My sister, Vivian Richmond, is celebrating her birthday with the rest of the family while I lie trapped in an abandoned factory, bleeding heavily.

She's hired four thugs to torture me, and they've left me fighting for my life. I crawl toward my phone with what little strength I have left. When I finally reach it, I call my husband, Ethan Monroe.

"Ethan, I'm seriously injured. Come save me now… I'm at the factory nearby. It won't take much of your time…"

He scoffs at my weak, desperate voice.

"Sienna, whining won't get you anywhere. Are you playing the victim now?" he says. "You'll stop at nothing to ruin Vivian's birthday party, huh? Hurry back with a gift and apologize to her, or I won't go easy on you this time."

Before I can speak, I hear Vivian calling his name over the line.

Ethan has no idea that the moment the call ends, I no longer need his forgiveness.

He doesn't know that the foul, rotting corpse that makes even an experienced forensic pathologist like him recoil in disgust belongs to the wife he's hated for years.

After I died, I found myself beside my husband, Ethan Monroe. He was at my sister, Vivian Richmond's birthday party, his arm wrapped around her waist as they danced together.

When my parents overheard people saying that Ethan and Vivian made a perfect pair, they didn't refute it.

In fact, they even chimed in, "That's right. I've always thought how wonderful it would've been if Ethan had married Vivian instead. Only someone like her could ever be worthy of him—unlike my eldest daughter, Sienna. She can't do anything and just whines all the time."

Each word they said stabbed at me. Vivian had taken everything that used to be mine.

Just then, a doctor in a white coat rushed into the room.

"Dr. Monroe, there's been an emergency. A decapitated female body was found at the abandoned factory. You're needed at the scene now," he said urgently.

The room erupted in gasps and murmurs.

Ethan remained perfectly composed. His gaze settled on Vivian as if he were seeking her permission to leave.

"Go ahead. I'm just glad you could make time to come to my birthday party. And I love the sapphire necklace you gave me," she said.

My breath caught as I looked at her neck. That necklace was an heirloom that belonged to Ethan's mother. In the past, he would snap at me with a frown if I so much as touched it.

I pressed a hand to my chest. I was already dead, so why did it still hurt so much?

After getting clearance, Ethan bent down and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of Vivian's hand. His voice was soft, as though he were a devoted husband speaking to his wife.

"Wait for me to come back."

I followed him to the crime scene. Before we even got close, the overpowering stench hit us.

Ethan's new assistant was doubled over against the wall, retching. Even Ethan, who was normally unfazed by such sights, frowned.

"The victim is female. Her head is missing, so her age and identity are unknown. Preliminary findings suggest she was beaten by several people. The decapitation wound shows a clean cut. It's likely caused by a machete."

The scene fell into heavy silence.

Then, someone cursed under their breath, "What a monster… They deserve to rot in hell."

Even the usually composed Ethan seemed shaken.

He walked toward the police officers and spoke with steady, unwavering resolve. "Rest assured. I'll do everything I can to help solve this case and ensure the suspects are apprehended quickly."

Then, he began a meticulous examination of the body and worked until the early hours of the morning.

Suddenly, his assistant reminded him, "Dr. Monroe, isn't today your wedding anniversary? Aren't you going home?"

Ethan paused for a second, then replied, "No. It's just an anniversary. There's nothing to celebrate."

That casual dismissal made my eyes sting.

He knew exactly how much our wedding anniversary meant to me. Every year, I carefully prepared a gift for him, but he'd never shown up even once. He'd always believed that his parents died because of me.

It began with a lawsuit I won that sent the defendant to prison. His relatives held a grudge against me and eventually chose to get revenge. They broke into our home, wanting to kill me.

That day, Ethan and I were at a jewelry store picking out rings, while his parents were at home. By the time we returned, only two corpses lay on the floor.

I'd never forgotten the look on his face that day—the way it had shifted from disbelief to utter devastation before he'd locked himself in his room for two full weeks.

In the end, we were legally married, but the wedding never happened. Even our wedding rings were plain bands. Soon, our marriage grew strained as we became distant.

Vivian took advantage of that to get close to him. She comforted him, and over time, they became inseparable.

She wanted to become his wife, so she pressured me to divorce him. When I refused, she began fabricating accusations against me at every turn.

Sometimes it was just a trivial matter, like accusing me of breaking her treasured jewelry. Other times, it was deliberate and calculated, such as claiming in court that I had stolen evidence from her to win my case. My reputation was ruined because of it.

Even my parents, who once treated me like their pride and joy, began to frown whenever they saw me. They stopped remembering my birthday altogether.

Before I realized it, I had become an outcast in my own family.

In the end, just because I refused to attend Vivian's birthday party, Ethan gave me the cold shoulder for days.

If he'd known the body lying in front of him was mine, he would've probably felt relieved. After all, it would mean he could finally be with Vivian without any obstacles.

Just then, his assistant let out a sigh.

"Dr. Monroe, Mrs. Monroe is actually quite pitiful. Every time it rains, she comes downstairs to bring you an umbrella. Then, she runs off alone into the rain—"

"That's enough, Adrian," Ethan said coldly.

