After returning to Maple Villa Complex, I rushed straight to my room while gripping the box tightly in my hand.

Beyond the window, the carefully maintained garden still looked vibrant despite the winter season. Sunlight struck the fountain, and its droplets glittered like scattered diamonds.

Even so, the beauty and calm around me held no meaning.

My attention stayed fixed on the small box I carried. Though it barely weighed anything, it pressed heavily against my thoughts.

This was the Christmas present Lily had prepared for me.

Parts of the star-patterned wrapping paper had worn thin, and the edges had started to fray. It showed how carefully Rose must've protected it all this time.

The surface was covered with stickers. There were shiny stars, round little unicorns, and colorful rainbows. I could almost see Lily smiling while placing them there. In my mind, she leaned close to her work with full concentration, her tongue peeking out slightly as she pressed every corner down.

A four-digit lock secured the box. I wondered what number she had chosen. Perhaps it was her birthday, or maybe mine. It could also be a date that meant something special to us.

After drawing in a slow breath, I entered my birthday into the lock: 0316.

A quiet click sounded as the latch released.

The answer felt so obvious that I could almost imagine Lily whispering beside me, "Of course it's Mommy's birthday. That's a very important day."

My hands shook while I carefully raised the lid.

Only a small booklet rested inside.

The cover showed a drawing Lily had made with crayons. Three stick figures stood together while holding hands in front of a small house. A crooked tree stood beside it.

Stars of many sizes filled the sky above them.

Under the drawing, she had written a title in pencil. Some letters were reversed, yet the words were still clear. "Lily's Heartfelt Words."

I gently ran my fingers across the uneven handwriting. Despair mixed with a painful sense of anticipation until it nearly overwhelmed me.

Before opening to the first page, I paused and took several deep breaths to calm myself.

The entry showed a date written in uneven numbers. It was about a week after I was taken to prison.

"Today, Sofia started living with us. Dad said Mom is in prison and won't come back for a long time. Sofia is here to look after me. But I don't like her smell. It is unpleasant and makes my nose itch. I miss Mom's smell. Hers smells like jasmine. Dad and Sofia keep drinking in the living room. They make so much noise that I can't sleep. I want to hear the stories Mom used to tell me. I hold the scarf Mom left behind. It still smells like her."

Each page marked another passing day and showed how Lily's happiness slowly disappeared.

"Today is my birthday. I'm five years old now! Dad forgot about it. Sofia laughed and said kids don't need birthdays. There wasn't a cake or any presents. When Mom was here, she made a princess cake and gave me a puzzle box. I hid the puzzle box so Sofia wouldn't find it. Mom, when will you come back and celebrate my birthday?"

My chest tightened with pain, making it hard for me to breathe.

While I sat in prison last year, I imagined her waiting happily for her birthday. I survived those long nights by picturing her smiling as she blew out the candles.

In reality, she had nothing.

"Christmas came today. My teacher said Santa gives presents to every child. But I only want a Christmas card from Mom. I drew many pictures for her, but Dad said they can't be mailed. Did Mom send me a card for Christmas? I check the mailbox every day, but nothing is there. Rose said she wants to see my mom's card, too. Mom, did you really send one?"

I sent one, Lily.

At that time, I sat at the cold desk inside my prison cell. I kept rewriting the card and drawing pictures on it again and again while begging the guard to make sure it was mailed.

Michael and Sofia had even cut off the fragile connection between Lily and me.

The entries that came after grew even more painful to read.

"Today I heard Dad and Sofia fighting in the garage. They were arguing about money. I tried to be brave and asked Dad if he could take me to see Mom because I miss her a lot. Dad got angry right away and said I was annoying. Sofia stared at me and said Mom caused all the trouble. They hit me and locked me in the garage. It was cold and dark. For a long while, I kept crying. Mom, when are you coming back?"

My dear child, everything happened because of my mistake. I trusted people who never deserved it.

If I hadn't been so blind, if I had understood what Michael was truly like, and if I hadn't taken the blame for him... Would Lily have grown up safely beside me, living a happy life?

