Two weeks later, I received a congratulatory package from the hospital.

I froze. I had just lost my child—why would the hospital be sending congratulations?

When I opened it, a family portrait slid out.

Louise stood proudly with a woman who looked strikingly like me, cradling two rosy-cheeked infants.

The four of them beamed with joy. A perfect, happy family.

At the bottom of the box lay a card: “Congratulations to Mr. Darren and Mrs. Lizzie on the safe arrival of their dragon-and-phoenix twins!”

Staring at the photo, my fingernails dug so deep into my palms they nearly broke the skin.

They killed my child—how dare they smile so happily?

That night, Louise came home earlier than usual, his face glowing with excitement. He pulled me onto the sofa and handed me an envelope.

Inside was an adoption agreement.

“Honey,” he began, voice soft, “I know you’ve been heartbroken every day since losing the baby. You don’t know how terrified I was when the doctor said you might not make it. If anything had happened to you, I couldn’t have gone on.”

“So… we won’t have our own. Let’s adopt instead.”

I glanced at the papers. Twins. Less than twenty days old.

My heart went cold. Just as I thought—he wanted me to adopt the children he’d had with his mistress.

He was dreaming.

Fury overtook me. I tore the agreement to shreds, sobbing until my throat burned.

“Our child was just taken from us—and you want me to raise someone else’s?” I screamed. “I refuse!”

Louise clearly hadn’t expected my reaction to be so fierce.

At first, he tried to soothe me. But when he realized I wouldn’t give in, his expression hardened.

“Whether you agree or not, this is happening.”

“I will never agree!” I shouted back, eyes blazing red.

Smack—

His palm cracked across my face. The first time he had ever struck me since we married.

Before I could recover, he dragged me down into the dark basement and locked the door.

“Reflect on your actions. I’ll release you once you come to your senses.”

I never imagined Louise would go this far—for Karen, for their children. He didn’t care about the Scott Family’s power. In his eyes, I was nothing more than a trapped bird, powerless to leave.

I remained in that basement for ten full days.

No matter how I cried, screamed, or begged, he refused to let me out. Only the servants came at noon, silently sliding in a tray of food.

Hunger clawed at me, fear gnawed at me and I began to wonder if I would die down there, alone and forgotten.

But one day, when the servant came, I seized my chance and escaped.

The moment I stumbled into the living room, the phone rang. It was my brother, Jimmy Scott.

“Sis, you must divorce Louise immediately,” he said, voice sharp with urgency.

“I just uncovered the truth. Mom and Dad’s car accident years ago—it was orchestrated by Louise and Karen. Back then, he sent her abroad to cover it up because he was terrified we’d find out.”

Shock rooted me to the floor. But before I could process it, I saw Louise charging at me, a club raised high.

Panicked, I screamed into the phone. “Jimmy, save me!”

The next instant, pain exploded in my skull and everything went black.

When I woke, I was back in the basement, chained by despair.

Tears streamed down my face as my brother’s words replayed in my mind.

My parents had loved me dearly. And yet I had been deceived into marrying the man who murdered them.

No. I couldn’t die here. I would make them pay—with blood.

I grabbed a stone and began prying at the iron bars. Bit by bit.

I didn’t stop, even as my hands split open and bled.

Days passed. Finally, the bars gave way.

When I stepped outside, I was met with the sight of a lavishly decorated house filled with guests.

I hurried up to one of them. “What’s happening?”

The guest beamed at me. “Mrs. Scott, isn’t this your twins’ full-moon banquet? How could you not know?”

He pointed toward the stage. “See? Mr. Darren and Mrs. Scott are holding the babies right there, toasting the guests.”

“Who are you?” I demanded.

Others began to gather, curious at the commotion.

On stage, Louise and Karen’s faces darkened, panic flashing in their eyes before Louise straightened his posture and barked coldly.

“You! Have you lost your mind? How dare you impersonate my wife, the heiress of Scott Group!”

“Security! Get this imposter out immediately!”

Three or four burly guards lunged toward me.

“I’m not—ugh—let go of me!”

A nod from Louise and a guard clamped a cloth over my mouth. My desperate struggles meant nothing.

But then—

“Who said my sister is an imposter?”

At that critical moment, my brother Jimmy appeared.

My brother kicked aside the security guards holding me and yanked the rag from my mouth.

The moment I saw his face, the dam inside me broke. I buried myself against his chest, sobbing uncontrollably.

He caught sight of the bloody wounds on my hands, his expression twisting in pain. He gently patted my back, his voice low and soothing.

“I came too late… I let you suffer.”

Then, without warning, he lunged forward and seized Louise by the collar.

“You swore on your life you’d protect her. How dare you treat her like this?” His voice thundered through the hall. “Do you think the Scott Family has no one left?”

Shock flickered across Louise’s face. Clearly, he had never expected my brother to return to US.

It made sense. Since he was five years old, Jimmy had been raised overseas by our grandparents. After our parents’ so-called accident, he’d avoided this place of sorrow even more, managing his affairs abroad instead.

We had stayed connected mostly by phone, oceans apart. If Louise hadn’t pushed things too far this time, Jimmy would never have dropped everything and come rushing back.

Jimmy turned toward the guests, his voice calm but firm.

“Distinguished guests, many of you know the Scott Family once had another son, Jimmy Scott, who resides overseas managing our international market. Some of you have even met me.”

“I testify here today, this wounded woman beside me is the true Scott Family heiress—Louise’s legal wife, Naomi Scott. The woman on stage is nothing but his mistress.”

A flash of viciousness crossed Louise’s face as he roared.

“Nonsense! My elder brother is perfectly fine overseas—why would he suddenly return? You’re just an actor this woman hired! The two of you are conspiring to steal the Scott Family fortune!”

