It was clear as daylight.

Drake wanted to break me so badly that I would fall and beg for his mercy.

He knew he had killed my brother, yet he made me withdraw the only case I had against him and Sandra.

As I sat there crumpled against the wall, the images of my brother flashing across my mind, the doctor touched my shoulder.

“Whatever problem you have with Drake, solve it quickly. You cannot stand him.”

Later that day, after seeing his corpse and scheduling a funeral, I drove back home.

The house was quiet and cold, just like my heart.

I staggered to the bedroom door only to hear intimate sounds from it.

Sandra's voice rang out, reeking with bliss.

“Even in my pregnancy you still find me attractive?” she moaned.

I immediately pulled my phone to record.

Drake's sweaty growl made me shiver with rage.

“Don't ruin this moment. I never loved Elena,” he said. “I only kept her close because she somehow made my life easier.”

“How would she feel if she discovers we've been having sex for a long time? The night I drowned Ava, you fucked me so hard I felt proud.”

Her laughter tore a large shred of my heart. I almost collapsed with pain.

“Ava was the only thing she used to hold me down. Good thing you got rid of her.”

“Why not just divorce her already?” Sandra moaned.

“Soon, baby. Once she's thrown into jail, no one will blame me for marrying you. But I need to keep her as an option.”

I immediately sent the clip to my father.

His call came in seconds.

I explained everything that had happened to him. He was furious that I'd kept this from him.

He broke down when he heard my brother was dead.

My brother, in order to support my marriage with Drake, had fallen out with my father.

Now he had been killed by the same man he lost his family for.

I sniffed as more tears poured down.

“Dad, I want Drake so ruined that there's nothing to fall back on. Destroy the very air he breathes!”

Just then, the door burst open. Drake was sweating.

“How long have you been here?”

I wiped at the tears. “Just came up.”

Sandra appeared behind him. A flicker of guilt flashed across his eyes.

“Sandra complained of back pain due to the pregnancy. So I gave her a massage.”

“Sure,” I said.

They expected a reaction from me. An outburst of jealousy.

When they got none, Sandra suddenly began to cry:

“I understand that you're angry, Elena, but please don't blame Drake. He's just been kind to me since my boyfriend left me.

“I can go if you want me to. Please blame me, not him.”

Drake rushed to hold her. His eyes darted to me, fierce and impatient.

“Your presence always ruins things for everyone! How long will you be jealous and unreasonable?”

I stared deep into his eyes.

“You killed my brother, Drake.”

His eyes stopped.

I didn't speak from pain or helplessness. It was something he had never seen before.

My fingers twitched with muscle memory of handling high-end guns.

“He became enemies with our father because of you,” I said. “He pulled every string to make you who you are. Yet you unplugged his life support.”

I wasn't done talking when Sandra walked up to me and slapped me hard.

“Because you're hurt shouldn't make you accuse an innocent man. He has kept your useless brother alive for months even though he's worse than dead vegetables. Well I pulled the plug myself!”

I couldn't hold it.

I struck her so hard she slammed against the wall.

Drake wasted no time.

He kicked me in the stomach, sending me hauling down the stairs. The sharp tiles of each step pierced my skin and broke my bone as I fell.

My world went dark.

He rushed after me, not to pick me up or check my pulse.

He began to stomp down on my belly and chest. Each stomp came with a word:

“Your brother was already worse than dead, Sandra only did him a favor. Yet you hit her!

“What if she loses her pregnancy? Are you doing this because you couldn't raise a child yourself?”

He didn't need to hit me again.

I screamed till my voice cracked.

In just a few days I had lost two of the most precious people in my life.

All for a man who we sacrificed everything for.

“Drake,” I whispered, “you'll pay dearly for this…”

Seeing the sheer damage he had done, he panicked and rushed me to the hospital.

“She can't die like this. If she wants to die, she has to be in prison first. So I don't take the blame.”

He warned the doctors. “Do everything to keep her alive. The police will come for her arrest. They must meet a strong Elena.”

I was in-between death and life as these words droned in my ear. They would be one of a thousand reasons I won't forgive Drake.

Just then Sandra walked in. Our eyes met and I saw a deadly smile on her lips.

