Fiona had called the police, and every suspect including Sue was taken to the precinct to assist with the investigation.

While Fiona stayed in her office and waited for the police report, the door was opened violently.

She sneered as she watched Noris stride up to her desk fearlessly and throw a mediation agreement at her.

"Mark doesn't want to see you, so he sent me," he said with a snort, but he was left watching as Fiona laughed coolly despite the document.

He shoved it in front of her, staring at her from head to toe pointedly as he scoffed, "Do you know what kind of women men like us hate the most? Women who get clingy! So know your place and let Mark have his two weeks of privacy, or else…"

He suddenly sprang to his feet, rolling up his sleeves as he growled, "He won't even look at you twice after you get married! Don't say I didn't warn you!"

With that, he left, not before noticing the single rose on Fiona's desk and snorting in amusement.

Through it all, he was no different from a clown in Fiona's eyes.

She wasn't going to marry Mark, so she couldn't care less about Noris' opinion.

It went without saying that Noris would never believe that.

And he had been a sycophant since he was a child, worshiping Mark like he was a god since they were kids.

Mark didn't fear the Starr family, so he also mindlessly emulated that too, somehow forgetting that he and Boris would be dead if not for the Starr family's intervention!

Fiona glanced at the mediation agreement on her desk and clenched her knuckles.

She was not giving in!

-

Fiona was just hanging up when her assistant entered, sighing. "Did you hear, Ms. Starr? Some bigshot must be chasing after Mark's assistant—they sent a ton of roses, and there were so many that her desk couldn't hold everything."

Then, noticing the rose on Fiona's desk, she pointed, "Oh, the roses look like just one too! Do you like it, Ms. Starr? I could order a bouquet to liven up this place…"

Fiona swept the rose off her desk without hesitation and calmly said, "No. I hate roses."

Soon, it was lunch hour, but she kept working.

She graduated from a prestigious university with scores as good as Mark's and had only stayed at home to take care of him, only for him to treat her like an ignorant housewife.

It was true that she was ignorant about certain matters—like blindly falling for Mark—but that didn't mean she was incompetent.

She went out to the pantry for some coffee, only to find Sue standing at the doorway, and she didn't appear surprised to see her.

As Mark and his cronies were not around, Sue's usually tearful eyes were glaring sharply and jealously at Fiona as she sneered. "Ms. Starr… You have a good family and good looks, so you have any man you want—why do you insist on taking Mark from me?"

Seeing that she wasn't playing the delicate maiden, Fiona simply stayed silent.

Seeing that, Sue moved closer while she kept looking around. "I was raised at an orphanage, until Mark came after his parents died. He isn't just handsome… He's smart and sharp, and even though he didn't like to talk, I was the only one who befriended him."

Pausing, Sue's eyes flashed viciously as she bellowed, "But your father took him away from me! Then, when I finally managed to get him back, you took him away from me again! I'll never let that happen—you're just born lucky, loser! You have no right!"

As she finished, she suddenly snatched Fiona's coffee out of her hands and splashed it on her face.

As she screamed, Mark promptly came running, completely ignoring Fiona as he scooped Sue up in his arms. "What happened?!"

"My face! It hurts so much!"

He quickly took her to the washroom, frantically checking her face.

Meanwhile, Fiona was just caught stunned for a moment, but she soon calmed down and threw the cup that Sue touched into the trash can.

As she turned, she found Mark standing there, glaring darkly at her.

She met his glare without flinching and scoffed, "What, do you want revenge? Just so you know, if I wanted to hurt her, it wouldn't just be a tiny cup of coffee."

The day after, Mark moved out of Starr Manor and blocked Fiona's number.

Noris, Boris, and Yannick all followed suit, leaving the butler approaching Fiona in confusion when she returned. "Ms. Starr… should we tell Mr. Starr?"

Fiona twirled her champagne flute and snorted. "Nope. They'll all be gone eventually anyway—they've saved us the trouble by taking out their own rubbish."

