I had spent years chasing after Elijah Campbell, hoping for a single glance, but he never even saw me.

Then, when his world crumbled and his family fell into despair, I poured everything I had into lifting him up. I believed that, with enough sacrifice, he would eventually come to love me. And out of gratitude, he married me.

But three years into our marriage, I was blindsided.

Elijah stood in the doorway, his eyes colder than I'd ever seen, watching as I was tangled up with Brynn Remington. He’d caught us and witnessed the betrayal with his own eyes, and the pain in his gaze was a knife in my heart.

I tried to explain and begged for understanding, but he wouldn’t listen. Rage blazed in his eyes as he threw a bottle of sulfuric acid at me and tossed a divorce agreement on the bed.

"You betrayed me first. We should divorce."

In that split second, Brynn stepped in front of me, shielding me with his body. The acid splashed across his back, leaving him scarred, his skin now a canvas of agony.

He stood before me, just as much a victim of the plot as I was. With a gentle touch, he wiped away my tears, his voice warm and full of affection.

"I’ve always had feelings for you. Since Elijah doesn’t want you, let me spend the rest of my life caring for you, alright?"

Tears welled in my eyes as his words washed over me. Overwhelmed by guilt and the weight of infidelity, I agreed and married him.

But fate has a cruel way of twisting things. One day, by mere chance, I overheard a conversation that unraveled everything.

Brynn was talking to Elijah, and my adopted younger brother, their voices hushed but sharp with intent.

"I sacrificed my future to keep her distracted. It was all to keep her busy while you and Kennedy could be together."

My heart froze as Brynn continued, his voice tinged with regret.

"My health is failing, and the tests aren't promising. But I'm still worried. Allison will come after Elijah again if I die and disrupt Kennedy."

"Alphonso, you like Kennedy too, don’t you? Will you do it again? Seduce Allison and make her cheat, just like we did before?"

At that moment, my world turned to ash.

So, it turned out that Elijah, Brynn, and even my adopted brother had only ever approached me as a pawn in their game for their beloved first love, Kennedy Harper.

Knowing this, I made up my mind. I would grant them their wish and vanish without a trace.

——

In a quiet room, Brynn lounged on the sofa, his eyes fixed on his cigarette ashes as they slowly crumbled into nothingness. His sorrowful voice broke the silence.

"I don’t know the results yet, but I want to ensure Kennedy has a clear path."

"Back then, Elijah drugged Allison, and I took the fall. I even took the acid for her."

He let out a sigh, his gaze distant.

"I sacrificed everything to make Allison give up on Elijah and hand him over to Kennedy. I wanted Kennedy to be happy."

"I can’t imagine it... If I have some terminal illness and die, and Allison comes back for Elijah again, disturbing Kennedy’s peace... What then?"

To his left, sitting as cold and distant as ever, was Elijah, now married to Kennedy, a picture of everything I had once wanted.

His brow furrowed before he responded quickly. "Exactly. I only accepted her help back then to repay a favor, nothing more."

"I never expected her to think I wanted her. She gave me everything, heart and soul."

"If it hadn’t been for trying to provoke Kennedy into coming back to me, the very idea of marrying her would’ve made my skin crawl."

A bitter snort escaped Elijah. Across from him, Alphonso nodded in agreement, his tone sharp as he spoke.

"Good thing you and Brynn schemed against her. That fool Allison still thinks Brynn loved her, which is why she hasn’t dared to bother Elijah again."

Alphonso leaned forward, his gaze intense as he continued. "But if Brynn's test results confirm he’s really in the late stages of cancer, to ensure Kennedy’s happiness, we won’t have a choice but to..."

Brynn’s eyes locked onto Alphonso, his expression grim, as if weighing the consequences of his next words.

"You have to seduce her and keep her under control."

Alphonso nodded without hesitation.

I stood frozen in the doorway, my body numb as though I had been plunged into ice.

My heart shattered into a thousand jagged pieces, each one cutting deeper than the last.

Tears welled in my eyes, blurring my vision as the truth sank in.

