The Art of Revenge

Faint, breathy moans slipped through the closed door-each one like a dagger to Serena Knowles's heart. The unmistakable rhythm of flesh against flesh followed, shameless and raw. She froze.

The sounds weren't just loud. They were intimate. Intimate in a way only a wife should know.

Serena had just come from the hospital, her hands still trembling from the news. After months of fatigue, of late periods and quiet hope, she finally had confirmation-she was two months pregnant. Two fragile, miraculous months.

The doctor had warned her to be careful. Her body bore the scars of three miscarriages. "No stress," he had said gently. "No emotional trauma."

But Serena couldn't wait. Her heart had been bursting with joy. She needed to see Clint-her husband, the man she thought would be overjoyed to hear they were finally having the baby they'd dreamed of.

That joy shattered the moment she stepped into his office and heard the woman's voice, breathless and sickeningly sweet:

"Clint, you're amazing. I love being your lover..."

"Baby..." Clint's voice-her Clint-groaned back, thick with lust. "You're even better than Serena..."

Plop.

The medical papers slipped from Serena's trembling fingers and fell to the polished floor, fluttering like broken wings.

She flung the door open-and her world collapsed.

There, tangled in bedsheets and lust, were Clint and another woman, completely naked, their bodies still slick with betrayal.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Serena screamed, her voice cracking like glass. She stormed into the room, rage swallowing her whole. Her hand shot forward, grabbing the woman's hair with a fierceness born of heartbreak.

"Ahhh! Clint! Your wife's insane!" the woman shrieked.

The woman-Poppy-clung to the sheets as Clint leapt up and yanked Serena back.

"Serena Knowles! Enough!" he barked, eyes blazing.

But Serena didn't stop. She couldn't. Grief and fury had fused in her veins, blinding her.

And then-

SLAP.

Clint's hand crashed across her face, sending her sprawling. Her stomach slammed into the hard edge of the table.

"Ahh-!" she cried out, a burst of pain ripping through her lower belly. Her lips bled, but worse-far worse-was the warmth pooling between her thighs.

No...

Her vision blurred. Her limbs trembled. She looked down.

Blood.

Thick, dark, and terrifying.

"The baby..." she whispered, barely able to speak. Her hands cradled her belly like it was already gone. "Clint, please... take me to the hospital. Hurry... I'm pregnant. With your child..."

Her voice was a trembling ghost of itself, her face pale as death. She tried to rise, but her body crumpled again and again, helpless.

Clint didn't move. He was too busy buttoning his shirt, throwing nervous glances at the door. Poppy scrambled to gather her clothes.

"What? You're pregnant?" Clint finally said, almost bored.

Serena reached toward him, desperate. "Please..."

But Poppy's arms slid around his. "Didn't you say you were going to divorce her?"

Clint kissed Poppy's forehead as though nothing had happened, then walked over to Serena, crouching beside her like she was a wounded animal.

His fingers dug into her jaw. His eyes were ice.

"Poppy doesn't want me having kids with another woman."

Another woman?

The words hit her harder than the slap.

"Clint..." she choked out, barely breathing. "I'm your wife. How can you-?"

He let go of her chin, standing tall, hands in his pockets like none of this mattered.

"After all your miscarriages," he said coldly, "did you really think I'd let you keep this one?"

Serena stared up at him, stunned. "What... are you saying?"

A slow, cruel smile crept onto his face.

"Oh, come on. Don't act surprised. I made sure every single one of those brats never made it."

His words were calm. Almost amused.

"I'm not letting this one survive either."

You...

Her soul screamed.

It was you? All along? You killed them?

The babies she mourned-the ones she thought her body had failed to protect-he had destroyed them.

Serena's heart didn't just break-it disintegrated. Everything she had believed in, trusted, fought for... it had all been a lie.

The man she loved had never existed.

He was a mask. A monster. A stranger wearing her husband's face.

But even through the blinding pain, one thought still burned:

She had to save her baby.

"Clint, please..." Her voice was raw, barely more than a whisper. "I'll do whatever you want. If you want a divorce, fine-just please... please help me... I'm begging you..."

For a brief moment, Clint faltered. His eyes locked on hers-wide, terrified, pleading. Something flickered across his face.

Then Poppy slithered closer, wrapping her arms around his waist like a snake tightening its grip. Her voice was a soft, poisonous whisper in his ear.

"Don't take her yet," she purred. "If she loses the baby now, it's for the best, isn't it? That way, we won't have to do anything. Nature can take its course."

