When Simone woke up, the hospital room was empty, save for herself. It was bright outside, and the sunlight filtered in. However, she only felt a bone-deep chill.

The sentence she'd heard on the operating table last night kept echoing like a curse, stabbing straight into her heart.

"Mrs. Lancaster, you're awake. Mr. Lancaster told me to take good care of you."

Simone pushed away the nurse's hand and ignored her attempts to stop her. She staggered out of Lancaster Hospital. She walked and coughed the whole way. The cold wind made her lips crack until they bled.

She didn't know how long she had walked, but she finally made it back to the Lancaster residence. Somehow, she'd lost a shoe along the way and hadn't even noticed. She rushed straight inside to see a scene that made her feel like she'd been slapped.

Winona was nestled in Anthony's arms in the warm, sunlit room. He fed her medicine one spoonful at a time. She stuck out her tongue and whined cutely, "It's so bitter, Anthony."

He seemed to smile and shake his head. Then, he put the bowl down, picked up a piece of candy, and placed it in her hand. "Just one more sip, okay?"

Winona pouted, refusing to listen. Anthony's voice dropped low. "Weren't you the one who said that using a freshly extracted placenta in this herbal tincture would be the fastest way to cure post-op complications? Hurry up and finish it."

She smiled. "Will you agree with everything I say, Anthony?"

Simone didn't hear Anthony's answer. It was like her soul had been yanked out of her body. A hot mouthful of blood burst from her lips and splattered across the floor.

Her placenta—her baby's placenta—had been removed to be put into a herbal tincture for Winona!

This was the final straw for Simone, and she snapped. Anthony had removed the placenta himself, just like her kidney and Thalia's kidney.

All the good things Anthony had done for her were for Winona's sake.

Simone clutched Button tightly and dragged her broken body out of the Lancaster residence, wanting to get to the police station to lodge a report.

However, she was too weak after her miscarriage, and the shock she'd suffered was too great. Blood began to trickle down her legs.

It left a horrifying trail, starting from the villa's front door and snaking all the way down the path.

She wore a white hospital gown. Her face was ashen and almost translucent. It was as if the villa behind her had sucked out every drop of her life.

She used to be a rose that once blazed crimson, but she'd been reduced to nothing but a single withered stem.

Just then, the thrum of helicopter blades cut through the air. Simone looked up and saw a familiar face. He was Elvane's most elite scion?

She reached out with the last of her strength. The man caught her hand, steady and sure.

"Help me avenge my child and Thalia!" Hatred and anger flared in Simone's eyes. "I want him to pay. A life for a life!"

"I will."

…

Anthony came out of Winona's room with an empty bowl. He quickly called the hospital and asked, "Is Simone awake? Is she feeling any discomfort?"

"Mr. Lancaster, Mrs. Lancaster ran out on her own!"

"What?" Anthony's voice dropped low. Then, he stared in shock at the large, winding swaths of blood on the ground. Whose blood was it?

His face drained of color as an intense sense of unease exploded in his chest.

Just then, Calvin rushed in, looking more panicked than Anthony had ever seen him.

"What's wrong?" He heard how hoarse he sounded.

Calvin could barely catch his breath from how hard he'd been running. Before he could say anything, his knees buckled, and he fell to the floor. Then, he wheezed, "It's Thalia! She—"

"What about her?" Anthony grabbed his shoulders and roared, "Hurry up and tell me!"

Calvin clenched his jaw and shouted, "Thalia died ages ago! This just arrived at the company from a law firm—a divorce decree."