My childhood friend promised to marry me once we came of age — but at my wedding ceremony, he gave my wedding ring to my stepsister, Summer Hugh.

At the time, it was Victor Lowell, the fearsome mafia heir, who saved me by publicly announcing he had loved me for years.

In the five years we had been married, he would fulfill every wish I had, even those I mentioned offhand. I truly believed I was the center of his world.

All that changed when I stumbled across a top-secret folder as I was cleaning his bookshelf. The very first page was a file on Summer, with three red words printed in bold, “Top protection priority.”

It was followed by a mission report I knew too well.

On the night of the mission, there had been an attempt on my life. My blood had almost run dry before I was saved. When I woke up at the hospital, I found out that I had lost a baby I did not know I had been carrying.

I wept bitterly in Victor’s arms, but I did not tell him about the baby. I did not want him to worry about me more.

Now, I finally found out — Summer had been attacked that night as well, and Victor’s orders had been: “Save Summer first.”

My tears soaked into the paper, smudging his handwriting.

“Alright,” I said softly but firmly into the silence. “If my marriage had been a lie all along, I’ll disappear from your life. Forever.”

Once I made all the arrangements for my departure, I ended the call and put the folder where I had found it.

Just then, I caught a familiar whiff of cigarette smoke and instinctively looked up. It was him.

Victor walked in, his suit still chilly from the night air. He hugged me from behind, his warm chest pressed against my back. His voice was soft, low, and magnetic. “Why are you still awake?”

“It’s nothing. I was just thinking of games for our club’s annual teambuilding event.” I smiled, forcing my voice to sound even yet excited.

He kissed the top of my head. “Don’t push yourself too hard. You’ve stayed up too many nights for that project. I found you a new health advisor.”

In the five years since we got married, everyone knew how much Victor loved and pampered me. He would put on an apron and research recipes whenever I said I had no appetite, and he would hold me and sing me lullabies whenever I could not sleep.

They said the heir to the mafia family was cold and heartless, because he saved all his warmth for me.

I once thought his warmth was mine forever, too. Now, though, I knew that this marriage was just another way for him to shield and protect Summer.

“Oh, right,” Victor said casually, pushing a lock of hair behind my ear.

“Tomorrow, we were supposed to visit your parents, to congratulate your stepsister Summer on her pregnancy.” He paused somewhat hesitantly before continuing, “And to congratulate her on her new position as our club’s manager. You should stay home. I’ll give her the present on our behalf and come home right away to keep you company.”

My blood froze over.

I founded that club and ran it for three years. On the surface, it was a first-rate entertainment facility for members only, but in truth, it was our mafia family’s most important intelligence center.

I had poured my heart and soul into running it well. Not only had I designed interesting games to entice the wealthy clientele, but I had also carefully maneuvered the many factions to optimize our family’s benefits.

Yet… He had given the club to her, just like that.

I tried to keep my voice from trembling, but my throat felt dry. “Why? I’ve been managing the club all this while, and the Don agreed to let me design the new games for this year…”

Victor interrupted me, his voice gentle yet cruel. “I told the Don that Summer would take over. She’s pregnant, as you know, so she had mood swings. Managing the club would cheer her up. Besides, I can’t bear to watch you wear yourself out over the club every day. You can use this opportunity to take a break.”

I lowered my eyes to hide my heartbreak. He was giving her the fruits of my hard work like a toy meant to soothe her tantrums.

He did not even notice how upset I was, kissing my forehead softly. “Your birthday’s the day after tomorrow, and I already prepared a surprise for you. You’ve been looking rather pale lately, so I asked the butler to fill the room with gardenias. You love the smell of flowers, don’t you?”

I did love the smell of flowers… except that of gardenias.

One summer night after our wedding, a neighbor’s child ran to me with a bouquet of fresh gardenias and stuffed them into my arms with a giggle.

I could not bring myself to decline the gift, but my chest soon became stuffy. I could not breathe, and red rashes appeared on my skin.

Victor was usually so calm, but he completely lost his cool in that moment. He swept me into his arms and ordered his men to drive us to the hospital, his voice shaking as he called my name.

