Vanessa Bennett fell onto the icy floor, the smugness on her face disappearing instantly, replaced by a bone-chilling coldness. She propped herself up and slowly sat up, brushing the dust off her skirt. Her eyes, venomous like a snake soaked in poison, locked onto me.

“Clara Bennett, who do you think you are now?” she hissed. “You actually dared to push me?”

She turned her head toward the bodyguards standing by in the corner of the villa, her tone sharp and commanding, leaving no room for refusal.

“Hold her down.”

The two bodyguards exchanged glances, hesitating as they looked from me—still crouched on the floor picking up the fragments—to Vanessa’s dark, threatening expression. Just as they were about to speak, Vanessa cut them off with a vicious glare.

“Don’t forget whose money you’re taking,” she said coldly. “You work for Liam Foster. You’re his people.”

Each word struck precisely where it hurt. “Think carefully—right now, who do you think matters more to him?”

The bodyguards fell silent for a brief moment. In the end, they clearly saw the situation for what it was. They stepped forward quickly, one on each side, gripping my arms and forcing me down onto the sofa, pinning me so I couldn’t move.

Watching this unfold, I suddenly laughed. My laugh was hoarse, bleak. Tears mixed with those I hadn’t finished crying earlier rolled down my cheeks.

“So everyone knows,” I said, my voice trembling, “that in Liam Foster’s heart, you—Vanessa Bennett—are the most important one. And I’m the only fool who kept clinging to a last shred of hope, believing that his care for you was just for my sake.”

Before that absurd illusion could even fade, Vanessa had already turned and walked over to the coffee table. She picked up a decorative dagger. The moment it slid from its sheath, cold light flashed. Gripping the dagger, she walked toward me step by step, her eyes filled with cruel delight.

Hiss—

The sharp blade slashed across my cheek without warning. A piercing pain exploded instantly, racing through my nerves and into every corner of my body. I shuddered violently, struggling desperately, my voice hoarse and barely recognizable.

“Vanessa Bennett, don’t you dare! Aren’t you afraid Liam will call the police? I’ve been with him for so many years—what makes you think you can replace me?!”

“Replace you?”

Vanessa laughed wildly. With a flick of her wrist, she carved another deep, bone-revealing cut into my other cheek. Blood surged out at once, streaming down my face.

She bent down, pressed close to my ear, and whispered in a voice only the two of us could hear:

“Clara Bennett, I told you a long time ago—even if I killed you, Liam wouldn’t blame me one bit.”

“You—and your dead mother—were nothing but stepping stones for me to climb higher.”

As her words fell, she went mad with the dagger, slashing across my face and neck again and again. One bloody gash followed another. Blood dripped like broken beads, soaking my clothes and splattering onto the sofa cushions.

I struggled with everything I had, but against two grown bodyguards, my strength was laughable. I could only watch helplessly as the dagger struck me again and again.

In the end, Vanessa seemed to find the dagger unsatisfying. She tossed it aside and raised her hand, slapping my face hard.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

The crisp, brutal sounds echoed through the living room, each one like a hammer smashing into my heart. My consciousness began to blur. The burning pain in my face nearly robbed me of all sensation. My vision turned crimson as warm blood flooded my eyes and mouth, the metallic sweetness filling my nose.

“Well?” Vanessa grabbed my hair, yanking my head up so I had no choice but to face her. Her eyes were full of revengeful pleasure as she spoke slowly, word by word.

“Do you know what you did wrong now?”

“When I was nine years old, your mother slapped me in front of everyone and called me a mistress’s daughter—said I was disgraceful, that I embarrassed the Bennett family.”

“And now, I’m going to let her see from the grave how her precious legitimate daughter gets slashed ten times and slapped a hundred times—until she’s even more pathetic than me.”

As she spoke, she bent down, picked up the broken pieces of the silver bracelet from the floor, clenched them in her hand, and smashed them viciously into my face. The shards cut into my skin, bringing pain even sharper than the blade.

