Why should I? A week later, my father’s surgery was a complete success. Aaron came to the hospital himself.

He looked thinner, with dark circles under his eyes. He seemed to have worried a lot about my father’s situation.

Carrying a fruit basket, he peeled an apple and casually brought up the past.

“Becca, I’m sorry for what happened back then.”

He handed me the peeled apple, his voice low. “I was too young then, blinded by power.”

“Claire’s father could give me everything I wanted, so I had no choice.”

I looked at him, but didn’t take the apple.

No choice?

I realized he simply chose the fastest and cruelest path. And my family was just a stepping stone on that path.

“Mr. Corbie, you’re too kind.”

I forced a stiff smile. “It’s all in the past.”

He looked at me intently, a hint of regret in his eyes. “I know you hate me.”

“Becca, give me a chance to make it up to you, okay?”

Just then, the hospital room door swung open. Claire walked in, carrying a bowl of chicken soup, followed by several reporters carrying cameras.

Spotting me, she feigned surprise before breaking into a smile.

“Becca, you’re here too. I heard Uncle woke up, so I specially made this soup to bring over.”

She placed the soup by the bedside, then took my arm and said to the cameras,

“Aaron and I have decided to establish a special fund for you, Becca. To help those who, like you, have suffered unjust accusations.”

“Becca is incredibly generous because she forgave us long ago and even wishes us well!”

Flashbulbs went off relentlessly. Claire held me tightly, leaving me unable to move.

My father lay in the hospital bed, watching it all with a blank expression. I couldn’t lose my temper, couldn’t upset him.

All I could do was watch Claire and Aaron perform their touching drama at my father’s bedside. The next day, news flooded every outlet.

[Tycoon Aaron Proves His Loyalty, Invests Massive Funds to Clear Ex-Wife’s Name]

[Ten Years of Waiting: Devoted CEO and Ex-Wife Reconcile.]

In the articles, Aaron was portrayed as a paragon of loyalty and righteousness. And I? I was the woman he had redeemed and magnanimously forgiven.

He used my father’s life as leverage, wielded public opinion as a weapon and nailed me to the victim’s pedestal—a pitiful creature needing his mercy and charity.

That evening, I received a call from Aaron. “Becca, have you seen the news?”

“This is just the first step. I’ll gradually help you return to the public eye.”

My voice firmly said, “My reputation doesn’t need your restoration.”

He fell silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled softly.

“Becca, don’t be stubborn. Your father’s ongoing rehabilitation treatment will require a large sum of money. Can you afford it with your meager salary?”

My heart sank.

“Are you threatening me?”

His voice softened again and said, “I’m helping you.”

“I know you don’t like Claire. I’ll make sure she appears in front of you less often from now on. Be good, okay?”

I hung up the phone, chilled to the bone. With the gentlest tone, Aaron did the cruelest things, keeping me firmly under his control.

Claire’s provocations shifted from the shadows to the open. She began visiting the hospital frequently, always accompanied by reporters, feigning reconciliation with me.

In front of everyone, she affectionately called me, then casually said, “Becca, don’t blame Aaronge. He had no choice back then. After all, your father’s position was too crucial.”

“If anything happened, it would ruin Aaron’s career.”

Back then, my father was the head of archives at a foreign-related unit.

The moment my scandal happened, he was immediately suspended for investigation and reassigned to an idle department. He became gloomy and depressed and his health steadily declined.

I always believed I had merely brought my father down.

But now, listening to Claire’s words, I knew something.

I stormed into Aaron’s office, approaching him for the first time.

He seemed taken aback and motioned for his secretary to leave.

“What’s wrong, Becca?”

“Was my father’s transfer back then something you did?”

I stared at him intensely and Aaron’s calm expression faltered.

He avoided my gaze, stood up and poured himself a glass of water.

“You’re overthinking it. Uncle was just caught up in the normal fallout.”

