Rylee's POV

After hanging up, I crouched on the roadside, crying until I was utterly exhausted, until I was completely exhausted. Only then did I stagger forward.

I hadn’t taken more than a few steps when dizziness hit me, sudden and overwhelming, and I fainted without warning.

When I woke up, I was lying in bed. My face still bore the wounds from hitting the curb when I collapsed.

Vlad sat at the bedside, worry etched on his face. “Rylee, does anything hurt?”

I stared at him, feeling disoriented. Was the man I saw earlier really him, or just a hallucination?

I raised my hand, wanting to touch his face as I usually did. But before my fingers could reach him, he recoiled instinctively.

The next moment, Madeline approached me, a faintly mocking smile tugging at her lips.

“Rylee, your body’s way too weak. Just one miscarriage and you’re fainting every day. How are you still going to carry on Vlad’s family line?”

Her words pierced me like needles.

I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms, forcing down the rising anger. My voice came out cold and sharp.

“If I can’t do it, maybe you should try.”

“You—”

Her face suddenly went pale. She opened her mouth to snap back but suddenly clutched her chest, gasping violently.

Her brows knitted tightly, her body trembling as if she were about to faint.

Vlad’s expression darkened instantly when he saw her like that. He jumped up and rushed to support her.

His eyes were full of concern as he steadied her. Then, he glared at me with a mixture of anger and disbelief.

“Rylee, you know Maddie’s health is delicate. She can’t handle stress, so why did you have to provoke her like that?”

Watching him defend Madeline without a second thought, I felt absurd and bitter, a taste of humiliation rising in my throat.

“Me? Provoke her? Vlad, get it straight—I’m the one lying here! I’m the one who lost my baby!”

The moment my words fell, my parents came rushing in. Seeing Madeline’s frail state, they immediately pointed at me and yelled.

“Rylee! What’s gotten into you? You couldn’t keep your own child, and now, you’re taking it out on your sister? How did we raise someone so cruel?!”

I looked at the three people I was closest to, seeing nothing but their defense of Madeline. In their eyes, I was a monster.

A rush of hurt and injustice swept over me.

I laughed bitterly, though tears welled up uncontrollably.

When we were children, Madeline was always sickly. My parents would say, “You’re the older one; you must give way to your sister.”

So I gave her my toys, my favorite treats, even my room and my hobbies. If she liked it, it was hers, no questions asked.

When I grew older, I thought Vlad would be my salvation.

He loved me, protected me, made me his one and only, and planned a future for me.

I thought I had finally found my happiness. But in the end, it was all a lie.

The one he loved was not me but Madeline.

My heart felt ripped apart, the pain so sharp I could barely breathe.

I took a deep breath, wiped the tears from my face, and watched them leave.

The next day, I checked myself out of the hospital. The divorce papers from my lawyer had also arrived.

I took my stuff and returned to the home Vlad and I had shared.

Opening the door, the living room scene froze me in place.

Madeline sat on the couch, frowning slightly every day while Vlad carefully fed her medicine.

Then he offered her a piece of fruit candy, speaking to her with tender affection.

“See? Not bitter anymore.”

The sight stabbed at me, almost blinding me with its intensity. I had never experienced such care and love.

When I was sick and complained the medicine tasted bitter, he would frown and coldly say, “Good medicine tastes bitter.”

He always told me I was grown-up.

But now, he pampered Madeline like she was a child.

I wanted to rush forward and drag them to hell. But I forced myself to breathe deeply, stay calm, and gripped the divorce papers tightly.

“Someone who didn’t know might think you two are married!” I said.

Hearing my voice, Vlad froze, a flicker of panic crossing his face before he quickly suppressed it.

“Maddie is your younger sister. I also treat her like my sister. Don’t think like that, okay?”

I scoffed, walked up to him, and handed him the papers, pretending to be casual.

“Relax, I’m just joking. I know I shouldn’t have provoked Maddie yesterday. This is a gift I was planning to buy her. The amount is a bit large, so I need your signature.”

Vlad eyed me suspiciously but took the papers to look them over.

Suddenly, Madeline began coughing violently, her face pale, the sound heart-wrenching.

Just like that, Vlad rushed to her side. “Maddie, are you feeling unwell again? Come, let’s go to the hospital.”

He tried to take her with him. I quickly intervened.

“Vlad, just sign. It’ll only take a second.”

He signed hastily and, cradling Madeline, rushed out the door without so much as a glance at me.