The agony in my chest intertwined with the pain on my face. I couldn’t take it anymore. A mouthful of blood burst from my lips. My vision went black, and I lost consciousness completely.

Before everything faded, I vaguely heard the villa door being flung open, followed by Liam Foster’s furious shout:

“Stop!”

…

I didn’t know how long it was before I slowly opened my eyes. The familiar smell of disinfectant filled my nose. I was back in the hospital.

Liam Foster sat on the chair beside my bed. There was a trace of barely perceptible concern on his face, and his voice was softened deliberately.

“Clara, what happened today… Vanessa was too impulsive. You’ve suffered.”

My entire face was wrapped in thick gauze, leaving only my swollen, reddened eyes exposed. I blinked. A sour ache rose in my dry eyes. My voice was hoarse, as if scraped raw by sandpaper.

“Did you call the police?”

Liam’s gaze flickered. A trace of guilt flashed through his eyes before he quickly steadied himself and looked away.

“Vanessa… after all, she’s your own sister. This was indeed her fault. I’ve already punished her properly. Don’t dwell on it anymore—focus on recovering.”

“How did you punish her?”

My voice was devoid of emotion—calm to the point of terror.

Liam hurriedly pulled a small box from his pocket and opened it. Inside lay the repaired silver bracelet. He handed it toward my bedside and said in a low voice:

“When she slashed you, her palm was also cut by the dagger. She bled quite a bit. I’ve punished her by making her stay home, no going out, and no touching anything sharp. Clara, that should be enough. Don’t make things too ugly between everyone.”

My gaze fell on the repaired bracelet, then slowly lifted to Liam’s hypocritical face. Suddenly, I let out a miserable laugh. The movement tugged at the wounds on my face, making my whole body tremble with pain.

“Liam Foster, do you remember?” I asked softly. “You once said you’d protect me for the rest of my life. That you’d never let me get hurt.”

His eyes dimmed, as if memories from the past had surfaced. His lips moved, as though he wanted to say something.

But before he could speak, I suddenly sat up, gathering every ounce of strength I had left, and slapped him hard across the face.

Smack.

The sound was sharp and piercing in the quiet hospital room.

“Get out!” I screamed, my voice breaking with despair. “The thing I regret most in my entire life is knowing you—being with you!”

Liam stood there stunned, his cheek burning, confusion filling his eyes. After a few seconds, as if something had occurred to him, his expression gradually calmed.

His tone turned weary, almost indulgent.

“I know you’re very angry right now. Your emotions are unstable. The doctor said you need rest. Calm down. I’ll come see you in a few days.”

He stood up and turned to leave. When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped, turned back to look at me, and spoke lightly—yet with a faint, unmistakable threat.

“And one more thing. I don’t want to hear what you just said ever again. Otherwise, I’ll take it seriously.”

With that, he left the room without looking back and closed the door behind him.

Silence fell instantly.

I collapsed back onto the bed, clutching the blanket. The sobs I had been suppressing for so long finally broke free—heart-rending, desperate, yet muffled, because I was afraid of pulling at the wounds on my face.

Tears soaked into the pillowcase, mixing with the still-drying blood.

Bitter.

And utterly hopeless.

It wasn’t until a week later that I saw Liam Foster again in the hospital lobby.

Perhaps knowing he’d been far too biased before, he deliberately brought Vanessa Bennett along this time, saying he wanted her to apologize to me in person.

Vanessa clung affectionately to Liam’s arm, her tone light and casual, without a trace of sincerity.

“I’m sorry, Sister. What happened that day was all my fault. I caused you such serious injuries. You’re the bigger person—please don’t hold it against me.”

I lifted my eyes and glanced at her calmly. My gaze was as still as stagnant water, without the slightest ripple. I didn’t respond. I didn’t even slow my steps. I simply turned around and walked straight back to my ward, leaving the two of them standing there.

