"Drag him out. Don't let him dirty the boss' rug," Bobby said to the other men, who responded quickly in fear and hurriedly dragged Edd away.

I was freed from his constraints, yet I remained frozen in place, afraid to move a muscle.

They had guns on them. If I continued struggling, then maybe the next one to get shot would be me instead.

Amber was also so shocked that she curled up in a corner. However, there was a newfound determination in her eyes.

"I swear she has a crescent moon birthmark on her stomach, Bobby! It's the exact same one that your boss has been searching for!"

Bobby glared at her coldly, and Amber immediately shut up.

He then looked at a few of his men and said, "Examine her. Stop wasting my time."

Four more men lunged toward me. I did my best to back away as much as possible, but while doing so, I suddenly caught sight of a familiar kid's doodle hanging on the wall.

It was a drawing of a family of three flying kites in the field. Written above the girl's head in the drawing was a nickname I would never, ever forget.

"Rosie."

That had been the drawing I'd made just before I was kidnapped! Mom loved it very much, and Dad even promised that he would hold on to it and cherish it for the rest of his life!

It was Dad!

He had still been looking for me even after so many years!

Overwhelmed with emotion, I tried to sit up and leaned back on the couch.

"Does your boss have the last name of—"

"Trying to talk your way out of this again, lassie? That can only mean that you're up to no good," Bobby said impatiently, cocking his gun and pressing the barrel against my forehead.

"Shut up, you. And all you others, take off her clothes and inspect her!"

I felt my scalp crawl.

If he didn't hesitate to shoot his own men, he most definitely would hesitate to shoot me either!

Meanwhile, Amber kept mumbling under her breath, trying to talk sense into me or something.

"Behave yourself, Roxy. I'll only be able to leave after they're done inspecting you. But if you keep struggling like this, I'm going to have to die along with you as well!"

How could she still be thinking of herself at a time like this?

I glanced at the drawing on the wall and decided to hold my horses for now. If Dad were coming over once they were done "inspecting" me, then we would finally be able to meet, reunite, and everything would be over.

I gritted my teeth and put up with the shame as they yanked my shirt upward.

The crescent moon birthmark on my stomach was as clear as day.

"Bobby! This one looks real enough!"

Bobby immediately strode over and looked at the birthmark on my stomach with a look of surprise on his face. He exclaimed quietly, "Wow, it's exactly the same as the one the boss drew…"

When Amber saw that the cat was now in the bag, she came over with a fawning smile on her face. "Since you're done inspecting the goods, Bobby, then about the 50 million dollars—"

Bobby's eyes were still glued to my birthmark as he waved his hand dismissively at her.

"All clear. You can get lost now."

"Alright, alright. I'm getting lost…" Amber said with a hard nod, turning to run away.

But my pendant was still with her!

I immediately jumped off the couch and grabbed her by the shirt.

"Amber! You can't go—"

"Don't let her get away!"

At Bobby's words, the lackey who was the closest to me immediately kicked me in the stomach, sending me flying backward as I lost my balance and hit the corner of the table on the back of my head.

Bobby flew into a rage at once.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed? How many times have I told you that you're not to lay a finger on her until she's been confirmed?"

The blow Amber had delivered to me with the stick was still throbbing from before, and now, I could feel something warm and sticky flowing out from the back of my head.

I leaned back against the table leg, limply, while reaching up to touch the wetness. My hand was covered in blood at once.

My vision was also beginning to blur. I could feel my consciousness slipping away, and I couldn't even control my limbs at will anymore.

But I couldn't pass out now… I still hadn't seen Dad yet…

"Shit! Bobby, she's bleeding!" someone shouted, pointing at me in horror.

Bobby's brows furrowed together in a deep frown. "You two, get the doctor. And you two, go and find the boss. Tell him the birthmark looks very similar this time, and that he should come and take a look.

"As for the rest of you, be more careful with her. If she ends up being the one the boss has been looking for the entire time, and now that she's been treated like this, she could very well complain to him, and we're all going to be in huge trouble!"

Bobby's men immediately set off to find the right people and ran into Amber, still frozen at the door.

She trembled for a long while before finally asking, "Bobby… Isn't your boss just looking for a mistress? Why is she so important to him?"

Bobby's sharp eyes immediately landed on her.