In the emergency room, he held my hand tightly, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He kept pressing the doctor, saying, “Her breathing’s getting faster! Is she in danger? Can’t you give her some medicine right away?”

Even after my symptoms began to subside, he was still too worried to go home or even drink a sip of water.

Now, however, he had completely forgotten about that incident.

Or perhaps, he remembered… something else.

I recalled the information in the top-secret file I had found. It said Summer’s favorite flower was gardenias.

Perhaps the flowers he had prepared were not truly meant for me.

I looked up and gave him a perfect smile. “Thanks, but no thanks. I prefer the smell of fresh air lately. Could you free up your schedule for my birthday? I have some activities in mind, and I want you to join me.”

He nodded, his voice full of affection. “Of course. Whatever you say, darling.”

That night, I tossed and turned in bed.

Victor’s arm was tightly wrapped around me. When I carefully tried to break free, something fell from his pocket and rolled onto the carpet.

I picked it up. It was a lipstick.

It had a black shell with embossed gold edges, and it was a bright red that I was very familiar with.

It was Summer’s favorite color.

Countless people had asked her where she bought that color, but she just smiled and said it was her “sweet secret”.

It turned out her secret was the unique hue Victor had customized just for her.

That was when my heart went cold for good.

Two days from now, I would give him what he wanted most—

I would be gone from his life forever.

The next morning, Victor was choosing his cufflinks in the walk-in closet when I said calmly, “I’ll join you for the banquet tonight.”

He paused and looked at me in the mirror with some surprise. Before long, however, he recovered and hid his reaction with his usual smile.

“Of course you can come with me. But there will be a lot of people, so let’s leave after handing over our present.”

I was curious to see what this banquet he had so carefully planned looked like. After all, this was my last time attending a party with him as his wife.

The estate was brightly lit, and everyone in our circle was there to congratulate Summer on her pregnancy as well as her takeover of the club.

I weaved through the crowd with a glass of champagne, listening to the praise and congratulations heaped upon Summer.

“Miss Summer, congratulations on taking over the club!”

“The new game you designed was genius! The club is sure to make waves throughout the city.”

Summer reveled in the praise, smiling smugly. When she saw me, she looked guilty for just a second before hiding her conscience away.

“Zoe,” she said softly, tilting her head. “Why do you look so pale? Are you still worried about the club? Don’t worry, I’m taking over now, so you should kick your feet back and rest.”

I ignored her, focusing on the presentation of the club’s new game on the screen. My steps froze, and my heart tightened in my chest.

It was my design. Every twist and mechanism contained the fruits of my creativity.

I had never announced this design to anyone. I had planned on reporting it to the Don at the family meeting next week, but now it had become Summer’s “genius plan”?

She looked at me with a smirk and suddenly leaned in, saying in a voice only I could hear, “Do you like my new game, Zoe? Don’t be too jealous when the Don praises me.”

My whole body trembled with rage as I stared at her smirk. Before I could say anything, however, she suddenly fell backward and held her stomach, her face twisted in pain.

“Ah! Zoe, how could you hit my stomach like that?” She wailed on the ground, attracting everyone’s attention.

“What happened?”

“Summer’s pregnant! How could you hit her stomach?”

“Someone call the ambulance!”

Amid the chaos, someone darted through the crowd to gently hold Summer in his arms. It was Victor.

He did not even look at me, saving all his worry and concern for the woman in his embrace. He comforted Summer, saying, “Are you okay?”

She said, “Victor, it hurts…”

Victor looked at me with nothing but cold disappointment and suppressed anger in his eyes.

“Zoe.” He called my name, but his cool tone hurt more than any amount of yelling. “If you’re upset, you could’ve saved it until we got home. How could you do something so evil to your sister in public?”

However, I barely heard him. I just stared at him and asked, “Tell me, Victor — How did she find out about the game I designed?”

He paused for a second before avoiding my gaze and feigning ignorance. “It was probably just a coincidence. After all, you’re sisters. It’s no surprise you had a similar idea.”

A coincidence? I kept all my design ideas on the computer in my study. He and I were the only ones who knew the password.

It was obvious. Someone had betrayed me.