"This is my family matter. Stay out of it. Besides, she's just being pathetic and clingy. Nobody forced her to do these pointless things. Get back to work."

The assistant, whose name I learnt was Adrian Blake, said nothing and went back to his tasks. A moment later, he extracted a piece of metal with the forceps.

"There appears to be... a ring in the victim's stomach," he said.

Ethan glanced at it briefly and responded flatly, "It's just a plain band. It won't help identify her."

"Look at this instead," he said, using his forceps to lift up a small mass of tissue.

The interns immediately gasped.

"Oh, my God, isn't that an embryo? The victim was pregnant?"

Before we married, I'd imagined countless times the look of surprise on Ethan's face when he found out I was pregnant. But never in my wildest dreams had I imagined our baby would meet him this way.

He took out a white cloth and covered the tiny form. For some reason, he seemed reluctant to look at it.

I wondered what he was thinking at that moment. I supposed I would never know.

As they finished their work that evening, it began to rain heavily.

Standing nearby, Adrian asked curiously, "Huh? Mrs. Monroe didn't bring you an umbrella today."

Ethan snorted and replied, "She's probably still sulking. All I did was ask her to attend Vivian's birthday party. Is it really worth making such a scene? She's so immature."

Adrian looked like he was about to say something, but Ethan had already rushed out into the rain.

He'd only taken a few steps when he stopped. From a distance, he saw a young woman walking toward him and smiled tenderly.

"Ethan, quickly get under my umbrella before you're completely soaked."

Vivian stood on her tiptoes to hold the umbrella over him. He immediately took it from her hands.

My husband, who'd shown me nothing but disdain, now thoughtfully tilted the umbrella to Vivian's side. He even pulled her close to shield her, making sure there wasn't a single drop of rain on her.

He was smiling when, out of the blue, Vivian asked him, "Where's Sienna? Has she come home or contacted you?"

Ethan's smile vanished instantly. He replied impatiently, "Stop worrying about her. Today is your birthday. Don't let someone who doesn't matter ruin your day."

He added, "Let's go. I'll take you out for a late-night snack. Consider it my apology for leaving your party early."

The two walked side by side, looking like blissful newlyweds.

I followed them through the rain, letting it wash through me and crush my last shred of hope.

I wondered, "Ethan, you thought I caused your parents' deaths. So why did you marry me? And after that, why did you treat me so coldly? Why keep taking Vivian's side and breaking my heart?

"Was it simply because she made the first move to get close to you? But you know perfectly well she only got close to you just to—"

"Ethan." Vivian's voice interrupted my thoughts as she stopped walking. She glanced at him and said, "My friends invited me to go swimming at the beach in three days. Will you come with me?"

I set aside my sorrow and rushed to his side, urging, "Don't go. Whatever you do, don't go. If you do, you'll never come back."

But he couldn't hear me. Even though he couldn't swim, he hesitated for a moment before agreeing.

"Sure. I'll wrap up this case as quickly as possible. I'll definitely be there in three days."

After having a late-night snack with Vivian and sending her home that night, Ethan rushed back to the lab once again to continue the autopsy.

This time, he made a new discovery. It was a faint tattoo mark on the victim's ankle.

My heart lurched violently. Was he about to realize it was me?

I'd gotten Ethan's name tattooed on my ankle when we first started dating. He also had my name tattooed on his chest. Later, I found out he'd already gotten it removed.

I was heartbroken, and in a fit of spite, I went to get my tattoo removed too. That was when I discovered how painful the procedure was and how many sessions it required. So I'd left a faint mark behind.

However, Ethan's tattoo had been fully removed. A pang of disappointment flickered through me, but I kept my eyes fixed on him, hoping he would recognize that the body was me.

But after staring at it for a while, he looked away and calmly recorded it in his file.

"Faint tattoo residue observed on the ankle; pattern indiscernible."

By then, dawn had broken. Adrian walked in just in time to notice the tattoo mark. He studied it for a long time, then frowned.

"I seem to recall Mrs. Monroe has a tattoo right there on her ankle. It's about the same size as well," he said.

All the interns nodded in agreement.

Ethan frowned and shot back, "Nonsense! Did your professors only teach you to make wild guesses based on nothing?"

Despite that, he couldn't help glancing at the tattoo one more time. But he quickly dismissed the thought.

Lowering his head, he murmured to himself, "How could anything have happened to her? Besides, she would never have removed that tattoo."

His expression revealed the complex mix of emotions he was feeling. After a moment of silence, he pulled his phone out.

I watched his finger hover over my contact. Before he could press it, his phone rang first.

My parents were calling him.

"Ethan, you need to come home right away. Sienna has poisoned Vivian's dog, the one she's been raising for three years!"

Ethan's eyes widened in shock.

"Has that woman lost her mind? We only asked her to attend a birthday party, and now she's killing a dog? Don't worry. This time, I absolutely won't let her get away with this."

