I hadn't slept for three whole days. The moment I got home, I collapsed onto the bed, utterly drained.

As I stared blankly at the ceiling, the pain in my heart spread.

All of this felt like a nightmare.

I hadn't noticed when my eyelids had grown heavy. In a half-asleep daze, I seemed to see my sister crying, begging me to save her.

I ran toward her with all my might. Just as I was about to grab her hand, a splash of cold water suddenly shattered the dream. The icy water snapped me awake.

There stood Jenny, one hand on her hip, the other holding the empty basin, her face twisted in anger.

"Wow, Landon, you actually have the nerve to sleep here!"

Not having eaten or drunk anything for days, combined with the shock of the cold water, I was dizzy and disoriented.

I wiped the water from my forehead. As I staggered to stand up, Jenny shoved me back down with a hard push.

With her expression full of irritation and contempt, she wiped her hands in disgust.

"Where's Cynthia? Tell her to come and apologize to Claude right now! And hand over whatever she took!"

My eyes narrowed sharply at her words. My sister was dead, yet Jenny was still demanding that Cynthia apologize to her precious Claude! And what did she mean when she told me to hand over what Cynthia took?

"Your sister is spoiled rotten by you. Since your mother died, there was no one to raise her properly. Well, as her sister-in-law, I'll teach her a lesson! Tell her to come out! Where is she hiding?"

Jenny began to search the entire house, kicking doors open with loud bangs and throwing Cynthia's belongings onto the floor in a rage.

"Has she gone back to school? Today's the weekend, right? Oh, I get it. She doesn't dare to come back after she's caused trouble, am I right?"

I couldn't bear listening to this anymore. My emotions exploded as I warned her, "Enough! Jenny, I won't let you slander Cynthia! She's dead; you and your first love killed her!"

Jenny froze, her brows furrowing deeply.

Claude sighed and peered at me with disdain in his eyes. With a disapproving expression, he remarked, "Landon, I know you've always had issues with me and never wanted your sister to help me, so you came up with this plan. But that USB drive contains crucial business secrets. It's very important to me. I'm begging you, Landon, please have your sister hand it over."

Any trace of hesitation in Jenny's eyes vanished and was replaced by a sudden realization at those words. She let out a cold snort.

"Landon, you really are something. You even came up with a lie like this. You act like you care so much for that sister of yours, and now you're cursing her! You make me sick!"

Claude added fuel to the fire. "Jenny, don't be angry. I'm sure Cynthia didn't understand the importance of that item. Someone probably told her to take it." He glanced at me; it was clear what he was implying.

As expected, Jenny's anger flared even more at his words.

Cynthia was already gone, yet they were still slandering her. Fury surged within me, and I used every bit of strength to punch Claude hard in the face.

Jenny rushed over, worriedly caressing Claude's face with a look of concern I'd never seen before. She then turned back and glared at me. "Landon, are you out of your mind?"

Yes, I was out of my mind.

No sane person would keep accepting such humiliation.

My sister was even dead because of this shameless couple!

"Landon, I'm giving you one last chance." Jenny's tone was dripping with threat as she cast a cold glance at me. "Hand it over now, or you know the consequences."

The consequences she meant were no more than a divorce.

Whenever she was unhappy, she'd toss the word around, knowing it would bring me to my knees as I begged her to stay. She reveled in that power.

I'd always been the one to back down in our arguments, but now… I wasn't going to concede again.

Suddenly, I felt as if an insurmountable mountain stood between us. It was one I no longer wanted to cross.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and replied quietly, "Jenny, I'll say it one last time. Cynthia is dead. She never took any USB drives."

However, Jenny didn't believe me. "Fine." She sneered. "If you won't give it up, I'll find it myself."

She began tearing through Cynthia's room, leaving her belongings in utter disarray.

After she failed to find what she was looking for in the room, her gaze soon fell upon a small ceramic doll on the desk.

"What's this?" she asked, frowning.

My heart pounded, and I stumbled forward in panic. "Don't touch that! That's something Cynthia left for me!"

But Claude was faster. He picked up the doll, inspecting it with a knowing glint in his eye before snapping his fingers as if he'd figured it all out. "Jenny, look—it's hollow. If Landon's so protective of this thing, the USB drive must be hidden inside."

Without hesitation, Jenny smashed the doll to the floor.

"No!" I screamed, my voice hoarse with rage as I watched the doll shatter, pieces scattering across the ground.

Ignoring the possibility of the shards cutting my hands, I tried to piece them back together despite my trembling hands.

It was a figurine of two children nestled close together that Cynthia had made herself. I could still remember how proud Cynthia was when she showed it to me.

"Lanny, look! Doesn't it look like us when we were kids?"

It was her favorite piece, one she'd hold and play with every time she came home. But now it lay in pieces, shattered. No matter how hard I tried to put it back together… my sister was never coming back.

Jenny then lifted her foot, her sharp heel pressing hard on the back of my hand. The shards dug into my skin. In an instant, blood stained the broken fragments. The pain was intense, but I let it deepen, almost as if I wanted to feel it like a form of self-punishment.

Cynthia's death must have been a thousand times worse than this.

At this moment, I finally saw my seven-year relationship for how it really was.

My voice was hoarse and icy as I asked, "What proof do you have to accuse Cynthia of taking the USB drive?"

Jenny scowled, her voice laced with irritation. "Claude saw it yesterday. Do you think he'd lie?"

Yesterday? How ironic. I was curious how my sister, who'd already been cremated, could've possibly taken his USB drive.

"So, you trust your lover, but not me?" I asked. I had to fight the tremor in my voice.

Jenny shot me a fierce glare. She proceeded to utter words cold enough to freeze my blood.

"Of course, I trust Claude!"

I'd already guessed the answer, yet her cold indifference still left me feeling utterly heartbroken.

I wanted to argue, but in the end, I didn't say anything. What was the point? She wouldn't believe me anyway. It would only add to the frustration.

As I looked at the two of them, all I felt was bitter irony.

Jenny crossed her arms and let out a heavy sigh. Then, she softened her tone as if she were about to compromise. "Landon, I don't want to lose my temper with you. Just tell me. What will it take for you to give the USB drive back to Claude?"

Suddenly, as if a thought occurred to her, she raised her brows. "Oh, right, you mentioned before that you wanted Cynthia to work at Starlight Corporation, didn't you? Fine, I'll make arrangements for it. Is that good enough? Can you hand over the USB now?"

I could only chuckle bitterly. I had indeed asked her once to put in a word for Cynthia. And what did Jenny say back then? She said she'd never help because she despised people who used connections.

But here she was, breaking her so-called principles again and again for Claude.

When Claude started his business, Jenny went out of her way to help him by providing every resource she could, such as helping him find a location, bringing in investors, and introducing him to clients.

Jenny clutched her phone and gave instructions to her assistant on the other end of the line. "Arrange for Cynthia Lambert to join Starlight Corporation."

There was a long silence before a cautious voice replied, "Ms. Gardner… Ms. Lambert passed away. She had a sudden heart attack that night… the same night you and Mr. Husk were hosting the investors."