Louise shot my mother a meaningful glance.

My mother immediately understood, swiftly grabbing two glass cups from the table and smashing them on the floor. Shards scattered everywhere.

She pointed coldly at the broken glass. "Kneel. Right here."

I stared at her in disbelief. "Are you really my biological mother?"

Her face faltered for a split second, but the flicker of guilt was quickly swallowed by rage. She raised her hand to slap me again.

But this time—I caught her wrist.

She struggled, eyes blazing with fury. "How dare you! Look at you! Are you really going to strike your own mother now?"

I let go of her hand and turned toward my father, my gaze steady and calm.

He must’ve been startled by the look in my eyes because his brows immediately furrowed with disapproval.

"What are you staring at me for? Kneel and apologize to your sister!"

"You're the older one—how can you be so jealous every single day? Learn a thing or two from Louise, will you?"

I couldn't hold back the sarcasm. "You mean like seducing her own sister’s husband?"

Louise’s expression turned sorrowful. She swayed as if about to collapse, and Vincent quickly reached out to support her.

He furrowed his brow and looked at me. "Sierra, that joke went too far."

"If you’ve done something wrong, apologize. Why are you still insulting Louise?"

I looked at the man who once swore eternal love to me, now holding another woman in his arms and defending her with righteous indignation.

A wave of cold sorrow washed over me.

"Sister, I don’t need your apology anymore," Louise said suddenly, stepping forward with a tragic expression. She bent slightly, as if preparing to kneel.

"All I ask is that you stop using that witchcraft against me—for the sake of the child I carry."

The moment those words left her mouth, the room fell into stunned silence.

Vincent was the first to explode.

"Sierra! I never imagined you could be so cruel! What has Louise ever done to deserve this? Resorting to dark sorcery to harm her and the baby?!"

My mother’s voice shrieked through the room.

"You heartless wretch! I raised you, clothed you, fed you—and this is how you repay us? Harming your own sister? Do you even have a conscience left?!"

My father’s face turned grim.

"Sierra, I’m truly disappointed in you. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

I laughed bitterly. "Even if I told you the truth, would any of you believe me?"

A flicker of something unreadable passed through his eyes. Then, without warning, he lifted his cane and struck the back of my knee.

Pain shot through my leg, and before I could react, I collapsed forward.

My knees slammed directly onto the shattered glass.

Agony bursts through my every nerve.

Darkness flickered at the edges of my vision.

As I tried to push myself up, a heavy hand shoved the back of my head, slamming my forehead down onto the shards with a sickening crack.

The room spun.

Through the haze of pain, I looked up—and saw Vincent wiping his hands with a sanitizing wipe, calm and detached.

Not even a trace of affection in his eyes.

"Sierra, this is how you apologize properly. I’m doing you a favor."

"Now get rid of that dark magic, or if anything happens to Louise, I won’t forgive you."

"I told you—I never used any kind of sorcery!" I shouted, and clenched my fist so tightly my nails dug into my palms.

Louise stepped in, her voice soft and trembling. "If Sis says she didn’t do it, then I believe her... Vince, please don’t be angry. I’m sure she didn’t mean it."

She played the part of the peacemaker—but every word she spoke twisted the blade deeper into my back, pushing me further toward the abyss, all the while wearing the mask of innocence.

I looked at each of them one by one, and suddenly—everything I’d done over the years felt like nothing more than the pathetic performance of a clown.

Every time my parents were sick, it was always me rushing around, doing everything I could, even fainting from exhaustion on several occasions.

When Vincent’s company faced a crisis, I desperately tried to pull in business partners, even drinking so much I ended up with stomach ulcers more than once.

And as for Louise—my parents spoiled her endlessly all these years. I never tried to compete, never fought her for anything. Yet she always wanted to take what was mine.

I took a deep breath, feeling something in my chest quietly shattered and slipped away.

There was no place for me in this family.

There never had been.

Or perhaps, I never had a family at all.

As I faced their accusing glares—like I was some murderous criminal—I felt nothing but a cold numbness rise within me.

"Are you all satisfied now?" I asked calmly, looking directly at Louise.

Wasn’t this exactly what she had wanted?

Vincent snapped, "Sierra, what kind of attitude is that?! Louise is kind and innocent. She’s done nothing wrong—why are you treating her like this?"

"Can’t you stop being so jealous? The Milton family doesn’t like women who are overly jealous."

I looked at him with distant eyes. "Do you think I need your approval?"

'Vincent, your so-called love is worthless.'

He probably didn’t expect that the usually obedient woman would actually start to argue back. The discomfort this caused him was evident.

My father cleared his throat. "Alright, this matter ends here. Today is a family dinner day, so behave yourself."

In other words—let it go. Pretend nothing happened.

I clenched my fists. When my eyes met the same cold, detached gaze from my father that I'd known all my life, I couldn’t bring myself to say another word.