"Nonsense. Why else would he say that whoever brought a woman with this birthmark on her would have their debts cleared?

"But whether the debts can actually be settled is not something they can decide."

Bobby continued, "Other women with crescent moon-shaped birthmarks have also been brought in before, but they didn't know where the birthmark should be located on the person that the boss was trying to find. So they would just randomly tattoo a mark on their bodies and show up.

"Meanwhile, the boss has already gotten rid of all those people."

Amber shuddered hard when she heard that. However, Bobby then added, "You're lucky that this woman's birthmark is exactly where the boss wants it to be.

"Just wait and see. If she really is the person the boss wants, then your 50-million-dollar-debt won't just be waived off—both you and your friend here will be living like royalty for the rest of your lives."

Amber's eyes darted around, her expression suddenly changing.

I had a bad feeling about this and opened my mouth with whatever consciousness I had left.

"I… I am…"

"Bobby, I'm sorry!"

Amber suddenly rushed toward me and dug her sharp nails into my thighs. "Her birthmark is fake! I can't lie to the boss like that! I'll pay back every penny of the 50 million dollars I owe! I don't want to get it waived anymore!"

Bobby flew into a rage.

"You're really asking for death, Amber Stone!"

He pointed his gun at her, and she immediately fell to her knees.

"I don't know where she heard about the correct location of the birthmark, and she went to get it tattooed on herself! She even forced me to bring her here! She said that she wanted to take advantage of the boss' wealth and enjoy a life of luxury forever!

"I'm telling the truth! She threatened to kill my parents if I refused to do this for her!"

Amber wouldn't stop begging and pleading for mercy, crying hard as her tears ran freely.

Meanwhile, I could only gasp for air as I weakly shook my head.

"I didn't… I am—"

"Stop lying, Roxanne Sweeney! You might be able to fool them now, but you won't be able to keep them fooled for the rest of your life! What if the boss found out that your birthmark was fake? You'd die an even worse death!"

Bobby glared down at us condescendingly, his sharp eyes scrutinizing the birthmark on my stomach as if he was trying to discern who was telling the truth.

However, he didn't seem to know that Dad was simply looking for his daughter, not a mistress.

If only he'd take a good look at my face, he would probably realize that I looked quite similar to Dad.

Suddenly, there was a loud shout at the door.

"Bobby! Those guys from before are causing trouble again in the casino!"

Bobby took his gun and walked out of the room.

"You, and you, stand guard at the door and don't let either one of them leave. I'll be right back."

The door closed shut afterward, leaving only Amber and me behind.

Amber lowered her voice and said, "I can't believe that the casino boss would have such a strange fetish, even letting any woman with the matching birthmark be his wife!"

I fought to stay conscious, but my body wouldn't stop sliding downward. Blood continued pouring from the wound on the back of my head, and I knew that I couldn't hold on much longer.

"What… What are you planning to do…"

A flash of deranged madness crossed Amber's face, her chest heaving as she spoke.

"I was wrong. I thought all he wanted was just a mistress… But no. I can't let you be his wife. You can't.

"Otherwise, you'll never let me go for this, just like how I would never let you go!"

I panted heavily and shook my head.

"We're best friends. If you'll let me go, I won't hold this against you."

"Impossible! You'd hate me to death for this!"

"I'm telling the truth… Just think about it. You can't pay back the 50 million dollars without me. They'll probably just sell you to North Cavada as a slave, and it's going to be even worse for you there!"

Amber froze, her eyes darting around rapidly as she looked everywhere around us.

Seeing that there was still a glimmer of hope, I continued, "If you let me go, I swear that I won't say a single word about this. I'll let you enjoy your life with me. As for the 50 million dollars… I'll pay it back for you instead."

Something finally changed in her eyes. She licked her dry lips, and I silently heaved a sigh of relief.

However, I hadn't even finished sighing when she suddenly clenched her fists and said, "No way!

"You've always been a stubborn one, and you've never stopped searching for your biological parents for years! You'd never forgive me for this!

"I'll think of another way to pay back the 50 million dollars, but I'm going to have to sacrifice you anyway!"

Then, she suddenly produced a penknife and stabbed it straight into my birthmark.

I screamed in pain, but she clapped her hand over my mouth to muffle it.