Serena lay crumpled on the cold floor, blood soaking through her skirt, lips trembling as she whispered prayers to a God she wasn't even sure was listening anymore. Her vision was going black around the edges, her limbs too heavy to move.

She heard them. She heard them. Deciding whether her baby lived or died like it was nothing. Like she was nothing.

"But what if she dies too?" Clint asked, glancing back. "It'll get messy."

Poppy rolled her eyes. "Fine-call the ambulance. Just... wait a few minutes. Let her bleed a little more. Her precious Mayor daddy's already dead. No need to stress."

Time slowed to a crawl.

Serena felt her heart pounding, each beat weaker than the last. Her fingers twitched. Her mouth opened but no words came out. She couldn't breathe.

Then-finally-sirens. Red and blue lights flashed behind her fluttering eyelids. Someone was shouting. Doors slamming. Rough hands lifting her body onto a stretcher.

Her world spun.

Somewhere in the blur, she heard Clint's voice-frantic and afraid for the first time.

"Help her! You have to help her! She's losing too much blood!"

Serena wanted to scream.

Now he cares?

Now that it's his reputation, his guilt, his consequences on the line?

But all she could do was fade-further and further-into the dark.

The sterile scent of antiseptic flooded her senses as they burst into the ER. Blinding lights. Muffled voices. Beeping machines. A doctor barking orders.

"BP's dropping! Get an IV in-stat!"

"She's pregnant-two months! Internal bleeding-move!"

Then Clint's voice again, tight with panic. "Just save her! I don't care what it costs-just don't let her die!"

His words came through like an echo underwater.

Don't let her die...

Don't let her die...

But why now?

Why beg for her life when he had just wished for her death?

Is this just for show?

How pathetic...

Her heart thudded weakly.

Too late, Clint...

And then-everything went black.

***

When Serena opened her eyes again, she was greeted by a dreamy pink light.

After a momentary blur, Serena's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly rubbed her eyes.

This place...?! Was it... her home? Her bedroom?!

How could this be?! Hadn't she died from massive bleeding after the miscarriage?!

But this pink canopy was exactly like the one on her princess bed from her memories!

Turning her head, she glanced around. Serena suddenly sat up from the bed. "This... really is my room!" She scratched her head, even more confused.

How could this be? After my father passed away over a year ago, Clint sold this property to someone else...

When she first found out he was selling her father's only property, she had rushed to his office to confront him.

At that time, her father had already passed, and his attitude towards her had completely changed.

The warmth from before was gone, replaced by coldness and impatience in his sharp, deep eyes. "I'm selling Bram Knowles' house! And..." His thin lips curled slightly, his expression full of disdain. "Let me tell you something. Bram always fancied himself a gentleman, hated indulgence and excess, right? Well, I'll sell his house to someone who owns a nightclub. Soon enough, his 'beloved home' will become everything he hated..."

Knock knock knock...

The sound of soft but clear knocking broke through the flood of memories.

"Who is it?!" Serena instinctively asked, her voice filled with wariness and alertness.

The next moment, tears suddenly welled up, blurring her vision.

The voice coming from outside the door was, incredibly, that of her mother, who had died alongside her father in a mysterious car accident. "Serena, it's mom! You little lazybones, the sun's already up, and you're still not out of bed! I was afraid you'd sleep too late, and breakfast would get cold, so I brought it up for you."

"Mom!" she choked out softly, speaking to herself. "Is this heaven?! Have I finally been reunited with you in heaven?!"

When she didn't open the door, the knocking resumed. "Serena, why are you silent? Are you still asleep?!"

Afraid her mother would leave, Serena hurriedly wiped her eyes, jumped out of bed, and, forgetting to put on shoes, rushed to the door.

"Mom!" As the door swung open, she saw the long-missed, loving face of her mother. Serena's tears streamed down her face. "I've finally seen you again!"

Nola looked at her daughter in surprise. "Silly girl, what nonsense are you talking about? Don't we see each other every day?!"

The joy of the reunion between mother and daughter overshadowed everything, and Serena automatically ignored the confusion in her mother's eyes.

With the excitement of a young deer, she leaped straight into Nola's arms, nearly knocking over the tray in her mother's hands.

Nola muttered with a mix of helplessness and affection, "You're already twenty-four years old, how can you still be so reckless?!"

Serena froze for a moment, suddenly looking up in shock at her mother. "Mom, what did you say?! I'm twenty-four?!"

