Soren stiffened. He grabbed her wrists and saw the scars on the back of her neck caused by electrocution.

"No." His voice was husky. "I'm not here to…"

He was not here to do something like this.

Soren pushed Sophie away, then turned from her in a fluster. He used the harshest words to cover his guilt. "Put on your clothes, you slut! Tomorrow night, you'll come downstairs for the party."

He heard a soft grunt from behind him. However, Soren did not look back.

…

Halfway through the dinner party, Soren was summoned into the study by his father.

The old Don, William, flung a document at him. "Isabella is pregnant. The family needs an heir."

Soren flipped the document open and saw that it was a pregnancy report. He remembered the night he got drunk a month ago. Isabella had been wearing Sophie's lingerie, and her eyes had looked a little like Sophie's.

"Yes, Father." Soren heard himself answer.

…

The next day, they had a wedding rehearsal on a cruise ship.

Isabella was holding Sophie's hand on the deck. She leaned in close to Sophie's ear and asked, "What did you do to Soren last night?"

"Nothing."

"Liar." Isabella gripped her wrist harder. "You wanted to sleep with him, didn't you? And you removed his belt."

Sophie turned pale from the pain, but she did not make a sound.

"Looks like the college forgot to teach you dignity." Isabella suddenly released her hand. "Do you think Don Lucas will like a whore like you who has ridden a thousand men?"

Before Sophie could reply, she said, "Let's play a game."

She backed away from Sophie while smiling strangely at her. "Who do you think Don Lucas will believe? You or me?"

With that, Isabella turned and jumped into the sea.

"Help! Sophie pushed me! She's trying to kill me!" she screamed.

Soren came running out of the cabin and immediately jumped into the sea to save Isabella.

Sophie watched this happen with one thought in her mind—'If I jump into the sea right now, would anyone save me?'

It took her only a second to know the answer. No.

After Isabella was saved, she said to Soren in the hospital, "Sophie said she wanted to be the only woman in your life. She threatened to kill me and then commit suicide if I refused to leave you."

She played a voice recording, and Sophie's voice came through at the next second. "Soren is mine, Isabella."

Soren turned pale. The words Sophie had been forced to repeat in college would end up causing her life.

…

Soren dragged Sophie to the basement after taking her back to the villa.

"Kneel!" he ordered.

Sophie knelt. Her knees touched the ice-cold metal floor. It was the position she was most familiar with back in college.

He took the whip from the wall. It was covered with glass shards.

"I took care of you for ten years." His voice dripped with pain and misery. "I doted on you and protected you! I treated you like my daughter!"

The first lash hit Sophie on the back.

"How dare you have such dirty thoughts about me?"

Then, the second.

"How dare you try to kill my fiancée?"

Then, the third.

"Do you want me all to yourself?"

Sophie trembled, but she clenched her teeth and did not make a sound. Back in college, her screams would only excite the people hitting her.

"Say something!" Soren flung the whip away. He crouched and grabbed her throat. "Say you're wrong!"

"I'm wrong." She sounded calm.

Soren saw that the back of Sophie's shirt was drenched in blood from her old and new wounds. He released Sophie and backed away. "Why didn't you fight back?"

"Fighting back would only make it hurt longer." Sophie looked up, but her gaze was empty.

He rushed over to her and tore her clothes open. Soren saw the wounds criss-crossed on her back. There were even tiny needle holes all over her chest.

Electrocution marks, knife wounds, burn scars… Every part of her skin was damaged.

"Who did this?" His voice trembled.

"You," Sophie replied. "Isn't this what you wanted when you sent me to that college?"

Soren stumbled backward, knocking into a shelf of torture tools. "I had no idea. I just wanted them to discipline you, not—"

"Discipline me?" she interrupted him. She picked up a piece of torn cloth to cover her body. "I learned well, Don Lucas."

She turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist. "Let me check your wounds."

"That's not necessary." She pulled her hand away.

Soren watched her lonely figure disappear up the stairs. He was once again filled with fear. He was not afraid of Sophie hating him. He was afraid that Sophie no longer cared about him.