Only then did I truly understand that everything I had cherished, every bit of love I’d given, had been nothing more than a pawn in their game, a calculated scheme for their precious Kennedy.

My fists clenched, the tightness in my chest growing unbearable. Just as I turned to leave, a waiter approached and, with a kind smile, opened the door for me.

"Miss, are you going in?"

The door swung wide, and the voices inside the private room fell into an abrupt silence.

Brynn, Elijah, and Alphonso all looked unsettled.

Brynn moved first, standing hastily and rushing toward me with a look of concern. His hands worked quickly, draping his suit jacket over my shoulders.

"Allison, when did you get here? It’s freezing outside, don’t catch a cold," he murmured. "By the way, did you overhear anything at the door?"

He looked at me with such intensity, his hands lingering on my shoulders as if the touch might ease his growing unease.

Once, I would have believed his concern was genuine, that he truly cared for me; after all, he had shielded me from acid, risking his safety, and attended to me with a tenderness I thought was love.

I was once willing to give him everything, to devote my life to a future filled with warmth and love.

But now...

I looked quietly at the three men before me, each wearing a different expression. The realization struck me: I had been nothing but a cruel joke.

Brynn, his tension visible, parted his lips as if about to ask whether I had overheard their conversation.

Lowering my gaze, I quickly concealed the tears welling in my eyes. My fingers tightened around the medicine in my hand as I forced a smile and lifted my head.

With practiced ease, I feigned calmness. "I just got here. I heard you’d be busy with business negotiations for a while, so I asked the housekeeper where you were and brought you some medicine."

"Oh, by the way, what were you discussing just now?"

"And Brynn, if this is a business meeting… why are my younger brother and Elijah here with you?"

The moment my words fell, the three men visibly relaxed, relief flashing across their faces.

Elijah was the first to react, springing to his feet with an exaggerated display of composure, slipping seamlessly into his usual performance.

His teeth clenched as he stormed toward Brynn, seething with rage. Grabbing him by the collar, his bloodshot eyes burned with menace.

"Brynn! Don’t let me hear about you and that wretched woman, Allison, living happily together!"

"You two adulterers, just wait. One day, you’ll rot in hell!"

Elijah’s fury seemed all too real, his fists tightening as if he were seconds away from striking.

Brynn, however, didn’t flinch. Instead, he met Elijah’s glare head-on and snapped, "Allison is my true love! You never deserved her; stay out of her life for good!"

Before the tension could explode, Alphonso conveniently stepped in, shoving himself between them and shielding Brynn. "Brother-in-law, Elijah, that’s enough! Stop fighting!"

"If the deal is off, then let’s end it here. It’s late, go home and get some rest."

Just then, Elijah’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen before scoffing, putting on a show of leaving in anger.

With the performance complete, Brynn turned back to me with a carefully crafted look of regret.

"Allison, I didn’t know Elijah was today’s business partner. If I had known, I wouldn’t have come at all…"

"It must’ve been exhausting for you to come all this way so late. Let’s go home."

He smiled gently, reaching out to pinch my cheek as he always did, his arms already moving to pull me into his embrace.

A sharp, unbearable sting pierced my chest.

It was terrifying how deeply a person could love another, only to be shattered beyond repair.

The three of them, who once despised each other, had so effortlessly joined forces… all for one reason.

To deceive me.

To make sure I wouldn’t be a nuisance to Kennedy.

Disgust coiled in my stomach. When Brynn reached out, I dodged his touch, the movement instinctive.

For a split second, shock flickered in his eyes.

But I clenched my fists, steadying myself, forcing the moment to pass before suspicion could take root.

"No, you should go home first."

"I went shopping today and left something at the store. The owner just called; I need to go pick it up."

"I’ll see you later tonight."

I mustered a smile, waved, and turned away, each step measured and controlled.

The moment I stepped outside, the dam broke.

I threw myself into the first taxi I saw, and as the door shut behind me, the tears finally spilled, silent and unrelenting.

