Chapter 2 Car Accident

With chilling finality, Ivy declared, "Let this be known. Lacey has no claim to this family. From this moment forward, we are no longer connected."

Ivy's cruel declaration struck Lacey like a physical blow, the weight of betrayal pressing down on her chest. And then, as if all the despair inside her had found its release, Lacey began to laugh.

The sound was broken, wild, and laced with madness-a sharp contrast to the stillness of the street.

Lacey's laughter echoed with hopelessness, sadness, and a sense of profound loss. With every uncontrollable chuckle, her tears fell freely, the weight of her realization suffocating her.

She had never imagined that those who had set her on this path to ruin would be the ones she had loved, trusted and respected. How blind she had been to their hypocrisy, their deceit, their cruelty.

As the pain in Lacey's heart began to fade, it was replaced by something colder, sharper-numbness. Her gaze now held a steely determination, their intensity transforming into a cold, resolute gleam. She couldn't afford to wallow in helplessness-she needed to uncover the truth, to find the evidence that would exonerate her.

Without warning, the deafening roar of an engine shattered the tense stillness behind Lacey, and an unsettling sense of impending danger crept over her. She spun around just in time to see the woman behind the wheel-a sight that sent a chill running down her spine.

Janessa had discarded her previous demeanor, her once-soft expression now twisted with fury and malice. Her eyes, filled with venom, locked onto Lacey. "Lacey, just go to hell!" she spat, her voice laced with hatred.

In an instant, Janessa slammed her foot onto the accelerator, sending the red sports car surging forward like a predator ready to strike, as though the vehicle itself sought to swallow Lacey whole.

The moment seemed to stretch on forever, the sports car bearing down on Lacey with terrifying speed. But just as the distance between them closed, a sleek Rolls-Royce emerged from nowhere, its powerful engine roaring as it slammed into the side of the red sports car. The force of the collision was immense, both vehicles hurtling toward a nearby tree.

The Rolls-Royce crashed violently, the front of the car crumpling as it impaled the trunk of the tree, the hood buckling under the impact. Thick smoke billowed from the engine, engulfing the area in a haze.

The man behind the wheel, blood from his head trickling down his neck, seemed barely conscious-but his eyes, despite the obvious pain, flickered with a smile. He had arrived just in time to save Lacey from a certain disaster.

Staggered by the sight, Lacey collapsed to the ground, her breath shallow and erratic. "Rhett!" she cried, her voice a raw plea filled with desperation.

She had failed him, and now, standing at the edge of this moment, she finally understood. She should have listened-should have stayed far from the Whites.

With all her remaining strength, Lacey scrambled toward him, her voice breaking as she begged, "Rhett, please, hold on! Don't leave me!"

At that moment, the red sports car revved again, its engine roaring with power. Without warning, it barreled forward. A deafening crash followed, and Lacey's slender form was flung through the air, her white figure briefly suspended before crashing violently to the ground. Blood began to pool beneath her, soaking through her skirt in a vivid splash of crimson.

The sound of clicking heels echoed through the stillness, growing louder until Janessa appeared in Lacey's blurred vision. She crouched down, her gaze cold and triumphant as she looked upon Lacey, whose face was now a distorted mask of pain. A faint gleam of twisted satisfaction danced in Janessa's eyes. "Oh, my dear sister, you're already beyond saving. Consider this mercy-no need for thanks."

Blood flowed freely from Lacey's mouth, ears, and nose, but with every last ounce of strength she could summon, she managed to rasp, "Why?"

The question hung heavy in the air-why had Janessa turned her back on her? Why, after giving everything back, had she not been allowed peace? What could possibly drive her to this point?

Janessa's eyes blazed with an intensity that seemed to pierce through Lacey, her fury palpable as she raised her hand and struck Lacey hard across the face.

"You took everything that was mine," Janessa hissed, her voice low and seething with contempt. "For twenty years, you wore my life, my legacy, as your own. A simple mistake, a nurse's error, and you-you, the daughter of a fisherman-took my place, basking in the White family's prestige. While I was cast aside, ignored, and degraded, you lived in the light, relishing in everything that should have been mine."

Her breath was shaky, anger building in every word as she drew closer. "Everything you possess, all your success and status, was stolen from me. And now, everything I lost-every single piece of it-I will take back, starting with you."

Blood welled up in Lacey's mouth, her chest tightening with pain as she struggled to breathe, each breath more ragged than the last. "But... I returned everything..." she managed to whisper, her voice filled with a quiet plea for understanding.

