Chapter 4

He ordered the bodyguards to hold me down.

"Lock her in the room on the second floor. Board up the windows. No one lets her out without my say-so!"

Jeffrey imprisoned me. He took my phone, cut the internet.

After my brother died, a part of me died too.

I sat in the dim room for days, refusing food, refusing water.

Jeffrey would occasionally visit me.

"Cynthia, be good. Your enemies are everywhere out there. Only here are you safe. I have to give Maisie the title. For the child's sake. But my heart is only ever been yours. From now on, just stay obediently in the villa. I'll take care of you for the rest of your life."

Looking at his devoted face, I felt nothing but nausea.

I wanted to live. I wanted to live carrying my brother's last wishes.

I stopped resisting and became compliant.

Jeffrey was pleased. He thought I'd finally accepted my fate.

To boost the Tucker Group's stock, Jeffrey announced a high-profile, lavish wedding to Maisie.

On the eve of the wedding, I clutched Jeffrey's coat, humbly begging him.

"I agree to be your lover, but I want my phone back. It has photos of my brother, and I want to keep them as a memento."

Jeffrey, softened by my meekness, tossed the phone to me.

Late at night, I found a blind spot in the security cameras and picked up a weak, unsecured Wi-Fi signal from a neighboring estate.

I input a string of long-buried codes.

It was my brother's last trump card left for me.

"Queen is awake. Coordinates: Boland, Tucker wedding venue. Cover my extraction. All units, assemble."

Three seconds later, the screen lit up.

"Received, Queen."

I wiped all traces, then looked out the window at the cold moon, a frosty smile curling my lips.

On the day of the wedding, the scene was set on a cliffside lawn, with dignitaries gathered and flowers scattered on the ground.

Maisie, in a custom gown that cost more than a house, swept into the dressing room.

She shooed everyone else out. Leaning close, her breath hot and hateful in my ear, she whispered, "I heard they couldn't even find a whole piece of your brother's body after the explosion. Today is the day your beloved man marries me. We'll use all this happy energy to mourn that deadbeat."

I turned to look at Maisie.

"Yes, indeed, he deserves a proper tribute."

The wedding began.

The priest recited the vows.

Maisie and Jeffrey were about to exchange rings when a loud explosion echoed from afar!

Boom!

The luxury yachts docked nearby erupted in a chain reaction of fireballs.

Following this, the manor's power system suddenly went offline, and the alarm sounded loudly.

"What's happening?"

"There's a fire! Run!"

Guests screamed, scrambling in panic.

Bodyguards frantically shielded Jeffrey and Maisie, retreating backward.

During the chaos, I ran toward the cliff edge.

"Cynthia! What are you doing! Come back!"

Jeffrey noticed me first, shouting in terror as he shoved Maisie aside and rushed toward me.

I stood outside the railing at the cliff's edge.

The turbulent deep sea stretched out behind me.

I watched Jeffrey run toward me, a smile of final liberation on my face.

"Jeffrey, if there's a next life, I never want to meet you again."

As Jeffrey let out a soul-shattering scream, I dove into the abyss without a second thought.

Jeffrey fell to the cliff's edge, shouting helplessly into the void.

But below, hidden in the cliff's shadow, a small, sleek submersible was waiting. It caught me seamlessly.

I took the black trench coat offered by a crew member, shrugging it on, wiping the saltwater from my face.

I turned to the man beside me. He was Caleb Jackson, Jeffrey's biggest business rival, and an old acquaintance of Jaxon's.

I gave the order coldly. "Set sail. From now on, call me Queen."