She suddenly screamed and fell.

Drake ran to her and without hesitation ordered the doctors to let me go.

He touched her over.

“She looks pale. She needs blood.”

His eyes fell on me. Guilt flickered in them.

But when Sandra moaned again, every guilt vanished.

“Draw blood from Elena. Sandra can't lose the baby.”

This time the doctors stopped.

“Elena is at the point of death, lost so much blood, yet you want the little she has left taken from her?”

“Is she complaining?” Drake fired back. “I know my wife. She'll sacrifice anything to save her cousin.”

I wanted to protest but I had lost control of my body. I lost it long ago, the day I allowed myself to fall in love with a monster.

I laid there, helpless and dying.

The doctor, the same who saw my deep sorrow when I saw my dead brother, came up with another reason.

“They're not a match, sir. We can't do it now.”

Drake looked like he'd die. “Draw out the blood first and check later. Look! Is Elena refusing?”

“She can't even move, sir!”

“If anything happens to Sandra, this entire hospital will be shut down and every single person here jailed.”

The finality in his tone was horrifying.

“Sir, what about your wife? Don't you care about her?”

His gaze shifted to me, cold and resolute. “She has never complained before. She won't now. Take the blood.”

I was still conscious as the needle was inserted and the essence of my life rapidly sucked away.

Tears streamed down my face as I begged Drake with my eyes, muttered with my lips that I was dying inside.

He stared at me through it all, feeling nothing.

The monitors screamed loudly, the doctors glanced at Drake, hoping he'd notice I was going.

Drake didn't blink.

“Is that enough? Take more.”

When the third pint was being taken, Drake touched my forehead.

“I admire your strength. Nothing ever gets to you. I can see in your eyes you can give one more pint.

“Sandra will be forever grateful. You can even name her child if you want.”

He said those words as if they would erase everything.

The inside of my body felt like I had swallowed larva, I squirmed in pure agony as I fought to stay alive.

I forced myself to speak.

“Drake, nothing on earth will stop me from destroying you. Nothing…”

He laughed and leaned close.

“Says an orphan whose life revolves around me. See this as paying Sandra back for your allegations.”

He turned to the doctors. “You mustn't all cluster here. She can be monitored by just a student nurse with no expertise.

“Remember, my wife has to be strong enough to be arrested. Give her a strong injection to boost her strength.”

He supervised as five pints of blood from me were taken to Sandra's ward.

I laid there, shivering and forcing myself to keep breathing, through sheer will.

Everything in me was dissolving. I couldn't understand how a man could be so heartless. Not just any man; the one who had got down on one knee and declared eternal love for me.

When my eyes closed, I thought I had died.

I woke up hours later to a doctor staring down at me.

“Sandra didn't want the blood, said she was just overwhelmed and thought she needed blood.”

I stared back at her, feeling nothing.

“We tried to put it back in you but Mr Drake refused. Said Sandra might need it later.”

The only blood running in my veins now was hatred, in its darkest, deadliest form.

“Due to the force, many of your internal blood vessels burst. You need to be here for at least a month —”

It wasn't the blood that caused the injuries. It was Drake stomping down on my stomach and chest because I slapped his lover.

The doctor was still speaking when two cops arrived.

They halted when they saw me.

“Are you… Elena Hallwood?” they asked with confusion.

I nodded and quietly put out my hands.

“Go on. Do your job.” My voice was barely audible.

They fidgeted with their notes. “There must be a mistake somewhere.”

Just then, Drake burst in she the room became hotter. When our eyes met, he jolted, as though he didn't expect I'd be alive.

He saw the paleness of my face, the redness of my eyes, the bones poking out of my collar and cheeks.

And for a moment I thought his heart had softened.

He sighed and turned to the cops.

“I wish there was a way I could prevent this, but it's off my power. Take her away.”

“You filed the arrest yourself, sir,” one cop sharply countered.

“We can't arrest a woman in this condition. She'll die on the way to the van,” another said.

“It's fine,” I said.

Drake smiled widely. “If you continue in this good behavior, Elena, I'll plead for a lighter sentence for you.”

I ignored him.

My throat was parched, my lips still bleeding.

“Doctor, I need water,” I whispered.

