Brionne let out a scream that didn’t even sound human.

In her mind, Serena had always been someone who just took whatever was thrown at her. No matter how much Brionne provoked her behind the scenes, Serena never fought back.

But now, was she insane?

Even Wilmer hadn’t expected her to actually pull the trigger.

His sharp features tightened instantly. The next second, he snatched the gun from her hand and, without hesitation, fired straight at her. Her thigh. Her abdomen. Her chest.

One bang after the other startled everyone.

Even though the shooting range only used blanks, the force at that distance was no joke, especially with how close he was when he fired.

The impact sent Serena flying to the ground. She coughed up a mouthful of blood.

It felt like her insides had shattered, pain spreading wildly through her body.

She clenched her teeth, forcing down the groan rising in her throat, her reddened eyes locked on Wilmer.

Before, if she so much as bumped into something, he’d panic.

Now? She shot his new girl once, he returned it with three shots!

Serena laughed. But her eyes went dull, piece by piece, like something burning down to ash.

As darkness crept in, she remembered what her dad had said back when she left her family for Wilmer.

“The least reliable thing in this world… is love.”

“If his love for you lasts ten years, I might consider accepting him.”

“Otherwise, get out with him.”

Back then, she’d said she’d prove it. She’d prove that Wilmer was a man worth spending her life with.

And now, they had stopped exactly at year ten.

So this is all a wholehearted love was worth: a ten-year expiration date.

When she woke up, the first thing she smelled was disinfectant in the hospital.

“You’re awake.”

She turned her head and met Wilmer’s eyes.

He spoke without emotion. “This was just a warning. If you ever touch Brionne again, next time, the gun won’t be loaded with blanks.”

The way he stood there, it didn’t feel like he was checking on her. It felt like he’d stayed just to deliver that line.

Serena said nothing.

At this point, she felt like there was nothing left to say between them anyway.

Wilmer didn’t bother staying another second. He turned and walked out.

But at the door, he paused and looked back.

“Stop trying to use cheap tricks to trigger my memory,” he said coldly. “It won’t work on me.”

A faint, mocking smile tugged at Serena’s lips.

So even now, he still thought she was doing all this just to get him back.

He really didn’t believe she was done with him.

For the next week, she stayed in the hospital recovering.

Wilmer never came back.

And she didn’t care.

A week later, after she was discharged, she made a few calls.

After ten years in Harbor City, she had a few close friends here.

Since she might never come back again, she invited them out for dinner that night for a farewell.

They met at a private restaurant.

By the time Serena arrived, everyone else was already there.

The moment they saw her, their eyes turned red.

One of them stepped forward and hugged her. “You’re really leaving?”

Serena smiled and nodded.

“That’s good,” her friend said, patting her shoulder. “You should’ve started over a long time ago.”

Serena let out a soft “mm” and hugged her back.

Halfway through dinner, Serena went to the restroom.

On her way back, she suddenly stopped. Then quietly stepped behind a potted plant, hiding herself.

Not far away, in the small garden, Brionne was talking to a man with a scar across his face.

“Ma’am,” the man said, “the boss wants you to move faster. Once you get your hands on Wilmer’s core business secrets, it’ll be easy to take down his empire.”

Brionne sounded annoyed. “What’s the rush? Yeah, Wilmer loves me, but he’s not stupid enough to let me near his company’s core operations. If I want this to work, I have to take it slow. Besides, Serena’s still in the way.”

The man nodded. “If necessary, we can get rid of her. Wouldn’t be a waste of the effort we put in. Setting Wilmer up back then, then having you ‘save’ him so you could get close.”

Brionne hummed in agreement.

Just two meters away, hidden behind the plant, Serena felt like a storm had exploded in her chest.

All this time, she’d thought Brionne was just a spoiled, brainless pretty girl, good at acting cute, nothing more.

Even Wilmer had once said that himself to his buddies. That Brionne was the complete opposite of Serena, not cunning. That’s why she felt “exciting.” That’s why he couldn’t let her go.

But right now, there wasn’t a trace of that “brainless girl” left. Her eyes were cold and calculating.

Serena knew. She had completely misjudged Brionne.

But she wasn’t the only one.

If Wilmer found out his precious new love had been playing him from the start, what kind of reaction would he have?

Serena saved the recording she’d just secretly taken, then quietly slipped away from the garden.

After saying goodbye to her friends, she got into her car. For a moment, she hesitated. Should she tell Wilmer the truth?

Not because she wanted to help him but because she wanted to see his face when he realized.

Just as she was thinking, a hand suddenly came from behind and clamped over her mouth and nose!