He sneered, “Besides, do you really think I, Louise, wouldn’t recognize my own wife?”

Whispers rippled through the crowd.

“This man does look just like the late Mr. Scott. He doesn’t seem fake at all!”

“What good is looking alike? Didn’t the real and fake wives look alike too?”

“Besides, Mr. Darren and Mrs. Scott’s love was deep as the sea. A true love story! How could he possibly mistake his wife—or cheat on her?”

Hearing the murmurs, Louise’s smug smile returned.

Watching this, my stomach twisted with dread.

For years, Louise had hidden the truth so well, treating me with gentle devotion. To outsiders, we were the picture of a perfect couple.

No one would believe he was capable of such treachery. Not strangers, not even me—just a month ago.

Was my brother’s arrival not enough to save me?

My chest tightened with panic, but then my brother gave me a steady look, as if to say, Trust me.

He pulled out a jade token, carved with his name, the one he had carried since childhood.

“This thousand-year-old cold jade was crafted exclusively for the Scott Family. My sister and I have worn ours since birth. This alone proves who I am.”

But Louise and Karen didn’t flinch. Instead, they held up jade tokens of their own—engraved with my name.

“I have one too,” Karen declared boldly. “I am Naomi, the true heiress of the Scott Family.”

My breath caught. I never imagined Louise would steal my jade token while I was unconscious. He had planned this meticulously, determined to crown Karen as my replacement.

Watching her flaunt the heirloom my parents left me, rage burned through my veins.

That token was my only keepsake of them. I had to take it back.

When Karen turned her head, I seized the chance. I slipped behind the staircase and snatched the jade token straight from her hand.

“Louise, you shameless liar! This is mine!”

In the blink of an eye, a sharp scream split the air.

“Ahhh—!”

Karen tumbled down the staircase, clutching the child in her arms.

“My child! My baby, what happened?”

“Honey, she pushed me and the kids down the stairs!”

“Our daughter’s head—she’s bleeding... she’s barely breathing... ahhh!”

Louise rushed over, panic flashing in his eyes as he bent to check the children.

“Quick! Call a doctor!”

Then he turned on me, his hand striking across my face with all his strength.

The sharp crack echoed and my cheek burned, swelling instantly.

“You’d better pray my daughter is safe,” he snarled, eyes blazing. “Or I’ll make you pay with your life.”

The way he looked at me—like a predator about to devour its prey—froze my blood. This version of Louise felt utterly unfamiliar. Terrifying.

I stood in shock, unable to comprehend how things had spiraled this far.

“No... it wasn’t me...” My voice shook.

I had only taken the jade pendant. I hadn’t laid a single finger on her. Unless—unless Karen had done it deliberately. She had taken the child with her as she fell down the stairs, just to frame me.

If that were true, I was as good as dead.

The doctor arrived swiftly and began resuscitating the children.

“Mr. Darren,” he reported solemnly, “the boy has been revived. His life is no longer in danger, but he’s unconscious and must be rushed to the hospital immediately.”

“As for the girl... her injuries were too severe. She’s passed away.”

The words hit like a thunderclap.

“No!” Karen collapsed over her daughter’s body, howling in grief until she nearly fainted.

I stood rooted to the spot, my mind reeling.

How could this be? Had Karen truly sacrificed her own child—Louise’s biological daughter—just to trap me?

The price was too high. Unthinkable.

Before I could process it, she lunged at me, her nails digging into my throat.

“It was you! You venomous witch!” she shrieked. “Impersonating me wasn’t enough—you had to kill my daughter too!”

“Everyone, look at this vicious woman! Give me and my child justice!”

The crowd erupted in fury.

“Murderer! Heartless snake!”

“She wouldn’t even spare a newborn—may she rot in hell!”

“Film her! Expose her! Let the world see her true face!”

Phones were raised, flashlights glaring as they recorded me like a criminal.

“It wasn’t me,” I cried, desperate. “She fell on her own! I didn’t push her!”

But no one listened. They only believed what they wanted.

Then—splat.

A cake smashed against my forehead, sticky cream dripping down my face.

Pop—Champagne sprayed, soaking me from head to toe.

The hall filled with twisted laughter.

“Teach her a lesson!”

“Shameless vixen!”

My brother tried to push through to protect me, but the mob blocked his way.

I couldn’t let him get dragged into this. He had greater responsibilities than to be trapped here with me. Catching his eye, I gave him a look. He froze, then nodded grimly, slipping away with a heavy heart.

Meanwhile, I remained trapped in the center. Cake and cream plastered my hair to my face, my clothes drenched, clinging cold against my skin.

Flashbulbs went off endlessly, capturing me as if I weren’t a human being, but a monster on public trial.

In that moment, I became the rat everyone wanted to beat.

Louise shoved through the crowd and stopped in front of me.

Clinging to a sliver of hope, I whispered, “If I say I didn’t push her—that she rolled down herself—would you believe me?”

He didn’t answer. His boot crashed into my side instead.

I hit the ground hard, agony shooting through my abdomen as I spat blood.

“I really didn’t push her...” I forced the words out, teeth clenched.

For a flicker of a moment, doubt crossed his face. But rage swallowed it whole.

“My daughter died because of you. And you still dare to lie?”

He turned to the guards. “Drag her away. Make her kneel outside!”

Then, without another glance, he rushed off with Karen—who clung to her son, wailing dramatically for the cameras—as they headed for the hospital.

Before leaving, Karen jabbed her finger at me, eyes wild.

“I’ll never let you go! I’ll make you pay with your blood!”

A bitter laugh slipped from my lips.

“You know exactly how the child died.”

“The humiliation I suffer today—I’ll return to you a thousandfold.”