back began to flatline—beep, beep, beep. The EMTs were doing chest compressions. I sat there, watching the woman who had raised Silas alone. His father had died when he was five, leaving her with a massive corporation and a young son. Silas used to tell me: “My mom is the only person in the world who matters. “If she ever needed a kidney or a liver, I wouldn’t even hesitate. “I’d give my life to save hers.” And yet here he was. She didn’t need his organs. She just needed him to move his car. Such a simple thing. And he couldn’t do it. A wave of absurd, hollow powerlessness washed over me. The EMTs were nearly in tears. “The hemorrhage has reached the pons. We’re losing her! “Driver, faster! We’re running out of time!” The driver gripped the wheel, his shirt soaked with sweat. He shouted back: “I can’t get past! “This guy in the Maybach… he’s too good. He’s doing this on purpose! “We’re one block away. One block! “I’m calling the police the second we hit the bay. I want this bastard in handcuffs!” Finally, we reached the hospital gates. The Maybach, realizing he couldn’t block the hospital entrance without causing a massive pile-up, floored the accelerator and vanished into the night. The driver spat out a curse: “Animal! She would have been better off giving birth to a piece of coal than him!” I looked at Martha. A single tear had escaped her closed eyelid. Could she hear us? Was her heart breaking as it failed? I squeezed her hand. “Mom, don’t be scared. We’re here. Hold on.” The ambulance screeched to a halt at the ER bay. The trauma team was waiting. They sprinted her into surgery immediately. But it was too late. The surgeon came out twenty minutes later, his face grim. “I’m sorry. We did everything we could. “If she had arrived two minutes earlier… just two minutes. “That was the window. We could have stopped the bleed. “But now… I’m so sorry for your loss. “Call your family. It’s time to make arrangements.” 5 I stumbled, my mind blank except for that one phrase: “Just two minutes.” Those two minutes were stolen by Silas Sterling. He murdered his own mother. The tears finally came, hot and bitter. I picked up my phone and dialed his number again. I wanted to scream: “She’s dead! You killed her! Are you happy now?” But his phone was still off. I called Martha’s assistant, Mark, and told him to come to the hospital. Then, I called my best friend, Sarah—no, not that Sarah—my friend Jane, who worked in PR. “What? Silas and that girl killed Martha? “Is he insane? He blocked an ambulance? “Does he know it was his mother yet? “Does he realize he just killed the only person who actually protected him?” I leaned against the cold hospital wall. “He doesn’t know. He’s probably out celebrating Sarah’s return. “Jane, I need you to leak it. “I know your media channels. Get the dashcam footage from the ambulance. Get the intersection cameras. “I want the whole world to see Silas Sterling blocking his mother’s life flight. “I want the Board of Directors to see that the ‘heir’ is a matricidal coward. I want them to turn on him before the body is even cold.” Jane didn’t hesitate. “Elena, you’re going for the throat?” I knew it was “too soon.” I knew people would judge me for being cold. But I was filled with a hatred so deep it burned. I hated Silas for being a waste of space. And I knew if I didn’t act now, Sarah would whisper in his ear until he kicked me out of the Sterling estate. “If I don’t destroy him now, when?” I asked, my voice cold. “Should I wait until he marries Sarah with Martha’s money? “Martha trained me to be the successor. I won’t let her down. “Sterling Global belongs to me now. “Silas is the only thing in my way. So I’m taking him off the board.” Jane took a sharp breath. “Understood. I’ll make sure he burns.”

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