Ethan's voice softened, carrying a hint of vulnerability. "Lana, have you had dinner yet? I haven't eaten."

No matter how late one of us came home, sometimes even past midnight, we would wait for each other and eat dinner together. It was an unspoken rule we had set many years ago.

Back then, it was almost always me staying out all night. I would stumble through the door, drunk and disoriented, while Ethan waited for me in the living room.

He would clean me up, making sure that I would not choke on my own vomit. I would complain about how annoyingly fussy he was, but he never got mad.

He would just smile and ask, "What if I take care of you like this for the rest of my life?"

His eyes were so bright, like the surface of a lake. In that moment, through the haze of alcohol clouding my mind, I felt a rare trace of fear.

That light was too pure and bright, revealing me for who I was.

The filth churning inside me was something detestable and loathsome. It was so overwhelming that I did not dare to touch it.

After it happened a few times, Ethan developed stomach problems. When I was not paying attention, he would endure the pain silently with his brows tightly furrowed. He was too afraid to let me find out and never told me.

It was not until one morning, after staying up all night to care for me, that he fainted from the pain at his office. That was when I realized just how severe his condition had become.

Looking at him, I suddenly felt as though I no longer recognized him.

Was the man who loved me so deeply, who showered me with unwavering care and affection, just putting on an act?

Perhaps those who fell in love simply abandoned all reason.

I shrugged and replied casually, "I don't feel like eating anything I cooked tonight. I want to go out."

Ethan's hand clenched for a moment, but he relaxed almost immediately. Just as he was about to say something, a sharp ringtone cut through the air.

The moment he answered the call, his expression shifted. Before I could process what was happening, he had already rushed out the door.

'Ethan West, how do you manage to make people hate you so much?' I thought.

My phone vibrated, and a careless voice crackled on the other end. "The girl's in my hands. What do you plan to do?"

Pressing my fingers to my temple, I replied helplessly, "What do you mean, 'do'? We're not the mafia here. Can you speak like a normal person, please?"

"Are you just going to sit back and let this slide? I'm not okay with that."

"I won't let it slide."

I would not do anything reckless, but I would not let Ethan get off easy either. I wanted him to remember my name for the rest of his life.

I wanted it etched into his heart, burned into his skin, a mark so deep that it could never be erased even if he scraped off his flesh.

"Don't hurt her."

The voice on the other end paused in surprise. "What?"

"Don't hurt Tara. I still need her."

I hung up without explaining further. If Ethan was smart enough, he would soon find the clues I left behind.

Once he did, that was when the real show would begin.

Tara was stashed in an abandoned warehouse. When I arrived, Amber Shaw was there loudly hurling insults at her.

She called Tara a homewrecker, a shameless tramp, and worse.

Tara was tied to a chair and her pale face was flushed red. When she saw me enter, she glared daggers at me.

Her eyes were filled with humiliation and rage as she exclaimed, "This is illegal! If you don't want to get arrested, you'd better let me go!"

"Who says we kidnapped you? We invited you over as a guest."

Apparently not used to hearing something so absurd, Tara was rendered speechless.

"You… You're completely insane."

Rich, pampered princesses like her were amusing. Even their insults sounded as if they were whining.

It was no wonder Ethan had fallen so hopelessly for her.

By the time Ethan arrived, what he saw was a picture of Tara and I tied up together by the sea.

Ethan’s steps stopped across from us.

Tara and I were tied to opposite ends of the railing, with the roaring ocean behind us.

The moment Tara saw Ethan, she started crying, her face was a picture of delicate misery.

It was so perfect that if I was not stuck in the same situation, I might have applauded. I could not imagine how she managed such excellent emotional control.

"Ethan, it's Lana. She did this! They're all in it together. Please save me!"

Ethan's expression was grave as his eyes landed on Tara. His voice softened as he comforted her.

"Tara, don't be afraid. I'll save you. I promise you'll be okay."

I could not hold back a mocking laugh. "What are you going to promise her with? Your words? If you think you're credible, pigs would fly. It's that laughable."

Ethan turned toward Amber as his eyes narrowed dangerously, his voice dropping as he questioned, "Who are you? What do you want?"

Amber, perched casually on a chair with one foot up, was entirely covered, her voice was distorted through a voice modulator. Even if Ethan suspected her later, there would be no evidence.

"What do I want? Simple."

Amber raised a hand, gestured toward us, and uttered a sentence that shocked everyone.

"What did you say?"

For the first time, I saw Ethan lose his composure. Unfortunately, it had to be in a situation like that.

"I said, you can save one of them, or you can take someone's place. Such a simple statement, yet you need me to repeat it? For a so-called business genius, you're surprisingly slow."

I bit my lip as the sound of waves crashing behind us echoed in my ears. My body shook uncontrollably—a reflex I could not suppress.

Ethan looked at me, and I tried to find something, anything, in his gaze. I was too focused, catching a flicker of hesitation in his eyes.

"Still can't decide? Is it that hard? Need a push?" Amber asked.

"Wait. Whatever you want, I can give it to you. Money, anything. I'm taking both of them with me."

Ethan steadied himself and regained his composure as he locked his sharp eyes onto Amber.

Anyone else might have been intimidated, but Amber was not one to scare easily. She did not even lift her gaze before waving her hand.

Tara panicked as her tears spilled uncontrollably while Ethan's eyes stayed on her, filled with nothing but heartache and tenderness.

At that moment, I probably looked like the greatest villain of all. It was as if I was someone who had torn apart the fated love story of two star-crossed lovers.

Ethan's voice trembled with anger as he looked at me.

"Lana, have you had enough? Do you even realize what you're doing? Just because I haven't said anything doesn't mean I don't know that you teamed up with someone else to do this.

"Is this still you? Stop this already. This is life and death. Is there anything you wouldn't do?"

He paused and added, "Don't make me lose respect for you."

How ridiculous.

Did he truly believe, from beginning to end, that I, Lana Branch, was a woman who could not survive without him?

I never thought that. I just wanted an answer, a reason to let my current self kill the past Ethan.

"Ethan, I asked you to choose. Why are you wasting time?"

"Ms. Shaw, I know you won't listen to anything I say, but I'll say it anyway. You still have time to stop this."

Ethan seemed to snap back into his usual composed self—calm and unshakable no matter the situation. The wind howled violently, scratching at my throat until I felt an itch that seemed to make me want to cough.

"Enough talking. Choose, or I'll let them both go."

At Amber's signal, the men next to us hoisted both me and Tara up. The salty sea breeze hit me in the face, and the sharp smell of ocean water churned my stomach.

However, nothing compared to the screaming in my ears. Before I could even draw a breath, Ethan had already made his choice.

At that moment, everything went silent.

Amber instinctively turned to look at me. My vision flickered and spots of black clouded my sight, but I did not know why.

It could not be grief, could it? That would be too humiliating.

'Lana Branch, you really misjudged him, didn't you?'