I took my daughter out for shopping on my delightful birthday,but I had just glanced at a work message when she suddenly vanished.

Panicked,I rushed to check the security cameras,but what I saw shattered my world in an instant.

The footage showed that the man who took my daughter…was her father.

I called him again and again,desperate.When the line finally connected,it wasn’t his voice I heard.Instead,a smug,taunting voice came through.It was his mistress.

“Oh,your daughter?My husband sold her to some old man in the mountains.With the money,he bought me the newest designer handbag.Isn’t it gorgeous?”

In that instant,my heart sank to the bottom.

So this was Ethan Lorrimer,the man who had forgotten who pulled his failing,bankrupt company back from the edge.

The man who forgot that my status as the only daughter of the Sinclair Family in New York was never just for show.

***

I gripped the phone so tightly my knuckles turned white.My ears rang,Natalie's mocking voice still echoing in my head.

For a platinum bag,my daughter was…sold.

These words kept circling in my head until my vision blurred.

My stomach churned as I retched over,but nothing came out,only a bitter acid burning my throat.

Ethan Lorrimer,how dare you?She is your own daughter!

Our girl,Emma,was only five.

She had just been hugging my neck this morning,her little voice chirping,“Happy birthday,Mommy!”and begging for the biggest slice of cake.

Now I was shaking so hard I could barely stay on my feet,clutching the wall to keep from falling.It felt like an icy fist was crushing my heart,squeezing the breath out of me.

With trembling fingers,I dialed Ethan again.No connection.I tried again and again.Nothing.

I called his assistant,his driver,yet no one picked up.

And then I realized something.They were all in on it.This had been planned from the start.

Just then,my phone lit up with an unknown number.

Like a drowning woman grasping at a lifeline,I snatched it up,my voice raw and desperate,“Hello?Ethan!What did you do to Emma?Give me back my daughter!”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds.Then,to my shock,Natalie’s voice came through,laced with laughter.

“Oh,Jenna,Jenna Sinclair.Don’t get yourself so worked up.It’s not worth ruining your health.”

Her again.

Rage surged through me so hot it made me dizzy.My teeth chattered as I snapped,“Natalie,put Ethan on the phone!I want to talk to him!”

"My husband?He's asleep.He looks so tired,poor thing,"she spoke slowly,her tone dripping with meaning.

Then,almost playfully,she added,"It was rough,I was overwhelmed...Oh,I should to thank you,though,Jenna."

"Thank me?For what?For being blind enough to marry that useless man beside you?"I shot back,my voice breaking with anger.

"No.For feeding him so well."Natalie chuckled,then dropped her voice lower.

“Otherwise,how could he have the energy to spoil me so much?The truth is,he told me he treats me so much better than he ever treated you.He even said you were like a dead fish in bed,that touching you felt like bad luck.”

My head buzzed until it felt like it would split.

Ethan actually said that?

He had taken the most private,humiliating part of our marriage and turned it into a joke with another woman.

A wave of nausea hit me so hard I nearly threw the phone away.

“Oh,and one more thing,”Natalie went on,her voice casual as if she were commenting on the weather.

“He told me about that scar on your waist.Didn’t you get it when you stabbed one of those thugs who attacked him?Tsk,tsk—so foolish.”

“He said the scar made him feel sick,like looking at a centipede.That’s why every time he touched you,he had to turn off the lights.Otherwise,he couldn’t even get aroused.Hahaha.”

Her laughter was sharp and cruel.

My blood ran cold.All my strength drained away.I slid down the wall and sank to the cold floor.

That scar.

It was the year we graduated from college.He had just started his business and had crossed the wrong people.One night,they cornered us in a dark alley.I rushed in like a madwoman,trying so hard to protect him.

A fruit knife cut deep and I ended up spending two weeks in the hospital.He stayed by my bedside every day,crying like a child,promising to cherish me for the rest of his life.

Now,remembering that,I could only force a bitter smile.

So it was because of that scar that he lost his desire.

So,because of that scar,he couldn't even get aroused.

So every time his hands brushed that scar,all his talk about“this makes my heart ache”had been nothing but an act.

The pain in my chest felt like being cut again and again with a dull blade,far worse than the wound I got that night.

“And there’s more,”Natalie’s voice cut back in.

