Emma closed her eyes, heartbroken and ready for the worst with Lucas, when James spoke up again. “Lucas, shouldn’t you take out the magnet under your table?”

As soon as he finished, two bodyguards stepped forward and grabbed Lucas.

James pulled a magnet from under the table and threw it down. “Cheating on my property and hitting on my woman? Do you want to die?”

Lucas turned pale. “Mr. Nicholas, this is just a misunderstanding!”

James ignored him and had him tossed out like trash. He then stood up, took off his coat and wrapped it around Emma.

“Scared? Let’s go home.”

In the car, James handed Emma a jewelry box containing her mother’s necklace. It had been repaired with gold and jade, looking even more beautiful than before.

“Emma, I would never really put you in danger,” he said, his eyes unreadable in the dark. “I just wanted you to know I’m always in control.”

He reached out to touch her face. Emma pulled away, clenching her fists.

He was in control?

To her, that just meant he enjoyed watching her suffer before "saving" her at the last second.

He knew exactly how much she hated being tossed between hope and despair in an instant. Yet, just to protect Charlotte or teach Emma a lesson, he put her through that nightmare anyway.

She stayed silent, clutching her necklace tightly. She thought it was over, but a few days later, James came to her again.

“Has Charlotte contacted you lately?” Emma was confused. “She called, but I didn’t pick up.”

James sighed, sounding both annoyed and protective. “I know you don’t like her, but she’s sensitive and easily scared. Tell me where she is, for my sake, okay?”

Emma’s heart sank.

“You think I kidnapped her?” James smiled at her like she was a pouting child. “I’m not doubting you, but she’s missing and you were the last person she called.”

He picked up the room phone and dialed a number. “Officer Matthew, my wife might know something about a friend’s disappearance. Please come and investigate.”

Emma felt a chill run through her as she looked at his calm eyes. “You called the police on me?”

James patted her hair. “It’s just a routine talk, don’t be afraid.”

The police arrived quickly and handcuffed Emma.

Before she was taken away, James gently draped a coat over her. “Just answer a few questions. I’ll come get you soon.”

As she was being led to the police car, James’s phone rang. He answered immediately, his voice full of concern. “Charlotte? Where are you? Stay calm, I’m coming.”

Emma leaned out of the car window. “James, I told you I didn’t do it!”

But James had already run off. He was in such a hurry to find Charlotte that he forgot Emma was being driven away in a police car.

Emma turned to the officer. “Officer, they found her. Can I go now?”

Officer Matthew looked at her sadly. “Mrs. Nicholas, we still have to follow the rules.”

Emma was locked in a dark cell. The cold and the small space triggered her claustrophobia, causing her to lose touch with reality. She hallucinated about the early days of their marriage, when James was kind and held her until she fell asleep.

Then the visions turned dark, showing James with Charlotte and then Michael lying in a pool of blood.

By morning, Emma’s fingernails were broken and bleeding. The walls were covered in scratches from her night of pure terror.

Officer Matthew felt sorry for her. “Mrs. Nicholas, why don’t you call your husband to bail you out? He loves you; he wouldn't want you here.” But even after ninety-nine calls, James never picked up.

Officer Matthew looked at her with pity and confusion. Emma stayed in the cell for three more days.

Three days later, James finally came for her.

Seeing her looking so weak, he frowned and wrapped his coat around her. "What happened to you?" he asked.

He held her mangled, bleeding fingers with a tender look. "I’m so sorry you suffered. I was busy with urgent business in Norvanya and only saw the news today."

In the past, this kindness would have worked, but Emma just pulled her hand away.

"Let’s go," she said. Her heart felt more numb than her fingertips.

On the way home, James tried to comfort her. He told the driver to go slowly and offered her a thermos of her favorite tea.

The warmth of the tea vanished the moment she entered the villa. Charlotte was there, dressed in a maid’s outfit, kneeling on the floor.

Emma froze. "Is the 'cleaning lady' act not enough? Does she really need a costume too?"

James pulled Emma close and explained softly, "She feels bad that you were arrested because of her. She wants to work as a maid to make it up to you. If you don’t want her here, I’ll send her away tomorrow."

Emma was exhausted by his constant excuses. She pulled away and went upstairs.

That afternoon, Charlotte brought in tea. As she set down the tray, she "accidentally" knocked over a photo frame, shattering the glass.

Emma’s heart stopped. It was the only photo she had of her, James and Michael together. It was ruined.

Charlotte cried out and reached for it.

"Don't touch it!" Emma screamed. She knelt down, her heart breaking as she traced Michael’s smiling face in the photo.

Emma stood up and slapped Charlotte hard. James heard the noise and came running. Seeing the mess and the mark on Charlotte’s face, he pulled Emma into his arms to "calm" her.

"Don't be angry, Emma. It was my fault for leaving it there. I have the film; I’ll have it fixed tomorrow, okay?"

Emma leaned against him, but she felt nothing.

