Seven years ago, when Caleb first took over the family business, it was my father who used every connection he had to help him stabilize the situation.

Later, when I was kidnapped, it was Caleb who fought his way into the hideout and carried me out on his back.

That day, I cried in his arms, believing I had found the person I could trust for the rest of my life.

And now, for another woman, he had driven us into a dead end.

Fortunately, only three days remained.

I dragged my weakened body back home, only to see piles of luggage thrown out at the door. My chest tightened violently.

Caleb had tossed out everything that belonged to me and my father.

This house was bought with my father’s entire life savings.

What right did Caleb have to throw us out?

I felt as though I could barely breathe. Just as I turned to leave, I caught a glimpse of the scene inside the house through the gap in the door.

Heidi was sitting in Caleb’s lap, feeding him spoonfuls of porridge.

I forced my trembling hands still, raised my phone, and quietly began recording.

Caleb’s hand was wrapped around her waist, fingers wandering restlessly. His voice was low and intimate.

“In those days, I was too poor. I had no choice but to marry for family interests and let you marry someone else. All these years, you’ve suffered.”

Heidi’s face flushed, her expression dripping with sweetness.

“No, even if I married someone else, have we ever stopped talking? The only one who can satisfy me in bed has always been you, Caleb…”

Her words ignited him instantly. Caleb lowered his head and kissed her hungrily.

“When the baby is born, we’ll go abroad together. Alright?”

Heidi let out a soft sound.

“Last time I got pregnant, you forced me to end it. Why do you want this one?”

My heart clenched as if someone had grabbed it.

Half a year ago, she had been pregnant.

That was also the first time I became pregnant, and he forced me into surgery, claiming it would affect his work.

I had always thought he was just ambitious.

But the real reason was that Heidi disagreed.

My fingers shook, but I kept the phone steady.

Heidi buried her head in his chest, her tone dripping with malicious sweetness.

“At that time, we didn’t know whose the baby was. How could I let someone else carry a bastard?”

Then came the sound of sticky kisses.

Heidi’s breathing grew soft and tangled.

“Don’t worry. This time, the baby is ours.”

Her words exploded in my ears, each one like a blade slicing straight into my chest.

I could no longer watch. I lowered my phone and turned to leave.

But my weakened legs gave out. I stepped wrong and knocked over a vase by the door.

It shattered loudly.

Caleb rushed out at once. When he saw how disheveled I was, his expression stiffened for a moment before he shouted,

“What did you do to yourself this time!”

The next second, he dragged Heidi into his arms protectively, his eyes filled only with concern for her.

“Trying to get my sympathy again? Stop using this kind of pathetic trick.”

Heidi recovered quickly and let out a mocking laugh.

“Planning to go to court again and accuse me of hitting your father? Who would believe you?”

I looked at them coldly.

“If your affair goes public, who people believe is another question.”

Caleb’s eyes widened with rage.

“Julia, stop spouting nonsense! I only invited Heidi over for porridge. What filthy thoughts are you imagining?”

“If you would just apologize publicly, we could still live together peacefully. I’ll give you a child. Why won’t you agree?”

I had no interest in arguing with him. I hid my phone securely.

Just then, Heidi spoke softly.

“Caleb, go get another bowl of porridge. Mr. Fang doesn’t seem unreasonable. We can talk calmly.”

As soon as Caleb walked away, she dropped the gentle facade and forced me into the corner.

Her voice was low, like a snake hissing.

“Do you know why I hit your father? Because he deserved it. Who told him to show off in front of me? Caleb belongs to me. Even if he marries you, he is still mine. Your father deserved what happened.”

Here is the refined English translation, faithful to the emotional tension and novel tone, without adding unnecessary words and without any forbidden symbols:

I couldn’t help but throw a punch, but my body was covered in injuries. I was no match for her.

In an instant, she had me pinned to the ground.

She stepped on my chest and leaned down, her lips brushing my ear.

“If you insist on being disobedient, I’ll make sure you learn your lesson. Your father died in prison because of you.”

I struggled and raked my nails across her ankle, leaving a deep scratch.

Seeing Caleb about to come out, Heidi immediately clutched her forehead and let herself collapse onto the floor as if she had been shoved.

Caleb saw her fall, and the bowl in his hand shattered against the ground with a sharp crack that tore through the air.

He rushed toward us, screaming, his fury twisting his face into something monstrous.

“Julia! How dare you touch Heidi? Can you afford to compensate for the child she’s carrying? You and your father’s lives wouldn’t be enough!”

He charged forward, grabbed my shoulders, and shoved.

I was thrown hard, my back slamming into the sharp corner of the entryway like a heavy hammer striking me.

Pain exploded in my chest. My vision went black. I staggered, then collapsed.

I heard Caleb’s hysterical roaring, Heidi’s fake frightened sobs, and the murmurs of people around us.

The noises tangled together, stabbing into my ears like countless needles.

I tried to push myself up, but my body refused to move.

My consciousness cracked open, leaking away rapidly.