“And who's going to pay for it?” Drake snapped, halting the doctor.

The entire room froze.

He approached me. “All you do is to waste everything I have built with my sweat and blood! You contribute nothing to me. You're useless yet I care about you. Now you want water?

“Do you even care how much that costs me? Do you know how hard Sandra has to work as the new manager to raise that amount? Yet you want to gulp it down in a go.”

Sandra walked into the room at that moment, caressing her pregnant belly like a trophy.

She showed Drake the picture of a gold-rimmed maternity gown which cost $100,000.

Drake immediately softened. Right there, he placed an order for 10,000 pieces of that dress, different shades and colors, from exquisite word-class designers, one for each day of her life.

The doctor fell down on her knees, tears in her eyes.

“Sir, you took over five pints of Elena's blood when she was unconscious, she sustained multiple internal injuries because of it. Yet you think a cup of water is expensive?”

“Sandra is fragile. Do you want her to lose her baby because of a mere billion? She needs it. Elena is just faking this to exploit my generosity. I won't allow her.”

He threw me a disgusted look and turned to the cops. “If you don't have this murderer arrested now, I'll make sure you lose your jobs and end up in jail!”

With no choice, they slammed cold, toothy handcuffs on my wrists. My hospital gown was covered in blood from the poorly done bandages.

I dragged my feet across the floor because every movement sent intense pain across my body.

Drake took Sandra in a hug, as though shielding her from me.

But she came and touched my hand.

“Don't worry, Elena, I'll visit you every day in jail. Here's the water you asked for.”

She shoved a half empty bottle of premium water into my hand. I let it fall.

The moment Sandra winced, Drake hauled the bottle at me.

It split my left eyebrow.

“Sandra decides to show you kindness and this is what she gets?” he barked, checking for an inexistent scratch on Sandra's foot.

As the blood gushed down my face, I was pushed into the police van.

Sandra gave me a device and whispered:

“In this are plenty of… steamy videos of your husband and me. In case you get lonely and need to cry…”

It was her triumphant laughter which brought hot tears to my eyes. And reminded me that I wouldn't have any pity on them when I strike back!

And while all of this went on, Drake made sure no camera saw it. So my father was kept in the dark at all times.

I was jailed without trial. Drake didn't show up one bit. The device Sandra gave me was so nauseating that I smashed it.

But tonight was the last night I had given my father.

Like a dream, it struck 12:00am.

An armoured jet landed in front of the prison.

With a single call from my father, I was released.

Soldiers poured out, escorting ten top doctors who placed me on a stretcher and into the jet. Three cops were shot dead at the spot.

My father had tears in his eyes when he saw my dying state. He hugged me, apologizing bitterly for not coming sooner.

From tomorrow, Drake, I will make you pay for everything you did. And when I start, dear heavens, do not say I am too cruel!

Drake Hallwood had his hands strapped to the chair, while Sandra knelt between his legs.

Her eyes were wide as they stared into his. Her hair was tied in a bun, and her little hands gripped the girth of his cock.

He smiled in satisfaction and pleasure as she lowered her mouth over his cock. The wetness and warmth of her mouth clinched every nerve cells in him.

He tightened his toes as Sandra's head bobbed up and down his length. He wanted so hard to grab her hair and shove her down the more.

Sandra murmured sweet nonsense as she sucked him. He was shaking with pleasure as his first love worked on him.

But the moment his thoughts landed on Elena, he began to go limp.

Sandra looked up, disappointment and confusion written on her face.

"You good?"

He didn't answer. It had just struck 12 midnight. Something didn't feel right anymore.

"Wasn't I supposed to release Elena today?" he asked.

Sandra's face tightened. She let go of his cock and crossed her arms over her breasts.

He snapped the zips off his wrists and grabbed his phone. Just then, a call came in.

The voice was jittery. "Sir, Ms Elena is no longer here in prison."

Drake sprang up. "What the hell does that mean?"

"She escaped."

The air in the room went stale. Drake's heart began to pound uncontrollably. Sandra stood, her eyes full of horror and disgust.

"Give me fucking details!" Drake snapped at the cop. "What do you mean, escaped?"

