When the 99th unanswered call to Julius rang into silence, Anastasia finally lost all reason. Clutching her younger brother's critical condition notice, she slammed the accelerator down and crashed straight through the front doors of Deep Dive Club.

She raced up the stairs to the top floor, panic burning in her throat—but when she arrived, she froze at the sight before her.

Beneath the thirty-meter-deep azure pool, two figures were entwined in a desperate, breathless embrace.

Julius held the woman beneath him so tightly there was not a sliver of space between them. Their only oxygen was exchanged in their kiss—wild, suffocating, drowning in both pain and pleasure.

The sight stabbed through Anastasia's eyes like shards of glass.

The woman's face, flushed with passion, overlapped in her mind with the one in the photograph hidden inside Julius's pocket watch.

And in that instant, Anastasia finally recognized her.

No wonder—no wonder Julius had gone berserk days ago, shooting his partner's men when he saw her being harassed.

The woman was Irene, the one who had betrayed him years ago—the vanished "Red Rose", his lover who'd stolen confidential files and driven him into a living hell.

He had loved her so completely, so madly.

Loved her enough to turn his back on his own allies, loved her enough to ruin multimillion-dollar deals just to take her away. Loved her enough to abandon Anastasia's brother—the one who had fought and bled beside him—at the sound of a single call from Irene... so that while her brother lay unconscious in the ICU with a ruptured femoral artery, Julius could be here—making love underwater with the woman he'd lost and found again.

Anastasia's hand didn't tremble as she raised her gun.

Her gaze was icy, her aim steady as she fired.

Bang! Bang!

The tempered glass shattered, and a torrent of water burst forth, hurling the tangled lovers onto the marble floor.

"Achoo."

The air-conditioning chilled the soaked marble; Irene shivered violently, curling into Julius's arms.

"Have you had enough, Anastasia?!" Julius's voice was a whip of fury. His expression turned to ice upon seeing her.

"Irene's health is fragile. She's been through shock today—she can't take the cold like you can."

Anastasia laughed, the sound brittle like glass. "If her body's so fragile, she should stay in a greenhouse, not in a pool screwing you."

Her voice trembled with rage. "You kept the doctor locked in here to watch over her in case she fainted during your little tryst—did it ever cross your mind that my brother is fighting for his life in the ICU because of you?"

"And you dare say I'm the one making a scene?!"

Tears burned her eyes. The image of her brother's pale, blood-soaked body refused to fade.

She hurled the crumpled notice at him—but Julius didn't even glance at it.

He sneered. "If your brother can't handle a minor injury, then he doesn't deserve to stay in the company. Perkins Group has no use for the weak."

He added carelessly, "You can have the doctor. But Little Pea just got her first vaccine—she can't be left alone. Once the dog wakes up, you can take Dr. Schumann to see your brother."

He stepped over the soaked paper as if it were nothing, pulled on his jacket, and draped it tenderly around Irene's shoulders.

Anastasia stared at him, disbelief hollowing her chest.

In Julius's heart, her brother's life—was worth less than a dog's.

Anxious, she lunged toward the suite to drag the doctor out herself, but pain exploded across her shoulder—Julius shoved her down hard onto the floor.

"You're getting more and more out of line," he said, frowning impatiently.

"I heard your father's business is in trouble lately. Maybe a bit more hardship will remind you how to behave."

His dark gaze swept over her, cold and heavy. Then he wrapped his arm around Irene's waist and led her toward the suite.

As they passed, Irene's mocking voice brushed Anastasia's ear, "So this is the famous Miss Rios's upbringing? I'm disappointed."

The words pierced deeper than any bullet.

Yes—once, she had been a sheltered, innocent young lady.

But eight years ago, when Irene leaked Julius's confidential data and his enemies hunted him down, he fled, bleeding—to the Rios family's ancestral home.

That night shattered her peaceful life forever.

Anastasia couldn't bear letting a man die before her eyes, so she saved him and bandaged his wounds.