“Did you ever wonder why Ethan was so eager to take you to that new French restaurant last year?”

“It was because he lost a bet with me.The bet was that he would take you out for seafood.Honestly,I didn’t think you would survive it.”

I snapped my head up,my eyes wide with shock.

That was when I suffered a severe allergic reaction.I had spent a whole night in the hospital.The doctor said that if I had arrived a few minutes later,I could have died.

He had stood outside my door,his eyes red,looking helpless.In the end,it was all just a bet?

“Why...”My voice shook as I asked,“Natalie,why?I never did anything to you.”

“Why,you asked?”She laughed and then her tone went cold and cruel.“Because you act so arrogantly.It’s disgusting.”

“The only daughter of the Sinclair Family in town,so special.But you and your family have been nothing but used.Everything you have should be mine.Ethan loves me.He says I make him feel like a real man.Besides having a rich father,what do you even have?”

She took a breath,like she had been holding this in for a long time and her voice climbed.

“And your daughter…that little girl cries so much.But it doesn’t matter.She’ll suffer plenty.Those old men in the mountains won’t mind the noise.Feed her,give her a roof and she’ll be married off.Hahaha.”

“Natalie,you’ll pay for this!”I screamed in despair,tears streaming down my face.

“Give me back my daughter!Give Emma back to me!Ethan!Ethan,you bastard!Talk to me!She’s your daughter!”

I cried and shouted into the phone until my voice went raw.

Then suddenly,another voice came through—it was Ethan.

He sounded impatient,his tone rough,as if he had just woken up.“Jenna,haven’t you had enough?What are you yelling about in the middle of the night?”

“Ethan!”

My chest tightened.I clung to the chance to ask him like a drowning woman grabbing a rotten branch,even though I knew it was hopeless.

“Where’s Emma?Where’s our daughter?Is what Natalie said true?What did you do with her?”

There was a pause.Then I heard Natalie’s soft,whiny voice beside him.“Honey,she’s being so cruel to me.I’m scared…”

Ethan’s voice immediately softened for her.“Don’t be afraid,sweetheart.I’m here.”

But when he turned back to me,his tone was cold and hard.“Jenna,what’s wrong with you?My daughter is with me.She’s fine.You’re always so suspicious.Do you enjoy this?”

“Fine?”I was shaking with fury,my voice trembling so hard I could barely speak.

“Ethan,I checked the security cameras and I saw you take her.Natalie told me herself that you sold her to those old men just to buy her a handbag!Ethan,you’re not even human.You’re a monster!”

There was a sharp pause on the line,like he was stunned I had seen the footage.Then he quickly regained control,his voice flat and sure.

“So what?Jenna,I’m done with you.I’m done with your family’s fake pride.Without me,would your business have survived?My daughter is with me.Why not get something in return?”

Each of his words hit me like poisoned needles.Done with me?Getting something in return?

Back then,when his small company was on the verge of bankruptcy,he came to me begging like a stray animal,begging for help.It was me,hiding it from my family,pouring in all my personal savings,pulling every connection I had and working day and night to land him sales and investors,that dragged him back from ruin.

When we married,my family asked for no dowry.We gave him a car,a house and even shares in the company.My father taught him business.Every step of Ethan’s success came from my family,the Sinclair Family.

Now he had the audacity to say he had had enough?He called it charity?

“Ethan…”I said and my voice dropped low and went calm.“You’ve forgotten who you are.You’ve forgotten who I am.”

He seemed caught off guard by my sudden calm.For a moment,he stayed silent.But before he could speak,Natalie snatched the phone and spat,“Jenna,stop acting high and mighty.You’re not the Sinclair Family’s golden daughter anymore.Ethan doesn’t even want you.And your daughter will be some old man’s bride soon.Cry yourself to death if you like.”

I didn’t listen to the rest.I ended the call.

Tears ran down my cheeks,but my heart had gone cold.

I wiped my face,steadied my breath and with shaking fingers,I scrolled down my contacts.Soon after,I finally found a number I had never used.The encrypted line.

It rang once before a calm,cold male voice answered,“Special task force.Go ahead.”

I spoke steadily,each word clear,“Lock down every exit out of the state,especially routes to the western mountains.Ground flights if you must.”