When she died, she was only twenty-five, and both her parents had passed away in that tragic car accident when she was twenty-five.

"Yes!" Nola set the tray aside on the small table, reaching up to touch her daughter's forehead. "You're not running a fever! How could you be so confused that you've forgotten how old you are?!"

"Then why am I at home? Didn't I already marry Clint?!" Serena asked in disbelief.

"You said Clint was away on business, and you were feeling lonely, so you came back home to stay for a few days."

Serena patted her head, remembering that when she was twenty-four, she had indeed stayed at her parents' house for a few days, but it wasn't because she felt lonely. It was because Clint had asked for a divorce, and after a huge argument, she had run back home in a fit of anger.

To avoid worrying her parents, she had lied.

A troubling yet thrilling thought shot through her mind like a lightning bolt, and Serena couldn't help but blurt out, "Then... what about dad?! Is he still here?!"

"Yes, he's downstairs having breakfast!"

As she looked at her mother, who seemed to be staring at her like she was an alien, Serena stood frozen for a moment, then pinched herself hard on the arm.

"Ouch! That hurts!" She rubbed her arm, murmuring to herself, "This isn't a dream, right? I... I must have... traveled back in time!"

Nola seemed to not recognize her own daughter, who she had carried for ten months and given birth to. She looked at Serena with suspicion. "Serena, what's wrong with you today?!"

Serena grinned, cupped her mother's face, and gave her a big kiss. "It's nothing! I'm just too happy!"

Then, she dashed past her mother, barefoot, running downstairs.

As she turned the corner on the stairs, she saw from a distance the back of her father, who was sitting at the dining table, eating seriously.

Her eyes welled up again, and she quickly sniffed, calling out carefully, "Dad!"

Bram turned at the sound of her voice. Seeing his beloved daughter, his usually serious expression softened. "Serena, come, sit with me and have breakfast!"

If this had happened before, Serena would have ignored him and gone back to sleep.

But now, after having died once, Serena regretted her previous childishness. She only wanted to cherish the second chance she had to be with her parents.

Sitting next to her father, Serena propped her chin in her hands, gazing at him with a silly smile.

"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" he asked.

"No! Nothing!"

"Then why are you staring at me like that?"

"Uh..." Serena blinked, unsure how to explain, when suddenly, the maid-Darcy, approached and respectfully said, "Miss, there's a phone call for you."

"A phone call?!" Serena frowned. "Who is it? Why didn't they call my cell phone?"

"It's Mr. Beckett. He said he called your cell, but no one answered, so he called the landline."

***

At the mention of 'Beckett,' Serena's heart skipped a beat, and her face involuntarily darkened. "Just tell him I'm not here!"

Darcy nodded obediently and was about to turn away when Serena stopped her. "Wait!"

She pressed her lips together, stood up, and walked toward the landline in the living room. "I'll take it. He went to the trouble of calling the house. What if... he has an urgent matter?"

Avoidance isn't the answer! In her past life, that scumbag had used her, deceived her, and ruined her life. This time, she would keep her eyes wide open and see through his tricks!

"Serena!" Just two steps out the door, her father's steady voice called out from behind.

Serena froze, her heart swelling with emotion. "If you're upset, just come back home. Mom and Dad will always be your strongest support!"

Her eyes seemed to fill with tears again...

"I know, thank you, Dad!" Serena didn't turn back, continuing to walk forward.

Bram had never had a high opinion of Clint. He felt that Clint was too calculating and not suitable for his innocent daughter.

He had strongly opposed their marriage at the time, but Serena had been stubborn and insisted on marrying him. In the end, he reluctantly agreed, feeling sorry for his precious daughter.

Serena and Clint had both graduated from the A University. The first time they met was when she was in her senior year and he, as an outstanding graduate, returned to the university to attend a gratitude ceremony.

At the school's auditorium entrance, he accidentally bumped into her. He quickly helped her up, asked if she was okay, and insisted on getting her contact information. Later, he called to apologize, leaving a polite and gentlemanly impression on her.

After that, he relentlessly pursued her, being incredibly considerate, and she, having no prior experience with love, quickly fell for him.

She had thought she was marrying for love, but it turned out she had been diving into the abyss hidden beneath that love.

With his connection as the Mayor's son-in-law, Clint quickly rose through the ranks, going from a business manager at a listed company to a member of the leadership team.

Two years later, after gaining enough connections and resources, he struck out on his own and rapidly became a new business tycoon in Vernon.