And because of that act of mercy, his enemies came for her family.

She watched her mother, standing between her and the blade, have her throat slit open before her very eyes.

Just as the knife was about to strike her too, the door burst open. Julius stormed in and shot the attacker's hand to pieces.

The knife clattered to the floor. Anastasia picked it up—and drove it into her mother's killer's chest without hesitation.

The blade caught on bone.

Julius's laughter was low and wild as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, pressing her hand down harder on the hilt.

"Miss Rios," he whispered against her ear, his voice drenched in madness, "welcome to my world."

From that day on, the most feared mafia boss in the capital had at his side a beautiful, thorned rose.

Julius was ruthless—he turned the men who'd killed her mother into her live targets, using them to teach her to shoot, to fight, to survive.

But he was also indulgent.

At auctions, whatever jewel she so much as glanced at would appear on her dressing table the next day.

From hairpins to heels, every piece she wore was chosen by him.

Everyone said Julius had long since let go of his past. And Anastasia believed it too.

She thought that eight years of shared blood and devotion were enough to erase the shadow of his lost lover.

Until she saw Irene again—with her face, her figure, her style—and the way Julius looked at her.

Only then did Anastasia finally understand: He had never stopped loving Irene. He had only loved her through Anastasia.

Glass shards bit deep into her palm. Blood spread across the marble.

Her hand hurt. But her heart hurts more.

As she watched Julius walk away, cradling Irene tenderly in his arms, Anastasia made her first call to a long-forgotten number.

"Want to make a deal?"

"My bargaining chip is... myself."

If Julius had only ever seen her as a substitute—if he had never truly loved her—then every drop of blood, every year of devotion she had wasted on him, she would reclaim, one by one.

Under the watchful eyes of the world's top medical team, Irene's dog finally opened its eyes and wagged its tail.

At that exact moment, Julius stepped out of the room—only to find Anastasia standing in the hall, too busy on her phone to even glance his way. His face darkened instantly.

"Who are you calling?" His voice carried a quiet menace. "You didn't even notice I came out."

Something inside Anastasia cracked. She almost laughed at the sheer absurdity.

"I was preparing a gift for you." She brushed past him with a shove. "What's this? Are you jealous now?"

Julius frowned, about to speak, but before he could, Irene's soft cry of pain came from inside the room.

By the time he looked up again, Anastasia was already gone—leaving the penthouse with the doctor in tow.

The drive from the club to the hospital normally took half an hour, but Anastasia made it in ten minutes.

Her brother was alive, but barely. The doctor had arrived too late.

The bullet had blocked the artery, and infection spread fast. To save him, the doctors had to amputate his right leg.

Outside the ward, two nurses whispered just loud enough for her to hear through the crack in the door.

"Has Madam fallen out of favor? Why hasn't Mr. Perkins visited Young Master Rios?"

"Please. He only married her because she looks a little like the woman he really loves. Now that the real one is back, the stand-in should step aside..."

The words sliced into Anastasia's ears like knives.

Inside, her brother lay pale and motionless, his right leg gone, his life uncertain.

Her heart bled as she stared at him—at what her blind devotion had cost him.

Everyone knew she was just a substitute.

Everyone but her.

She had been the only fool still pretending her love meant something, dragging her brother into ruin and leaving him crippled.

She sat beside his bed all night, unmoving, feeling empty.

At dawn, she returned to the villa to gather divorce papers.

But the moment she opened the front door, a crash of splintering wood and barking echoed from upstairs—from the nursery.

She ran up in a panic.

The room she had once tended so carefully was now a wreck—furniture overturned, toys smashed, walls gouged.

And in the middle of the chaos, Irene's dog was rolling on the floor, growling playfully.

When Anastasia saw what it had in its mouth, her pupils contracted violently.

She lunged forward—

It was her child's urn!

The Rottweiler snarled and sank its teeth into her wrist. Pain seared up her arm, but she didn't care; she tried to wrench the urn free—and a shadow flashed past her.

