On Valentine’s Day, Vespera Habsburg received a gift from her husband, an intimate photo at a bar, showing Draven Vaughn with their daughter and another woman.

By the time Vespera arrived, her daughter had been forced by Brielle Luxembourg to drink an entire bottle of liquor, her whole body trembling.

Draven, however, was still holding that culprit and laughed loudly.

Countless mocking looks turned toward Vespera, waiting for her madness.

Vespera tightly hugged her trembling daughter, her eyes red as she stared coldly at the man in front of her.

She wished she could destroy Brielle and Draven apart, but she was concerned about her daughter’s condition.

Once Vespera took her daughter to the hospital for treatment, Draven finally changed into a suit and then slowly stepped closer.

His face was full of sadness.

“Vespera, Brielle didn’t mean to do it. I also never thought this kind of situation would happen. I can compensate for it with a villa in the west suburbs, and Brielle will never show up in front of Amethyst again.”

After speaking, he passed over a document.

Vespera felt empty in her heart. She first thought that, despite her unhappy marriage with Draven, he was still a responsible father.

Yet she didn’t expect he would actually watch helplessly as their daughter being forced to drink alcohol!

Vespera no longer wanted to endure it, yet she still signed her name.

She first thought this was Draven’s belated regret until she heard his conversation with the doctor at the corner of the hospital.

“Doctor, for patient 903, abandon resuscitation. When the time arrives, simply go in and casually provide an oxygen.”

Draven's voice turned too cold.

“But President Vaughn, without resuscitation, Miss Amethyst may have sequelae. Her brain could be damaged,” the doctor said nervously.

Draven said impatiently, “Even if she dies, it has nothing to do with me. She isn’t even my daughter anyway, just the result of Vespera messing around with another man. I already made Vespera sign the letter of understanding. Brielle won’t face any trouble.”

Vespera should have exploded in anger, yet she showed a calm smile.

From the moment Draven said those words, Vespera realized that her marriage with Draven had no chance to go on.

At that moment, Vespera’s phone rang.

The calendar reminded her that the agreement signed seven years earlier had become invalid right then.

She touched the divorce document she had prepared for seven years inside her bag, then decisively turned around and entered the ward.

1

“Mrs. Vaughn… because she was sent to the hospital too late, the young lady’s brain has already suffered damage. I’m afraid in the future…” The doctor’s voice was slightly nervous.

Hearing this, Vespera felt sharp pain in her heart and stumbled back a few steps.

Because of her wishful thinking, she failed to keep her daughter away from Draven, which caused this result.

“Ma’am, the news about Mr. Vaughn and Miss Luxembourg has broken out again. Do we need to suppress it like usual?”

Draven’s assistant stormed into the ward, showing respect on the surface while holding dislike toward Vespera.

If it were before, Vespera would have spared no effort to suppress the news.

In order to be a qualified Mrs. Vaughn, she had handled such news countless times.

To repay the kindness of Octavian Vaughn for saving her own father, Vespera signed the agreement and became the chain that bound Draven.

But after Casimir Habsburg was rescued, he got into another car accident, leaving him in a coma.

All these years, to repay Octavian’s kindness and cover her father’s medical expenses, Vespera endured Draven’s abuse.

She put on the identity of Mrs. Vaughn. No matter how Draven tried to provoke her, Vespera always stayed calm.

Even if her heart was in pain, she would still perfectly fulfill Mrs. Vaughn’s duties.

And Draven’s reason for mistreating her was very simple.

Octavian forced Draven to marry Vespera, believing she could make him settle down.

Vespera also knew this was unfair to Draven and treated him with great care.

Draven slowly developed feelings for Vespera.

However, right before the wedding, Draven’s first love was kidnapped and tortured until she died.

All the evidence pointed to Vespera, and Draven came to hate her with all his heart.

No matter how much Vespera explained, Draven refused to believe her.

On their wedding day, he even found a woman identical to his first love and let her lie on the bed that was originally meant for them.

Vespera shouted, argued wildly with Draven, and even suggested divorce.

But in the end, she lost to reality.

With that, Vespera compromised. She put on the identity of Mrs. Vaughn and focused only on her daughter.

But now, the agreement period had already ended, and she no longer needed to go against her heart.