At the dinner table, Vincent sat beside Louise. I was seated across from the two of them.

He seemed flustered for a brief moment when he noticed my gaze, perhaps intending to explain. But before he could, Louise spoke first with her usual delicate tone, "Sis, my boyfriend is away on a business trip overseas. He and Vince are best friends, so I asked Vince to take care of me. You don’t mind, do you?"

I almost laughed. There was no such overseas boyfriend.

She said that just to show off—to provoke me.

And Vincent played right along. "Yes, Sierra, don’t take it the wrong way. Louise’s injured and still recovering—of course I’d help out, as her boyfriend’s brother."

I looked at him, trying to keep my voice steady despite the ache in my chest. "So everything you’ve done for her up to now—that was all out of brotherly duty to your friend?"

Before he could respond, my mother yanked me up and threw me to the floor, screaming at the top of her lungs, "You damn girl! Have you no shame?! Are you trying to turn the whole house upside down?"

"If Louise weren’t so kind and forgiving, do you think we’d even let you sit at this table after the awful things you've done?"

I lowered my gaze, an overwhelming sense of sadness filling my heart.

When I walked in earlier, I noticed the dishes on the table—every one of them was something Louise liked.

As for me?

There was nothing.

They didn’t know what I liked—or maybe they never cared.

And now my father chimed in again.

"That’s enough. Vince and Louise don’t come back often. Must you be the one to ruin every family gathering?"

I stood up and met my father’s direct gaze.

Suddenly, I understood. He was talking about me.

I let out a bitter laugh in my heart.

Who was the one who truly ruined this family?

Did they really not know the answer?

"Sit down and eat," my father ordered, and my mother didn't say another word.

But the venomous look in her eyes never wavered, as if she was staring at a mortal enemy.

Throughout the meal, Vincent kept his eyes fixed on Louise, not even sparing me a glance.

Halfway through, he finally seemed to notice my presence and picked up a shrimp for me.

I didn’t touch the shrimp, choosing instead to focus on my own food.

Louise furrowed her brows, then spoke in a sweet, teasing tone, "Sis, why aren’t you eating the shrimp that Vince picked for you? Is it because he’s sitting next to me that it upset you?"

"Or maybe Vince should sit next to you, since you’re so upset you won’t even eat the shrimp he offered?"

"It’s all my fault," she said, pretending to feel guilty. "I’ll kneel and apologize to you, Sis!"

Louise feigned kneeling, but as she started to rise, Vincent quickly stopped her.

He looked at me, his eyes flashing with a dangerous glint. "Sierra, how much longer are you going to cause trouble? Are you really going to force Louise to kneel before you? Is that what will make you happy?"

Louise hid behind Vincent, giving me a provocative smile.

I lowered my eyes slightly, "What trouble am I causing? From the beginning, wasn’t it all of you who’ve been talking?"

Vincent stood frozen, momentarily stunned, his face showing hesitation as if deep in thought.

Seeing his reaction, Louise suddenly placed her hand over her chest and gasped, feigning pain. "Vince, my heart hurts so much..."

At the sound of her voice, Vincent stopped thinking entirely, swiftly picking her up and rushing away, never sparing a single glance at me, his wife.

My mother glared at me with eyes full of venom. "Look at you, a jinx! I never should have raised you!"

"Fine. Let’s sever ties then," I said, following the flow of the moment.

If this family couldn’t accept me, then I had no reason to stay.

My mother’s chest heaved with anger, and she pointed at me, unable to speak from the rage.

I looked back at her boldly, meeting her gaze head-on. Meanwhile, my father cleared his throat twice, his voice was stern. "Sierra, this is not the time for your nonsense."

I knew it was a warning.

After leaving the Ainsworth household, I didn’t go to the hospital to treat my injuries. Instead, I returned to the villa that Vincent and I had once called home.

I looked around at the overly warm and cozy decorations, memories flashing through my mind.

I packed up all my clothes, planning to donate them to those in need. I also gathered my toiletries and threw them all away.

Then, I remembered that Vincent and I hadn’t yet divorced, so I took my things and checked into a hotel.

Afterward, I hailed a cab to the hospital to find Vincent. Just as I stepped out of the elevator, I heard a familiar voice coming from the hallway.

"Just say what’s on this paper, and then get Vincent to agree to give me a heart transplant."

It was Louise’s voice.

Wasn’t she supposed to be in the ward?

I pressed my ear to the wall, pulling out my phone to start recording.

Another voice responded, "Ms. Lauren, your heart is perfectly fine. What you’re asking for is—"

Louise interrupted him sharply, "Just do as I say. The rest is none of your business."

The man hesitated. "But the information about Ms. Sierra is missing here. How can we be sure her heart is a match for yours?"

"Ms. Lauren," the man continued, "If this is discovered, both you and I will be in trouble."