When Innocence Burns: The Rise of a Betrayed Adopted Daughter

When the flood engulfed our home, both my brother and husband chose to save Cathryn Andrews.

She was the daughter of our family who had been lost for many years and was recently rediscovered.

My right leg was fractured under her intentional, brutal collision.

As I was rescued, I saw Cathryn sobbing in my husband's embrace.

"Harlee kept pressing me down, trying to drown me in the flood."

Upon hearing this, both my husband and brother stared darkly at me lying on the stretcher.

"Harlee, you've stolen Cathryn's life for so many years, and now you even want to harm her!"

My brother, Kaiden Foster, sneered at me, while my husband, Jared Reed, tenderly shielded Cathryn in his arms.

The two exchanged words, then picked up nearby stones and approached me.

"It seems we've spoiled you too much over the years, Harlee. Perhaps this will make you think twice."

Their menacing faces were unfamiliar to me.

I struggled desperately but was pinned down.

Seeing them raise the stones high, ready to smash my leg, I closed my eyes.

I had to leave!

......

"Ah!"

The agony shot from my calf to my brain.

Jared slammed a fist-sized rock hard onto my leg.

One after another.

The previously broken leg now revealed white bone, surrounded by blurred flesh and blood.

The excruciating pain made my body tremble.

"Stop! I didn't try to harm her!" I screamed in pain, writhing my body continuously.

Cathryn bore no injuries, yet my brother and husband readily believed her words.

Kaiden ignored my pleas, grinding his shoe against my fingers, holding me down to prevent escape.

The pain was sharp, it felt like my heart was bleeding.

"Harlee, now you've even learned to lie." Kaiden looked at me with disappointment.

I wanted to protest, but tears blurred my vision.

My hand was broken-how could I play the piano now?

With my last strength, I lifted my head and met Cathryn's smug gaze.

"You will pay the price." I declared, word by word, before losing consciousness from the pain.

I awoke to the doctor's examination.

My leg and hand were wrapped in bandages, but I couldn't feel my leg.

I looked at the doctor in terror, my lips moving without sound.

The doctor shook his head. "Miss, your leg is in poor condition, but we'll do our best to recover it."

"My hand, what about my hand?" I croaked. "Will I still be able to play the piano?"

The doctor sighed. "Mrs. Reed, your hand injury isn't severe, but it will tremble constantly. Long piano practice might be difficult."

I stared at the doctor, shaking my head in disbelief.

How could this be?

I had studied piano since childhood and became a somewhat renowned pianist.

But now, I couldn't play the piano anymore?

And all of this was caused by my own family, especially my brother who always cherished me!

The doctor turned away, leaving behind murmurs of discussion.

"This lady is truly unfortunate. No one has come to care for her even now."

"Unfortunate? Rumor has it she became like this because she was caught trying to harm others out of jealousy!"

"Well, the outcome she faces now is what she deserves."

So, this was how my family spoke of me outside.

My heart felt as though it was being carved by knives, bleeding inch by inch.

They didn't even bother to find out the truth, choosing instead to believe Cathryn.

At that moment, I suddenly heard a sweet voice.

Cathryn appeared before me, smiling with feigned sympathy, her eyes brimming with smug glee.

"Harlee, your injuries aren't serious at all. Why keep pretending?"

As she spoke, she lightly pinched my injured leg.

The pain pierced into my body.

I gritted my teeth, looking at her, and asked in a low voice, "Why do this to me?"

Cathryn's beautiful eyes were filled with malice. "Why? I wouldn't have suffered all these years if not for you!"

I frowned at her, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"You deliberately made me sick, preventing me from returning to the Foster family! It's all because of you!"

Cathryn clawed at my arm, her nails embedding deeply into my flesh.

How was her illness related to me?

I tried to push her away, but she suddenly fell to the floor, a malevolent smile on her face as she slapped herself right in front of me.

Cathryn's face quickly swelled on one side, with a visible slap mark.

Jared and Kaiden entered the hospital room to find Cathryn sobbing on the floor, her face marked with a slap mark.

"Cathryn! Did you push her, Harlee?"

Kaiden rushed forward, carrying Cathryn gently in his arms, tenderly touching her face.

"Jared, no... It wasn't Harlee, it was me... I was careless." Cathryn whispered, burying her face in Kaiden's embrace, her eyes avoiding mine as if hiding a great grievance she couldn't voice.

Feigning cheerfulness, she pointed at my leg, showing concern. "Luckily, Harlee's treatment was timely. I can't imagine what would happen if it were me. How would I live?"

Jared's gaze swept over her reddened face. "Cathryn, you're too kind-hearted! Which hand did she use to hit you?"

Tears welled in Cathryn's eyes as she shook her head, yet her face, beautiful even in tears, made the men believe her innocence.

Jared turned, his face darkening as he approached the bedside with a cold sneer. He pulled out a small knife he carried and drove it into my fingers, slicing through the tendons with force.

I watched him in terror.

"No! My hand! It wasn't me!"

I desperately tried to evade, but each movement brought searing pain as the blade cut through bone and flesh.

The hand that once had hope of recovery was now a hopelessly ruined hand.

Trembling, tears streamed down my face, yet I couldn't save my hand.

I had already lost my leg!

My husband would rather believe Cathryn than me.

The five years we spent together since we got married then seemed like a joke.

