That gang of thugs actually sat around my hospital bed, grinning at me.

I instinctively thought I was having a nightmare and pinched myself hard several times.

The gang leader sneered, then burst into laughter.

“Stop pinching yourself. This isn’t a dream, sweetheart—we meet again.

Smart people know when to yield. You made a mistake, now you pay. Boys, let’s show her what we can do.”

I was terrified, gasping for breath.

“Please—don’t hit me! Don’t hit me! I’ll call Daniel Carter—he’s the one who sent you, isn’t he? I’ll call him right now!”

But of course, Daniel’s phone was switched off. He wasn’t answering texts either. Lily’s smartwatch was also off. Even when I tried calling Margaret, it was nothing but a busy tone.

Fear swept over me in waves.

“Please, let me go. I’m just a pitiful woman. Whatever Daniel paid you, I’ll double it. Ten thousand, twenty thousand dollars—will that do?”

The gang leader looked at me with smug amusement.

“Didn’t think you were rich. Tempting offer, but I live by a code—I don’t break deals once I’ve accepted them. So, sweetheart, how do you want to die?”

“No, please, don’t hurt me. Let me go…”

“Hahahaha!”

At his command, the men dragged me off the hospital bed like I was a dead dog. They ignored my already injured leg and stomped on my other one, making me break into a cold sweat from the unbearable pain.

“Ahh! Stop twisting it! My leg’s going to snap!”

“Heh, one leg’s already gone. What’s another?”

My eyes widened in horror.

“You mean—”

“Bingo. Brace yourself, sweetheart. You shouldn’t have made enemies.”

I blacked out from the pain.

When I woke again, I was shocked to discover that everything below my waist was gone.

I wasn’t a whole person anymore. I was half of one.

So tragic. So painful. Too painful.

I cried myself unconscious again. When I woke later that night, the room was empty—but in the bathroom, I heard Daniel’s voice on a video call.

“Daddy, did you really have Mom’s other leg broken too? Just because she forced you to divorce her? But now she can’t even get prosthetics, right? She’ll be stuck in bed forever, like a paralyzed invalid. That’s so pitiful.”

My husband sighed in the bathroom.

“Lily, you saw her aggressiveness. If I don’t go through with the divorce, she’ll expose me and Isabella Reed. But we’re just innocent college friends, nothing more.”

“And Isabella cares about you so much. She never forces you to eat green peppers, does she? Unlike your mom—her controlling nature is unbearable. She needed to be taught a lesson, to rein in that arrogance.”

“I had no other choice. Even if your mom is bedridden for life, I can provide for her, give her a comfortable life. But poor Isabella—she’s abused daily and can’t get divorced. As her old classmate, isn’t it right for me to comfort her? I can be her support, her shield, so that abusive man never dares hurt her again!”

Lily began to cry softly.

“Daddy, you’re right. Isabella really is too pitiful. Mom has no empathy, and on top of that she keeps accusing you. She’s so controlling, always forcing me to eat green peppers and never letting me have burgers. She’s awful. She deserves this. It’s better if she never stands up again.”

Hearing that, I covered my mouth as tears streamed down my face.

Daniel had completely lost his mind. And my daughter stood with him, unable to distinguish right from wrong. But her heartlessness made me wonder if I even wanted her anymore.

I sank into despair and dialed my best friend Emily Brooks.

“Emily, I regret it all.”

On the other end, Emily was startled.

“What happened, Sophia? What’s going on?”

I told her everything, and she was stunned.

“That bastard dared to do this to you? I’ll kill him!”

“No, Emily. Just take me away. I’ll avenge myself. I just want to escape.”

After a long silence, Emily replied,

“All right. I’ll have my brother Ethan come get you.”

I didn’t sleep a wink that night, my mind spinning on how to get away from this toxic father and daughter.

The next morning, as usual, police officers came to take my statement. When they saw my condition, their brows furrowed. Not a single part of me was uninjured. Everything below my waist had been severed. The fact that I was alive was a miracle.

“Ma’am, based on your account—those were the same men who kidnapped your daughter before? Then this was revenge?”

I glanced at Daniel and said firmly,

“Yes. Please, you must catch them.”

Daniel jumped in righteously,

“Officers, I have something to say. How could those men know where my wife was hospitalized? How could they track her down? Is Newark really this dark and dangerous? How are ordinary citizens supposed to live safely?”

I shot him a look. He spoke as if he weren’t the mastermind behind it all, but a devoted husband fighting for his wife.

The performance made me sick.

“Officers, please catch those bad men. My mom is too pitiful. Now she needs tubes even to use the bathroom—what will we do?” Lily cried, and the officers, guilty for failing to protect me, gave Daniel a sympathetic nod before leaving.

“Doctors, nurses, I beg you, please save my wife. She has sacrificed so much for this family, but she’s suffered this tragedy! No matter the cost, no matter the equipment, do everything you can to heal her!”

Daniel’s act of devotion moved several interns and nurses to tears—even applause.

“Doctors, nurses, please—my mommy lost her legs. Can’t you make them grow back?” Lily asked innocently.

One of the interns smiled gently, patting her head.

“No, sweetheart. Your mom’s legs were too badly damaged. Amputation was the only way to save her life. Medicine can’t regrow legs, not yet.”

I held out my hand.

“Lily, come here.”

She walked over. “Mom, what is it? Are you feeling better?”

“You just said you wished my legs could be restored, right? I’ll give you an idea—jump out of that window. Then my legs will come back.”