Serena caught a sharp, chemical smell. It was ether.

The next second, everything went black.

When she opened her eyes again, her hands were tied behind her back. She was on the ground, forehead pressed against the cold barrel of a gun.

Not far from her, Brionne was in the exact same situation.

And a few meters ahead, Wilmer stood there with his men, facing off against the kidnappers.

Serena froze for a split second, then quickly understood.

They’d been kidnapped.

And both she and Brionne were being used as bargaining chips.

“Sir,” the kidnapper leader said, “five hundred million, plus that shipment you’ve got. Get it to me fast, or both your women are gonna suffer.”

Across from them, Wilmer’s expression was tight.

Three minutes later, he took a laptop from one of his men and said coldly, “The money’s been transferred. Let them go.”

The kidnapper raised a hand. After confirming the funds, a smile crept onto his face.

“Money’s here. But I haven’t taken the goods yet.”

He paused, then added, almost mockingly polite:

“I’m not unreasonable though. Here’s the deal. Pick one woman. You can take her now.”

“As for the other, once I get the goods and make it out to sea, I’ll send her back.”

Serena’s breath hitched.

She looked at Wilmer.

And unexpectedly, he was already looking at her.

Their eyes met.

His lips moved slightly, like he was about to say something.

But just then, Brionne woke up.

“Wilmer, save me!” she cried.

Serena clearly saw it. That flash of pain in his eyes.

Then he spoke.

“I choose Serena.”

Serena lowered her gaze.

Right on cue, the kidnappers shoved Brionne forward.

In a moment like this, people always choose the one who matters most.

And once that choice is made, the one who matters most is the one the kidnappers won’t let go.

So if he wanted to save Brionne, of course, he had to choose Serena.

And yet, Serena felt nothing. No pain. No heartbreak.

So this was what it felt like… to finally let someone go.

Three days. That’s all it took.

“Don’t worry,” the kidnapper said, dragging her back step by step. “Once we’re safe, I’ll return your wife.”

The tension in the air was suffocating.

Then suddenly, Wilmer’s voice cut through it.

“Serena!”

She looked up.

For the first time, there was real anxiety in his eyes.

His fists clenched. He pressed his lips together.

“Don’t be scared,” he said. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

But the moment the words left his mouth, a gunshot rang out.

Everything shattered.

“Wilmer, you dared to shoot?!” the kidnapper roared.

Wilmer’s face changed instantly. “That wasn’t me!”

But no one was listening anymore.

The gunshot was like a fuse being lit.

Bullets started flying. Both sides opened fire. Chaos erupted.

Wilmer’s heart dropped straight to the bottom.

Panic fashed across his face.

If things escalated now, Serena was as good as dead.

“Whatever it takes,” he ordered harshly, “get her out!”

But the kidnappers had come prepared.

The fight turned brutal. Even Wilmer got injured.

“Sir, we need to fall back!” one of his men shouted. “If we keep going, we’re gonna lose too many people!”

But Wilmer had completely lost his usual calm.

He kept pushing forward anyway until one of his trusted men knocked him out from behind.

As darkness swallowed him, the last thing burned into his vision was Serena.

Standing there in the middle of gunfire.

Looking at him completely expressionless.

On the other side, once Wilmer’s people retreated, the kidnappers pulled back too.

They’d taken even heavier losses. Only seven of them were still standing.

The leader spat out a mouthful of blood.

“Fuck! Thought having her would keep him from making a move.”

“Didn’t expect that bastard to play me.”

“What do we do with her?” someone asked.

The leader stared at Serena, eyes dark.

“Kill her. Dump her in the ocean.”

Serena said nothing.

She lowered her eyes and quietly waited.

She had been through ten years with Wilmer and seen storms far worse than this.

She wasn’t afraid of dying.

It was just… kind of ironic.

After finally divorcing him, she was about to die because of him. Funny, in a way.

But the death she expected never came.

Serena opened her eyes, and realized that at some point, over a dozen camouflaged mercenaries had silently appeared inside the abandoned factory.

They moved fast and clean.

Before the kidnappers could even react, they were all taken out.

The leader of the mercenaries walked up to her.

“Ma’am,” he said politely, “we were sent by Sir Aidan to bring you back.”

Serena paused.

Aidan. Aidan Dickerson, her future arranged marriage partner.

After a moment, she nodded. “Thank you.”

She borrowed a phone, downloaded the recording she had saved in the cloud. The conversation between Brionne and the scar-faced man. And then, she sent it to Wilmer.

Then, without hesitation, she boarded the helicopter waiting for her.

And as it lifted into the sky, she didn’t look back. Not even once.