The wedding was held on the deck of the cruise ship. Soren was in a white suit with Isabella hanging onto his arm.

The guests raised their champagne glasses as they gave their blessings.

"How lucky you are, Don Lucas," a Ronico mob boss said. "You have a beautiful fiancée, and even your foster daughter is—"

"Shut up." Soren's voice chilled the atmosphere around him. "Sophie is my daughter."

"Of course!" the man leered. "I heard she's really good with men!"

He took out his phone and showed a video of Sophie being ravaged and humiliated under him.

All of the guests heard the indecent sounds coming from the phone. Everyone turned to look at Sophie, and all she wanted to do was run away.

Soren punched the man from Ronico in the face. Immediately after, his men quickly came to drag the troublemaker away.

However, this had yet to end. Soren dragged Sophie over to him and slapped her. "How slutty are you to sleep with any man you see?"

The corner of her mouth started bleeding. She looked disappointed as she stared at him mockingly. "You won't believe me even if I try explaining it to you."

"How do I even have a daughter like you? You're nothing but a slut."

Soren dragged Sophie to the middle of the venue and announced publicly, "From now onward, I, Soren Lucas, will have nothing to do with Sophie Rossi!"

He ordered someone to take Sophie away and leave her in the storeroom of the cruise ship.

Inside, Sophie trembled all over, but Soren's men did not leave. They leered as they took off their clothes while getting close to Sophie.

"I wonder how it feels to f*ck the Principessa?"

"Look at how flat she is. What is she thinking, trying to win Don Lucas over from Ms. Johansson?"

Sophie trembled even harder.

"Isabella sent you here!"

"You're a smart one. Consider this a punishment from Don Lucas too. Don't cross the line with people you shouldn't in your next life!"

They pushed Sophie down and started fondling her body. Her attempts at stopping the humiliation looked like an invitation to the men. Her eyes eventually glazed over as she let the men do whatever they wanted to her body.

A tear quietly fell from the corner of her eye.

She had no idea how long they were on top of her, but they finally pulled up their pants and left. She tried to stand up from the ground like a zombie. Memories of her earlier life flashed in her mind.

Her father's death, Soren's love, her torture at the college, Isabella's taunts and attempts at framing her… There was also Soren's distrust and revenge.

Hatred grew in her heart. She grabbed a pair of pliers next to her and stumbled toward the ceremony.

Soren and Isabella were in the middle of exchanging rings. That was when the chandelier above suddenly fell, about to crash on Isabella.

"Look out!" Soren protected her instinctively, and the shards pierced his back.

Isabella screamed before passing out. Soren looked up at where the chandelier used to be. Sophie was standing next to the railing on the second floor with a pair of pliers in her hand.

"Sophie! Are you crazy?" he roared.

She looked down at the long corridor of the cruise ship.

Soren's heart suddenly started beating wildly, and he gave chase. However, it was too late. By the time he reached her, Sophie had jumped over the railing. He rushed toward her and grabbed her hand.

"Grab onto me, Sophie! I'll pull you up!"

Sophie tried hard to push Soren's hand off her. "I don't need you to save me. I want you dead! I want Isabella dead! If I can't kill you, I'd rather die!"

She finally broke free of Soren, and the sight of her dress disappeared from view. Her last words were, "Soren, I hate you."

"No…" Soren kept grabbing at the air, but he caught hold of nothing.

It was the Novatia River below them, and the current was strong. Sophie's body could be seen bobbing in and out of the water.

"Save her! Get into the river and save her!" Soren roared.

However, no one dared to jump as they were too high above the water.

Hence, Soren jumped into the river himself. He was enveloped by icy-cold water, but he could see Sophie sinking deeper. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the water, feeling that her body was as light as a feather.

"Sophie! Wake up!" He patted her cheek.

He touched her neck but did not feel a pulse. Her chest was not heaving either.

She was dead.

Soren hugged Sophie's 'corpse' in the hospital, refusing to let anyone get near her.

He whispered into her ear, "I canceled the wedding, Sophie. You won."