Tears poured from my eyes and dropped onto the diary, smearing the childish writing.

I quickly tried to wipe the pages dry, yet each attempt only made the letters blur even more.

The final page of the diary already looked smeared. Compared to the earlier pages, the handwriting appeared weak and uneven, as though Lily had struggled to write every word.

"My head is spinning. I feel so hot. Dad, I do not feel well... Sofia, please take me to the hospital... I'm cold... Mom, where are you? I miss you..."

That was where the writing ended. Several uneven marks stained the page after something had dried. Were they tears? Or drops of sweat from her fever?

My mind could hardly face the thought of Lily's last moments. She must've lain there burning with fever inside a dark and freezing room. Again and again, she must've called for me, while the two adults who should've protected her ignored her weak cries.

Without thinking, I pulled the diary against my chest and collapsed onto the carpet. My body curled inward as my shoulders shook and tears streamed down my face without control.

Oh Lily, my poor girl.

Once I was sent to prison, her short life had been filled with neglect, cruel words, and violent abuse.

The birthday gift she had wished for, the Christmas card she had been waiting for, and the hug she had wanted from me... None of it came to her.

In the end, they even took away her right to live.

Michael and Sofia showed no mercy. They were nothing but monsters.

A fierce hatred began growing inside me faster than ever before.

Those two traitors were the ones who had sent Lily to an early grave.

I raised my head at once and brushed away the tears that clouded my sight.

In the mirror, I saw red, swollen eyes and a pale face. The pain was gone. What remained in my eyes was vengeance.

I placed Lily's diary back inside the box with slow, careful hands.

Right then, I needed somewhere quiet where no one else could follow. I wanted to face Lily on my own.

One place came to mind immediately.

After finishing a quick lunch, I changed my clothes and put on a black coat.

Neither Bale nor Katherine heard a word about my plans. This was something I had to do without anyone beside me.

The car Bale had arranged waited in the garage. I started the engine and drove out, heading straight toward Kregan Cemetery.

Mary had been the one who told me where Lily was buried. She hadn't learned it intentionally. She overheard Michael and Sofia arguing one day, and the truth slipped out during their fight. That was how she discovered Lily had been laid to rest in the cemetery outside the city.

As I continued driving, the sounds of the city slowly faded behind me. Traffic noise disappeared. The crowded streets vanished in the distance. Winter silence took its place.

Kregan Cemetery sat quietly along a hillside.

White tombstones covered the slope in neat rows, spreading across the land like a quiet forest made of stone.

Cold air filled my lungs when I stepped out of the car. The scent of damp soil and pine lingered in the wind.

Then I spotted it.

Among the rows of stone markers stood a small tombstone made of white marble. It looked new, its brightness stark against the dull gray of winter.

At the top was Lily's portrait. Below it, a short message had been carved into the stone. "Lily Rivera. Our Little Angel. Her life was brief, but her memory will live on forever."

"Her life was brief..." I whispered the words under my breath, and a heavy ache tightened inside my chest.

Brief?

Lily never had the chance to live at all. Cruel hands tormented her, and her life ended before she could experience what living truly meant.

I slowly lowered myself in front of the tombstone. Cold seeped through the floor and into my clothes, reaching my skin, yet the chill barely registered in my mind.

With shaking fingers, I reached out and touched the name carved into the marble. The icy surface beneath my fingertips forced a painful truth into my heart. Lily was truly here.

The sweet little girl who once laughed in my arms, who played beside me and curled up against my chest, now rested beneath this patch of earth.

"Lily... Mom is here..." The moment the words left my mouth, tears spilled down my face again. My voice trembled as I tried to keep speaking. "Mom came to visit you... I'm sorry it took me so long, my love..."

My forehead rested against the cold marble, as though pressing close to the stone might somehow bring me nearer to her.

Everything I had held inside during the drive finally shattered.

The words poured out unevenly as I spoke to her, telling her about the diary I had read and the storm of pain, guilt, and anger that now lived inside me.