She then carved out the outline of the birthmark on my stomach before taking out a vial of transparent liquid and forcing it into my throat.

A bitter taste slid down my throat, and I instantly knew that something was wrong.

"Don't worry. This anesthetic will take effect in just 20 minutes. After that, you'll pass out, and you won't feel anything no matter what happens," Amber said, tossing the empty bottle and penknife under the table while whispering in my ear.

"Sorry, Roxy, but only one of us can live; then it can only be me!"

I could feel the anesthetic taking effect in my body. I felt all of my strength draining away, and I quickly slid to the floor as if I was going to pass out completely at any moment.

However, Bobby came back just then.

He saw me on the ground and frowned, turning to ask Amber, "What happened?"

Amber began crying and pointed at me, saying, "She said it hurt a lot when she was getting the tattoo, and she didn't even bother coloring in the last part before running away. But now the wound tore open, and she couldn't stand the pain anymore. The last thing she said was that she felt very dizzy…"

Bobby looked down at the crescent moon birthmark on my stomach and saw a very fine line around it that was bleeding.

"Is this for real? You, go tell the boss that he doesn't need to waste his time coming over anymore. This is another fake one."

A shadow fell over me, and something cold pressed against my stomach.

"To think that I almost fell for your trick! I'd have been killed! You love crescent moons, don't you? Well then, let me cut off this tattoo and stitch it onto your face!"

What?

He then pierced his knife into my wound, suddenly stimulating my dying consciousness, and I screamed aloud in agony as I struggled against him.

"No! I'm the person your boss is looking for! He's not looking for a mistress! He's looking for his daughter!"

The entire room descended into silence at once, but Bobby's cold-hearted laughter rang out right at that moment.

"No wonder you dared to tattoo the birthmark on yourself and look for him. You've certainly got the nerve to even say something like that!

"The boss doesn't even have a wife! And you're still trying to pretend to be his daughter?"

The knife was driven another inch deeper into my stomach. Yet, at that moment, the anesthesia was fully in effect, and I didn't feel the pain anymore. Still, I couldn't say anything.

In the flickers of my consciousness, I heard someone next to me say, "Bobby, this is the boss' favorite rug."

Bobby withdrew the knife at once before standing up.

"Get someone to take her away and send the rug away for cleaning."

"Bobby, should we just sell her straight off to North Cavada?"

I felt my chest tighten as I saw him wiping off the blood on his knife with a vicious look in his eyes.

"Send her to the VIP room and let the guests have their fun with her. Wait till they're sick of her before selling her off."

"What about this woman?"

Amber immediately dropped to her knees and put her hands together in a pleading motion.

"Please give me another five more days, Bobby! I promise I'll pay up all 50 million dollars of my debt! If not, then you can go ahead and do whatever you please!"

Bobby thought about it and showed her three fingers.

"Three days."

"Okay, okay. Three days. I'll go and borrow the money now!"

I felt myself being lifted up. I wanted to fight, but I didn't have the strength. I could only watch as Amber rushed out of the room like a bear was after her without even a backward glance.

Two minutes later, I was shoved into another VIP room, rowdy and packed with patrons. Countless guests crowded around me, and someone exclaimed aloud, "Hey, isn't this the boss' beloved crescent moon birthmark on the woman?"

Everyone burst into laughter. "Ah, so she's another brave one who thought of fooling Mr. Addams again!"

"That's normal. If she really played her cards right, she'd be Mrs. Addams by now!"

"Well, unfortunately for her, this lassie lost, so I guess she can only live her dreams in another country now."

A few of them began tearing off my shirt while some others grabbed my ankles. A handful of them thought I was too bloody for them and turned up their noses at me before leaving.

I felt like a discarded dishrag, unable to move or struggle. I could only look up at the gold-colored ceiling above me, my heart filled with resentment.

I had been so close to reuniting with Dad…

Suddenly, the entire room fell hushed, and steady footsteps sounded in my ear.

"Boss, Bobby just said that this woman isn't the real deal either, so he told us to toss her in here."

"Okay. Do as you see fit."

It was Dad's voice from my memories!

However, his footsteps turned away and walked in the other direction.

I panicked. Summoning strength I didn't know I still had, I shouted hoarsely at the top of my voice, "I'm Rosie!"

The footsteps stopped at once, and Dad's eyes stared straight at me.