The auction officially began. I gripped my paddle tightly, waiting for Lot 47.

At last, the auctioneer raised the pearl necklace. "Lot 47, a pearl necklace. Opening bid, five million dollars."

I raised my paddle immediately. "Five million dollars."

"Ten million dollars," came Serena's voice from right beside me.

I looked over. She was all smiles, her paddle raised.

"15 million dollars," I said, raising my paddle again.

Serena didn't even pause. "20 million dollars."

The price started to soar. 30 million dollars. 50 million dollars. 80 million dollars…

Sweat slicked my palms. My lawyer had said everything I owned was worth about 100 million dollars in total, but the price had already climbed to nearly 120 million dollars.

"120 million dollars."

Serena raised her paddle with ease, as if she were naming a trivial number.

The auctioneer looked at me. "Ma'am, would you like to continue?"

My hands trembled. I couldn't raise the paddle again. I didn't have enough.

All eyes were on me, Daniel's included. Swallowing my pride, I turned to him.

My voice shook. "Daniel, lend me some money, please. This necklace was my mother's. It's the only thing she left me."

Daniel looked at me. Something complicated flickered in his eyes. Just as he reached for his black card, Serena turned to him as well.

In a sweet, wheedling tone, she said, "Danny, I had nothing growing up. This is the first necklace I've ever truly loved. Could you ask Freya to let me have this one?"

She caught his sleeve, her eyes bright with expectation.

Daniel looked between Serena and me, silent for several seconds—seconds that felt like an eternity.

"Let Rena have it," he said at last.

A chill ran down my spine. My world collapsed around me.

The auctioneer's voice rang out. "120 million dollars, going once! 120 million dollars, going twice!"

I wanted to beg Daniel again, but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out.

"120 million dollars—third and final call! Sold!"

The instant the gavel fell, my heart went cold.

Thrilled, Serena clapped and turned to me. "Freya, thank you!"

Smug satisfaction was written all over her face.

After the auction, Serena said she had a headache, and Daniel went to get her medicine. I sat alone in the lounge, watching the staff clear the items away.

Ten minutes later, Serena came to the backstage area and stopped in front of me.

I got to my feet to meet her. "Serena, would you trade me the necklace for something else?"

She lifted a brow. "Trade it for what?"

I forced myself to stay calm. "I have a sports car and a few high-end watches. The total doesn't come to 120 million, but if you give me a little time, I'll make up the rest. All I ask is that you return the necklace."

Serena shook her head. "I don't need those."

"Then what do you want?"

She thought for a moment, then smiled. "I want you on your knees, begging."

"What?"

Something vicious flickered in her eyes. "Get on your knees, apologize, and beg me for the necklace. After how you treated me before, it's your turn to beg."

I stared at her, my fists clenched. Thinking of Mom's keepsake, I sank to my knees.

"Good. Let me show you where the necklace is," she said.

Serena wore a triumphant smile as she took out her phone. She pulled up a video and handed it to me. On the screen, a dirty stray wagged its tail, a pearl necklace around its neck.

It was Mom's.

Serena's smile turned sickly sweet. "See? This is where it is now. I think it suits the stray perfectly. A bitch's things belong with a dog."

My blood went cold. "What did you just say?"

Serena put her phone away. "I said a bitch belongs with a dog. Wasn't your mother a bitch? She deserved to be hit by a car and die. Now her keepsake is on a stray. That fits, doesn't it?"

"Which hand did you use to put the necklace on the dog?" I asked, my voice so soft I could barely hear it.

Serena was still grinning. "My right hand. Why?"

I snatched the dinner knife from the table and plunged it into her right palm. Blood spurted, and she let out a piercing scream.

Serena's scream tore through the auction's backstage area. The staff nearby froze. Some screamed. Someone was already on the phone, calling an ambulance.

I let the dinner knife go and straightened up. I looked at Serena, who lay on the floor, clutching her hand and sobbing. "I, Freya Seymour, settle my scores then and there. Remember it."

As I turned to leave, a commotion erupted behind me. I headed straight for the exit, my steps steady, as if nothing had happened.

Just as I reached the doorway, Daniel blocked my path. He had a blanket in his arms and a thermos in his hand, clearly just back from picking up medicine.

The moment he saw me, he went livid and barked, "What did you do?"

I glanced at the thermos in his hand and gave a wry smile. "You went to get her medicine?"

Daniel's voice went colder. "I'm asking you, what did you do?"

I met his eyes. "She put my mother's necklace on a stray dog and called my mother a bitch. So I stabbed her."

His face stiffened. "What did you just say?"

I pointed at his earpiece. "Didn't you already hear it all? Your men should've reported to you by now."

He was indeed wearing a discreet earpiece. It was obvious he already knew what had happened before.

His voice was cold. "Even if she put the necklace on a stray, you don't get to lay a hand on her!"

That line shattered me. I looked at him, tears gathering in my eyes. So that was how he saw it—I shouldn't fight back even if Serena insulted my late mother.

My voice trembled. "Daniel, how exactly do you intend to put me in my place this time?"

At the sight of my tears, a flicker of hesitation crossed his eyes. But almost at once, his expression turned cold again.

"I can't deal with you anymore." Daniel pulled out his phone. "Mark, call the police and request officers at the auction hall. Freya is to be arrested for intentional assault and taken to the station."

