Chapter 4

I coughed up a mouthful of blood, the world spinning around me. The pain was too much. I couldn't endure it any longer, and I fainted.

When I woke up, I was lying in a familiar bed. I recognized the room instantly. It was the courtyard I used to live in, in the Sterling mansion. Everything was exactly as I had left it five years ago, as if frozen in time.

Mark was sitting by the bed. He took my hand and brought it to his lips.

"You' re awake? Does it still hurt?" His voice was soft, laced with a concern that was so false it made my stomach turn.

I struggled, pulling my hand away from his grasp. I furiously wiped my skin with my sleeve, trying to erase the feel of his touch.

Mark Sterling had once been the most handsome man in the entire city. That was why a younger, more foolish Ava had given him everything-all her assets, all her companies, her hand in marriage. Back then, I had desperately wished for just a fraction of his attention. I would have been content with even a small piece of his affection. But now, looking at him, I only felt disgust.

My gaze fell on an intricately designed charm hanging from his belt. It was beautiful, a piece of embroidery I had made myself. He saw me looking at it and took it off, caressing the delicate threads.

"I knew you couldn' t let me go," he said, his voice filled with a self-important satisfaction. "You should have just shown me this charm earlier. Why did you have to make such a spectacle and embarrass yourself?"

His arrogance was nauseating.

"Pah! I would never make a charm for a hypocrite like you."

Mark, however, just thought I was still being stubborn, playing hard to get.

"This charm is clearly made for a man," he said, his tone patient, as if explaining something to a child. "If not for me, then who?"

He was completely convinced that I was still madly in love with him, just like I had been when we were younger. No matter what I said, he wouldn't listen. He saw every protest as just another part of the game.

But before I could argue further, Sarah burst into the room, her face pale with panic.

"It' s bad, Marky! The President' s chief of staff' s people are searching all over the city! They say the TechCorp CEO' s locket is missing!"

She feigned worry, but her eyes gleamed with a triumphant, malicious light. "How could Ms. Reed steal the CEO' s locket? Now she' s caused such a huge problem. What are we going to do? Should we just hand Ms. Reed over to the authorities?"

Mark' s lips were pressed into a tight, thin line. He ignored Sarah' s suggestion and instead looked at me, frowning.

"After all these years, you' ve become even more greedy! You dared to steal the capital' s TechCorp CEO' s locket? I guess I' ve spoiled you too much."

He turned to the guards standing at the door. "Guards, tie up this servant and throw her in the basement!"

He looked back at me, his expression a mixture of disappointment and magnanimity. "Though I despise you, seeing your deep affection for me, I' ll put in a good word with the chief of staff. If he sees that you' ve truly suffered, this matter should be settled."

I stared at him in shock, unable to comprehend how he had become so narcissistic, so utterly repulsive. I couldn't connect this man to the one I had once loved.

After Mark left, Sarah walked over to the bed, her lips curled into a cruel smile. Her eyes were full of malice.

"Come here," she ordered the two burly maids who had followed her in. "Hold her down."

The maids pinned me to the ground, pulling my hands out in front of me. Sarah picked up a nearby bamboo stick, the kind used for beating rugs. She raised it high and brought it down with a vicious crack across my palms.

"You dare covet my man, you bitch! Die!"

I screamed in pain, but I couldn' t break free. The bamboo stick lashed at my palms and arms again and again, each blow a line of fire. The pain was searing, relentless. Finally, my skin tore open, and blood began to well up. I was on the verge of fainting from the agony.

My hands, which were regularly maintained by the President' s chief of staff' s personal physician to ensure they were perfect for my delicate embroidery work, were now a bloody, mangled mess. My brows furrowed, my whole body trembling in pain.

"Sarah! I will never let you get away with this!" I gasped, my voice shaking.

Sarah just laughed, a sound full of mockery. "Sister, what are you saying? I' m doing this to appease the TechCorp CEO and the chief of staff. I' m saving you!"

She leaned down, her face close to mine. "Later, when the TechCorp CEO and the chief of staff arrive, I' ll bring you to them. Remember to cry loudly!"