Sophie’s heart, already battered beyond repair, felt nothing now, not even pain.

She suddenly remembered five years ago, when Daniel brought her into the city to marry him and stood before her parents, making his promise.

“Don’t worry. I may not have much now, but I’ll protect Sophie with everything I have. I’ll make something of myself. I’ll take care of both of you.”

Her parents hadn’t looked down on him. They had been moved and overjoyed.

Her father brought out the best food the family had been saving for months, and her mother pressed a pair of handmade shoes into his hands, stitched together late into the night.

They gave him everything they could.

And in five years, they received nothing in return.

Now, her father’s life was being used as leverage, just to force her to bow her head.

She should have understood long ago.

In front of Clara, whether she was right or wrong, whether she explained herself or not, the truth had never mattered to Daniel.

For the woman he loved, there was nothing he wouldn’t do.

Sophie looked at Clara, steady and quiet, then bent at the waist in a deep bow.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been jealous of you. I shouldn’t have hurt your child. This is all my fault.

“Please… let my father go. I’ll take responsibility for everything.”

Clara nodded, satisfied. “At least you know your place. But words alone aren’t enough.”

She slapped a sheet of paper down on the table, her eyes glinting. “Write me an apology in blood. Promise you’ll never harm my son again.”

Daniel’s brow tightened.

After the explosion, Sophie had already lost too much blood.

He almost told her she was going too far, but Sophie had already broken the skin of her finger and begun writing, line by line, in blood.

The rough paper scraped against her wound, her pale fingers quickly turning raw and torn.

Because of the blood loss, the wound clotted too quickly, and she bit into a second finger.

Daniel narrowed his eyes, a flicker of discomfort passing through him.

But Sophie didn’t even flinch.

She still looked as gentle and composed as ever, yet there was something in her eyes he could no longer understand.

Daniel had a vague sense that Sophie was different from before.

Was it because of the child, or because of her father? Had he gone too far?

“Sophie…”

A flicker of unease stirred in him, but before he could say more, Clara cut in.

She took the apology Sophie had written. “Daniel, your wife seems sincere. I forgive her.

“Your place was damaged in the explosion. You can’t stay there for now. I don’t mind her staying with me for a while. Can you come back with me and help get a room ready for her?”

Daniel glanced at Sophie, her gaze lowered, then at Clara, her eyes full of expectation.

In the end, he nodded.

It could wait. He would make it up to Sophie later.

With Daniel’s order, Sophie’s father was released soon after.

Seeing her father, his hair gone gray overnight, his face drawn with exhaustion, Sophie felt a surge of guilt and pain, yet there was nothing she could do.

She used the money Daniel gave her to buy her parents some clothes and supplements, then sent them back to the countryside.

After that, Daniel’s aide brought her to Clara’s home.

Standing at the doorway, Sophie looked inside. The small two-bedroom apartment was warmly decorated, and the sight struck her like a needle to the heart.

Every detail in that home was something Daniel once promised her, but never gave.

He said that when they had a place of their own, he would plant sunflowers for her himself.

The sunflowers she imagined now stood neatly arranged on Clara’s balcony.

He also said he would take her to a studio for a proper wedding photo, one they would hang proudly in their home.

Now the walls were covered with pictures—of him and Clara, holding the baby, like a family of three.

Daniel cleared his throat, his voice a little strained.

“Sophie, I let Clara stay in our place before because she was grieving. Don’t take it to heart. I’ve already put in a request for another place…”

Sophie pulled her gaze away and cut him off.

“There’s no need.”

She would be leaving soon.

There would be no chance of ever living in his house again.

In the days that followed, Clara often claimed she wasn’t fully recovered and ordered Sophie to cook for her.

She made Sophie carry her bag when she took the baby out for walks, and when she slipped out late to play cards, she left the baby behind and made Sophie watch him, warning her not to tell Daniel.

Sophie didn’t want any more conflict. She did everything without protest.

But every time she saw Clara with the baby, so close and content, her eyes still burned, until one night, Clara didn’t come home at all.

After Sophie finally got the baby to sleep, she drifted off as well.

Half-asleep, she was jolted awake when the door was kicked open.

Daniel stormed in and grabbed her, dragging her toward the door without a word.

“Daniel… let go of me!”

The baby woke with a frightened cry. Sophie’s voice trembled with helpless frustration. “What are you doing? You woke him!”

Daniel’s face was dark, fury barely contained in his eyes.

“And you still have the nerve to talk about the baby?!

“Just because you want him back, you teamed up with people who are after me. You let them think Clara was the captain’s wife, so they’d go after her. She’s been kidnapped because of you!

“You thought if something happened to her, the baby would come back to you? Keep dreaming.”

He handed the baby off to his aide, then turned back and dragged Sophie toward the car.

“You’re my real wife. You’re coming with me! We’re trading you for Clara.”

Sophie stared at him in shock.

Kidnapped? By whom?

She had no idea what he was talking about.

She clung to the doorframe. “Daniel, calm down. Clara being kidnapped has nothing to do with me! I don’t know those people; I would never hurt her!”

His eyes were bloodshot, burning with anger. “Stop lying. When I went to rescue her, Clara told me herself! You were the one who lured her out that night.”

Sophie almost told him that Clara had snuck out on her own to play cards.

But what was the point?

Daniel had never believed her.

Bitterness flooded her chest.

She slowly loosened her grip on the doorframe and stopped resisting.