"Not nearly enough!" Janessa hissed, her rage twisting into something colder, darker. "I won't be satisfied until you're dead."

Her voice was laced with evident hatred. When those words left her mouth, she felt much better. She took a deep breath and put on her usual facade of obedience and gentleness.

Her lips curved into a serene smile as if she hadn't just uttered such cruelty. "Well, now that you're on the brink of death, let me tell you the truth; everything that's happened today? Every ounce of your misery? I orchestrated it. You were drugged and sent to that hotel by your so-called bestie. I edited the messages on your phone, sending them to Brayden and setting in motion your complete destruction. Even he knew-yet he played along."

She watched Lacey intently as she added, "And the reporters? They were my doing as well. Once your reputation crumbles, no one will care if you disappear."

Lacey's body convulsed as blood surged in her throat, choking her.

Janessa's cruelty was unimaginable; her words were a relentless assault on what was left of Lacey's spirit.

Janessa fixed her gaze on Lacey, her eyes glimmering with malice as her voice dripped with contempt. "Did you truly believe that Mom and Dad loved you? How incredibly naive. In a family like ours, affection is a fleeting luxury, something that is easily discarded when it no longer serves their needs. They kept you within the family not out of love but because you were a carefully crafted tool-a pawn in their game. How could they let all that effort go to waste? You were meant to be the bridge for alliances, the key to securing the family's power."

A cruel smile twisted Janessa's lips. "But you-too trusting, too eager-handed over your fame and status without a second thought. Now, I stand as a White while you're nothing but a discarded afterthought. Do you truly think they will still want a pawn they've cast aside?"

The truth slammed into Lacey with devastating clarity. It was as though the world around her had crumbled in an instant.

Blood surged from her mouth, splattering across Janessa's face as her body surrendered, consciousness slipping away-yet her eyes remained wide open, frozen in a final, piercing stare.

The crushing weight of revelation settled over her; her entire life had been a carefully constructed lie, every moment steeped in deceit. Even death offered no escape from the tarnished legacy forced upon her, a burden of disgrace she had never earned.

Lacey's spirit raged against the injustice, vowing to rise from the grave rather than surrender to this fate. Yet as the searing pain crested, Lacey's vision darkened at the edges, the world dissolving into nothingness until even her defiance couldn't stop the inevitable. Her body went limp, consciousness slipping away as she finally succumbed to the encroaching blackness.

A gentle breeze stirred the curtains, creating delicate ripples that mirrored the turmoil within Lacey as she lay on the hospital bed. Her features were contorted in pain, a stark contrast to the serene environment. As a tear slipped from her eyes and soaked into the pillow beneath her, she slowly blinked, her vision still blurry. When her eyes finally focused, she stared at the ceiling, feeling strange.

It hit Lacey suddenly; she was alive. The pain in her leg, the sterile hospital room, and the heavy cast encasing her right leg-it all suddenly made sense. She had been transported back to four years ago, to the very moment when everything in her life had irrevocably changed.

The memories surged back with undeniable force-an ordinary shopping trip turned into chaos when they encountered a sociopath wielding a knife. The strike to her right leg had resulted in severe blood loss, requiring an urgent transfusion. Yet the hospital's blood bank was unable to provide the rare Rh-negative blood she needed, and, to her shock, no one in the White family shared her blood type.

The doubt planted by the blood type issue soon blossomed into a far more significant question when Janessa entered the picture. The Whites arranged for a paternity test, which confirmed that Janessa was their biological daughter.

Lacey was left reeling, overwhelmed by a sense of confusion and abandonment. At the same time, Ivy announced her decision to adopt Lacey to the media, framing the situation as one of generosity. Her actions quickly earned her public admiration, further elevating the White family's standing.

From that point forward, Lacey became the adopted daughter of the White family, but this transformation brought not peace but turmoil.

Over the following years, Ivy and Janessa's gentle persuasion led her to feel a deep sense of guilt, convincing her that she had somehow caused Janessa's suffering-that Janessa had been denied the privileges of a wealthy life, a fine education and a broad worldview.

Lacey's sense of guilt became overwhelming, and she found herself submitting to Janessa's every whim. She offered her whatever Janessa desired-whether it was money, jewelry, or the fame that Janessa so craved.

When Janessa took an interest in the piano, Lacey, ever eager to please, became the composer behind Janessa's music, crafting countless masterpieces that would forever be credited to Janessa's name. This work earned Janessa the title of a genius composer, securing her success while Lacey's talent remained hidden in the shadows.