Sevlene’s POV

When I woke up again, I was lying in a hospital bed again.

My phone was filled with missed calls and messages from Cortey.

[Sevlene, where are you? I searched the entire party hall but couldn’t find you.]

[Did you get hurt? Please reply as soon as you see this.]

[You’re not making a drama again, are you? Ignoring my messages on purpose? If you keep this up, I’ll really get angry.]

His patience was quickly wearing thin—worry turning into irritation.

It hadn’t always been like this. Before, if I accidentally fell asleep and didn’t reply for an entire night, he would only be concerned something had happened to me. Even if he was abroad on business, he would catch the next flight back just to make sure I was safe.

I guessed people would really change in no time.

Swallowing the bitterness in my chest, I finally sent a reply.

[I’m fine. I’ll be home soon.]

By the time I got back home, it was already late in the evening.

Cortey was still at the company. But the living room door was left open.

When I stepped inside, I froze.

Charlee was lounging lazily on the couch, toying with a opal bracelet in her hand.

The blood in my veins turned cold.

That bracelet… It was my mother’s keepsake. Before she passed, she had asked the doctor to give it to me.

I could never bring myself to wear it, so I had locked it away in the safe.

How… How the hell could it be in that manipulative woman’s hands?

I didn’t care about anything else. My body moved on instinct as I lunged forward to snatch it back.

“That’s my mother’s. Give it back!”

But Charlee slipped away nimbly, climbing onto the couch and holding the bracelet high above her head.

“This?” she sneered. “Daddy gave it to me. Last night, I was so shaken up I simply told him I liked your bracelet. Just like that, he smashed open your safe and took it out for me.”

She tilted her head, eyes full of mockery. “Sevlene, do you still not get it? Cortey doesn’t love you anymore. He’s in love with me now.”

My voice trembled with urgency.

“I know. I have no intention of fighting with you. I’ll leave him soon. You two can be together.”

Her lips curled as she tucked the bracelet away, studying me with malicious amusement.

“Who asked for your blessing? I don’t want to be ‘given’ to him. I want to snatch him. That’s what makes it fun.” She gave a cold laugh. “We come from the same kind of background, so why did you get to meet a good man like Daddy while I was nearly sold off to old men as their plaything?”

She spat the words like poison. “You’re obviously not better than me in any way. You don’t deserve the position you’re in. Being his wife? It should have been me.”

With a twist of her wrist, she flaunted the bracelet. Her smile turned wicked.

“You want it back so badly? Too bad. I’m not giving it to you.” Taunting me, she laughed maniacally.

Rage surged through me, breaking past the dam I had tried so hard to hold. My hand shot up before I could stop myself.

The slap rang sharp and loud across her cheek.

And in the next second, Cortey’s furious voice cut through the air.

“Sevlene! What the hell are you doing?!”

I turned. He was standing in the doorway, his expression thunderous as he stormed toward me.

“I’ve warned you before—don’t upset Charlee. If her emotions fluctuate and her health index drops, how will she continue to donate blood to your mother?”

His tone dripped with accusation. “Besides, your mother isn’t even dead yet. There will be plenty of chances for her to give you things in the future. It’s just a cheap bracelet. Why can’t you let Charlee have it? We’re husband and wife—she’s my daughter, which makes her your daughter too.”

My heart clenched. He didn’t even know. He didn’t know my mother had already passed away.

There would be no more gifts to receive from her. Ever.

I furrowed my brow, forcing out each word like ice.

“Don’t try to dress this up as something noble. You know exactly what kind of relationship you two have. Now give me back my mother’s bracelet!”

Perhaps it was my words that ignited his anger. His face darkened as he snatched the bracelet from Charlee’s hand.

Then, right in front of me, he hurled it to the floor.

The gemstone shattered instantly, splintering into pieces that scattered across the floor.

His cold and merciless voice rang in my ears.