"What a pity, Harlee. Your hand could have healed, but now you can't even touch a piano." Cathryn remarked from Kaiden's arms, her eyes full of concern, though I detected a hint of malicious satisfaction in her voice.

"I won't forgive any of you!" I glared at the three of them.

Jared, as the heir of the Reed family, relished the sight of others' pain.

He chuckled, setting down the knife and admiring his "work".

"There's a steep price for harming Cathryn."

Kaiden, holding Cathryn, planned to tend to her facial injuries, casting a disdainful glance at my hand.

"Once her hand heals, break it again. If she dares to bully Cathryn, she'll pay tenfold for it."

I frantically pressed the emergency button with my shattered hand.

I couldn't give up on it.

I couldn't lose my hand!

After the doctor finished treating my wounds, Jared hadn't left.

He still held the knife, looking at me with a complex expression, his eyes fixed on my bandaged hand.

I eyed him warily, speaking bluntly, "Why are you still here? Shouldn't you be with Cathryn?"

His eyes flared with anger and a fleeting excitement at my question, as he approached my bed.

"Harlee, are you jealous? I know you love me..."

His hand gently caressed my neck, lowering his head to nibble at the soft skin.

A tingling sensation spread through me as I gritted my teeth, pushing him away with my arm.

"Are you out of your mind? Don't touch me! Get out!"

Jared slammed his fist against the wall, his eyes burned with a possessive intensity.

He forcibly tore my clothes, ignoring my struggles as he pressed his lips to mine.

Fear gripped me as I felt the coolness on my skin, hitting him repeatedly.

His kiss made me nauseated, wanting to vomit.

Suddenly, I felt something hard against my waist.

I bit down hard on his tongue, the taste of blood filling our mouths.

Jared raised an eyebrow but didn't stop.

With a smack, I slapped him without hesitation.

"What are you doing?"

Cathryn's face turned pale as she stood at the door, then ran off crying.

Jealousy burned within her. Why?

Jared casually wiped the blood from his mouth and subconsciously went after Cathryn.

Cathryn stood at the hospital entrance, clenching her fists, her nails digging into her palms. She tapped her phone, making a quick call, her face twisted with spite and envy.

She wanted everyone to witness Harlee's disgrace!

As the piano was moved into the hospital room, the doctor was changing the dressing on my hand.

The doctor said that my hand had suffered a second injury, making it difficult to return to normal, and that I might have trouble with some daily activities.

I stared in shock at my fingers, twisted and deformed, wrapped in thick layers of ointment.

Cathryn skipped over to me from behind Jared and Kaiden.

"Harlee, why hasn't your hand healed yet? Are you pretending to get Jared's sympathy?"

She tilted her head, blinking innocently at me, but a malicious glint flickered in her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" I asked coldly, glaring at the three of them.

"After being found by the family, I heard that your piano playing is quite famous, and I really want to hear it. Look, I even brought the piano for you!" Cathryn said, smiling as she walked over to the piano and touched it gently. "I grew up facing hardships outside, unlike you, Harlee, who was pampered. Surely you can't deny such a simple request?"

She looked at me pitifully, as if refusing her would be unforgivable.

My brother and husband, seeing Cathryn's eyes well up with tears, rushed to comfort her, wiping away her tears and kissing her forehead.

"I can't play the piano anymore. Isn't that what you wanted?" I glanced at the three of them and replied indifferently.

"Harlee, do you dislike me? How could you think that way?"

Cathryn leaned in close and whispered in my ear, ensuring only we could hear, "Harlee, there's no point in resisting."

"Harlee, how can you be so heartless! Cathryn just wants to hear you play the piano. With all you've been given, can't you spare a thought for Cathryn's feelings?"

Kaiden was incensed by my cold demeanor.

Ignoring my injuries and the IV line, he violently dragged me off the bed and forced me onto the piano bench.

The IV needle was pulled out, and blood slowly dripped onto the floor.

I felt dizzy as my not-yet-healed wounds tore open again, oozing blood.

I looked at my bandaged hand and the piano, which had always been my dream.

My chest felt like it was being ripped open by a giant hand, leaving my lips pale with pain.

"I can't play! I can't anymore! It's all because of you!" I shouted angrily at the people in front of me, tears streaming down my cheeks uncontrollably.

"It's all my fault, Harlee! If you're angry, hit me. As long as it calms you down!"

Cathryn grabbed my wrist, trying to make me hit her face.

Jared pulled her back, soothing her.

"It's not your fault. Since you want to hear it, Harlee must play."

With that, he forcefully pressed my hands onto the piano keys.

The bandages were instantly stained red with blood, and the sharp, nerve-wrenching pain made my vision blur and my body convulse.

My bones and torn flesh collided with the hard piano keys.

Cathryn clapped and laughed lightly beside me, "Sounds great, Harlee! But the rhythm is a bit off! Play another one!"

Her laughter crept into my ears, chilling me to the bone.

Kaiden frowned, seemingly finding the scene before him too harsh, but seeing Cathryn's delight, he remained silent.

I screamed in agony, struggling repeatedly, but Jared pressed my hands onto the keys again and again.

"Let me go... I beg you... Let go..."

I pleaded humbly, as tears, sweat, and blood mixed and dripped onto my hospital gown.

In the chaos of the melody, I distinctly heard the sound of my already fragile finger bones breaking again.

The pain reached its peak, and I convulsed, losing consciousness completely.