Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I had a long, agonizing dream.

It started from the very first time I met Frederick.

Back then, my parents were both alive, and our family business was thriving.

Old Mr. Vance had been helped by my family once, so he had taken a special liking to me.

That was how Frederick and I ended up in an arranged marriage.

He didn't love me; I loved him.

That became our first and most fundamental conflict.

The younger me believed that effort could change anything, so I pursued him with a stubbornness that wouldn't quit until I hit a brick wall.

Only later did I realize that all that persistence and stubbornness existed only because I had a safety net.

After our company went bankrupt and my parents died in a tragic accident, that safety net vanished.

Living under someone else's roof, hand-to-mouth, eroded my pride.

To survive, and to pay for my father's ICU bills, I learned to bow down and appease Frederick and his rowdy friends.

Even when his female companions forced me to strip and bark like a dog, I complied with a sycophantic smile.

I had no choice. I just needed my father to stay alive.

Until three days ago, when the news of my father's death arrived. Along with the grief, I felt a strange, overwhelming sense of relief.

All the love and obsession had long since vanished, worn away by years of torment.

Now, all I wanted was to get away from Frederick.

Before the dream ended, I was jolted awake by a bucket of ice-cold water.

I opened my eyes to see Frederick's shoes right in front of me.

"She caused a scar on Chloe's body. You guys give her ten times that amount on her own skin."

The bodyguards nodded, pulled me up, and drew their knives to exact their "revenge."

Sharp pain tore through me, and I struggled to escape.

But the sheer difference in our strength made my desire to live useless.

My head injury hadn't healed, and I was already suffering from significant blood loss.

After ten slashes that cut deep into the bone, I was close to death.

"Frederick, please. For the seven years I've been married to you and served you faithfully―if not for anything else, then for my hard work―let me go."

Desperate, I begged him with a trembling voice.

I only hoped there was still a shred of humanity left in him.

Seeing me in such a pathetic state, Frederick finally noticed the wound on my head.

"How did this happen…"

Before he could finish, Chloe's voice drifted in from the door.

"Freddie, help! My stomach hurts so much!"

She ran toward him and threw herself into his arms, showing no signs of actual pain.

Then, she cast a glance at me, smiling provocatively when Frederick wasn't looking.

"Ah! Sister, please don't look at me like that! I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have fallen for Freddie. Please, let my baby go, he's innocent!"

I opened my mouth to argue, but my throat was too parched and painful.

Frederick's eyes were drawn to the person in his arms. He patted her back tenderly.

"What are you waiting for? Do it!"

As soon as he spoke, the pain of the blade cutting my skin returned.

Looking at the two of them, I finally understood what it meant to have one's heart completely broken.

Forget it. I couldn't beat them.

It was better to save my energy and wait for a chance to escape.