Soon after Clint firmly established himself, Serena's parents were struck and killed by a runaway truck during their evening walk after dinner.

Looking back now, Serena felt foolish, as the timing of that truck's loss of control seemed too coincidental. Everything had been carefully orchestrated by Clint.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Serena found herself standing in front of the landline.

Grabbing the cold receiver, she mustered her courage and lifted it to her ear. "Hello! This is Serena!"

"Serena! It's me!" The deep, magnetic voice that had once made Serena's heart race sounded from the other end of the line.

She shuddered, her hand shaking, nearly dropping the receiver...

"Heh!" With a cold laugh, Serena tried to calm herself, "I know, what is it?!"

If it weren't for the suffering she had endured, the hardships she had faced, just hearing that magnetic and soft voice would have made Serena willingly follow Clint's every command, not to mention his enchanting face.

But unfortunately, Serena had long since undergone a transformation and was no longer the naive fool who could be easily deceived by him.

The person on the other end of the phone seemed a little unprepared for Serena's cold attitude, his tone clearly showing surprise, "Serena, stop messing around, come back quickly."

"Come back?!" Serena crooked her lips in silence, "Come back to do what? Watch you and your mistress have an affair right under my nose?!"

"You..."

She had never spoken to Clint in such a tone before, and it was clear that he was shocked.

Serena felt a secret satisfaction; this was the effect she wanted.

In the past, she had put up with him because she loved him-following him obediently, doing everything he asked. Even when he had a mistress, she convinced herself it was her fault. Maybe it was because she could never carry a baby to term. Maybe if she just tried harder, if she were more patient, he'd come back to her.

So she tried. Again and again.

But all her babies were gone.

He killed them.

Now, when she looked at him, she didn't see the man she once loved. He was nothing more than a pile of dog shit.

She would never sacrifice herself for him again.

"...It sounds like you're in a bad mood..."

"Bad mood?! What's wrong with my mood?! Is it a problem that I'm not obeying you anymore?!" Serena's tone became even colder.

Clint's gaze flickered, and he simply said, "Stop being so willful! It was hasty of me to mention divorce that day. I was drunk, speaking without thinking. Don't hold it against me. Come back home!"

Heh! What 'speaking without thinking'? He was clearly worried because she was still the daughter of the Mayor, and he was afraid her father might use his influence to suppress him!

Serena shook her head in disbelief. No wonder, after their argument, her parents had that car accident so soon.

Thinking of her parents' safety, Serena gathered some courage, "Fine, I'll come back!"

Seemingly not expecting her to agree so readily, the person on the other end paused, "Okay! I'll wait for you at home!"

After hanging up, Serena informed her father and then went upstairs to her bedroom.

Sitting in front of the vanity, looking at herself in the mirror-her skin as smooth as cream and her eyebrows like distant mountains-she gently curved her lips upward.

Yes, with such beauty, how could she have been so blind in her previous life to be seduced by Clint, that toad?

She opened her long-forgotten makeup bag, took out an eyebrow pencil, and lightly traced her already beautiful eyebrows.

Not long after they met, Clint had told her he liked her natural, unadorned look. Because of that, she had foolishly discarded her makeup bag at the most beautiful age, never using makeup again.

Looking back now, it was laughable!

She was already stunning, and with just a simple touch-up, Serena was beautiful enough to steal anyone's attention.

Standing up, she walked to the wardrobe, her gaze sweeping through the row of white dresses, and her brows involuntarily furrowed, "I actually used to tolerate Clint so much that I threw away all those beautiful clothes?!"

Reluctantly, she bent down and rummaged through the lower corner, finally pulling out a bright red strapless gown.

It was the one she had worn at the school's New Year's Eve party before meeting Clint.

After getting dressed, she looked at the full-length mirror, seeing her red lips, white teeth, and graceful figure. Serena smiled with satisfaction.

In the past, she had sacrificed so much for Clint. From now on, she would only please herself!

She stepped out of the house in six-centimeter heels. Since her father didn't like attention, she didn't use the family car but instead stood by the road, raising her hand to hail a taxi.

By coincidence, every single taxi that passed by was already occupied.

After several failed attempts, Serena sighed in frustration. But when she looked up, a black Maybach appeared in front of her.

As her gaze fell on it with confusion, the window slowly rolled down, revealing another face she didn't particularly want to see.

Crossing her arms, Serena sneered, "Well, well, what wind blew you in, Mr. Xavier Blaze?"

***