I slowly placed a trembling hand over my stomach, my fingers brushing against the fragile life I had no choice but to let go of.

Reaching into my bag, I pulled out the crumpled pregnancy report, the secret I had kept from Brynn until the very end.

But it didn’t matter anymore. This child… I couldn’t keep it.

"Driver, take me to the hospital."

I closed my eyes, letting the silent tears slip past my lips.

When I signed the consent form, my fingers quivered, hesitating only for a breath. But in the end, my decision didn’t change.

By the time I returned home, the living room lights were still on.

Brynn stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed, his gaze flicking between his watch and the glowing screen of his phone. He was dialing my number again when he finally noticed me.

The moment he saw my pale face, he rushed over, worry clouding his features.

He pulled me into his arms, his hands cradling my face, the warmth that no longer reached me.

"Allison, weren’t you just picking something up? What took you so long?" His voice was thick with concern. "I kept calling, but you wouldn’t answer. I was worried sick."

"Why do you look so pale? What happened?"

I stared at him, the weight of irony pressing down on me.

Worried? Overthinking? If only he knew.

Back when he and Elijah schemed to frame me for "cheating," Brynn had looked at me with this exact same expression.

Like I was something rare, something precious, cherished as if I were the most irreplaceable thing in his world.

But reality?

If I hadn’t walked in on that scene, I never would have known the truth.

My childhood sweetheart. My husband. A man so skilled at deception, I almost believed him myself.

I took a step back, putting deliberate distance between us. The dull ache from the procedure still clung to my body, every movement a quiet struggle.

Faking indifference, I waved him off.

"The store owner invited me to dinner. I didn’t realize I ate something I was allergic to and had to go to the hospital. That’s why I was delayed."

"I’m exhausted. I just want to sleep."

Brynn gave me a sympathetic look, already moving to fetch me some water. Then his phone rang.

Kennedy’s syrupy voice spilled through the speaker, every word laced with feigned innocence.

"Brynn, my shower is broken."

"Elijah had to rush to the office for an emergency, so can you come help me? Wait, no, you’re married to Allison now."

"Even if I just need help fixing the shower, Allison will definitely accuse me of seducing you."

"Forget it, I’ll find someone else."

But before she could even finish, Brynn cut in, his voice quick, reassuring.

"It’s fine. I won’t let her know; I’ll come right over."

The motion of him pouring my water halted. His fingers tightened around the glass for the briefest second before he set it down. Then, without missing a beat, he threw on his suit jacket and lied to me.

"Allison, there’s an urgent matter at the office. I need to go now; rest well."

Before I could say a word, the door clicked shut behind him.

A bitter laugh curled in my throat. How fitting.

I leaned against the wall, dragging myself toward the bedroom, my legs barely supporting me.

But just as I reached the wardrobe, a misstep sent me stumbling. My shoulder knocked against the safe, Brynn’s safe, the one he always kept locked away.

He used to say it held the evidence of his love for me.

Photos taken in secret. Love letters he was too embarrassed to show me. Proof, he claimed, of how much he had cherished me.

But reality?

I hesitated for only a second before entering Kennedy’s birthday as the passcode.

The safe unlocked instantly.

Inside, meticulously arranged, were stacks of records, each one dedicated to Kennedy.

The sight of it sent a cold blade straight through my chest.

With trembling hands, I flipped through Brynn’s notes.

My gaze landed on a newspaper article, its headline praising Kennedy’s award-winning work.

A dull ringing filled my ears. My breath hitched.

Tears fell, unrestrained and bitter.

The designs I had poured my soul into for an entire year, works I had only ever shown to Brynn, were right there, credited to her.

He had taken my creations and placed a crown on another woman’s head.

And yet, once upon a time, he had looked into my eyes, his voice dripping with affection.

"Allison, your teacher says you have a gift for design, but if you really pursue it, you’ll be too busy to spend time with me."

"I want you by my side, always."

"Give up design and come work as a receptionist at my subsidiary, okay? It’s easy work, and we’ll get to see each other every day."