Thinking of this, she said coldly, “Draven’s affairs have nothing to do with me. Whether you suppress it or stir it up, it has nothing to do with me.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the ward door was suddenly pushed open, and Brielle’s playful laugh drifted in.

“Brother Draven, I said I needed to come say sorry. Look, Vespera is upset.”

Vespera suddenly looked up. She never thought Brielle would dare appear so boldly in her daughter’s hospital room.

Seeing her daughter’s reddened face and remembering how Draven had just coldly told the doctor to give up resuscitation, Vespera immediately stood up.

“What are you doing here? Get out of here right now!”

Draven laughed dismissively.

“Why aren’t you keeping up that Mrs. Vaughn posture anymore? Why didn’t you suppress the news about Brielle and me this time? Haven’t I compensated you? Are you still dissatisfied?”

While speaking, he pulled Brielle into his arms and kissed her deeply.

Vespera quickly moved to stand in front of her daughter, fearing she might suddenly see this scene.

Brielle pretended to be shy and softly punched Draven’s chest, smiling as she spoke, “Brother Draven, how could you behave like this in front of them? Even if Amethyst might never wake up, letting Vespera see this still makes me shy.”

Hearing this, Vespera’s gaze grew cold.

Brielle, that culprit, still dared to curse her daughter in front of her!

Vespera could no longer bear it. After confirming that her daughter was still unconscious, she immediately moved, hurried in front of Brielle, and slapped her hard across the face.

“Brielle, do you really think that with Draven supporting you, I can’t do anything to you? Get out of here!”

Brielle never expected Vespera to actually hit her. Covering her red, swollen cheek, she looked at Brielle with tearful eyes.

Vespera didn’t hesitate to grab Brielle’s arms, wanting to push her out of the ward.

Brielle instead followed her force, cried out, and fell downward.

Draven was mad. He dragged Brielle into his arms, completely disregarding Vespera as he knocked her heavily to the floor.

Vespera’s waist slammed against the sharp corner of the hospital bed. She groaned while blood soaked into her white dress.

Draven didn’t even look at her injury and shouted, “For a bastard child, you actually dared to hit Brielle. You’re completely insane!”

“Amethyst is not a bastard!” Vespera shouted.

Draven scoffed. “I didn’t come back that night at all. You were drugged, and shortly after, you became pregnant. You still want to blame this bastard on me?”

Vespera’s eyes were red as she looked at the two people before her.

“I’ve said it already, you can look at the paternity test. You can arrange one yourself, too. Why haven’t you done it?”

Brielle smiled mockingly. “Of course, Brother Draven already did the paternity test. Amethyst is nothing but a bastard. Draven is far too kind; he didn’t expose you before his parents and even allowed you to remain Mrs. Vaughn.”

Vespera tugged at her lips. Even if Draven didn’t reveal the so-called paternity test to Octavian and Lavinia Vaughn, it had nothing to do with loving her.

It was only to keep her close and torment her.

And that paternity test was fake, because Amethyst was Draven’s biological daughter!

Back then, Draven drugged Vespera after Brielle provoked him with a few words.

He even pushed another man into her room, simply because Brielle wanted to see if Vespera could still defend her innocence.

They even made a bet right in front of her.

If Vespera had not fought with all her strength, that man would have already succeeded.

And Draven, as if it were normal, hugged Brielle and turned to head to the bar.

That night, he came back drunk and had a night of passion with Vespera, who had been locked in the room and was still under the effects of the drugs.

The following day, Draven remembered nothing about it.

With Brielle influencing him, he became convinced that Vespera was not pregnant with his child.

It was from then on that Vespera had Amethyst, and she stopped reacting the way she once had, no longer losing control over Draven’s behavior.

She officially became Mrs. Vaughn.

Regaining her composure, Vespera looked at the cold Draven before her and understood that no matter how much she explained, he would never believe her.

She suppressed every emotion, looked at them calmly, and took out the prepared divorce papers from her bag.

“Draven, I don’t want anything to do with your affairs anymore. Sign it.”

Looking at Vespera’s expression, calm like still water, Draven’s heart trembled for a moment.

As if trying to hide something, he immediately tore up the divorce agreement she handed over and shouted angrily, “Vespera! You still haven’t paid for your sins. You want a divorce? Keep dreaming!”

