###Chapter 7

I have lost my child forever.

Even as I lay in the hospital ward, the warm sunlight streaming in could not melt the ice around my heart.

At that moment, Cedric paced into the room. "The party the day after tomorrow will proceed as scheduled. After all, it represents the reputation of the Larkin Enterprise and many members of high society will be attending. You cannot be absent."

When I offered no response at all, he reached out to brush a strand of hair from my ear and added, "If you behave yourself, I will find a way to let you conceive another child."

I wanted to laugh. Did Cedric really think I was unaware of the schemes they were plotting?

I looked at him, but my eyes no longer held even a trace of lingering affection; instead, they were filled with deathly indifference.

For some reason, his heart tightened slightly. Just as he was about to say something comforting, the doctor called him out.

A moment later, the familiar sound of high heels entered the room. I closed my eyes and ignored Sandra's presence.

"Look at you, half-dead and barely alive. How pitiful," she mocked.

That woman leaned close to my ear, but no matter what tricks she played, I had decided not to respond. Still, her breath slid into my ear like the hiss of a poisonous snake.

"I think you'd be interested in knowing the truth about your parents' deaths back then," she whispered again.

My head began to throb. Hadn't my parents died in an accidental yacht explosion? Could it be?

The terrifying thought had barely surfaced when Sandra's voice continued in my ears. "Sigh, I didn't want those two old bastards dead either. If you want to blame someone, blame them for discovering that I wasn't their biological daughter."

"They even caught me partying with some guys at a bar and they actually told me to get lost, saying they'd bring you back!"

Sandra continued callously, "Those two old fools ... I called them 'Mom' and 'Dad' for over twenty years, yet they were so heartless. So, I had someone tamper with their yacht. I didn't expect it to actually work. What a pity, the only two old folks in this world who loved you are long gone."

Anger surged through my veins and I could no longer control my rage. I leapt from the bed and lunged at her, grabbing her neck tightly. "I'm going to kill you, you bitch! I will avenge my parents, avenge my child!"

At that moment, Cedric returned, holding a small, palm-sized box. Seeing me trying to strangle Sandra, he grabbed me by the collar and dragged me into the bathroom without a shred of mercy.

He scoffed, "You never change! I originally wanted to give you something to remember the child by, but now, there is no need."

With those words, he opened the box. My body shuddered violently as I saw it. That was a tiny life that had come out of my own body.

"No, don't do this! Cedric, I beg of you!"

I clung desperately to his legs, pleading in a frenzy. However, my husband did not even look at me. Instead, he turned toward the toilet and, with chilling indifference, flushed that small mass of flesh away.

In that instant, I coughed up blood. My parents, my child, I used to have them all, but now, they are all gone.

Seeing the pool of bright red blood on the floor, Cedric hesitated for a brief moment, shock flashing across his face.

"Macie." He stretched out a hand, seemingly about to pull me up from the floor of my despair.

"My neck hurts so much, I can't breathe!" Sandra cut in, clutching her neck before collapsing into Cedric's arms.

The sight of the vivid red marks on her neck instantly snapped him back to his senses. "Don't be afraid. I'll call a doctor to look at you," he comforted her.

Cedric's gaze turned cold again as he looked at me. Without hesitation, he withdrew his hand, protecting Sandra as they walked away.

Watching their retreating figures, I was no longer disappointed; only hatred filled my chest.

I staggered back to the bedside and dialed Frank's number. I told him everything that had happened, my voice dripping with blood and tears. "I want them to experience a hundred times the pain I have suffered! I want them to pay a price in blood!"

The man replied with absolute certainty, "I swear, I will make them pay back this debt of blood in full."

###Chapter 8

After hanging up the phone, I took a taxi home and quickly packed my luggage. As for the things Cedric gave me, I didn't want any of them.

Then, I waited quietly for the day of the party—the very moment of my departure.

I put on a black dress, which shocked the maid when she saw me. "Madam, today is your wedding anniversary party with Mr. Larkin. Isn't this dress a bit inappropriate?"

I just replied nonchalantly, "Should I wear extravagant clothes to 'mourn' my child when her first week of passing hasn't even ended?"