Seeing that the butler remained uncertain, she smiled but said nothing. "Just pack up whatever personal effects they've left behind and send it to them… If they'd give you their address, that is."

The butler nodded, but he kept staring at Fiona, who looked like a completely different person now, clearly having more to say.

Eventually, he gave in just as he started to leave. "Alcohol is always bad for your health, Ms. Starr, and you've been drinking a lot."

Fiona stayed silent, only shedding tears after the butler gently closed her bedroom door.

She certainly knew that alcohol was bad, but she was hurting so much—for herself, and for her unborn child.

After Sue died, he had abused her sexually every single day as if to vent all his frustrations, not caring how much she was hurting and leaving as soon as he blew his load.

She had no idea where his resentment came from and kept bearing with it, bearing with the fiery pain to get out of bed and get painkillers.

When she got pregnant, she was filled with hope as she looked forward to giving birth, only for Mark to destroy everything for her.

She didn't die on that mountain exactly because he wanted her to survive, so that he could lock him in that basement with rats and bugs.

Eventually, the rats got too hungry and started eating her from her toes, and she was left in despair up until the moment she drew her last breath…

-

That night, she worked overtime again.

After washing up, she lay in bed, exhausted and not noticing that the manor was strangely quiet.

When she opened her eyes again, she was in the basement, and the almost familiar darkness was no different from a pair of hands strangling her.

Her eyes widened, and she shuddered as she curled up.

A dark figure then emerged from a corner—it was a homeless bum who stank from head to toe.

Seeing that she was awake, he shoved a pill down her throat with his dirt-covered fingers.

Fiona flailed helplessly, her tears gushing in fear.

She tried to puke it out, only for the bum to slap her viciously across the face. "Don't you dare! It's the good shit—you'll feel so good that you could die!"

He started groping her all over, and Fiona couldn't fight back as she was quickly turning limp.

Soon, he left her toplesss, his bloodshot eyes wide with crazed excitement.

Then, he smiled greedily as he looked at her crotch and started reaching there…

Even as Fiona despaired, someone yelled her name, and she felt herself lifted to the air.

Mark had come running, his forehead covered in sweat.

His eyes were red when he saw what had happened, and he started punching the bum viciously in the face and kept doing it until the bum was almost dead and coughing blood.

Unable to quell his rage that threatened to burn him to ashes, he got up, not bothering to look at the bum again as he took off his jacket and covered Fiona.

He then scooped her up in his arms, his warmth easing the coldness she felt.

She pressed herself against his chest before she knew it, her tears unstoppable and quickly leaving his shirt wet.

Her sobs seemed to echo in Mark's ears, leaving him feeling like he was punched in the gut…

-

Later, when Fiona jerked awake, she felt restlessly hot all over and couldn't help pressing her thighs together.

She heard voices outside and fought against her discomfort to get out of bed.

She soon heard Noris snapping, "What's your problem, Mark?! We agreed to get revenge for Sue's sake! I paid that bum so much, only for you to save that bitch?!"

Those words spoken behind a wall struck Fiona like a club to the head!

"Exactly!" Yannick echoed just then. "Even I have trouble keeping up with what you're thinking here. You're the one who said that splashing Fiona in the face wouldn't take her down a peg, and that we need to seriously crush his pride so that she would show some respect!"

"Exactly." Noris nodded. "It's just a staged act, and we weren't really going to hurt her, but you had to stop it at the very last moment! Didn't you see how scared she was on the cameras? I was almost dying from laughter!"

Boris sighed just then. "Mark, don't tell me you're regretting this? You care about Fiona now? Did you forget what she did to Sue?"

Mark leaned against the wall, flicking ash off his cigarette as he narrowed his eyes darkly. "I regret nothing, and I'd never care about Fiona Starr. I just think we shouldn't go too far—the geezer is abroad, not dead."

