Slowly, as I regained my consciousness in that basement, I could feel my lower abdomen still throbbing with pain. At that moment, Anne’s shrill, sharp laugh stabbed into my ear like a knife.

"Are you finally awake, Nova? I'm sorry for keeping you sleep for so long. Anne's fine now. Just apologize to her and I'll pretend this never happened.” Lucas, seated in the corner, spoke up.

I stared in confusion, then snapped back to reality.

Anne stood before me, looking radiant and refreshed. In her hand, she clutched my phone.

"Wow, you're a very thrifty woman, Nova. You are even interested in one-dollar and fifty-cent items. No wonder Lucas bought your uterus for a dollar and fifty cents."

Suddenly, my phone rang. It was the hospital staff informing me that my father had passed away.

I glared at Anne's frivolous eyes as rage made my voice shake, "Why did my father lose his life while you stand here unscathed! Heaven will never forgive you.”

My expression turned grave as I stared intently at her, but I did not expect that it would provoke her.

She slapped me hard across the face and instantly, I was bruised and swollen. Then she casually ordered her assistant behind her to beat me. I clutched my stomach and wept uncontrollably.

All her innocence's act had gone when she yanked my hair viciously and was ready to strike me again. "Lucas has already bought your womb. Stop pretending to be in pain—his heart belongs only to me.”

Tears welled in my eyes as I watched Lucas, sitting silent in the corner. I prayed he would intervene, but his silence clearly sanctioned her actions.

After a tense standoff, he finally said, "Anne, don't be so impulsive. You'll only hurt your hand.”

His comment made my whole body tremble and my heart twisted in agony as hope left my heart.

Late at night, I sat alone on the basement window sill, unable to sleep. While clutching my stomach, I buried my face and wept.

As I gazed at the bright moonlight, I recalled the moment Lucas and I first met.

We were campus sweethearts. Our first meeting happened before the flower wall on campus. His clean, neatly pressed shirt caught my eye. I was wearing a white dress my mother had made for me and my classmates jokingly said we're wearing a couple's outfit.

Instantly, we both blushed and Lucas couldn't hide his delight the moment he saw me. Gradually, we grew closer.

On the first snowfall after graduation, he knelt before me at my doorstep and confessed his love. "Nova, will you be mine? I want to protect you forever."

The moonlight was bright that night and his eyes were brimming with tenderness. I shyly nodded my head.

The moonlight remained unchanged, yet beneath it, everything had shifted beyond recognition.

I stared at the photo of Lucas and me on my phone screen. It was taken when he promised to marry me. However, the one dollar and fifty cents transfer on the screen stabbed my heart like a blade.

Compared to his wealthy family, mine was nothing. After we started dating, I never bought expensive gifts, knowing every little thing counts. Back then, Lucas never stopped praising my virtue and kindness, yet now he mocked me with his words.

Suddenly, my phone rang. It was my brother.

He was adopted by our parents years ago. After coming of age, he went abroad to build his life and we never saw each other again.

“I know about Father's situation. Nova, rest assured, I will stand by your side. I'll handle Father's funeral arrangements. How have you been lately?”

His concern instantly brought tears to my eyes. Fighting back the sobs, I simply replied, “Don't worry about me.”

It seemed my brother heard the unspoken truth in my voice because he asked, "Nova, like I had said before … whenever you need me, you can always come to me.”

I didn’t answer him, but nodded silently.

The funeral was set for three days later. I tried to escape the basement many times but failed every time. Unexpectedly, I was released the next morning.

Pale-faced, I squinted at the sun outside and instinctively curled up.

But the sight that greeted me was the drowsy Anne, who was wearing my treasure pajamas. She was leaning against Lucas's embrace, with the bite mark on the back of her neck, as a testament of their intimacy.

"Anne just woke up and wants breakfast. The house also needs cleaning and her things must be tidied properly. Thank you for your hard work, Nova.” With that, he prepared to take her back to her room.

“Yes, Sir,” my voice remained calm, even though I was treated like a servant.

To maintain superficial peace, I had no choice but to comply. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Anne's lazy expression on the sofa and I gritted my teeth in hatred.

Then by accident, I shattered an exquisite glass cup and the sound brought the two of them over.

“That was my favorite cup! How are you going to pay me back?” Anne’s shrill voice pierced the room and her fake sobs filled the air.

Lucas furrowed his brows and soothed her patiently, "She is probably just careless. She was just trying to cook for you …."

“So what! Lucas, you won't stand up for me and why do you still care about her?” Anne's eyes quickly filled with tears and she looked upset.

Lucas had no other choice but to comply. As punishment, Anne threw all my stuff into the basement and made me live there.