"Ah!"

A sharp blow struck her lower back, sending her crashing into the ruins of the room. Blood flooded her throat with the taste of iron.

The urn slipped from her grasp and shattered before her eyes—ashes scattering across the floor.

"Little Pea was just playing," Irene whimpered, clinging to Julius's chest as tears streaked her cheeks. "Miss Rios, how could you be so cruel to her?"

Julius hadn't even changed out of his suit before he came running. His first look was for Irene, eyes full of concern.

Then he turned to Anastasia—his gaze cold, devoid of warmth.

"Anastasia," he said sharply, "you've gone too far."

Pain drained the color from her face, but she didn't even feel it.

She crawled toward the broken urn, desperately trying to scoop the ashes back together with trembling hands. But the ashes had mixed into the dust and rubble—lost forever.

Her voice trembled, ragged with grief. "My child's clothes are on her dog. My child's ashes—your dog used them as a toy, and now they're gone!"

Her eyes burned as she stared up at him.

"Tell me, Julius... who's really gone too far?!"

"Have you forgotten what you once swore to me?"

For a moment, something flickered in his expression—remorse, maybe. But then his gaze dropped to the faint bruise on Irene's waist, and all traces of softness vanished.

"That doesn't give you the right to hurt Irene!" he snapped. "The dog didn't know any better—but you should have!"

He raised a hand in signal. "Seems I've spoiled you too much. Today, you'll remember what our organization's rules are."

Each word struck her like the crack of a whip before the lash even fell.

A chill spread through her bones.

Before her child's ashes, Anastasia was forced to her knees. The whip—a barbed one—came down across her back with brutal precision.

Crack!

The first strike split her skin; blood blossomed instantly.

And through the haze of pain, memories surfaced.

The first time Julius had confessed to her, ears flushed red as he promised, "For the rest of my life, I'll love no one but you."

Crack!

The second lash.

She remembered three years ago—when she was six months pregnant— she risked everything to save him.

She had been captured and tied in a basement, tortured through a night and day. Her child had been beaten out of her womb, leaving only blood.

Later, Julius had personally beaten those men into pulp and buried them under their child's grave, whispering over the flowers, "I'll never forget our baby. One day, he'll come back to us."

But now—her baby's clothes hung on Irene's dog.

His ashes had been smashed and scattered.

Through her blurred vision, Anastasia saw Julius—the man who once swore eternal love—now gently wiping tears from Irene's cheeks.

He lifted Irene into his arms, turning away as his polished shoes crushed the ashes and her dripping blood into the floor—leaving a trail of dark, mocking footprints.

Her grief and agony were nothing but a farce.

The vows he had once sworn were a lie—a lie only she had believed.

When the punishment finally ended, a metallic taste flooded her mouth.

She coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed into unconsciousness.

When Anastasia regained consciousness, she found herself back in her bedroom.

She had thought that once Irene returned, she would be kicked into the maid's quarters to make room. But to her surprise, Irene had moved into the room at the end of the second-floor hallway—the very place Anastasia had once been scolded for even approaching.

That forbidden room, she realized now, was their secret nest.

His and hers.

A bitter smile tugged at her lips. The smallest movement pulled at her half-healed back, reopening the wound.

Pain shot through her body, draining the color from her face. Still, she forced herself upright, dragging several large boxes from under the bed.

One by one, she stuffed inside everything that carried a trace of Julius—the million-dollar engagement ring he'd once slipped onto her finger. The bullet he'd taken to his chest for her. Stacks of photos filled with smiles that now felt like mockery.

When the last box was finally full, the door burst open.

"You're not a naive little girl anymore," Julius's cold voice cut through the air. "Stop playing these childish games—running away, pretending to suffer."

Anastasia froze mid-motion. She didn't bother to explain that she wasn't pretending—she really was leaving.

"Did you not hear me?" His tone sharpened when his gaze caught the blood soaking through her back. "Do you have a death wish?"