Noris blew a raspberry. "What are you worried about? His phone's dead—he's completely out of reach."

Behind the door, Fiona clenched her knuckles and shuddered as she did her best to calm down.

She reached for her phone and called her father, but there was no response!

Never could she have expected that Mark would go that far for Sue's sake!

Mark simply understood Fiona and her temper too well, but he used that understanding like a blade, stabbing her in the heart!

Her legs trembling, she heard footsteps approaching and quickly returned to bed and played dead.

The door opened audibly, but only Mark entered.

He sat on the edge of her bed, listening to her rhythmic breaths and staring at her sickly pale face with a look of mixed emotions.

Eventually, he sighed. "You can't blame me for this. You hurt Sue first—just stay away from her, and I can give you everything you ever wanted."

He soon left, and Fiona opened her eyes.

Everything she ever wanted? Would he and his cronies die if she asked?!

She quickly rushed to the bathroom for a cold shower and only stepped out hours later, shuddering as she made a call.

"We're going to need some time, Ms. Starr…"

"Just reach him soon!" she snapped.

She was keeping her eyes closed, her lips eerily purple from the cold, even as her resentment grew rapidly like a fertilized plant.

-

Later, Fiona decided to work from home for the day, and Mark arrived to see her looking serious.

He had never seen her like that—she was always trying to be cute, unable to do a thing and was always asking for his help, even when it came to opening water bottles.

He frowned, different thoughts weighing down on his mind as he really couldn't understand Fiona now.

As for Fiona, she had heard him enter for a while, but it wasn't until a while later when she finally looked up at him coolly. "What?"

Mark did a double take, but soon recovered and said quietly. "The cops have arrested that homeless bum. Just leave the rest to me—don't worry."

Don't worry?

Fiona could laugh right then, but she still replied flatly, "Yeah."

More time passed, but Mark still wasn't leaving.

Still, he spoke before she could, "It's going to be your birthday in a couple of days. I've had my assistant book a place and send out invites…"

Just as he finished, his phone rang, and he didn't hesitate to answer when he saw who it was, while hurrying outside without closing the door.

Fiona had seen him leave so many times throughout the years, but she had never noticed that she no longer felt disappointment.

But that was just how things were when one gave up on a person—it just happened without warning.

The day before the party, she had a meeting with a client.

She went to her wardrobe to look for a dress and a matching set of jewelry that her father had recently sent her from abroad, only to find that everything had gone messing.

She had to change into another dress and went to the hotel with her assistant where they were supposed to meet the client.

However, they never showed up, just as Fiona overheard several waitresses gossiping.

"Hey, so who's birthday are they celebrating in the banquet hall? It's quite the big deal—you can see rows upon rows of luxury cars parked outside!"

"I have no idea. But I'm guessing one of the shareholder's daughters? I heard that she celebrates her birthday every year."

"It's just so frustrating. Some people are really born rich, unlike the rest of us!"

"Oh, don't even start. Do you know how stingy they are? I heard that they're going to celebrate another birthday tomorrow in the same hall as well, so all the decorations are to stay as is, while any leftover food will be kept for tomorrow too! Aren't they supposed to be rich? How could they be so stingy?"

Tomorrow?

That was Fiona's birthday, and the banquet hall was supposed to be kept closed until tomorrow.

She didn't call for her assistant as she started toward the banquet hall.

To no surprise, it was already crowded, with Noris, Boris and Yannick dressed sharply in suits and greeting the guests.

Most of the guests were former partners and big shots in Jampton too…

The bell rang, and a grinning Noris ran up stage to play emcee, announcing the grand entrance of Sue Levine, whose birthday they were celebrating.

As everyone looked up, she appeared by the stairs, slowly descending while hugging Mark's arm.

And she was wearing the dress and jewelry that Fiona's father had bought for her!

At that very moment, Fiona felt her blood rushing up to her brain.