“Take me, I’ll go in her place.”

Daniel froze for a second.

Why was Sophie being so compliant today?

But Clara’s safety was all that mattered, and he didn’t have time to think about it.

He shoved Sophie into the car, slammed his foot on the gas, and sped toward the abandoned graveyard where the kidnappers were waiting.

When they arrived, the man was holding Clara at knifepoint.

She was covered in blood, too terrified to even cry.

The kidnapper let out a cold laugh when he saw Daniel.

“Daniel Hart. You ended my career over a fight. My mother paid the price for it. Today, you’re going to cover her burial and settle what you owe me or I take your wife's life.”

Daniel’s voice shook with tension.

“Ryan Warren, calm down! You’ve got the wrong person!

“The woman you’re holding is innocent. The one beside me is my wife. Let her go, take mine instead. I’ll consider what you’re asking.”

When Ryan didn’t respond, Daniel stepped forward with Sophie, his voice tightening with urgency.

“Stop!” Ryan shouted.

“Don’t come any closer! Let your wife come over alone to make the exchange. Try anything, and don’t blame me for what happens!”

With that, he slashed Clara’s arm.

Daniel’s restraint snapped. He shoved Sophie forward.

“Go. Now.”

The man was vicious.

Sophie turned back, fear and despair written all over her face.

But Daniel didn’t see her tears.

He was frantic. “What are you waiting for? Go! Can’t you see Clara’s already hurt?”

His voice dropped. “Sophie, you’re my wife. It’s your responsibility to look out for others. I’ve already arranged a rescue. Trust me. I won’t let anything happen to you. I’m the captain. I’ll make sure everyone makes it out alive.”

Right.

Even if he didn’t love her, he wouldn’t actually let her die, would he?

There was no way out.

Sophie clenched her teeth, shut her eyes, and walked straight toward Ryan.

The moment Ryan grabbed her and released Clara, Daniel’s tone changed.

“Ryan Warren, I’m telling you right now. Your demands are not happening. If you come to your senses, you might still walk away from this.”

It hit Sophie like a bolt of lightning.

Daniel had lied to her again.

Ryan’s expression twisted instantly. “You bastard! You think you can play me? That woman is your wife, isn’t it? That’s why you were so worked up!”

He raised the knife high, aiming straight for Sophie’s chest.

“Then don’t blame me when she dies with me!”

Just as the blade was about to plunge down—

Bang.

Daniel fired. The bullet struck Ryan’s wrist, knocking the knife free.

A scream tore out of him as he collapsed to the ground.

Security officers rushed in, swarming him and dragging him away.

Only then did Daniel move, pulling Clara into his arms.

“Clara, I’m sorry, I should’ve gotten there sooner. One bad shot and it could’ve hit you. I couldn’t take that risk. That’s on me.”

From beginning to end, he never once looked at Sophie.

She lay on the ground, her body trembling, a thin line of blood seeping from the cut across her cheek where the bullet had grazed her.

Her tears had already run dry.

She couldn’t say a word.

Only then did she understand that Daniel could have shot from the start. He didn’t need to trade hostages at all.

He chose to do it anyway, because he wasn’t sure he’d hit cleanly and couldn’t bear for Clara to take even the slightest risk.

And her?

What was she to him?

Clara broke into tears, her voice trembling. “Daniel… I’m in so much pain. Before you got here, he lost patience and cut me… several times…”

Daniel’s gaze dropped to the wounds on her body, his expression turning cold in an instant.

“Someone!”

His eyes burned with anger. “Count every cut on her and give Sophie ten times that! If she hadn’t colluded with him, made up that story, and delayed the exchange, Clara wouldn’t have been hurt!”

Despair swallowed Sophie whole.

Clara had been cut four times. Sophie was cut forty.

Each slice carved into her like it was splitting her soul open.

By the time they let her go, she was covered in blood, barely conscious.

After lifting Clara into the car, Daniel’s voice drifted back, distant and cold.

“Leave her here tonight. Let her think about what she’s done. We’ll come back for her tomorrow. And make sure she never tries anything funny with Clara or the child again.”

The aide hesitated, his expression stiff. “Captain… is that really a good idea? This place is full of bodies. Wild dogs come here to feed. What if…”

The car door slammed. “Then she brought it on herself.”

The vehicles sped off, taking with them the last of the light and sound.

In the distance, a pack of dogs began to howl.

They had caught the scent of blood.

Sophie’s whole body shook.

Gritting her teeth, she forced herself up, staggering away from the burial ground with what little strength she had left.

She hadn’t forgotten that today was the day her divorce would be finalized, the day she would leave with the troupe.

Thankfully, her documents were still tucked inside her coat.

Holding herself together, she picked up her divorce decree and without taking anything else, headed straight for the train station without looking back.

Five years of marriage.

Three lost children.

All the betrayal and pain…

It ended here.

...

Early the next morning, the air was cool after a night of rain.

Daniel had just gotten out of bed when a frantic knock sounded at the door.

He clicked his tongue in irritation as he opened it, ready to snap at his aide for making noise and waking the baby, but the words died before they formed.

“Captain, something’s wrong…”

Daniel frowned. “What’s the rush? Speak clearly.”

“S-she’s gone… your wife… she’s gone…”

The aide’s voice shook, on the verge of breaking. “There’s no sign of her at the burial ground… just blood everywhere… bones…”

His words tumbled over each other.

“She… she was eaten by the dogs.”