As a decorated ace pilot who had earned countless Medals of Honor, even after retiring from the U.S. Air Force, I continued to serve as a top-level contracted member of the U.S. National Rescue Team, contributing to my country.

To ensure I could reach any disaster site at the fastest possible speed, the government had even assigned me the latest model helicopter as my personal rescue aircraft.

One day, I received an emergency call and rushed straight to the airport.

I had just finished taking a quick work log photo and was preparing for takeoff when a woman suddenly kicked open the cabin door, storming inside and shouting at me:

“Who gave you permission to fly my helicopter?!”

“I’m going to the island to sunbathe today—get out, now!”

“And these airport staff are useless! Just letting random nobodies up here to take photos and show off!”

I stared at her in confusion, put away my phone, and replied seriously,

“Excuse me, ma’am, you must be mistaken. This is my helicopter.”

Her flight instructor sneered,

“This is the newest helicopter that Jason Miller gave to our Miss. Stop pretending and get out already!”

I froze for a second.

Jason Miller? My fiancé?

He actually gave away the government-assigned rescue helicopter—meant for saving lives during disasters—as a gift to his mistress?

I almost laughed out of anger.

If it hadn’t been for my family saying Jason looked decent enough and that our families were “roughly” a match, I would never have agreed to this engagement with such a spoiled brat.

If the authorities found out they were misusing rescue resources and delaying disaster response, it would mean at least ten years in prison.

But time was tight—I needed to save lives. I had no patience for her tantrum.

“This is my helicopter. Get off immediately. If you delay a rescue mission, you will be punished!”

I was about to close the cabin door when she smashed a stiletto heel onto my head.

My hand slipped, and the cabin door slammed shut. She smugly settled into the back seat.

Clutching my head, I frowned at her. “Are you insane? Do you have a death wish?”

Seeing me talk back, she slapped me across the face.

“Who said you could steal my helicopter?!”

“This is the newest model. Even my instructor, a first-class retired Air Force pilot, finds it difficult to handle. Who do you think you are to even touch it?”

“You’ve taken your little photo—now get out! Or I’ll have someone strip you naked and throw you onto the street!”

I just stared at her, unmoving.

Moments later, she ordered the airport staff and her instructor to drag me out and throw me off the helicopter.

I hit the ground from several meters high, my whole body trembling with pain.

From the co-pilot’s seat, she looked down at me with arrogance.

“Hmph. That’s what you get for challenging me.”

I gritted my teeth and shouted up at them,

“Are you all blind? This helicopter is mine—I only stored it here! It doesn’t belong to Jason Miller!”

But the staff didn’t know the details. All they knew was that every airport in Washington D.C. was under the Miller family’s control. And Jason often used this helicopter to take Chloe Adams on vacations.

“This is Mr. Miller’s favorite Miss Adams. We may not know you, but we sure know her.”

“If you’re going to lie, at least have some proof. She’s on this helicopter every few days—we’re sick of seeing her. You? We’ve never seen you once.”

My chest tightened with rage.

I should never have listened to my future mother-in-law when she said that after drinking the engagement wine, everything—including property—was shared between husband and wife. Foolishly, I had agreed to leave the helicopter at the Miller family’s private airport.

“Fine! Call Jason Miller here right now—I want to confront him face-to-face!”

“I’m his fiancée!”

Chloe Adams immediately dialed his number and put it on speaker.

“Jason, darling, there’s some woman here trying to steal my helicopter. She’s even claiming to be your fiancée.”

Jason’s icy voice came through the phone, sharp and cruel:

“Don’t bother with her. She’s just an ugly nobody!”

“The engagement was arranged by the families—I never cared about it. I didn’t expect her to flaunt it like this.”

“My heart belongs only to you, Chloe, my love. Hurry and take the helicopter to Bermuda Island. I’ve been waiting so long I’m starving…”

His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried clearly enough for everyone nearby to hear.

They all turned to me with looks of pity and scorn.

I clenched my fists silently.

Never mind that the Miller family had been the ones reaching up when our families arranged this marriage.

Right now, I was on an official rescue mission: my task was to deliver evacuation ladders to a cruise ship stranded at sea.

The storm over the Atlantic Ocean was too severe—only my piloting skills could cut through the winds and safely deploy the ladders.

And on that very ship were Jason’s own mother, Margaret Miller, and his younger sister, Lily Miller.

By blocking me from taking this helicopter, he was effectively abandoning his own family’s last chance at survival.

Lives were at stake. I couldn’t play along with their ridiculous love games.

I spoke to him with urgency:

“Jason, I’m here on orders from the U.S. National Rescue Team.”

“The cruise ship in the Atlantic is already starting to sink.”

“If I don’t get in there soon, everyone on board will perish.”

Jason gave a cold laugh.

“What, the rescue team can’t manage without you?”

