I picked up my phone and called her, frowning in frustration. “Selene, where are you hiding my father? Don’t push your luck.”

On the other end of the line, she swirled a glass of wine in her hand, her voice cold as ice.

“Until you hand over the evidence, you’ll never see your father again.”

I couldn’t believe it. She was using my father’s safety as leverage. Had all her so-called love for me been nothing but an act?

Even though I hated her with every fiber of my being, my heart still ached from her heartless betrayal.

I closed my eyes in agony, my voice hoarse and dry. “Where are you? I’ll bring you the evidence right away.”

When I arrived at her place, I found out she had given the Stars Cluster apartment, once a gift for me to Alaric. As I stepped inside, everything that once belonged to us was gone, replaced by an entirely new aesthetic.

I clutched my chest, where only sorrow remained.

Then Selene came downstairs, hand-in-hand with Alaric. I raised my hand, holding the USB drive between my fingers.

“Selene, I brought what you wanted.”

“If you want it, then tell me where you’ve locked up my father.”

Alaric’s smile widened in triumph as he saw the USB in my hand. He knew that as long as Selene was around, there was no problem he couldn’t solve.

“He’s in my private hospital,” he said smugly.

As soon as I got the answer, I threw the USB drive at Selene’s face.

There was no time to waste. I turned and ran.

When I finally found my father’s ward, I froze in the doorway. One of his legs was gone.

I stood there, stunned, unable to believe what I was seeing. Tears streamed down my face, hitting the cold hospital floor. Every step I took felt like nails piercing through my feet. I was on the verge of collapse.

“Dad! How did you lose your leg? You only fell from the second floor! It shouldn’t have cost you your leg!”

My father stirred at the sound of my sobbing and opened his weary eyes to look at me.

“It was Alaric” he said weakly. “He forced the doctor to amputate my leg.”

“What? Him?”

He wasn’t satisfied with destroying my mother, he had to ruin my father too.

The fury in my heart ignited and I felt like tearing Alaric apart with my bare hands.

Just then, my lawyer called.

“Xavier, check the latest news.”

I picked up the remote and turned on the TV. All the news reports were spinning the same lie, that my mother had been drunk and crossing the street recklessly when she was hit by a car.

But my mother didn’t drink. And she didn’t cross the road. It was clear Selene had fabricated the video to protect Alaric.

They already had the crucial evidence, without it, they could twist the story however they liked.

I was shaking with rage and my father, watching the broadcast, was so devastated, he coughed up blood.

Since my mother’s death, my father’s health had worsened day by day. He had even been thrown from a building.

And now this.

I felt utterly helpless.

“Xavier,” he said weakly, “don’t blame yourself. Ordinary people like us can’t win against the rich and powerful. Just give up the appeal. I don’t want you to end up in danger too. I couldn’t bear it.”

But I couldn’t accept it. I refused to accept it. And yet, there was nothing I could do to touch Alaric.

As I walked out of the hospital, I heard people gossiping, cursing my mother, saying she’d tried to extort money and had gotten herself killed. They said she deserved it.

I lost control and lashed out, arguing back—only for them to recognize me as her son.

They all backed away from me, sneering.

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

“Maybe he’s just here to extort money too.”

Two days later, I took my father out of the hospital and held a funeral for my mother.

Halfway through the ceremony, a loud commotion erupted outside.

Flower wreaths were kicked over and the white funeral banners were torn and shredded.

I rushed out in fury, only to be tackled to the ground. Alaric had ordered his men to pin me down and force me to kneel.

His mother walked up, grabbed my chin and slapped me hard across the face.

“You little beast. Your mother tried to blackmail my son and you dare sue him? Report him to the police?”

“Do you really think the Dreadmoor family will let that slide?” “Hit him! I’ll make sure his mother can’t even rest in peace!”

“No! Stop it!”

My father limped out with his cane to protect me, but Alaric shoved him to the ground.

Hatred surged through me, giving me the strength to break free. I picked up a chair and charged at Alaric, slamming it into him.

Before I could react, someone behind me kicked me into the wall.

Then Selene appeared. She only saw the aftermath, not the beginning. And truthfully, I don’t think she cared.

“Selene,” Alaric cried, “I only brought my mom to apologize, but he attacked me. Ahh! It hurts so much!”

Selene helped him up and looked at me with cold indifference.

“Xavier, did you not take my words to heart? I told you this matter should end here, but you refused to listen.”

“It’s not like that! He brought people to disrupt the funeral...”

“No, we didn’t! He’s lying!”

Suddenly, Alaric burst into tears and collapsed dramatically.

Mrs. Dreadmoor seized the moment.

“My son developed depression because of what your mother did. He’s even tried to commit suicide. Please… give him a chance to live.”

Everything I said, Selene refused to believe. But anything that came out of their mouths, she believed without question.

“Someone, destroy the funeral.”

“Xavier, this is the third time. If you go against me again, I’ll make sure you never forget it.”

After saying that, they carried Alaric out. But just before leaving, he opened his eyes and grinned at us wickedly.

My father saw my mother’s black-and-white photo being destroyed and collapsed from the shock.

Terrified, I rushed him to the hospital.

Once he was stabilized, I grabbed my phone and dialed an unfamiliar number. The moment the call connected, I broke down.

“Please help me… I’m truly at the end of my rope.”

“Does the promise we made still hold?”

In the cold hospital corridor, only the sound of my sobs echoed.

Moments later, I received a video call from Alaric.

“Hmm, crying so pitifully? Too bad, Selene has always been on my side.”

“You know, I killed your mother while drunk driving. She was still alive when I hit her. But I hated how her blood stained my car and scared my dog… so I stepped on the gas and sent her to the afterlife.”

“You see this white pipe? It’s the leg your father broke when I threw him off the building. I forced the doctor to amputate it and turn it into a pipe. A souvenir. Just for you.”

“Hahaha!”

I clenched the phone, trembling with rage.

“You’re a monster. You’re no different from the beasts who slaughtered our people.”

“Oh, you picked up on that? I saw it in a documentary about how Nazis used human bones to build parts of their crematoriums.”

“Alaric, I curse you. I curse you to die a miserable death.”

I had lost my mind. I was ready to risk everything. If I had to go down, I would take him with me.

I swung the knife at him with all my fury. Alaric only laughed, shouting for help like it was all part of his plan.

Selene’s bodyguards raised their guns and a shot rang out, hitting my hand.

“Xavier, you’re insane! You really tried to kill someone with a knife!”

Rage flooded my vision, turning everything red. A fire burned deep in my chest—one that no one could extinguish.

“Yes, I’m insane,” I growled. “And as long as I’m still breathing, I’ll kill him.”

“Selene,” I snapped, glaring at her, “don’t give me that heartbroken, disappointed look. You make me sick.”

“Fine. You asked for it,” she said coldly. “Tie him up and cripple his legs. Let’s see if he still wants to kill.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

“Selene, you’re not human. You’re a monster!”

“What are you all waiting for? Do it!” she barked over her shoulder.

Panic surged through me. Somehow, I broke free from the restraints and bolted out the door. That’s when the hospital called, my father had passed away.

The news hit me like a brick wall. I froze and that split second of stillness gave them the chance to catch me.

They tied me down, pinning me so tightly I couldn’t move.

I shut my eyes in despair.

Bang!

The sound of a gunshot rang out. My eyes flew open. I knew she had come.