“And notify my father.”I swallowed a choking sob.“His granddaughter has been kidnapped.Tell him to use everything at his disposal to find her.”

A brisk reply came back,“Authorization acknowledged.Highest level.Unconventional measures permitted.”

There was no single question and hesitation.Just a clear response.

“Instructions received.We will keep in contact.Rescue teams are on their way.”

The call ended.Slowly,I pushed myself up,leaning on the wall.

Moments later,my phone rang again.It was my father.I picked up the phone,but before I could say anything,his low,dangerous voice asked one word,"Location?"

I told him about the mall and the security room.

"Ten minutes,"he said and hung up without another word.

I let out a shaky laugh.

Ten minutes.That was all he needed to mobilize the nearest team.

And every second of those ten minutes felt like a year.

I sat in the cold chair in the security room,staring at the frozen screen,my heart pounding.

How terrified must Emma have been?Was she calling for me?

Ethan Lorrimer,how could he do this?

When the ten minutes were up,the security room door opened.Two men in black suits walked in.They looked serious and gave a small bow.

“Miss,the car is ready.Sir ordered everything to be done as you requested.”

I stood,my legs weak but my eyes sharp.“Take me to Ethan and Natalie.Now.”

“Right away.”

In the car,I closed my eyes.My mind was a storm.I saw Emma smiling and calling me“Mom,”then crying and struggling on the screen.I could still hear Natalie’s cruel voice.I remembered Ethan’s cold,indifferent face.

The pain in my chest was so sharp I could hardly breathe.

The car stopped in front of an upscale apartment building.I recognized this place.Ethan had bought it long ago as an investment.

Back then,I thought nothing of it.Now I got it.This was where he hid his mistress.

Two bodyguards escorted me upstairs to the top floor.

From inside,I heard faint music and a woman’s laughter.I drew a deep breath and kicked the door hard.

A loud bang echoed.The door didn’t open,but the noise inside stopped at once.

“Who’s there?”Ethan’s impatient voice came from inside.

I said nothing,but I kicked once again.

One guard signaled,stepped forward and with a strong kick,the lock broke.The door was violently kicked open.

The scene inside made my blood boil.

Ethan stood in a robe,his hair still wet from a shower.Natalie clung to him in a thin silk slip,holding a glass of wine.

Women’s underwear was scattered across the floor.The air reeked of their scent.

By the sofa lay a brand-new orange designer handbag still in its box.Condoms and birth-control items were ripped open and tossed around.

At that moment,all the blood in my body surged to my head.

My vision blurred.I charged forward like a madwoman,screaming,“Ethan!Where is my daughter?Where did you take Emma?Give her back to me!”

Ethan froze at the sight of me.

For a moment,guilt flickered in his eyes,but it quickly hardened into anger.He pulled Natalie behind him and glared at me.

“Jenna!Are you insane?What do you think you’re doing?How dare you break in here!”

"What am I doing?"

Seeing this,my whole body trembled with rage.I pointed at Natalie behind him,then at the expensive handbag on the floor.

“Ask her!Ask her what she told me on the phone!Ask her about the handbag she said you bought with the money from selling our daughter!Ethan,you’re not even human—you’re a monster!That’s your own daughter!”

I lunged forward,ready to fight him,but the bodyguard beside me gently stopped me.“Miss,no need to dirty your hands.”

Natalie hid behind him,adorably poking her head out.She didn’t show any trace of fear at all.Her face was full of smug pride.Her voice was soft.

“Jenna,how could you think Ethan would ever do that?Emma was just sent to a private summer camp as a surprise.You can’t believe every rumor you hear.Selling your daughter?How rude.”

She tugged at Ethan’s robe,her eyes pretending to glisten with tears.“Ethan,look…she must have misunderstood.”

Ethan quickly wrapped his arms around her,comforting her,before turning on me with a glare.

“Jenna,listen to yourself.Natalie is kind enough to explain things for you,but you?You storm in here without warning and make a scene.I’m done with you.”

“Summer camp?”I almost laughed,but it quickly broke into sobs.

“Ethan,are you joking?What kind of camp drugs a child and drags her away?What camp is run by a single man living in the mountains?Tell me!”

I pulled up the security screenshot on my phone and shoved it at him,jaw tight.“Look!Look at Emma crying!Look at her struggling!You call this a summer camp?You tried to kill her!”