“You’ve been retired for years. You’re not even officially on their roster anymore—why keep pretending you’re some kind of hero?”

“Did you ever think maybe nobody even asked for your help? That you’re just trying to make yourself the star of the show?”

His mockery cut sharp, all because he had no idea I was once an ace pilot. To him, I was just a washed-up two-year enlistee who clung to military glory.

I tried desperately to explain,

“The storm has reached Category 5 strength. Only my flight skills can handle it!”

“Jason, I’m doing this to save lives, not to oppose you!”

“If you don’t want me as your fiancée, fine—our engagement can be canceled.”

“But give me back my helicopter. Right now, I only care about rescuing people!”

Hearing how little I cared about him, Jason’s anger flared even hotter.

“Stop bluffing. The national rescue team is full of elite pilots, far better than you!”

“You’re nothing but a useless fraud—you’d only get in their way!”

“And even if our engagement ends, it’s because I rejected you. You don’t deserve me, understand?”

I was left speechless by his arrogance.

“Jason, your own family is on that ship. While they’re facing death, you still have the nerve to bicker with me?”

Jason smirked lazily.

“Even if my family is on that cruise, you’re the last person qualified to save them. And don’t try to guilt-trip me with your self-righteous nonsense.”

“There are more professional teams out there—I trust them a thousand times over.”

But the truth was, no one was more capable than me.

I was the only pilot who could pierce through that storm.

And now, I was grounded.

Every minute wasted meant more lives lost.

Including Jason’s own family.

Through clenched teeth, I told him, “Without me, they are doomed.”

Jason burst into laughter.

“Emily Carter, you’re not just delusional—you’re insane.”

Jason stopped speaking to me altogether, pouring all his attention into flirting with his childhood sweetheart.

“Chloe, don’t waste your breath on that lunatic. Hurry to the island—I’ve been waiting forever.”

Chloe Adams pouted sweetly over the phone.

“Alright, I’ll finish things here and come right over.”

“If it weren’t for this annoying woman, we’d already be splashing in the waves together.”

Once the call ended, I knew there was no way I’d be flying this helicopter today.

I turned to leave, planning to grab a cab to headquarters and use another aircraft for the mission.

But Chloe ordered her people to seize me, pinning me against the rough pavement.

Gravel tore into my face, leaving bloody scrapes.

From the helicopter steps, Chloe looked down at me with disdain.

“So, you really are Jason’s fiancée?”

“You’re not even that pretty.”

“Trying to steal my helicopter today—was it just out of jealousy over how much Jason loves me?”

“This talk about the rescue team—it’s all just a lie, isn’t it?”

Through gritted teeth, I snapped back,

“I’m not lying. This helicopter was assigned to me by the U.S. National Rescue Team. I’m an auxiliary pilot under their command.”

“And I don’t envy you. If I’d known Jason already had someone he liked, I never would have agreed to the engagement! I don’t want a man like him.”

My words spoiled Chloe’s little fantasy of “outshining the fiancée, winning the heart of the rich young master.”

Her face twisted with irritation.

She stepped down and drove the sharp heel of her stiletto into my hand.

The spike pierced through my palm, blood gushing instantly.

It felt like my hand had been nailed into the ground. I trembled and convulsed in agony.

“When I say you’re jealous, you are jealous! When I say you stole my helicopter, then you stole my helicopter!”

“Dare to argue again, and I’ll crush your other hand too!”

The pain was unbearable. And the thought of losing the ability to fly forever terrified me.

I caved, gasping,

“I won’t argue… please, get off my hand…”

Chloe pressed harder.

“And why did you steal my helicopter? Out of jealousy, wasn’t it?”

Her heel still pinned me down.

I took a deep breath and forced out the words she wanted to hear.

“Yes… I was jealous that Jason likes you. I wanted to steal your helicopter so you two couldn’t go on your date…”

The moment I said it, Chloe threw back her head in laughter, smug and cruel.

“I knew it! Jason is handsome and wealthy—of course you’re desperate to marry him.”

“But too bad for you, he’s already proposed to me. And I’m carrying his child.”

“Even if his family objects, the only woman Jason wants to marry is me.”

Grinding my teeth, I muttered, “Yes, yes… may I go now, Miss Adams?”

But she wasn’t done humiliating me.

“Tie her to the wing!” she barked.

“If you love Jason so much, then join us on our date.”

I was strapped beneath the aircraft.

To amuse herself, Chloe ordered the flight instructor to pull sharp climbs and spins midair.

My arms couldn’t withstand the strain—both shoulders dislocated.

My body slammed into the fuselage again and again, ribs fracturing, organs bruised and bleeding.

Only when the fuel was nearly gone did the helicopter finally descend roughly onto Bermuda Island.

I was hurled onto the sand, coughing up blood.

Jason stood there on the beach, smiling to welcome Chloe—completely ignoring me.