Before she could react, he strode over, forcing her down onto the bed. Ignoring her weak struggles, he pulled up her shirt.

A cool liquid spreads across her burning wound, numbing the pain. It took her a moment to realize—he was applying medicine.

"Does it still hurt?" His voice was soft, the same gentle tone he used years ago after combat training when he comforted her. For an instant, her heart faltered.

But then the memory of how she'd been injured returned—the reason behind it—and the illusion shattered.

Whatever tenderness he gave her now was nothing compared to what he lavished on Irene.

When he finished dressing her wounds, Julius began buttoning her clean pajama top, one button at a time.

"Since you got hurt, Irene hasn't been eating well. She even threw up earlier and had to be taken to the hospital. The doctor said..."

He lowered his head.

"She's pregnant."

The words sliced through the air like a blade.

"You've been pregnant before," he continued, his tone almost coaxing. "You know what foods won't make her sick. Anastasia, if you take care of her for the next three months, I'll forget about you kicking her and the dog."

His voice was calm, almost tender. But to Anastasia, it struck like thunder—loud, violent, deafening.

"She scattered my child's ashes to the wind," she hissed, trembling, "and you want me to forgive her—to take care of her baby?"

Her fury ignited. She slapped his hand away, glaring at him with bloodshot eyes.

"Keep dreaming!"

Julius's expression darkened instantly. The softness vanished, leaving only shadow and threat.

"This isn't a request," he said coldly. "It's an order."

He wiped the remaining ointment from his hands with a handkerchief, tossing it carelessly onto the floor.

"It's just one meal," he added flatly. "Your brother is still in the hospital. Or would you rather see his ashes next?"

His gaze swept over Anastasia with arrogant indifference. Then he lifted his foot and strode toward the door.

"I want to see the dishes on the table in half an hour. Your brother's life depends on it."

The metallic taste of blood filled Anastasia's mouth, and a chill spread through her limbs.

Eight years together—no one knew each other better than they did. Julius knew exactly where her weaknesses lay, and he never made empty threats—and she knew he was capable of anything.

He truly was using her brother's life as leverage.

Anastasia's heart ached, but she didn't have the luxury to hesitate. She forced herself to move, hurriedly pulled on her clothes, and stumbled downstairs into the kitchen.

The iron pot was heavy. Each time Anastasia lifted it, the wound on her back tore open a little more, sending sharp waves of pain through her body. Cold sweats drenched her forehead, but she gritted her teeth and refused to make a sound. By the time she placed the dishes on the dining table, only minutes remained before the half-hour deadline.

Irene sat at the dining table, her lips pursed in a petulant pout. With a light push, she shoved the soup bowl away.

"I'm not hungry," she said, curling her lip. "Unless you feed me."

Julius gave her a helpless, affectionate smile. He blew gently on a spoonful of soup and brought it to Irene's lips with infinite care.

Steam blurred Anastasia's vision. Her tears slipped silently into the soup bowl.

That tenderness—she once had it, too. When she was pregnant. Before everything was taken from her.

Irene barely swallowed a sip before retching it back out. Her expression soured as she glared at Anastasia.

"This tastes disgusting. Are you mocking me? Even my dog wouldn't eat it!"

She sneered and dumped the soup onto the floor.

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, she smiled—a cruel, childish smile.

"I guess your baby probably died because even it couldn't stand your cooking. It'd rather rot in your womb than taste this garbage, right?"

Julius, who knew full well how their child had really died, didn't scold her. He only smiled, tenderly wiping the soup from Irene's lips.

"If you don't like it, she'll make something else. Don't starve our baby."

The string of reasons in Anastasia's mind finally snapped.

The spoon slipped from her hand into the bowl—and in the next second, the scalding soup splashed over Irene's head.

The shrill scrape of a chair against the floor was followed by a sharp crack—

Slap!

Anastasia's palm burned as she snarled through her teeth, "You said even a dog wouldn't eat it, didn't you? Fine. I'll feed you myself. Tell me—does it taste good now?"