After his female assistant crashed her car into my sister, my CEO fiancé, the man who once adored me beyond reason, swore he would make her pay. However, instead of punishing her, he promoted her to my position at work. He claimed that the higher she climbed, the harder she would fall.

He spent millions at an auction to buy her a bracelet and even bought her dog a luxury mansion as a kennel. Every time, he told me the same thing: it was all part of his revenge plan and that I needed to endure it a little longer.

My sister suffered a brain hemorrhage caused by complications from the accident and urgently needed surgery. Desperate, I begged my fiancé to return the salary he had managed for me over the years. He agreed and told me to get his assistant's approval for the withdrawal.

When I submitted the request, she rejected it for incomplete documentation. After I finally gathered everything she asked for, she smiled, said office hours were over, and told me to come back tomorrow.

My sister died before tomorrow could come. Only then did my fiancé call to comfort me.

“Tell Dolly to wait a few more days for her surgery. Everything I’m doing is to get revenge on Sylvia and avenge Dolly. During her celebration banquet the day after tomorrow, I’ll take back everything I gave her and ruin her completely. After that, we’ll get married. You and Dolly will finally be happy.”

By then, I finally understood. His so-called revenge was nothing more than an excuse for the way he indulged and favored his assistant.

When my sister died, whatever remained between us died with her.

Before my fiancé, Grayson, could finish feeding me another empty promise, I hung up without another word.

Seconds later, my phone exploded with messages.

[Jade, what are you throwing a tantrum for now? I already told you. Indulging Sylvia is just part of my plan for revenge.]

[We’re only delaying the surgery for three days. Your sister isn’t going to die. Besides, I already promised that I’ll marry you once I’m done ruining Sylvia. I’m putting myself on the line here. Why can’t you and your sister endure it a little longer?]

A bitter laugh escaped me.

Over the years, the phrase Grayson had said to me most often was, ‘Endure it a little longer.’

A year ago, after Sylvia crashed her car into my sister on the way to bring me an umbrella at work, Grayson swore he would avenge Dolly for me.

However, he promoted Sylvia and gave her my managerial position instead.

After that, he spent millions at an auction to buy her a bracelet and even bought a luxury villa for her dog to live in. Every single time, he told me the same thing: it was all part of his revenge plan, and I needed to endure it a little longer.

He said that once Sylvia climbed to the very top, he would strip everything away from her and destroy her completely.

I believed him.

I watched Sylvia rise higher and higher and their relationship grow closer and closer.

However, the revenge I kept waiting for never came. Instead, I received news of Dolly’s death.

I came back to my senses when the crematorium staff put the urn in my hands.

I thought it would be heavy. Instead, it was terrifyingly light.

The little sister I once struggled to carry with both arms could now be lifted easily with one hand.

Only then did I truly realize that the girl who used to smile and call me Jadie was gone forever.

If Sylvia had not deliberately stalled my salary withdrawal request, Dolly could have survived.

The surgery had a near-perfect success rate. However, Dolly was taken from this world forever just because I could not gather the money in time.

I would never be able to forget the bluish tint of Dolly’s face as she struggled to breathe before she died. Nor could I forget how, even in unbearable pain, she still forced herself to smile just to comfort me. She had been so heartbreakingly thoughtful…

My chest tightened with grief.

I was about to arrange Dolly’s burial when reality hit me. The cremation had drained most of my savings, so I could not even afford a cemetery plot now.

I unlocked my phone, intending to borrow money, only to realize that the only name left in my contacts was Grayson’s.

Grayson disliked the smell of alcohol, so over the years, I turned down one gathering after another. Little by little, I lost touch with my friends. I spent every day with him only, and in the end, I did not even have a single person left to borrow money from.

I was left with no choice, so I brought Dolly’s ashes back home first.

I stood in the doorway and looked down at my worn-out socks and shoes, their soles peeling and paint flaking. I looked painfully out of place in this lavish, gilded villa.

For years, Grayson had claimed he was saving up for our marriage by holding on to my salary and tightly controlling my spending.

Whether it was using a frayed toothbrush or my clothes coming apart at the seams, I never complained. I even turned down an overseas offer from a top tech company, choosing instead to stay by his side and carry this burden with him.

In the end, I lost everything.

Sylvia stole my career, and now, she had taken away my sister, my only family.

It was time I started planning things for myself.

With that thought in mind, I called the overseas tech company.

“I accept your offer. Give me three days. I’ll start working abroad after that.”

They agreed immediately, almost too quickly, as though they were afraid I would change my mind.

Just as I hung up, a voice came from behind me.

“What’s this about going abroad?”

Grayson had returned at some point.

I did not even look up and brushed him off.

“My friend is going abroad and asked for my opinion on something.”

He let out a cold laugh.

“Stop lying. Who else do you have, aside from me?”

Realizing he had gone too far, he patted my shoulder.

“Don’t be childish. I’m only making you and Dolly wait for now because of my plan for revenge.”

