"Why should I?" I shot back.

I had lost my loved ones, and I was heartbroken. Why should I continue to let them bully me?

Carrie turned to Zackary and said, "See, she's guilty. Go inside and check if the bank card and valuable items are still there. If they're not, it must be Norma who took them."

Zackary gave me a look, signaling me to do as Carrie said.

It was ridiculous how a man could spoil a woman so shamelessly, without any sense of right or wrong.

I had been too compliant in the past, making Zackary think I was a pushover.

For Carrie's happiness, he disregarded my dignity.

Ten years of my youth were wasted.

I turned to leave, but suddenly, Carrie rushed over and grabbed my backpack.

The strong force made me stumble and fall to the ground.

She said, "Still trying to run? Zackary is too nice, but I won't let you off. Zackary supports your whole family, and you still have the nerve to steal his things. Hand them over!"

Carrie was convinced that my backpack contained something suspicious and unzipped it.

I desperately tried to pry her hand away, not wanting her to disturb my family's peace.

She wrestled with me, cursing, "What's this bulging thing inside? Did you steal a lot of jewelry from Zackary? Are you planning to squander it with your parents? Zackary's money isn't easy to come by. You and your family are leeches."

I slapped her across the face.

The force was so strong that half of her face visibly twisted, and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.

She froze for a moment, then burst into tears.

She said, "Zackary, did you see that? This bitch, hit me. She must have been caught red-handed, and she's so angry."

Carrie cried harder and harder, then started gasping for breath.

"Medicine... quick..." she mumbled incoherently.

Zackary quickly pulled out an asthma inhaler from his pocket and handed it to her.

Seeing how worried he was, I couldn't help but smile bitterly.

I had loved him for so many years, but even when I was very sick, I never saw him this worried.

The details revealed his true feelings.

"Norma, you're the first person to ever hit me. You hit me, and I'll make you pay," Carrie shouted.

She broke free from Zackary's embrace and rushed towards me like a madwoman.

I thought Zackary would stop her, but instead, he held me back.

He said, "Carrie is sick, don't provoke her."

I retorted, "So, you're saying I should let her hit me back?"

Zackary fell silent again.

His silence was deafening.

I thought I would be upset, but at that moment, I felt nothing.

Carrie kept hitting me.

I endured the stinging pain on my cheeks, staring blankly at the beautiful but twisted face in front of me. I remembered the moments I had spent with Zackary over the past ten years.

He said he loved me. He said he would marry me and would make me the happiest woman in the world.

But now, he was holding me down, letting another woman slap me.

My life had become a complete joke.

In the blink of an eye, my face swelled up, and blood trickled from the corners of my mouth.

"Norma, you shouldn't have provoked Carrie. She's a patient," Zackary said.

It took me a moment to realize that it was his voice.

I was the one who got beaten so badly, yet he was still blaming me.

This was the man I had foolishly devoted ten years of my life to.

I thought Carrie would let me go after hitting me, but she wasn't done. She stared at my backpack, insisting on checking if there was anything of Zackary's inside.

With a cold sneer, she clapped her hands twice, and two bodyguards emerged from the stairwell.

They pinned me down, pressing my swollen face hard against the floor.

Carrie opened my backpack, and three urns tumbled out, bouncing on the ground. The ashes scattered everywhere.

I screamed and struggled with all my might.

The two bodyguards couldn't hold me back.

I knelt in front of the ashes, wailing uncontrollably and scooping the ashes back into the urns with my hands.

Carrie said, "What's wrong with you? It's just a bunch of ashes. Why are you crying like a lunatic?"

Carrie was disappointed that she hadn't found anything valuable.

I suddenly stood up, grabbed Carrie by the collar, and shoved her against the wall, gritting my teeth. "Who gave you the right to touch them?"

"Let Carrie go, you crazy woman," Zackary shouted.

Blinded by overwhelming hatred, I found strength I never knew I had. I gripped her neck, nearly lifting her off the ground.

Zackary panicked. "Norma, you're crazy!"

He ordered the bodyguards to pull me away while making a call.

He ordered, "Chas, cancel the expert team for Norma's parents right away. And tell HR to fire her brother."

The assistant replied, "Mr. Santana, Norma's parents passed away on the day of the wedding. And her brother died in a car accident trying to get you back to continue the wedding. He died on the spot."