Vanessa’s expression collapsed instantly. She looked at Liam with wounded eyes, tears welling up without warning.

“Liam… is Sister still angry with me?”

Liam watched my retreating back in silence. There was a hint of nostalgia in his eyes, and his tone was firm.

“No. She’s always been soft-hearted. She never truly holds grudges.”

But when they reached my room and pushed the door open, they saw me lift my hand and toss a familiar USB drive into the trash can beside the bed.

Liam’s pupils shrank abruptly. He strode forward, disbelief lacing his voice.

“Clara Bennett, what are you doing?!”

That USB drive held years of our memories—photos from our first date, videos from our trips together, recordings of him singing me a birthday song. I used to treasure it, keeping it in the deepest pocket of my wallet, never letting anyone touch it. And now, I’d thrown it away like garbage.

Before Liam could say anything else, I slid the engagement ring he’d given me off my finger. My fingertips loosened slightly, and with a soft clink, the ring fell into the trash can after the USB drive.

My tone was flat, utterly calm, as if I were talking about something trivial.

“Nothing. I just think Vanessa was right. Useless trash belongs in the trash.”

After that, I turned and walked away without looking back at either of them, heading straight for the doctors’ offices to complete my discharge paperwork.

Liam’s face drained of color instantly. His fingers trembled, his eyes filled with shock and panic. Vanessa, on the other hand, let out a soft scoff. Leaning close to his ear, she whispered provocatively so only he could hear.

“Liam, look—your sincerity was trampled on so easily.”

Liam stayed silent for a long time. His Adam’s apple bobbed several times before he finally spoke, his tone stubbornly reassuring himself.

“No. When she calms down, she’ll pick the USB drive and the ring back up.”

“We’ve been together for so many years. Our relationship runs deep. She won’t really break up with me over something this small.”

As his words fell, I returned holding my discharge papers—and heard every word clearly.

A cold, mocking smile curved my lips. I didn’t stop. I walked straight toward the exit.

Liam Foster, you’re far too arrogant.

No one waits in place forever. And no one will keep compromising endlessly for a relationship that has long since rotted away. Breakups are never caused by a single small incident, but by countless heart-chilling moments piling up until the final straw snaps.

Liam clearly noticed the mockery in my eyes. His expression darkened further. The three of us stood frozen at the ward entrance, none of us speaking.

Not long after, Liam received a phone call—something urgent at the company. He left first. Before going, he deliberately instructed Vanessa to accompany me home properly.

The car held only Vanessa and me. The silence was suffocating, pressing down on my chest. Then, halfway through the drive, a violent explosion of sound tore through the air—

Bang!

A massive impact hit us. The car lost control and flipped violently. The sudden weightlessness made my head spin. I instinctively grabbed the seat belt, but my body was still flung hard. My forehead slammed into the window with a sickening thud, sharp pain erupting. Before I could even react, a runaway cargo truck crashed straight into us. Heat and shattered glass rushed toward me.

My body, barely recovered from severe injuries, couldn’t take it. My vision went black, and I lost consciousness.

I didn’t know how long passed before I slowly came to.

When I opened my eyes, I realized Vanessa and I were tied up with ropes, suspended high in an abandoned warehouse. Beneath us roared a blazing fire. A massive pot of oil boiled violently, splattering scorching droplets that could fall on us at any moment.

My head was still dizzy. I tried to recall the details before the crash, confusion swirling in my mind. But when I turned my head, I saw that Vanessa wasn’t afraid at all. She was smiling, watching me like it was a show.

“Sister,” she said lightly, amused, “I heard that after Dad kicked you out back then, you fell into severe depression. It was Liam who slowly pulled you out of that abyss, wasn’t it?”

Her tone was playful, cruel.

“Now that your last bit of hope is gone… do you feel like giving up and killing yourself?”

The ropes bit painfully into my wrists, as if they might snap them. Yet I felt nothing. My eyes darted around the warehouse, desperately searching for anything that might help us escape.