Ethan’s expression changed when he saw the footage.His eyes went away and his voice lost its force.

“Where did you get that video?Who tricked you?I just…I was doing it for her own good.That camp chance was rare…”

"For her own good?"I cut him off,nearly losing it and roared,“Selling our daughter to buy that woman a handbag is for her own good?Ethan,check your conscience—do you even have one?”

“Jane,watch your language!”

My words hit a nerve.Ethan’s voice rose,sharp and loud.“What difference does it make if she was sold or not?Natalie is right,you always act so arrogantly.You think the worst of everyone.Maybe this happened because you didn’t watch your child properly and now you’re blaming me?”

I stared at him,speechless in disbelief.How could he say that?

“I’m blaming you?The CCTV shows it all.You’re the one who took her!”

“I’m her father!What’s wrong with me taking her?”

Ethan looked at me,looking completely impatient now.His words were sharp and cruel.

“Is there a law that says a father can’t take his own daughter?Jenna,if a child goes missing,you’re the one responsible for it.Who told you to stare at your phone?What kind of mother are you?”

His twisted logic made my head spin.Rage and despair hit me so hard I nearly fainted.

Natalie put on a sweet voice.“Ethan,don’t be angry…Maybe Jenna didn’t mean it.Maybe she just wasn’t paying attention for a moment.Poor child.I wonder where she’s suffering now…”

Her words sounded gentle but were like knives and they pushed all the blame onto me.

“Natalie,shut up!”I stared at her with bloodshot eyes,teeth clenched.

“You have no right to speak here!You’re nothing but a mistress in someone else’s family,bitch!”

“Jenna!”At that,Ethan shoved me hard.

“Who do you think you are,cursing her?Say one more word about Natalie and see what happens.She’s a thousand times better than you!At least she knows how to care for people.You’re always so arrogant,just looking at you makes me sick!”

I staggered and almost fell,but a bodyguard caught me in time.I lifted my head and looked at him.

My heart broke completely.

So,in his eyes,I was so disgusting.

I looked at the man before me.He was familiar,but suddenly strange.The man I had loved for more than a decade,the man I had given my whole heart to,now felt only disgust.

My voice steadied,oddly calm.“Ethan,have you forgotten how you knelt before my father,begging for help?Have you forgotten how I emptied my savings to plug the hole when your company was about to collapse?Have you forgotten the first hundred-thousand-dollar contract you signed,how you hugged me and spun me,calling me your lucky star?”

Ethan’s face flickered,like my words woke a bad memory.Seeing him hesitate,Natalie wrapped her arm around him and purred,“Ethan,don’t hold on to the past.Let it go.You can stand on your own now.Don’t be dragged down by old favors.”

Ethan was eager for an excuse,so he nodded at once.

“Right.Natalie is right.Jenna,stop digging up the past.I didn’t need your family to survive.Everything I have I earned myself.”

“You earned it all yourself?”I sneered.“With that shell company that lost money year after year until my family kept it afloat?Ethan,without us,you’d be back on the farm.”

“You—”

Hearing this,Ethan went white with anger.Natalie rolled her eyes and,with a flirtatious sigh as if remembering something delightful,she said to him,“Oh,Ethan,didn’t you get a birthday gift for Jenna?Even if she’s been putting us in a difficult situation today,we should keep polite.Show her.”

Ethan looked confused for a moment,clearly not getting her words.

Then,Natalie pulled a small jewelry box from her new designer bag.She opened it to reveal a thin,cheap silver chain.

"Jenna,look at this.Ethan picked this only for you."

She came forward,holding the chain and smiling sweetly.“It’s not as nice as my handbag,but it’s thoughtful.He said you’re like this chain.This looks fine at a glance,but it is actually cheap and ordinary.Embarrassing to wear.”

As she spoke,her fingers let the chain slip and hit the cold floor.

With deliberate malice,she tapped it with her heel and crushed it.“Whoops,so sorry.My hand slipped.”

She covered her mouth and looked at me with a smug,satisfied smile.

I stared at the ruined chain,at Natalie’s face and at Ethan’s casual,almost relieved look.At that very moment,whatever remained of my sanity instantly shattered.

I raised my hand and,with everything I had,slapped Natalie across the face.

"You disgusting bitch!"