In the last moment before everything went dark, I saw Caleb glaring at me with a frown, yet still holding Heidi protectively, terrified that she might be startled.

Then the darkness swallowed me completely.

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing that hit me was the sharp smell of disinfectant.

The white ceiling swayed slightly in my vision. I tried to move my fingers, but they felt weighed down by something heavy.

The curtain was pulled aside. A doctor stepped to the bedside, his expression calm.

“You’re awake?”

I nodded. My throat burned as if scraped raw by sandpaper.

The doctor sighed, speaking as gently as he could.

“Julia, when you were brought in, you were experiencing massive bleeding.”

My heart clenched, but I forced myself to ask, “So…?”

He paused for a moment before answering.

“The baby is gone.”

My breathing caught in my chest, unable to move.

“The baby…?”

I repeated softly, as though confirming something I had never imagined.

The doctor continued, “You were three weeks pregnant. It was too early to detect. But your injuries were severe, and the embryo couldn’t continue developing. We have already completed the procedure.”

My fingertips slowly turned cold.

So I had been pregnant.

In the middle of their blows, their insults, all the despair… I had been carrying a tiny life.

And now he was gone.

Because of their push.

Because of their violence.

Because of their cruelty.

Seeing me silent, the doctor added in a low voice, “Your injuries were caused by assault. We have reported it according to protocol. Once your condition stabilizes, you’ll need to give a statement.”

I closed my eyes. My chest felt as if it had been torn apart.

Images flashed through my mind: Caleb’s indifferent shove, Heidi’s triumphant smile, her words about letting the old man die in prison.

Each one cut like a blade.

The baby was gone.

And the marriage I had fought so hard to hold together collapsed completely in that moment.

I opened my eyes. My voice was cold as a winter night.

“There’s no need to continue with the police report. Please help me preserve all medical records, emergency documents, and surgical reports.”

The doctor paused, surprised.

“Of course, but you need rest.”

“Don’t worry.” My tone was calm, yet so firm it allowed no refusal.

The doctor could only nod and leave.

After a while, the door to the hospital room swung open.

Caleb walked in. The sharpness in his expression had been carefully tucked away, replaced with something that almost looked gentle. His presence instantly drained the warmth from the air.

“Julia, I know you’re still angry about what happened yesterday, but I truly had no choice. Heidi was badly hurt. And your own wounds haven’t healed yet. Please, don’t make things harder for me, alright?”

His voice was soft enough to drip with sweetness, the tone a man uses when coaxing a child who doesn’t know any better.

That gentleness was something he offered to everyone.

Everyone except me.

His act made me laugh, a cold, hollow sound.

“Relax. I won’t delay tomorrow’s press conference.”

The sarcasm in my voice wiped the softness from his face at once.

“Julia,” he snapped, “stop being childish. You’re the one at fault. If you hadn’t harmed the baby in Heidi’s stomach, I wouldn’t have laid a finger on you. Everything that happened to you was your own doing.”

He shoved every sin onto me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

That kind of cruelty chilled the bones.

I opened my mouth, wanting to tell him about the child I had lost, but someone interrupted.

Heidi burst in like a frightened little rabbit, throwing herself into his arms.

“Caleb, where did you go? I woke up and didn’t see you, I thought you didn’t want me anymore. I dreamed about yesterday… I dreamed those people came after me again…”

Her voice trembled with every word, tears streaming nonstop.

Caleb bent over her protectively, soothing her as if she were the most precious treasure in existence.

When she finally calmed down a little, his eyes turned sharp and vicious as he glared at me.

“Look at what you did! Heidi nearly died because of you!”

I couldn’t help but laugh, the sound slicing through the room like a blade.

Seeing that I didn’t respond, Heidi suddenly let out a shrill scream.

“Julia, is it not enough that I’m leaving? Please don’t hurt me or the baby anymore… I never should have made you angry…”

She even tried to kneel by my bed, her pitiful act almost enough to make Caleb crumble.

I remained expressionless.

I simply watched their performance with icy amusement.

Caleb finally lost his patience.

“Julia, you still refuse to admit your mistakes. Stay here and reflect. After the press conference, I’ll reconsider our marriage. My family does not need a heartless woman.”

With that, he guided Heidi out without looking back.

Just before disappearing from view, Heidi cast a glance over her shoulder. Her eyes gleamed with arrogance and triumph, the clear declaration lingering in her gaze.

This time, I won.

I didn’t even bother looking at them as I reached out and shut the door.

The next morning, I began executing my plan.

There were three hours left until the Caleb family’s press conference.

In three hours, his family’s business would begin its freefall.

Every resource, every share, every partnership I had once placed into his hands, I would take back without hesitation.

For every wound they gave me, I would repay them with what they valued most.

I blocked both Caleb and Heidi’s numbers, then boarded the plane with Karl.

I could hardly wait to watch the grand celebration they ignited with their own hands turn into the very fire that devoured them.

Their fall was only the beginning.