“You’re just jealous of how well I treat Charlee. That’s why you insult her. I told you—she’s someone very important to me. You dared slander her, so I destroyed what was most important to you in return.

“Sevlene, I hope you’ve learned your lesson from this. Charlee is here to join our family—not to be your punching bag.”

With that, he took Charlee’s hand and led her away.

That bitch threw me a triumphant look over her shoulder, her eyes full of smug victory.

But I had no energy left for anger.

My knees gave way, and I sank to the floor. One by one, I began picking up the fragments of the shattered opal.

Sharp edges cut into my skin, leaving tiny trails of blood, but I felt nothing.

All I knew was that I had to gather every single piece and tuck them safely into my pocket. I was terrified… that if I was one second slower, I would lose them forever.

Sevlene’s POV

That very night, Charlee sent me a video.

In the video, she was sitting tipsily on Cortey’s lap, her voice soft and coy.

“Daddy, I really think Mrs. McEnroe doesn’t like me at all. And every time I donate blood, it hurts so much… Daddy… I don’t want to do it anymore.”

Cortey’s eyes filled with distress. He pulled her into his arms, his voice gentle as he coaxed, “If it hurts, then you won’t do it anymore. I’ll find someone else with a matching blood type. You’re the most important person to me, Charlee. I won’t let you suffer the slightest bit of harm.”

As he spoke, Charlee leaned closer and pressed her lips against his. In the next instant, Cortey clutched the back of her head and deepened the kiss without hesitation.

The video ended there.

But the impact it left on me felt like a violent collision straight into my soul.

It was utterly disgusting.

I saved the video and forwarded it to an anonymous number.

[There are only five days left before I leave. When the time comes, send this video along with the other evidence I’ve already given you. This one should be highlighted. Make sure it’s broadcasted on every big screen.]

What Charlee didn’t know was that every secret provocation she made behind Cortey’s back, I had quietly recorded and handed over to a hacker.

That night, I didn’t sleep. Instead, I gathered all the gifts Cortey had given me over the years and threw them away.

Even our wedding photo—I tore it from the wall, smashed it to pieces, and tossed it into the trash along with the five years of my marriage.

The next day, Cortey didn’t come home. But Charlee did.

The moment she walked in and saw my packed luggage, she let out a mocking laugh.

“Don’t tell me you’re planning to pull a runaway-wife act just to get Daddy’s attention? Useless. He’s already completely in love with me now.”

She tilted her chin, her voice dripping with provocation. “Yesterday was my first time. I even begged him to be gentle, but he wouldn’t listen. He wore me out until morning.”

As she spoke, she deliberately exposed the hickey marks scattered across her neck.

“You’ve been married to Cortey for years. Did you even know he likes being called ‘Daddy’ in bed? Yesterday, I screamed myself hoarse, but he still wouldn’t let me stop.”

My fingers tightened around the recorder in my hand. I swallowed down the nausea clawing at my throat and sneered, “To be a mistress and still act this shamelessly. Wow. You must be proud of yourself.”

She spat sharply, her eyes flashing with contempt.

“Please. The one who isn’t loved is the real mistress.”

Her tone grew colder. “And you don’t even need to bother with this pathetic runaway act. I only need one move to prove to you who he truly cares about.”

Just then, the sound of a familiar engine roared in from the courtyard.

In the next heartbeat, Charlee grabbed a vase from the table and smashed it against her own head.

Blood immediately streamed down from that crazy bitch’s forehead as she crumpled to the floor, a pitiful figure.

She glared at me through tears, her voice breaking as she accused, “Mrs. McEnroe, I promised I’d keep donating blood for your mother, but do I not even have the right to fall in love? Just because you saw these hickeys on my neck, you demand I break up with him?! Isn’t that too cruel?”

Her sobs were delicate and pitiful, as though she were the most wronged woman in the world.

Before I could even respond, a figure charged into the room.

It was Cortey. He shoved me with such force that I crashed onto the coffee table, my head slamming hard against its sharp corner. Blood instantly blurred my vision.