I stood frozen there, gritting my teeth and looked at him with fury. But he only looked at Anne lovingly. "Fine, you can do whatever you want. Are you satisfied now?"

He even had his assistant toss all my belongings into the basement. Seeing me frozen in place, he pulled me aside. “You know her temper. Anne's my only sister. We should give her some slack.”

"Don't worry, Nova. I'll promise to hold a wedding for you. After all, you're the only one in my heart."

After saying that, Anne tugged him away. The two of them sat at the dining table, feasting on the fruit of my labor.

I went alone to the bathroom to tend to the cuts from the broken glass. Blood flowed everywhere, but neither of them realized it.

As tears fell onto the pool of blood, my heart was still as the ripples it made. Once my father was buried, I planned to leave this place of sorrow.

On the day of the funeral, I arrived early. The funeral home was filled with sunflowers, my father's favorite flowers.

As I stared at my father's ashes, I broke down. All the pent-up frustration and pain in my heart poured out. I could not accept the fact that I had lost both of my parents and it was all because of Lucas.

When we were preparing to get engaged, my father thought I was still too young and only my mother gave her blessing.

She worked herself tirelessly to prepare for the wedding, while Lucas shirked every responsibility, leaving me and my mother to handle everything.

Then his career was booming. After rumors of his impending engagement spread, I faced relentless public and private criticism and abuse. I was even stalked and threatened. But he did not care. He only told me not to take it seriously.

And yet the real irony was that when Anne was abroad and threw a tantrum because her classmate gossiped about her rude act, his concern for her made him so moved that he shed tears for her.

When our wedding invitations were sent out, as the final stage of our engagement, Lucas suddenly went abroad alone. At that time, I assumed it was for work.

My mother, concerned about how hard he worked, insisted on seeing him off at the airport. "Lucas, you’ve worked so hard. Don’t worry about things at home. Just leave it to us."

Unexpectedly, after sending him off, my mother and I had a car accident and were kidnapped by a rival family.

Recognizing Lucas's license plate, the assailants rammed into us with the intent to kill him. They never imagined that it was my mother who was driving.

She was knocked unconscious on impact and rushed to the emergency room. Though I was seated in the backseat, I was also severely injured. After my mother stayed in the ICU for days and nights for intensive treatment, I called Lucas, but he never answered.

The only time the call was picked up was when Anne answered it by accident. When I heard the sweet female voice on the other end, my heart ached so deeply I could barely breathe.

I hung up the phone in tears. As I stared at my mother in her hospital bed, a sense of helplessness consumed me. When Lucas returned to the country, he brought his personal assistant.

The moment he learned that my mother's misery had been because of him, he was overcome with grief and promised to take good care of her. And for several days, he stayed by her bedside every day. He even proposed to postpone the wedding until she recovered.

My father, who had initially opposed the marriage, nodded in agreement.

But the happy time never lasts. The next time I saw my mother, she had already passed away. The doctor said her condition had deteriorated. Hearing this was like a bolt of blue for me. My legs gave way and I passed out.

Staring at the familiar urn before me, the grief was too hard to bear. Consumed by it, I did not notice my brother's arrival.

“You look pale and have lost so much weight,” my brother said gently, his voice as soothing as a spring breeze.

After all these years, he was not the frail boy I remembered, but a dependable adult. Even though we weren't biological siblings, he was so good to me and was the only family I had left.

My brother wiped away my tears before stepping outside to greet the guests. To my shock, Lucas arrived with Anne, their hands clasped tightly, as if they were husband and wife.

When Anne stepped forward to burn a candle for my father, I immediately stepped forward and confronted her, "Who invited you here? Who gave you permission to burn candles?"

My eyes blazed with fury. This was so ironic—a murderer paying respects at the funeral of her victim. Yet she never showed any fear.

With utter disgust, I knocked the candles she had lit to the ground, scattering the ashes. I watched clearly as the ashes drifted through the air, yet she deliberately leaned in and managed to ‘burn’ herself.

While holding her scorched arm, she shrieked loudly before throwing herself into Lucas's embrace.

"Lucas, it hurt so much," she whimpered softly while cradling her arm.

Seeing the faint red mark on her forearm, Lucas's eyes filled with pity and he said angrily to me, "What's wrong with her wanting to light a candle? Why do you have to hurt her?"

Anne turned her tear-filled eyes toward me, sobbing, “It's all my fault. If I hadn't come to your wedding, none of this would have happened. I just wanted to give you the wedding gift I made with my own hands...”

She pulled out an embroidery piece that she had made. Her fingers were filled with prick marks. "Nova, please accept this. Don’t be mad anymore. Lucas had already punished me and I've learned my lesson."

Her performance was flawless and she was able to move everyone, including Lucas.

But I knew it was only an act.