“Is that so?” I laughed coldly, slamming a brown envelope onto his desk.

It was an investigation report I’d asked an old classmate to retrieve from the archives. Inside was an anonymous accusation letter with the handwriting I knew all too well. It was Aaron’s.

Aaron’s expression finally changed. Panic flashed in his eyes before he regained his composure.

“Becca, let me explain first.”

“Explain?” I trembled with rage.

“Explain how you ruined me and even destroyed my father’s future, all in your pursuit of advancement?”

“I just...”

I screamed hysterically, “Aaron, how much more have you been hiding from me?”

Looking at my pain, a fleeting hint of pity crossed his eyes.

How stupid of me to still remember the year I was harassed by thugs from a rival company and how he beat them so badly they ended up in the hospital.

He took a step forward, trying to grab my hand. “Becca, it’s not what you think.”

I pulled back to avoid his hand. Just then, his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen and answered immediately, his voice tense. “Claire, what’s wrong?”

“Don’t cry. I’ll be right there!”

He hung up the phone, didn’t even glance at me, grabbed his coat and rushed out.

“Claire has an emergency. Put your matter on hold. We’ll talk another day.”

The door slammed shut. I stood alone downstairs in the empty space, all my strength drained away.

My problems could be put on hold. So all my pain and questioning couldn’t compare to a single tear from Claire.

I returned to the hospital in a daze. As soon as I reached the floor with the ward, I saw Aaron by the window at the end of the corridor, talking on the phone with a grave expression.

He appeared to be handling an extremely urgent matter. I ignored him and headed straight for my father’s room. Just as I reached the door, I heard Claire’s sobs inside.

“Uncle, please don’t blame Aaron. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have shown that video to Becca. I thought she had already moved on.”

What a video! I flung the door open. Claire was sitting by my father’s bedside, crying.

My father’s face was ashen, his chest heaving violently. He pointed at me, unable to say a word.

His phone on the bedside table was lit, playing a video. The background showed a hotel corridor from ten years ago. A young Aaron was coldly giving orders over the phone.

“Give her the full dose and make sure she never wakes up.”

After hanging up, he turned and pulled Claire into his arms. He kissed her forehead.

“Claire, soon I will have everything and then I will marry you.”

My father reached out, trembling as he pointed at me. Then his head lolled to the side. He was silent.

The cardiac monitor beside the bed emitted a long beep, then flattened into a straight line.

My mind went blank. Claire stood up, walked to my side and whispered softly in a voice only we could hear, “Becca, I told you that Aaron would handle everything.”

“Now, the only person who knew the truth and would become a stain on his reputation is gone.”

Claire’s smile was both innocent and vicious.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you that accusatory letter back then and I had him write it.”

“Who told you to stand in my way?”

I stared at her, then at my father’s cold body on the bed. I lunged forward, grabbing her by the throat.

“I’m going to kill you!”

Aaron arrived just then. He shoved me away violently. I stumbled backward, crashing into the wall and hitting the back of my head until blood trickled down.

He didn’t even glance at me, anxiously pulling Claire into his arms. “Claire, are you okay?”

Claire trembled in his embrace, crying as she pointed at me.

“Aaron, I just wanted to explain to Uncle, but Becca rushed in and said she was going to kill me.”

Aaron turned to look at me, his gaze icy and piercing. “Becca, have you lost your mind?”

I looked at him, at Claire in his arms, at my father lying on the hospital bed. His eyes were wide open in death.

I laughed, a laugh that brought tears to my eyes. Yes, I knew I was insane now.

Driven mad, step by step, by them. I wiped the tears from my face.

My phone in my pocket suddenly vibrated. I numbly pulled it out. It was a text message.

It was from Julian, the heir to that European aristocratic conglomerate I’d dragged into ruin ten years ago.

[Miss Lament, I’ve been searching for you for a decade. I believe we share a common enemy. I have enough evidence to ensure his downfall forever. Do you need my help?]