That night, Charlotte sent her a message: [Mrs. Nicholas, James has been in my room comforting me. He even applied my medicine himself.]

She attached a photo of James kneeling to tend to Charlotte's face.

Emma remembered that James—always so proud—had only ever knelt for her when he proposed.

Now, he was doing it for Charlotte. Emma replied coldly: [Does a maid even deserve a phone? James is too soft on you.]

Then she blocked her.

The next day, James took Emma to a private auction to make up for the drama. He spent a fortune bidding on jewelry for her without a second thought.

"Our final item is from Mrs. Nicholas!" the announcer shouted.

The curtain rose to show a tank full of piranhas with a cage hanging over it. Inside the cage was Charlotte, wearing a thin white dress.

"Mrs. Nicholas has ordered that if no one buys this 'item' before the timer ends, the cage opens," the announcer said.

James went stiff. He looked at Emma with deep disappointment. "Emma, stop this. Even if you hate her, this is going too far."

Emma felt like ice. The trick was so obvious, yet James immediately blamed her.

"Do you really think I'm that evil? Fine. Watch what happens to your lover then!"

James didn't hesitate. He bid $2.9 million immediately.

As soon as he won, he ran onto the stage to save Charlotte, leaving Emma behind. Emma sat alone as people whispered about her.

Then, two men in black approached. "Mrs. Nicholas, our rule is 'one for one.' Since that girl is gone, you will be the next item for auction."

Before she could say another word, the two men grabbed Emma and dragged her onto the stage.

“Let me go!” she fought back, but she couldn't get away.

While the crowd watched, she was thrown into the fish tank. The freezing water went over her head and immediately, she felt the sharp pain of her skin being ripped apart. Piranhas tore at her body, turning the water red with blood.

As she started to pass out, she heard the announcer’s cold voice. “Mr. Nicholas says his wife needs a lesson she won't forget. She needs to learn who is untouchable.”

James ordered this?

Emma felt sick.

He was torturing her like this just because of Charlotte’s lies. She didn't know how much time passed before they pulled her out and tossed her on the floor like a rag doll.

She woke up in the hospital covered in bandages and bruises. The doctor frowned at her.

"You’re pregnant and you weren't careful. You've been badly hurt. Where is your husband? Did you know you had a miscarriage?"

Emma went numb. She hadn't even known she was pregnant.

After losing Michael, her only wish was to have another child, but now that life was gone before she could even feel happy.

She stared at the ceiling, too shocked to cry.

That afternoon, a nurse changing her bandages started gossiping. "The woman in the VIP room next door is so lucky. She was just a bit scared and Mr. Nicholas hasn't left her side."

“He even brings her water and medicine personally. Not like this one…” the other nurse said, looking at Emma with pity.

Emma closed her eyes and smiled bitterly at how pathetic her life had become.

That night, James finally showed up. Seeing her pale and bandaged, he looked shaken.

"Emma, Charlotte said you just fell. I didn't know it was this bad... Don't worry, we can have more kids later."

Emma didn't even look at him. He still had no idea she had been thrown to the piranhas; he actually believed Charlotte’s story that she had just "fallen."

"In the future?" she thought.

There would be no future for them.

The next day, Charlotte walked into Emma’s room. She was wearing James’s coat and looked perfectly healthy.

“How sad, Mrs. Nicholas,” she sneered. “I heard you lost the baby. I’m so sorry—James was too busy taking care of me all day to visit you until now.”

Emma ignored her, so Charlotte leaned in and whispered, "By the way, Michael didn't die because he was sick."

Emma’s eyes snapped open. "What did you say?"

"The day he had that seizure, I told James I was in a bad mood and wanted to go to the beach. He went with me immediately and forgot your kid was dying in the hospital. The doctor even called him on video—the boy was turning blue. Too bad, right?"

Emma finally snapped. She had always thought it was a lack of medical help, but James had actually let their son die for Charlotte.

She lunged out of bed, grabbed Charlotte’s hair and slammed her head against the wall. Charlotte screamed, her forehead bleeding.

James rushed in and saw the mess. “Stop!”

He pushed Emma away to protect Charlotte.

“Emma, have you gone crazy?”

Emma lay on the floor, gasping for air. "James, you killed Michael!"

James was stunned for a second, then yelled, "That's a lie! Michael was terminal. You've lost your mind. Guards, take her home and lock her in. Don't let her out until I say so!"

James carried Charlotte away without looking back.

Emma curled up in her room, her heart completely broken.

Just then, her lawyer messaged her: [Your divorce has been approved by the court.]

Emma’s eyes lit up. She could finally leave and make them both pay.

She grabbed her documents and Michael’s things, then jumped out of the second-story window.

She got into a taxi, snapped her SIM card in half and pressed a detonator.

A huge explosion shook the sky. Emma looked back to see the luxury villa turning into a pile of rubble and flames. She turned away and drove into the night, never looking back.