His voice was merciless, and my heart was already bleeding.

Ten minutes later, two uniformed officers came in.

"Ms. Freya Seymour, you're suspected of intentional assault. Please come with us."

I didn't resist. I held out my hands and let them cuff me.

As they led me away, I looked back. Daniel was holding Serena, her hand already bandaged. He was gently soothing her.

"It's alright. I'm here," he said, stroking her hair. "No one will hurt you again."

Serena cried in his arms, like a wounded little animal. And I was led off like a criminal.

When I was pushed into jail, a group of women closed in on me.

"New here? What are you in for?" The one in front was big, tattoos covering her arms.

I frowned. "Mind your own business."

She grinned. "Well, aren't you a feisty one? You know the rules? Newcomers pay for protection."

"I don't have any money."

Her face darkened. "No money? Then you'll have to pay another way."

That night, they doused me with a basin of ice water. The next day, I found glass shards in my food. On the third day, they started beating me.

Before they laid hands on me each time, the woman in charge would say the same thing. "Mr. Falkner said you need to be taught a lesson."

It turned out Daniel had set the whole thing up. He didn't just want me locked up. He wanted me to suffer there.

I was released three days later. It was my last day in Belcaster.

I walked out of the jail covered in bruises, and the glare was so harsh I couldn't keep my eyes open. A wave of dizziness hit me as I reached the gate. The world spun, and I went down.

…

I woke to find myself in a hospital room again.

Daniel stood at my bedside, hands in his pockets. He asked in a detached voice, "Did you learn your lesson this time?"

I stayed silent under Daniel's questioning. He stood by the bed, waiting for my answer. But I just stared at the ceiling.

Then, his phone rang.

Serena's tremulous voice came through the line. "Danny, my hand hurts so much…"

Daniel's expression softened at once. "I'll be right there."

He hung up, looked at me, and said, "Think hard about what you've done."

And with that, he walked away, just like so many times before, leaving me behind for Serena. Once again, I was alone in the hospital room.

The door swung open about an hour later. Serena walked in, her right hand heavily bandaged, though she seemed in good spirits.

"Freya, how are you feeling?" she asked, concern edging her voice.

I turned my head toward her, but said nothing.

She pulled a chair over and sat, a sweet smile on her face. "Freya, I want to tell you a story."

"I don't want to hear it."

"But the story is about you." A glint of smugness flashed in her eyes. "It's about why Danny agreed when Mr. Seymour asked him to keep you in line."

My hands clenched.

Serena began, "Danny was my boyfriend in high school. Back then, we were close. He took care of me and remembered everything I liked. He even said he'd marry me after graduation. But then something happened."

She paused, watching my face. "One night, people from a rival company cornered him. To save him, I stepped in and took a knife for him."

She pointed at her left shoulder. "It went through here. I almost died. Since then, Danny's been eaten up by guilt. He swore he'd spend the rest of his life protecting me, making it up to me."

I said nothing, but my heart kicked into a run.

"After that, I went to Norvane to recuperate, and Danny promised he'd marry me as soon as I came back."

Serena leaned closer, her voice turning venomous. "We stayed in touch the whole time. I told him my mother had married into the Seymour family, and that the Seymour heiress mistreated her day after day.

"It broke my heart. So Danny said he'd get revenge for my mother. That's why he offered to keep you in line himself."

Serena beamed. "You thought Mr. Seymour forced him? Wrong. Danny asked for it himself."

My blood ran cold. "What did you say?"

"There's more," she said, taking out her phone. "Did you know there was surveillance on you every time you were with him?"

"What?"

"Danny installed hidden cameras in the bedroom. He recorded it every time you were together." Her smile twisted further as she went on. "He said he'd hand me those videos as a weapon to keep you in line."

The world started to spin.

Serena stood up. "Freya, are you shocked? Danny never loved you. He was just doing a job. Now that it's done, he's going to marry me."

She walked to the door and looked back at me. "By the way, I've already made a copy of those videos. Cross me again, and I'll put them online."

After she left, I sat on the bed for a long while. Her words kept replaying in my head.

Daniel had offered to keep me in line for Serena, to avenge her. He'd recorded all our private moments.

All at once, I jumped up, yanked the IV out, and bolted out of the hospital room. A nurse called after me, but I ignored her.

I burst out of the hospital, flagged down a cab, and told the driver to go as fast as possible toward Falkner Estate. I had to see for myself whether what Serena said was true.

20 minutes later, the cab pulled up at the gates of Falkner Estate.

I used the spare key to unlock the door and headed straight for the study. There was a hidden room in the study. I knew the code.

I keyed in the code, and the wall slid open, revealing what was behind it—several computers, a wall of surveillance monitors, and all kinds of recording equipment.

I sat at the main computer and opened the file browser. Inside a folder named "F", I found an encrypted subfolder. It was called "FreyaPrivate".

My hand started to tremble, but I opened it anyway.

The screen brimmed with video files, neatly organized by date. From the first night we slept together to the last, every video was there. I opened the first one.

Footage of Daniel and me flickered to life. We tangled together, every detail clearly recorded. It even caught me saying "I love you" in his arms, capturing every fragile moment of weakness and need.

My legs went weak, and I fell to my knees.

So what Serena said was true. Daniel really had recorded it all.

I laughed at myself for being so foolish and naive, and before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face.