Vanessa didn’t care about my reaction. She continued smugly, enjoying every word.

“Honestly, I should thank you. Back then, it was you who rescued Liam from human traffickers. That’s how I used it as an excuse to get close to him… and slowly replace you.”

“What did you say?”

My breathing stopped. Every drop of blood in my body seemed to freeze.

My memory was yanked back to a summer more than ten years ago.

On my way home from school, I was abducted by traffickers and locked in a dilapidated shack. Later, when they weren’t paying attention, I secretly untied myself and the other kidnapped children and led them in a desperate escape. We hadn’t run far before my strength failed and I collapsed.

I had always believed Liam found me afterward. I never imagined—

Vanessa looked at my stunned expression, her smile widening, malice spilling from her eyes.

“That’s right. I took credit for it. I told Liam it was me who risked my life to save him.”

“For all these years, you and your dead mother were nothing more than stepping stones for me to climb higher.”

The moment her words ended, the heavy warehouse doors were kicked open violently.

Liam Foster rushed in with a group of people, his voice cutting through the air—

“Stop!”

There were bloodstains on Liam Foster’s impeccably tailored suit—no one knew where they came from. The sight made him look disheveled, rushed. His gaze darted between the two of us hanging in midair. When his eyes landed on the boiling oil pot beneath us—rolling violently, heat waves surging upward—his pupils contracted sharply. His entire body froze, his breathing turning rapid and heavy.

Seeing this, Vanessa Bennett’s eyes instantly filled with tears. Large drops rolled down her cheeks as she looked at Liam, choking back sobs, every bit the picture of a terrified victim.

“Liam… I’m so scared. Please save me. I don’t want to die here.”

Perhaps because our struggling had been too violent, the rope above us suddenly began to sway. The already weakened joint creaked loudly, then snapped partway with a sharp crack. Our bodies dropped several inches at once, leaving less than half a meter between us and the seething oil. A scorching wave of heat rushed toward us, hot enough to burn skin.

At the brink of life and death, Liam didn’t hesitate for even a second. He sprinted straight toward the only ladder nearby, climbed it swiftly, and cut the rope binding Vanessa. He pulled her tightly into his arms, murmured a few words of comfort, then turned to climb down. He didn’t look back even once, leaving me only with his cold back as he said flatly:

“Clara, hold on a little longer. Once I get Vanessa out safely, I’ll come back and save you.”

I watched his unhesitating retreat and suddenly laughed. My laughter was hoarse, bitter, and soaked in irony, even as tears spilled uncontrollably. The man before me overlapped with the boy from my memories—the seventeen-year-old who used to wait for me after school with an umbrella on rainy days, who would press the sweetest candy into my palm, who held my hand and swore with utter seriousness that he would protect me for the rest of his life and never let me be hurt.

As if sensing my gaze, Liam paused for a fraction of a second while carrying Vanessa down the ladder and instinctively glanced back at me. In that look, there seemed to be a trace of hesitation—or maybe it was just my imagination.

Before I could see clearly, his men shouted urgently from nearby:

“Mr. Foster, it’s too dangerous here. Get Miss Bennett out first!”

At the same time, a vague voice echoed in my mind—a boy’s voice, anxious and urgent:

“Clara Bennett, don’t be afraid. Don’t believe him anymore…”

Liam didn’t hesitate again. Holding Vanessa, he strode toward the exit. By then, my body was nearly brushing the edge of the oil pot. Scalding droplets splashed onto my skin, sending sharp jolts of pain through me. I forced myself onto my tiptoes, pressing them against the ground at the pot’s edge, barely managing to keep from sliding any lower. I couldn’t even spare a thought for the soles of my shoes burning from the heat.

In Liam’s arms, Vanessa deliberately turned her head to look at me. Her eyes were filled with provocation and triumph. She didn’t speak—she only moved her lips, silently forming the words:

See? I won again.

Liam set Vanessa down in a safe spot and was just about to turn back and rush into the warehouse to save me when my voice rang out behind him—cold, resolute, final.