Then, he took out his phone and transferred $100 to me.

“Use this to buy Dolly some nutritious food and toys. Just don’t let Sylvia find out. She’ll make a fuss again.”

He complained about Sylvia, but the affection in his eyes was impossible to hide.

We were supposed to be the real couple, yet I felt like the one who did not belong, like a rat hiding in the shadows.

At first, Grayson truly had been set on avenging Sylvia. Every time a plan succeeded, he would turn to me with a tender, knowing look.

I played my part well too, putting on the act of being devastated, believing we were one step closer to revenge.

However, slowly, something changed. The way Grayson looked at Sylvia grew more and more admiring, even affectionate. His indifference and impatience toward me no longer felt like an act.

He did not seem to realize that his so-called revenge had long since gone off course.

I sent the money back to him. My throat burned with bitterness.

“Grayson, we…”

Should break up.

Before the words could leave my mouth, I heard the electronic door lock’s code being keyed in from outside.

Sylvia walked in and froze when she saw us.

“Grayson, didn’t you say you came back to get my birthday gift? Is this it?”

She strode forward and shoved me aside. Her voice was sharp with disgust.

“Jade, how can an ex-girlfriend like you have the nerve to keep living in your ex-boyfriend’s house like some parasite? Have you no shame?!”

The air turned suffocatingly awkward. Grayson broke the silence. He opened a drawer, took out a scarf, and handed it to her with a gentle expression.

“I didn’t lie. I did come back for your gift. I didn’t expect Jade to be here, asking for money.”

I had once believed he had the scarf custom-made for me. In the end, it was just another illusion I had mistaken for Grayson’s love.

Sylvia refused to take the scarf. She raised her hand arrogantly.

“Don’t think you can brush me off. Give me your phone!”

Grayson let out a helpless sigh and handed it over.

Sylvia caught sight of the transfer he had just made to me. Her expression twisted in anger as she knocked the scarf to the floor.

“Grayson, you’re secretly sending her money? If you still can’t let go of the past, why did you come to me at all?

“You put me in charge of your finances, so you’re supposed to trust me. If you don’t, I’ll resign right now!”

She stormed out.

Grayson, who was usually so calm and composed, immediately lost his composure and chased after her.

After a few steps, he seemed to remember something. He stopped abruptly, turned back, and grabbed my hand, gently shaking it like he always did when he was coaxing me.

“Just wait a little longer. Everything will end in three days. I’ll make it up to you properly then.”

He left in a hurry.

It was the same way he always coaxed me, soft and familiar. Once, it had been enough to make me yield every time.

However, I felt nothing but disgust now. I wiped my hand over and over with a tissue, as though I was trying to erase his touch.

I let out a cold laugh as I watched him from behind.

He still did not know that I would be leaving this country the day after tomorrow.

He also did not know that the moment my sister died, whatever we had died with her.

…

After Grayson left, I put Dolly’s ashes away properly and bought a flight ticket to Freedonia, departing the day after tomorrow.

Then, I turned on my computer and submitted my resignation to his company online.

After that, I started packing.

While sorting through my things, I accidentally came across an old photo.

In it, Grayson and I looked young and carefree, standing on either side of Dolly and holding her hands. We were all smiling like we were on top of the world.

We met in university. After my parents died unexpectedly, Dolly and I were left alone.

I once planned to drop out and work to support her.

Grayson stepped in, offering to fund our education and even sending us our monthly living expenses.

I was grateful to him. When his family went bankrupt, I stood by him and helped him rebuild everything.

Those days were hard, but we were happy.

He was not just good to me. He adored Dolly too. He would queue for her favorite toys, and when he learned she loved dancing, he enrolled her in classes himself.

However, everything changed when Sylvia came into our lives.

A year ago, Sylvia hit Dolly with her car. Dolly suffered permanent damage to her leg and could no longer dance.

Six months ago, Grayson removed me from my position as part of his so-called revenge plan against Sylvia.

This morning, Dolly saw him buying a car for Sylvia. She tried to stand up for me, but Sylvia shoved her to the ground. It triggered a brain hemorrhage, and because Sylvia refused to approve the emergency salary withdrawal, my sister died.

He promised to ruin Sylvia. In the end, I was the one who lost everything.

I let out a cold laugh and tore the photo into pieces, tossing it into the trash.

After packing, I was about to sleep when Grayson sent a message.

[Sylvia’s throwing a tantrum. I need to calm her down tonight. I won’t be back.]

Ever since Sylvia joined the company, he had stopped updating me entirely.

I only felt a brief flicker of surprise at him letting me know this before putting my phone away and turning it off.

I slept until I naturally woke up the next day. It was already late afternoon.

I was about to go to the company to resign when I opened the door and saw Grayson’s bodyguards standing outside.

“Miss Lowe, Mr. Shaw is looking for you.”

Without giving me a chance to refuse, they took me straight to City Hall.