The maid's eyes instantly reddened. "Madam, please accept my condolences."

I handed her a USB drive and instructed, "Once the party begins, play this. It contains memories of Cedric and me being 'deeply in love.'"

"Yes, Madam, I will make sure it's done," she said, carefully tucking the drive away before heading out.

The back garden was dazzling with lights. Sandra, arm in arm with Cedric, dressed in matching silver outfits, greeted the guests with a beaming smile. It was as if she were the true hostess.

Seeing me dressed in all black, Cedric frowned and warned me impatiently, "Tonight is very important. If you want to keep your status as Mrs. Larkin, you'd better behave."

My seventy-year-old foster mother was also there. She scanned me with an arrogant gaze and remarked, "Still such a low-class thing, even after all these decades."

Before I could answer, Sandra offered a polite smile.

"Don't take it to heart," she said softly. "Macie just feels that I stole Cedric away after I came back. Ultimately, it's all my fault."

Her generosity only deepened his sympathy for her and Cedric's disgust toward me.

"You're the one who did something wrong," he said coldly, staring at me. "You can't blame anyone else."

Yes, I was wrong.

Wrong for being blind and foolish, for trusting false affection and for not handing over the empty title of "Mrs. Larkin" sooner.

I slightly twitched the corner of my mouth and walked silently to the corner.

Cedric stared at my retreating figure, suddenly realizing that I had lost a lot of weight in just a few days. The silhouette before him seemed to merge with the memory of the first time he had seen me, lonely as a ghost at the Lancasters' residence years ago, making his heart twitch inexplicably.

I sat alone in the corner, waiting for the party to officially begin and counting down until Frank's arrival.

Suddenly, a terrified scream from Sandra echoed from the pool area. "No! Who are you? Did my sister send you? Cedric, help!"

Cedric, who was greeting guests, spun around to see her being dragged away by two men. The dress over her chest had been torn to shreds, exposing a large area of skin.

The man's eyes widened in fury and he rushed over, punching the two men to the ground several times.

The bodyguards quickly secured the scene. Meanwhile, the two men collapsed to the ground, pointing at me in the corner. "It's Madam Macie. She paid us to ruin this lady at the party!"

I backed away, knowing something was wrong. This must be another of Sandra's schemes.

Cedric's gaze shot toward me as if he wanted to swallow me alive. "Seize her!"

Not long after, I was bound hand and foot by the bodyguards and thrown into the dark, damp warehouse.

The door opened again and Cedric appeared, protecting the tearful Sandra, followed by several burly men. When I saw those faces that had haunted my nightmares, my blood froze and I trembled uncontrollably.

Right then, my wicked sister secretly flashed a malicious smile.

I shook my head frantically with tears in my eyes. "Cedric, it wasn't me ... it really wasn't me! Please, don't do this!"

But the coldness in Cedric's eyes just deepened. "This is just giving you a taste of your own medicine."

After saying that, he stopped looking at me and led Sandra out the door.

In the darkness that isolated me from everything, those filthy laughs drew closer. "You're getting old, but I didn't expect you to still have such charm."

"Get away, you jerks!" I screamed.

Unfortunately, my arms were pinned down by hands like iron claws and my desperate struggles were in vain.

At that moment, a loud crash shattered the window glass. Several tall, swift figures burst through and subdued the men in an instant.

It was Frank! He had finally arrived.

That man strode over and pulled me, trembling like a leaf, to my feet. "Am I too late?"

My face was deathly pale and I collapsed into his arms, utterly exhausted. "No, you're just in time."

He took off his coat to wrap around me, a beastly fire burning in his eyes. "Don't worry, I will make them regret this for the rest of their lives."

As we left the warehouse, Frank placed a lit torch into my hand.

Without any hesitation, I raised my arm and threw it behind me. Flames instantly surged upward, devouring screams and the past.

"Let's go," I said softly, never turning back.

By the time Cedric discovered the warehouse was on fire, the woman he had deceived for half his life had already "died" in the blaze. And he would soon learn exactly what was rising from the ashes.