"Mom read your diary. You went through so much, my love... and I didn't even know. This was my fault. I trusted the wrong people. I left you surrounded by monsters. But I didn't forget you. I never forgot your birthday. I remembered Christmas too. I sent you cards. I drew pictures for you. They were the ones who stole everything from us."

"Lily..." My voice shifted as I spoke her name again. The sorrow that once filled it hardened into something colder. "I won't let this go. I'll make sure justice reaches you. Michael and Sofia will answer for what they did. Neither of them will escape. I'll make them face the price of their cruelty. They'll beg for your forgiveness before this ends."

A sharp gust of winter wind passed through the bare branches overhead. The dry limbs rattled softly, and the hollow sound drifted through the cemetery as if the air itself acknowledged the promise I had just made.

My hands gripped the tombstone as I cried beside Lily's grave. Time passed without me noticing. Eventually the tears ran out, leaving my throat raw and my voice reduced to silent breaths.

Once the storm of emotion finally passed, exhaustion settled into my body.

The cold air filled my lungs as I drew a long breath and forced myself to steady my thoughts.

Now I had to move forward.

Carefully, I placed the bouquet of white freesias in front of the tombstone. My lips brushed against the name carved into the marble. "Goodnight, my little angel. Mom will come back to see you."

I slowly pushed myself to my feet. My legs had gone numb after kneeling there for so long.

Before leaving, I paused and looked at the small tombstone one last time. Then I turned away. I walked along the path that led back toward the parking lot.

Each step felt heavy. Even so, I didn't hesitate.

The grief stayed buried deep inside me. In its place, a single purpose remained clear.

Only one thing pushed me forward now. That was revenge.

By the time I arrived near the cemetery's exit, the parking lot came into view. The car I had driven earlier waited exactly where I left it.

I prepared to walk faster toward it. Just then, something caught my attention from the corner of my eye. Behind a row of tall cypress trees, a shadow shifted briefly before slipping out of sight.

That wasn't my imagination.

The instincts I developed during my years in prison reacted instantly.

Someone might be watching me.

My steps halted. Without hesitation, I spun around and fixed my gaze sharply on the cluster of cypress trees behind me.

The area appeared completely still. Only the wind moved through the branches, stirring a faint rustling among the leaves.

Yet the feeling wouldn't disappear. Somewhere nearby, hidden from sight, someone was staring straight at me.

Could Michael have sent someone after me? Maybe a hired killer. Perhaps he planned to eliminate me for the insurance money. Or maybe fear of exposure made him paranoid, and he secretly placed someone here to keep watch over Lily's grave all this time.

Questions flooded my thoughts one after another. There was no time to sort through them.

Fear couldn't control me now. Lily was still waiting for justice. I couldn't allow my life to end here without purpose.

During that brief moment of thought, I drew in a slow, steady breath.

Instead of walking straight toward my car, I suddenly altered my path. To anyone watching, it would seem as though I had lost my way and wandered toward the far corner of the parking lot.

My steps slowed on purpose. While I moved, my eyes scanned every corner around me, and my ears stayed alert for even the faintest sound behind me.

Soon enough, the sound came. Soft footsteps echoed faintly several rows away. Whoever followed me kept their distance and tried to walk quietly.

I continued until I reached the last stretch of parking spaces.

That area sat close to the cemetery wall, tucked away from the main path. The thick branches above blocked most of the security cameras nearby.

Without hesitation, I slipped behind a large SUV and forced myself to remain still.

My breathing slowed as I waited. The footsteps crept closer. Even through the quiet air, I could hear the hesitation in them.

This was my chance.

The moment the shadow moved past the back of the vehicle, I sprang forward from the darkness. My hand shot out and locked tightly around the stranger's wrist.

The arm I grabbed felt slimmer than I expected.

"Who are you?" I demanded sharply. "Why have you been following me?" My free hand lifted instinctively, ready to strike if necessary.

A startled cry broke the silence. The voice belonged to a woman.