Just as he was preparing to leave, Adrian grabbed his arm and said urgently, "Dr. Monroe, calm down. Mrs. Monroe isn't that kind of person. I saw her feeding a stray dog just the other day. There's no way she would do this."

Others chimed in, too, trying to calm him.

But Ethan only grew more furious. He turned to Adrian and shouted, "You seem awfully fond of Sienna. How about I just make her your wife and be done with it? Then, you'll be happy, and I'll finally get some peace of mind."

With that, he slammed the door shut.

I stood frozen in place, just as lost and helpless as the interns.

At that moment, I never wanted to follow him or get close to him again.

But I had no choice. A powerful force pulled me toward Ethan.

A dog lay foaming at the mouth on the ground.

Vivian collapsed into Mom's arms, sobbing. "Why did you all ask Sienna to come to my birthday party? She got so furious that she killed my dog."

Mom comforted her tenderly, "It's my fault, sweetie. Don't cry."

Dad was so enraged that he nearly passed out.

"When I find that ungrateful wretch, I'll beat her senseless with my cane," he spat.

Watching this scene unfold, Ethan angrily pulled his phone out to call me. But all he got was the automated message. He kept calling, but there was still no answer.

"Sienna must be hiding somewhere out of fear. She won't even answer our calls," my parents fumed.

Ethan promised them he would find me and make me pay for what I'd done.

Suddenly, Vivian looked at him. "But aren't you still working on that murder case?"

He froze for a moment and recalled that pitiful decapitated victim. Then, he said, "I have plenty of capable colleagues who can handle it. Today, I'm going to track down Sienna, no matter what."

He gently stroked Vivian's head and added, "Don't worry. I'll see this through for you."

Mom and Dad chimed in, "Once you find Sienna, you should just divorce her and marry Vivian instead. A cruel woman like her doesn't deserve you."

I looked at Ethan, trying to read his expression. But he didn't respond to my parents' suggestion. Instead, he silently buried the dead dog.

After dealing with that, he rushed to the law firm where I worked.

"Mr. Monroe, I was just about to call you. Sienna hasn't come to work for the past two days, and she's not answering her phone either. The trial starts tomorrow, and the whole team is panicking. Do you know what happened to her?" one of my colleagues asked.

Ethan gave a derisive snort.

"What could have possibly happened to her? Just this morning, she was busy poisoning her sister's dog."

After leaving the law firm, he went to check with some of my close friends, only to hear that none of them had seen me.

Faith Lowell, one of my best friends, even scolded him. "Can't you treat Sienna better? You've only been married a few years, and she comes to me in tears multiple times a month."

"She's getting what she deserves," Ethan retorted impatiently.

"If she hadn't been so ruthless during that lawsuit, the defendant's family wouldn't have been so resentful that they broke into my home and murdered my parents. I've been generous enough by marrying her as promised."

Faith was so angry that she snapped at him, "You're going to regret this sooner or later, Ethan!"

I hid in the corner and watched Faith, who was on the verge of tears. My own eyes stung as well. If it weren't for my friends supporting me all these years, I could never have held on for so long.

I watched the man standing in the middle of the street, lost and confused.

"You can stop looking, Ethan. I'm right where you work, on the cold autopsy table," I muttered.

Just then, his phone rang with a call from the lab.

Adrian said urgently, "Dr. Monroe, it's urgent. We've gotten the DNA results for the victim. You need to come back right away."

Ethan glanced at his watch and responded irritably, "I already told you I'm handing this case over to you. I have other things to deal with. Just report the findings to the police."

Without waiting for Adrian to respond, he ended the call.

Ethan returned home and tore the place apart, searching for my belongings until he finally found a bracelet.

My eyes widened as I recognized it as the gift he'd given me on our first date. I instinctively lunged forward to grab it.

But the next second, he broke it into pieces. The fragments passed right through my open palm.

I screamed, "No!"

I glared at Ethan with pure hatred, but his expression remained impassive. He calmly took a photo and sent it to me.

"If you don't come back and turn yourself in, I'll destroy everything you own."

"I'll ruin something every half an hour. This bracelet is just the beginning."

I stood frozen, as though something had been ripped out of me.

I was already dead. How was I supposed to show up in front of him?

I screamed at him and rushed forward, pounding my fists against his chest, but he couldn't hear or feel a thing.

All I could do was watch as he tore up my favorite dress and trampled the flowers I'd carefully tended to for years. At last, he walked slowly toward the kitten sleeping in the corner.

I shouted desperately, "No… Stop! Ethan, that's Bouncer, the stray cat we rescued together! You used to love him the most!"

He grabbed Bouncer by the scruff of his neck and typed out a final ultimatum.

"If you don't respond within ten seconds, I'll kill him."

Ten… nine… eight… seven… six… five… four… three… two… one.

Just then, the door was kicked open with a crash.

Ethan's lips curved into a satisfied smirk.

"Sienna, you've finally decided to come back," he said.

But when he turned around, Adrian knocked him to the floor with a single punch and hurled a lab report in his face.

"Ethan, how can you be so heartless? Do you know that the decapitated, battered body belongs to your wife?"

"Sienna?" Ethan asked, surprised.