I had prepared this game as a fifth anniversary wedding gift, to prove that I deserved my position as the future Don’s wife. Now, it had been stolen and used as a weapon against me.

I laughed until tears gathered in my eyes.

He finally noticed something was wrong with me. After handing Summer over to a doctor, he frowned and approached me somewhat frantically. “What’s the matter? Are you feeling unwell? There are too many people here. I’ll take you home to rest.”

I looked up and stopped laughing, saying calmly, “Sure.”

He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Still smiling, I continued, “But I don’t want to go home. Tomorrow’s my birthday, and I want to go for a hot-air balloon ride. I want to watch the sunrise with you.”

Our journey to the hot-air balloon was quiet. Victor held my hand in his warm palm, talking about the birthday celebrations he had planned for me.

“I've booked all the newest custom dresses. You can wear whichever you want for your birthday.” He paused, his voice turning gentler. “Once the dust settles down, let's try for a baby too, shall we? Didn't you love kids?”

I just listened to him quietly without replying, staring at the scenery outside the car window.

He still did not know that we had a child once, but that little angel left us for good because of the orders he gave.

Not long after the car drove out of the estate, his phone started ringing.

He picked up the call and said something softly before turning to me with a perfectly apologetic expression. “A problem came up with the goods at the port. I have to take care of it myself.”

I nodded and said calmly, “Go ahead. The family's matters are more important.”

He paused, as though wanting to explain. “Zoe, I…”

“It's fine, you go ahead.” I smiled at him. “I'll wait for you at the hot-air balloon park. You promised you'd watch the sunrise with me.”

After I arrived at the hot-air balloon park by myself, I turned on my phone and saw that Summer had updated her social media feed.

She sat on a hospital bench, looking weak and frail. The caption read, [Today was scary, but thank goodness the baby is alright! I'm so grateful that someone was willing to abandon everything to stay by my side.]

The figure next to her was blurry, but I still recognized him at a glance. It was Victor.

I called his number. After many rings, the one who picked up was Summer.

“Hello, Zoe? Are you looking for Victor? Stop bothering him already! He's asking the doctor about my condition!” She sounded deeply smug.

“You have no idea how worried he is about me. Once, I tripped by myself at home, but I called him and wept that I'd been attacked. He sent all his men to save me within ten minutes! You don't stand a chance against me!”

She laughed uncontrollably, but I felt a chill down to my bones.

I knew which night she was talking about. It was the night I lost my baby.

The cause of that tragedy was nothing more than Summer's lie on a whim.

I hung up the call, my hand trembling, and looked up into the sky. I waited all night.

Dawn came, and Victor still did not show up.

I walked into the hot-air balloon's basket and told the soldier in charge, “Take me into the sky.”

He hesitated. “Ma'am, aren't you supposed to wait for someone to join you?”

I said softly, “No need to wait any longer. I'll go alone. You don't have to join me, either. I know how to handle the balloon.”

He opened his mouth to say something, but then he remembered who I was and agreed nonetheless.

The hot-air balloon rose slowly into the sky. I leaned against the side of the basket and stared hollowly at the silent city beneath me.

His sweet words, his company, his promises… The memories flickered through my mind, but they no longer affected me.

They seemed hilariously small and insignificant compared to the bright red words, “top protection priority”, on Summer's file.

When the first ray of sunlight shone through, I called his number for the last time.

This time, his phone was simply turned off.

I then looked at the email I had scheduled to send him. There were three attachments.

The first was a picture of his secret file on Summer. The second was my medical report, stating I had miscarried because I was not treated in time. The third was an audio recording of Summer confessing that her “attack” was merely a lie.

Once everything was ready, I looked up at the sky one last time and took out the gun I had kept in my jacket.

Bang!

I shot the hot-air balloon without an ounce of hesitation.

…

At the same time, Victor was about to leave the hospital.

Summer tried to hold him back, pouting. “Victor, I still need you…”

Victor shook his head, his voice firm. “No, I have to go now. Today is Zoe's birthday. I promised to see the sunset with her.”

Just then, a soldier ran to him in a panic. “Boss, this is bad! Your wife blew up the hot-air balloon she was riding and killed herself!”