Nothing made sense anymore. He rushed into his pants, while holding the phone in his neck crook.

"I'm coming there right away!" he barked. "Since you senseless bastards can't keep a helpless girl in chains."

It was only when he was in his car that the caller whispered, "The sheriff is dead. Several other men who had a hand in her detention were shot instantly."

Drake's hands tightened around the steering wheel. How on earth did Elena, a nobody, pull that off?

Sandra kept babbling beside him. "Elena cannot escape! She's got nothing to escape with! She is a hopeless, useless girl who should be condemned forever. She just cannot leave like that."

But in her heart she knew who Elena really was. But all that was gone! Her father despised her, her brother was dead. Nobody cared about Elena in this world.

Drake couldn't hold back his curses as they zoomed through the traffic.

There were police tapes around the prison yard when they arrived. Drake brushed through them and when he saw the lifeless bodies, he froze.

He searched with his eyes for Elena, just a bit of her. Anything.

Nothing.

He ran through the gates straight to her cell.

Or this time, former cell.

There was no Elena there. Her scent had long disappeared.

Something snapped in him. He buckled and leaned on the wall. The very wall he had called disgusting and had shielded Sandra's eyes for.

His mind was running on steroids. What could have happened? Where was Elena?

He reached for his phone and couldn't find it.

"It's in the car," Sandra whispered.

"And you fucking left it there?" His voice came so loud and furious that Sandra jumped.

"Get the fucking phone and call your sister!" Drake said, his fists trembling.

Her eyes were glazed up but she ran for the phone.

He began to pace the stinking hall and to punch walls at intervals.

He couldn't explain this drowning void he felt. He couldn't get his head around the empty feeling Elena's absence gave him.

He didn't see it coming.

He thought he would never feel that. He believed he didn't care a dime about this woman.

But now she was no longer here, he was breaking apart.

When Sandra arrived, he stiffened; he would never show his anxiety. Elena was a nobody.

But his fingers didn't stop trembling when her phone didn't ring. It directed him to voicemail.

"This has never happened before." He leaned forward. "Elena has always prioritized my phone calls!"

He tried again with several different phones. The ones that rang were ignored.

Drake's throat ran dry, his teeth gritted against each other. A cold sweat broke out of his lungs and his voice became hoarse.

He sent numerous texts in seconds.

He then realized that the only times he texted Elena was to lash out rude orders or angry replies.

He found numerous messages where she complained of being sad and lonely and needed them to talk things out.

Even when her daughter was killed, she still reached out to him but he had ignored all of it.

"Call her yourself!" he suddenly shouted at Sandra as they walked back outside.

Sandra, who was getting heavier with pregnancy, was shocked to the bones. Why was he suddenly aggressive to her?

She scrolled through her contacts, trying to remember what he saved Elena's number as.

When she found it, it rang forever. Soon it went into voicemail.

Drake immediately gathered the other cops and started shouting at their incompetence and stupidity.

"How can she leave? Y'all are going to go down for this! You have made an enemy out of me."

"What about our dead men?" a bold one of them asked.

"Fuck your dead men!" was the instant reply. "I only want to see Elena."

"You never cared about her, sir. You wanted so badly to see her rot in jail."

He leaned back, as these words hit him.

"She didn't beg for food or water, she just wanted you to come around and get her out of that prison. For weeks. And now you suddenly care? Is it really love or it's about your ego?"

"She got what she deserved," Sandra offered to help. "She was in prison because she committed a murder. It's that simple."

The other cops snorted and shook their heads. The mutual silence was enough reply.

Even Drake had detached himself. It dawned on him that Elena was really gone.

But he turned to the others and laughed.

"She wouldn't go far. The Elena I know would find her way back to me in a matter of hours. Tops, days. She cannot do without me, her husband."

Just then, a black car arrived and an elegant man stepped out holding a sealed red envelope. His heels slammed against the concrete as he approached.

"I am Ms Elena's chief attorney and this is for you, Mr Hallwood."

Drake didn't take it. He couldn't understand how and when Elena had an attorney.

"What's in that?" he asked.

"Divorce papers. Sign it. She already signed."

As he stared at the bold red ink of Elena's signature, he felt a huge, life-giving part of him melting away.