I stared at the sloppy signature on the divorce papers, a chill running through me.

The marriage he had begged for thousands of times was now over in a single instant.

Rylee’s POV

The day after that, Vlad didn’t come back.

In the photo Madeline posted on her Facebook, Vlad was sitting gently by her hospital bed, his gaze filled with an affection so deep it seemed impossible to melt away.

The next day was my twenty-fifth birthday.

My parents—who had never once thrown me a birthday party—had surprisingly arranged a celebration early that morning.

All because Madeline’s make-up celebration just happened to fall on the same day.

That morning, I stood quietly in a plain white dress in the corner, watching Madeline surrounded by guests at the center of the room.

My parents were busy greeting people, but Vlad and Madeline were nowhere to be seen.

A strange tightness seized my chest. I wanted to go to the bathroom, splash some water on my face, and calm myself down.

I had just reached the door when obscene panting and hushed whispers drifted out from inside.

Madeline’s voice was soft and coquettish.

“Vlad… you’re so bad!”

Vlad was breathing heavily, his voice low and seductive.

“Maddie, wait a little longer. Once you’re completely better, we’ll get married. I’ll give you a grand wedding.”

Then came a long, suppressed groan.

My stomach churned violently. Nausea surged up as I clapped a hand over my mouth and stumbled into the garden.

I don’t know how much time passed before Madeline’s voice sounded behind me.

Her cheeks were still flushed. Holding a glass of champagne, she walked over and leaned close to my ear, letting out a soft laugh.

“Rylee, did you like the sound of Vlad and me being so loving? Why did you run off so fast?”

I took a sharp breath, clenching my fists so hard my nails dug into my flesh.

She smiled and continued mocking me.

“Vlad said you’ve miscarried three times. That you’re all loose and saggy now. It disgusts him.

“Every time after he sleeps with you, he washes himself for a long time. He even kneels in front of me, begging me not to be angry.

“Oh, but you should thank me. If I didn’t need your blood, you wouldn’t even qualify to be Mrs. Armstrong. You should be grateful that you—and your children—still had some use.”

Every single word stabbed into my heart like a sharp blade.

Scenes from the past flooded my mind.

Ever since childhood, whenever Madeline got sick, my parents would force me to go to the hospital to give blood, calling it ‘preparing a blood reserve’ for her.

And Vlad… Only now did I realize that he had long been involved with the sister I hated most.

Marrying me was nothing more than a way to keep me close, so my blood would always be available for Madeline.

My entire body trembled. The rage inside me finally broke free. I raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face.

The sound was so loud that people inside the living room all turned to look at us.

Madeline covered her face, staring at me in disbelief.

She never expected me to actually hit her. From when we were young to now, I had always been the one who swallowed everything.

Her eyes reddened instantly, tears falling like beads from a broken string.

“Y-You actually dared to hit me?!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, a flash of viciousness crossed her eyes.

She turned and somehow pulled out a fruit knife, plunging it into her own arm without hesitation.

Blood instantly soaked her long dress as she screamed in terror.

Before I could even react, she shoved the knife into my hand.

Vlad rushed over at the sound, catching Madeline just as she was about to faint and pulling her into his arms.

She cried hysterically.

“Vlad! It hurts so much... Rylee… She… she tried to kill me!”

Vlad completely panicked. He tore open his shirt and pressed it against her bleeding arm.

My parents rushed over, too. When Mom saw the wound on Madeline’s arm, she let out a shrill scream and pointed at my nose, cursing wildly.

“Rylee?! You heartless lunatic! Maddie kindly threw you a birthday party, and you actually tried to kill her!”

Dad’s face was livid, his eyes blazing with fury. He stepped forward and slapped me hard across the face.

The force sent me crashing straight to the ground. Blood seeped from the corner of my mouth.

Vlad looked down at me from above, his face twisted with rage.

“Apologize!”

I wiped the blood from my lips, lifted my head, and met his eyes. My voice was icy.

“I didn’t do it! Why should I apologize?”

He exploded instantly, reaching out and ripping the necklace from my neck.

My eyes immediately went wide open, completely forgetting the pain as my skin was scratched raw.

That necklace was made from the ashes of my deceased child. It was my birthday gift to myself.

It was the only thing I planned to take with me when I left this place.

I stood up and lunged to grab it, but he shoved me away.

Holding the necklace, he lowered it slowly toward the bonfire.

