After a long time, Braeden finally finished having sex with Carol upstairs and joined Anna.

He looked in high spirits, with his complexion glowing with health.

Meanwhile, Carol had put her mask back on.

They seemed oblivious to Anna's unusual reaction. They served Anna dishes while exchanging flirtatious glances.

The two coordinated with seamless precision, carrying on as if nothing had happened.

Yet, Anna had no appetite at all.

She looked down, only to see Carol boldly brushing her leg against Braeden's.

A wave of nausea surged through Anna, and she put down her knife and fork.

Although the earlier thrill had restored her speech, her full recovery was still a long way off.

Moreover, Anna had no intention of letting Braeden know about her recovery, so she frowned and gestured. "I don't want to eat anymore."

As they were leaving, Carol said to Anna, "I heard it is your fifth anniversary today. Our restaurant has a gift for you."

With that, she took Anna's arm and led her to the front desk.

Braeden furrowed his eyebrows and seemingly wanted to stop them. But he managed to restrain himself.

Anna glanced back at Braeden and suddenly felt an emptiness inside herself. She couldn't be bothered to care about anything at that moment.

"Miss Briggs, here's a celebrating card we've prepared especially for you. Please take it."

Through the mask, Anna saw the provocative gleam in Carol's eyes.

Anna opened the card to find a wedding invitation inside.

"You are really something, acting like nothing has happened even though you know the truth." Carol's voice was low but smug as she leaned in and whispered in Anna's ear. "It seems that the incident really shook you. How can you compete with me for Braeden? You are such a loser."

Anna looked up and met Carol's gaze.

But the former was calm and said nothing.

They walked out of the restaurant. Braeden looked at Anna with some guilt for a long moment and then said, "Honey, I just got a message from the company. I have an urgent business trip tomorrow. Take care of yourself while I'm away, and don't wander around before I get back."

Anna replied in sign language, "I see."

She no longer cared how long he intended to keep her in the dark.

She would continue the game a little longer with him.

Anyway, she was about to disappear from his world completely.

One day before the wedding, Anna received a text message. "Ms. Briggs, all your identification information has been canceled. Please schedule an appointment to obtain new identification as soon as possible."

Anna looked out of the window and smiled with relief.

Then she received a message from Collin as expected. "Anna, I've got all the dirt on Braeden. I won't let him get away with this. I will depart at dawn and bring you home tomorrow."

As she read Collin's message full of concern, Anna's eyes welled with tears.

She wanted to call Collin to hear his voice so much, but her speech was still limited by her condition.

She didn't want him to worry, so she simply replied briefly with the message. "Okay."

After that, she removed her SIM card and flushed it down the drain.

Since she had decided to disappear from Braeden's world, she'd better do it thoroughly.

She deleted all the unnecessary content on her phone and left only the most "precious" images.

On Braeden's wedding day, Anna took out everything from the small storeroom that held memories of her and Braeden, including photo albums, diaries, and portraits.

She lit a small flame and threw in the title to the new house Braeden had given her.

The flames leaped high.

Anna opened the gas valve and quickly fled the "cage" that had trapped her for two years.

The sun shone brightly overhead.

"Anna, you are free," she whispered to herself.

The sounds from Braeden and Carol's wedding came through the receiver on her bracelet.

Anna heard the applause and blessings from the guests.

Braeden serenaded Carol with a song of love.

The host's exuberant voice was heard as well as their vows with determination.

Anna seemed to have witnessed their wedding, their love, and how miserable and absurd Anna was.

But nothing mattered now.

Anna took off the bracelet and tossed it into the flowerbed.

Meanwhile, Braeden was toasting to the guests, with Carol happily clinging to him.

His face was slightly flushed from the alcohol, while Carol looked blissfully content as she leaned against him.

Just then, Braeden's assistant, Richard Norris, came over. "Braeden, the estate is on fire."

Braeden squinted and said impatiently, "Since it's on fire, put it out. I'm at my wedding now. Don't disturb me!"

With that, he was about to turn away when he suddenly sobered up. He grabbed Richard and asked, "What did you say? Which estate? Is Anna safe?"

Richard hesitated before finally saying, "I did not see her."

Braeden couldn't breathe.

The wine glass slipped from his hand suddenly and shattered on the floor.

"Braeden, the fire at the estate is raging fiercely. The firefighters can't even get inside. If Anna is in there, it's likely she won't make it."

Braeden's legs almost gave way, and he nearly collapsed to the floor.

Then he dashed out of the venue without even changing his clothes and sped towards the estate in his car.

When he reached the entrance, the fire had subsided significantly, and the estate was a clear ruin.

"Anna! Where are you?" Braeden shouted desperately as he tried to rush into the fire.

"Mr. Hayes, please calm down. We have not found Miss Briggs inside yet." Several servants pulled him away.

Braeden collapsed to the ground on his knees instantly.

"Then where is Anna? Where is she?"

At that moment, one of them handed Braeden a folder. "Mr. Hayes, we found this in the garden outside the estate. Everything else has been reduced to ashes."

With trembling fingers, Braeden took the folder.

Inside were a phone, a card, and the broken diamond bracelet he had given Anna.

The phone's screen lit up, showing a photo of Braeden when he was young.

He wrapped his arm around Anna's shoulders.

A dull ache pierced his heart.

It felt like ages since he had held her like that or smiled so genuinely.

The phone's contents had nearly been wiped clean by Anna, except for a few videos.

Braeden's heart seemed to have stopped beating as he held his breath and opened the video.

It was footage from their fifth anniversary, capturing an intimate moment between him and Carol in an upstairs suite.

It was the photo sent from Carol.

Braeden felt dizzy, and he could hardly stand.

So, she had known everything all along.

There were a few more photos on the phone.

Carol flaunted herself in the wedding dress on her social media account, and there was a bracelet marked "Complimentary Gift."

Braeden lifted his head blankly as he took the bracelet from the bag.

At that moment, a red warning light blinked.

It was only then that he realized he had set up the device backward.

He couldn't imagine how Anna must have felt while listening to his every move with Carol all this time.

His heart sank heavily into despair, and he was almost suffocated.

He had believed that as long as he could constantly watch Anna, as long as he could provide her with a larger estate where she could live, she would remain oblivious to what happened in the outside world.

Yet, the fool had been himself all along.

Sweat trickled down his forehead.

The last item was a card.

It was the wedding invitation that Carol gave Anna back then.

With the groom, Braeden Hayes, and, the Bride, Carol Moore.

Please bear witness to our love.

Reading those words, Braeden felt frozen. His entire body was chilled to the bone.

By then, the fire at the estate was extinguished.

The rescue team rushed inside to search.

Braeden was unconcerned for himself and followed them in.

The rescue continued into the night.

"Mr. Hayes, we've inspected the site. The fire was caused by a gas explosion. At the scene, we only found some charred clothing and jewelry."

Braeden took the items and trembled uncontrollably.

He could still recognize the melted diamond ring among them.

"Where is she? You haven't found any corpse. It means she's still alive, right?"

He clung to a last shred of hope.

Just then, the rescue team brought new information. "We found some human remains in the rubble and extracted the DNA. It matches Miss Briggs's."

A loud ringing suddenly filled Braeden's ears.

He shook his head mechanically. "You're talking nonsense. Test it again. Do it again."

Others didn't act, and Braeden broke down completely.

"I said test it again! Don't you understand?" Braeden shouted in rage, but as he turned, he coughed up blood. Then he collapsed and became unconscious.