Shannon's POV

I clenched my teeth so hard my jaw ached.

"Max, you and that woman will get what’s coming to you sooner than you think."

The next day, I checked out of the hospital in a wheelchair because it was my daughter’s burial day.

The sky wept with a steady drizzle, as if mourning alongside me, sharing in my grief.

The cemetery was empty except for me.

I had just lowered my daughter’s urn into the earth when the same group who had ambushed me yesterday appeared again, charging straight toward me.

"You bitch!" one woman screamed. "What right do you have to bury your daughter here? Because you reported Max, there was no explosives expert to rescue my child when he was kidnapped. Now, my boy is dead, blown to pieces! I’ll kill you!"

They then shoved me to the ground, raining blows on me with fists and feet. My legs were still broken, so I couldn’t even stand to defend myself. But that wasn’t enough for them. Someone grabbed a nearby shovel and went for my daughter’s grave.

"You think you’re fit to be a wife or a mother? Your daughter was probably just as rotten as you! So we’ll dig up her ashes and scatter them. Let's see how you like that!"

"Yeah! Dump her ashes! Let’s give Max the justice he deserves!"

"If you made us suffer, we’ll make sure you suffer worse!"

I could only watch, helpless, as they pried open my daughter’s grave and pulled out her urn.

My eyes locked on it in horror. My voice tore from my throat. "No! Please, I’m begging you, don’t!"

But they only smirked at my desperation.

"Now you regret it? Too late!"

And with that, they dumped my daughter’s ashes into the rain, letting the water wash away every last trace of her.

"I’ll kill you," I spat, fists trembling so hard my nails dug into my palms. Then a metallic taste filled my mouth, and I coughed up blood. "I swear, you will all pay for what you’ve done."

At that moment, Max appeared, holding an umbrella and guiding Vania through the mud.

"Shannon," he said, looking down at me as though I were something beneath his shoe, "all I wanted was a simple apology. But you had to drag this out, make it a spectacle. Was it worth it?"

He then pulled out a new divorce agreement and crouched down. "Here’s the deal. Publicly admit you were hysterical and tried to frame me and Vania, leave with nothing, take full responsibility, and we end this here. I promise, it’s just a ‘fake’ divorce. You’ve caused such a scene. If we stay married, you’ll ruin my chances at a promotion, so sign this fake document, okay?"

I raised my head, meeting his smug, self-satisfied face, and spat blood right onto his clothes.

"Keep dreaming. Even if I die and become a ghost, I will never let you two off. I’ll kill you both."

Max’s smile vanished. His eyes went cold. "Then don’t blame me for what happens next."

Just then, the sound of engines rumbled through the rain. Dozens of military vehicles rolled up in formation.

A man in a full army uniform soon stepped out.

"I’d like to see who dares threaten a First-Class Merit recipient," he said, voice like steel.