The first year after they finally bring me home, the impostor suggests a trip to Golden Island so we can build some brotherly rapport. For safety, my fiancee comes with us.

They rack up a massive gambling debt at Golden Island's casino. To get themselves out of trouble, she leaves me behind as a hostage and disappears with him.

The casino thugs pin me down, ready to take out their anger on me. I struggle to break free, and that is when I notice the leader's phone lighting up with a number for the island owner.

Isn't that the number of the adoptive sister who has adored me for more than a decade?

"Where's that little punk? Bring her back to me!"

I hid in the room, shaking. The door was already locked, but people were kicking it. Each blow rattled the whole frame.

A week ago, I never would've guessed that Golden Island, the resort my fiancee, Sabrina Stone, brought me to, had an underground casino.

She and Charlie Jones had been going wild in the casino day and night. I ended up being the one paying for it.

The door burst open with a heavy crack. Several burly men in black rushed in at once.

I grabbed a desk lamp and held it in front of me like a shield. My hands were trembling. "Stay back! Sabrina went to get the money. She'll pay off the debt soon!"

The leader of the men in black, Jasper Lane, spat on the floor with open contempt. "Don't feed me that trash. I fell for your stunt last night. I thought holding you here would force them to bring the cash. However, that wench took off with her boyfriend!"

"What did you say? They ditched me and ran?"

"Drop the act! You all planned this to screw with me!"

Cold sweat ran down my forehead. The wench Jasper mentioned was my fiancee, and the man who escaped with her was Charlie, the impostor who lived as me for ten years.

Did they conspire to ditch me on this island?

"Boss, don't waste your breath on him. We need to teach this bastard a lesson," Jasper's subordinate said.

Jasper flicked his hand, and three or four burly men surrounded me.

One of them knocked the lamp out of my grip with barely any effort. Another slammed me down across the table.

"Don't touch me! Get off!" I struggled and accidentally kicked someone in the shin. A slap came at me right after.

Half my face swelled instantly. I could taste blood.

These men were brutal. Unless I came up with an idea quickly, I would surely die here.

Jasper walked up with a whip in his hand and tapped the end of it against my cheek. "Hold still. I'll show you what happens to people who don't pay their debts!"

"Sir, please let me go! I have money. I'll pay everything back!" I pleaded.

"Do you expect me to believe your crap? If you had money, why would they leave you behind?"

My mind raced for a plan. By chance, my eyes landed on his phone screen. In his contacts was someone listed as the owner of the island.

The moment I saw the number, my eyes widened.

I knew that contact number by heart. It was Helena Cook's number!

Helena was the biological daughter of my adoptive parents. Before the Jones family came to reclaim me, she had cherished me for over a decade, treating me as if I were her whole world.

Without my knowledge, she had covered her bedroom walls with my photos, her affection hidden but constant.

"Is your employer Helena Cook?" I asked.

"Not bad. This entire casino is our boss' private property. Hardly anyone knows that."

A surge of hope steadied me, and I shouted, "Helena is my foster sister! We're on the same side! Let me go now. I can explain everything to her!"

Jasper and his men exchanged a look, their faces twisting into mocking, unreadable smiles. Then, he kicked me hard.

"You, a worthless abandoned brat, actually dare to pretend to be Mr. Jones? Pathetic! You're really pushing your luck.

"Mr. Jones is untouchable. Do you know what happened to the last fool who claimed a connection to Mr. Jones? Saying it out loud would scare you to death!

"Hey, grab my stick. I'm going to help Ms. Cook teach this brazen pretty boy a lesson!"

Dizzy from the blow, I gritted my teeth and tried to reason with him. "I'm actually Mr. Jones! If you don't believe me, you can call Helena to verify!"

Just then, Jasper's phone rang. It was a call from Helena.

I fought free and lunged for his phone. "Give me the phone! Let me talk to Helena! She'll recognize my voice!"

Jasper slapped me across the face, his glare sharp as a knife, and he pointed at me, ordering me to be silent.

His men then held me down again. Jasper gave them a look, then took the call with exaggerated respect, stepping outside.

"Yes, Ms. Cook? I was just dealing with a brat who owes gambling debts. Do you have any commands?"

I opened my mouth to yell, but only a faint sound escaped before a rag was shoved into it.

"Shut up, will you?"

Someone pushed me to the ground. Others closed in, raining punches and kicks on me. My body curled up, pain nearly driving me into unconsciousness.

My mouth was stuffed, and I couldn't even scream.

Helena had doted on me since I was little. Even a small scratch on my hand would worry her for days. She had raised me to be bold and headstrong, and even after being brought back to the Jones family, my boldness had never let me suffer.

I wondered how she would react if she saw me in this state.

Just as the world blurred and I felt myself about to black out, Jasper returned, phone in hand, his face tense.

"Stop! Stop it now!"

The blows finally stopped raining down on me.

"Boss, what is it?" one of the men asked.

Jasper shot me a contemptuous look. "Quit wasting time on this pretty boy. Ms. Cook says Mr. Jones is missing. His last known location was our casino. Round up everyone and start searching."

My head was spinning from the beating, and his words stunned me.

So, Helena had still been checking on my whereabouts after I left, and she'd noticed I'd gone missing?

I pushed myself up on shaking arms. A muffled sound slipped out of my mouth.

One of the thugs kicked me. "Shut up!"

"Boss, what do we do with him?" someone asked.

Jasper's expression tightened as if he were weighing something. "Ms. Cook is already on the plane. She's coming here herself to find Mr. Jones. And this brat just claimed he was Mr. Jones, so…"

A spark of hope shot through me. Yes! Helena was coming! She would save me and put these idiots in their place.

However, Jasper continued in a different tone, "No way Ms. Cook can see him. She's already anxious about losing track of Mr. Jones. If this crazy pretty boy appears claiming he's Mr. Jones and Ms. Cook takes it the wrong way, we're done for."

"Boss, you're right. So, should we throw him out?"

Jasper grabbed my chin and tilted my face from side to side. With a click of his tongue, he said, "Not bad-looking. Lock him in the isolation room. Once Ms. Cook finds Mr. Jones and leaves, we'll break him in and make him work off the debt as a debt runner for the casino."

I shook my head hard. If they kept me here, I would never get off this island again!

No one cared what I thought, and two of the thugs dragged me off toward the isolation room.

No! Helena was almost here. I had to find a way to reach her. This was my last chance. Once they shut me in, I was done for.

When they tossed me into the isolation room and reached for the lock, I staggered to my feet and threw myself into the door before it could close.

I then grabbed a steel pipe off the floor and swung it at one man's head. He dropped instantly, clutching his skull in agony.

Before the other one could subdue me, I struck her across the face with the pipe as hard as I could.

Once both of them were down, adrenaline surged through me. I bolted forward with everything I had.

Suddenly, a helicopter roared overhead.

It was Helena. She had arrived!