“Rylee, I’ll give you one last chance. Apologize.”

The flames began to lick at the necklace bit by bit. I screamed hoarsely.

“Don’t! Vlad! That was your child, too!”

But he didn’t hesitate, continuing what he was doing.

Like a madwoman, I turned toward Madeline.

“I’m sorry, Madeline. I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

The moment the words left my mouth, I ran toward the fire.

Just as I was about to catch the necklace, Madeline collapsed behind me.

Seeing this, Vlad immediately threw the necklace aside and sprinted toward her.

Rylee’s POV

“No!”

I screamed, thrusting my hand into the fire but still couldn’t grab it.

The necklace vanished into the flames.

Guests turned their heads toward me at the sound of my scream.

They watched in disbelief as I, like a madwoman, risked burns and pain to reach into the fire.

Dad immediately barked orders to the bodyguards beside him.

“Pull her up! She’s screaming like a lunatic—so embarrassing!”

The bodyguards immediately obliged and yanked me to my feet.

Dad gave me a disdainful glance.

“Throw her in the basement!”

With that, I was dragged away.

When Vlad carried Madeline past me, he didn’t even spare me a glance.

I struggled and screamed, but it was useless. I felt like a broken doll being tossed around at someone else’s whim.

I watched the bonfire blaze, and the last flicker of hope in my heart shattered completely.

Raging anger surged through my chest, and I coughed up a mouthful of blood.

They threw me into the dark, damp basement, the air thick with the smell of mold.

I curled up in a corner, shivering, my heartache intensifying until it felt like I couldn’t breathe.

I’m afraid of the dark; I have claustrophobia. And Vlad knows this better than anyone.

My consciousness started to blur, and uncontrollable memories flooded my mind.

I remembered the time I was trapped in the attic for a full day and night, just as dark and damp.

I was so scared that my whole body shook, crying until I lost my voice.

It was Vlad who, like a man possessed, found me and held me, whispering gently.

“Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

After that, he installed lights in every corner of the villa.

During storms and heavy rain, no matter where he was, he would rush home and hold me, telling me not to be afraid.

Suddenly, I snapped back to the present. My heart was pounding wildly, sweat soaking my body.

Darkness enveloped me, only fear pressing in from all sides.

I don’t know how much time passed before the basement door finally opened. The blinding light made me squint instinctively.

I stumbled, leaning on the wall, and slowly made my way out.

My parents stood there, their faces still dark despite the backlight.

“Rylee, will you admit your mistake now?”

I looked at them, a faint smile tugging at my lips, and shook my head.

“I did nothing wrong.”

Without another glance at their expressions, I turned and went back to my room.

The warm water from the shower thawed my freezing body, but it couldn’t wash away the pain and hatred embedded in my bones.

No sooner had I finished than my bedroom door was kicked open.

My parents stormed in, faces twisted in rage, impatience written all over them.

“What are you dawdling for? Maddie is crying in pain at the hospital! You better go apologize to her!”

Dad grabbed my wrist and yanked me toward the door with enough force to feel like he might crush my bones.

“Stop pretending! Hurry! Luckily, Maddie’s fine. If anything happened to her, I’d skin you alive!”

I had no strength to resist. They shoved me into the car, speeding toward the hospital.

The entire way, they muttered over and over, worried about Madeline’s condition, without a single word about my injuries or whether I’d been fed in the basement.

When we arrived at the VIP ward on the top floor, a nurse suddenly rushed out of Madeline’s room in a panic.

“Miss Madeline has a sudden drop in clotting function. We urgently need Rh-negative blood, or it could be dangerous!”

Through the half-open door, I saw Vlad anxiously holding Madeline.

At that, Mom panicked, pushing me toward the doctor with urgency.

“Doctor, take her blood! It can be used!”

Dad chimed in, “Yes, take as much as you need!”

I stood frozen, my blood seeming to congeal in my veins.

I looked at my biological parents, and all I saw in their eyes was concern for Madeline—not a trace of care for me.

Even though I knew they were always like this, hearing it firsthand still hurt.

The doctor frowned, examining my pale face, then sighed.

“Let’s run some tests first.”

I was pushed into the examination room and assessed.

Once the doctor learned I had recently had a miscarriage, his expression turned grave, and he moved to refuse my parents’ request.

“She just had a miscarriage. She’s too weak. Drawing her blood now could be life-threatening.”

But my parents didn’t care, cutting him off.

“Impossible! She’s tough!”