“Liam Foster, don’t bother. Take her and go. From this moment on, there is no relationship between us anymore.”

His steps halted abruptly. He froze, then turned back to look at me, shock written all over his face.

At that moment, Vanessa suddenly cried out and grabbed her calf, her brows knitting as she looked at Liam through tearful eyes.

“Liam! I think my leg got burned by the splashing oil just now. It hurts so much…”

Liam’s gaze dropped to the reddened skin on her calf. He hesitated for only a heartbeat before making his choice. He bent down, scooped Vanessa up in his arms, and hurried toward the exit, only managing to say one apologetic sentence over his shoulder:

“Clara, wait for me a little longer! I’ll be right back!”

Wait for you?

There was no need.

Watching him carry Vanessa away in a rush, the last faint spark of hope inside me went out completely. At that exact moment, the rope above my head snapped with a sharp crack and broke apart entirely. I instinctively curled my body and used the momentum of the fall to roll sideways, barely avoiding the boiling oil—but my forehead slammed hard into a jagged stone on the ground. Blinding pain tore through me.

In the final second before I lost consciousness, I thought I saw a hallucination—eighteen-year-old Liam standing in the sunlight not far away, dressed in a clean white shirt, smiling and clapping for me, his eyes bright and gentle. He looked nothing like the cold, biased man he had become.

…

When I woke again, it was the familiar hospital room. The smell of disinfectant filled my nose, making my stomach churn. The nurse beside me noticed I was awake and spoke softly:

“Miss Bennett, you’ve practically lived in the hospital this past month. Your body’s too weak. There’s no one here taking care of you—would you like us to call a family member?”

I lay on the bed, thick gauze wrapped around my head, my burned calf sending waves of piercing pain. I turned my head and saw Liam sitting on a chair beside the bed. My voice was hoarse, barely recognizable.

“That kidnapping was staged by Vanessa Bennett. I’m calling the police.”

Liam stayed silent, his fingers curling slightly. After a long pause, he finally spoke, guilt rare in his tone.

“Vanessa… she was hurt too this time. The burn on her leg is pretty serious.”

He paused, trying to persuade me.

“And she’s your own sister. Do you really have the heart to see her taken away by the police and left with a criminal record?”

I stared at him in disbelief, my eyes filled with fury and mockery.

“Liam Foster, are you out of your mind?”

“She almost killed me! Even if she were my full-blooded sister, I have the right to call the police and the right to hold her accountable!”

“I’ll compensate you,” Liam cut in quickly, his voice full of remorse. “Didn’t you always want a wedding of the century? Once you’re discharged this time, we’ll start preparing immediately and get it done. As long as I’m here, no one will ever bully you again.”

“Who wants your compensation? Who wants your wedding of the century?”

I raised my hand and slapped him hard across the face. The sharp smack echoed through the quiet room.

I screamed, releasing all the rage and despair I had bottled up for so long:

“Liam Foster, the only person who’s ever bullied me is you! I’m breaking up with you—right now, this instant!”

His head snapped to the side from the blow. His cheek burned, and his eyes were filled with shock, as if he had never imagined I could be this resolute. He stood frozen for a few seconds, about to speak, when hurried knocking suddenly sounded at the door.

A caregiver rushed in, flustered.

“Mr. Foster, Miss Vanessa Bennett in the next room says if she doesn’t see you, she won’t let us apply her medication and keeps crying. Should you go check on her?”

Liam’s body stiffened. After only a moment’s hesitation, he stood up and turned toward me, his tone perfunctory, soothing in name only.

“Clara, I’ll go see Vanessa first and make sure she gets her treatment. You rest here and don’t overthink things.”

“Don’t worry. This time, the wedding definitely won’t be postponed. I’ll give you a proper explanation.”

With that, he didn’t linger. He pushed the door open and strode out of the room, never once looking back at the deathly pale look on my face.