Looking into Draven’s angry eyes, Vespera found the situation absurd.

She had already suffered under Draven for so many years. Her dignity, body, and emotions had all been damaged beyond repair.

And Draven had never believed a single word she said, blindly blaming everything on her.

Vespera felt like a prisoner sentenced to a lifetime imprisonment by Draven.

For a brief moment, she felt a bit discouraged.

Brielle, at the side, revealed jealousy and hatred in her eyes upon hearing Draven’s words.

She had long wanted to take the position Mrs. Vaughn, but because Draven wouldn’t agree to a divorce, everything fell apart.

Brielle looked at Vespera with bitter eyes and forced a fake smile.

“Brother Draven, Vespera loves you so much that she won’t even let me stay near you. How could she truly want a divorce? This is likely just another move to draw your attention.”

Understanding appeared in Draven’s eyes, and the corner of his mouth curved into a smile.

Brielle reached out and grabbed Vespera’s hand, her nails pressed deep into her arm, yet her face still held a fake smile.

“Vespera, if you keep using this kind of method, you won’t live long. Maybe Amethyst hasn’t woken up because of you.”

Vespera’s eyes widened. She forcefully shook off Brielle’s hand and raised her arm, wanting to slap her.

The next moment, Draven caught her arm and pushed her away without restraint.

He shielded Brielle behind him, looking at Vespera with disgust.

“You still dare to hit Brielle right in front of me?! Which word did she say was wrong?”

Vespera only pressed her wound and stayed silent.

Seeing how calm she looked, the panic in Draven’s chest rushed back again.

He felt the urge to say something.

But Brielle, in his arms, suddenly cried out in pain, looking at him with that familiar face and pleading.

Draven instantly forgot everything else.

He picked up Brielle and turned to leave, never once looking back at Vespera.

Watching Draven’s determined back, Vespera lowered her gaze.

She stood up and pulled out her phone to call Octavian.

“Dad, the agreement we signed seven years ago has reached its end.”

On the other side of the phone, Octavian went quiet for a short while before letting out a heavy breath.

“It was Draven who failed you. I will settle this matter within one week. I will have half of Draven’s assets transferred to you and consider it as compensation.”

After discussing things with Octavian, Vespera went back to the villa.

As long as one more week went by, she could take her daughter and leave Draven.

For the first time in seven years, Vespera felt relaxed.

She packed up everything in the room, tossing all the few keepsakes Draven had once given her, things she had always treasured, into the trash bin.

And those costly pieces of jewelry, every single one of them was proof of Draven shaming her.

Each time Draven was with another woman outside and slept with her once, when he came home, he would hand Vespera another piece of jewelry.

Draven would even demand that Vespera wear those pieces of jewelry when attending important events.

Outsiders only saw how much Draven spoiled his wife.

Only Vespera knew that every time she put them on, it was a quiet humiliation to her.

Thinking about this, Vespera contacted a merchant who recycled jewelry.

Those past humiliations would soon turn into money, warming the future days of her and her daughter.

Right at that moment, Draven suddenly called. Vespera’s fingers slipped, and she answered directly.

Draven and Brielle’s tangled bodies appeared in front of Vespera.

Brielle’s moans, Draven’s heavy breaths, all mixed together, made Vespera feel deeply sick.

In the past, she would have already been unable to stand it, ending the video call and even thinking about this matter again and again.

But now, she simply set the phone aside and muted it, continuing to organize her things.

On the other side of the video call, seeing that Vespera showed no reaction at all, Draven felt awkward and angry, his movements growing more forceful.

The Brielle beneath him moaned even louder, but Vespera’s side stayed, had no reaction at all.

Draven angrily ended the video call and called again.

“Vespera, you actually dare to block my video call? Do you still want your father’s medical expenses paid?”

Vespera stayed silent. Draven took it as if she was backing down, mocking as he spoke, “I’m in Holston, room 888. Bring me a box of condoms, or don’t blame me if Brielle ends up pregnant.”

After saying that, he immediately ended the call.

If this had been before, Vespera would have been easily pushed into losing control by Draven.

But now, she calmly placed a delivery request on her phone.

Not long after, the second-hand dealer replied.

Looking at the amount on it, Vespera finally smiled.