Meanwhile, he scooped Charlee into his arms, holding her as though she were the most fragile treasure on earth.

His eyes blazed with fury as he glared down at me.

“What the hell, Sevlene?! How could you keep targeting Charlee again and again? I’ve made up my mind—she’ll never donate blood to your mother again! Since you’re so ungrateful, figure out a way to save her yourself!”

Sevlene’s POV

I clutched my throbbing forehead, struggling to explain myself.

“I didn’t do it. She staged the whole thing just to frame me—because she wants to take you away from me!”

At that, Charlee burst into louder sobs.

“Mrs. McEnroe, you can hate me if you want, but you can’t insult me like that. My family was destroyed by a mistress—I would never do something so vile!”

Cortey’s gaze turned sharp and filled with disgust as it landed on me.

“Only a lunatic would use her own body as a weapon. Sevlene, you’re not just malicious. You twist the truth and push the blame onto others. You… You’ve disappointed me more than I can say.”

Without giving me another chance to speak, he yanked me to my feet and shoved me into the basement.

“All these years, I gave you too much love. It made you arrogant and reckless. Stay here and reflect. You won’t come out until you admit your mistake.”

With that, he carried Charlee away in his arms, ignoring my desperate pounding on the door. No matter how I begged, he remained unmoved.

The basement was damp and suffocatingly dark. My body, already sensitive to cold and damp air, instantly broke out in unbearable itching.

My throat felt as though someone had sprinkled itching powder inside it—burning, raw, and torturous.

I clawed at my skin until it bled, but nothing eased the agony.

Finally, I collapsed against the door, tears streaming endlessly down my face.

“Let me out… please…”

Days passed, and Cortey never came back. He left me to rot in that basement… to endure the torment alone.

It wasn’t until the cooling-off period for our divorce had ended that the door creaked open. Edna stood there, her face twisted with a cold smile as she looked down at my nearly lifeless body sprawled on the floor.

“If you’d listened to me in the beginning, you wouldn’t have ended up like this.”

Her lips curled. “While you were suffering here, my son was taking Charlee everywhere, sweet and inseparable, like two lovers in the flush of romance. He never once thought of you.”

My heart was already numb. Nothing about Cortey could stir my emotions anymore.

Finding me unresponsive, Edna sneered in disappointment. She ordered someone to drag me out of the basement, and then she tossed a divorce certificate at my feet.

“Go. I’ve already arranged everything for you.”

I picked up the document woodenly, nodded without a word, then gathered my mother’s urn and bracelet before getting into the car Edna had prepared.

Cortey’s POV

Meanwhile, Cortey had just stepped off the plane. Five days earlier, in an attempt to make up for the harm I had caused Charlee, he had taken her to Paris for a vacation.

Now that their trip was over, he rushed home. He needed to let me out of the basement quickly.

After all, he knew about my allergy to cold, damp air—if left there too long, I would relapse.

He hadn’t meant for me to suffer more than a little.

Besides, he had already found a new blood donor for my mother. Tonight, the transfusion could finally be arranged.

Anxiously, he hurried into the villa, heading straight for the basement.

“Sevlene,” he called, his tone almost reassuring, “Charlee’s too timid and afraid of pain, so I’ve found someone else to donate blood. Tonight, we can help your mom.”

But when he flung the basement door open, the space was empty. I was gone.

His brows furrowed in confusion. He turned to check the security footage, only to come face to face with his mother.

She stood there, a faint and mocking smile tugging at her lips.

“Looking for Sevlene?”

Cortey’s chest tightened at her words. “Mom, was it you who let her out? Where is she now? I need to take her to see her mother.”

His mother scoffed, her voice dripping with scorn.

“Oh, honey, your heart has strayed so far that you didn’t even notice her mother passed away a month ago. Unfortunately for you, Sevlene’s already gone. She only left this behind.”

With that, Edna tossed a divorce agreement into his arms.