The sounds around me were a blur, as though muffled by a thick, blood-soaked fog.

Someone roughly grabbed my limbs and dragged me into a damp, dark basement, tossing me onto the cold cement floor.

"Ms. Alba said not to let him die. We need him for tomorrow."

The iron door slammed shut with a deafening bang, and darkness swallowed everything.

I curled up in the corner, my body shaking with pain, while my heart had long since gone numb.

I didn't know how much time passed, but Celine's impatient voice finally cut through the silence, echoing through the brightened surveillance screen.

"Why can't I reach Kristian?"

"Celine, don’t worry, Kristian is probably just busy with work."

"Bullshit! He wouldn't ignore my calls no matter how busy he is! Besides, he promised me he’d take care of himself!"

Celine's voice was thick with panic.

My heart lurched, as if squeezed by an invisible hand, and I held my breath.

She was looking for me!

The next moment, Celine received another call.

The voice of her friend, Theo, came through clearly. "Celine, is Kristian with you? His phone’s been unreachable!"

Celine suppressed her anxiety, pausing for a moment before responding in a calm tone. "He's probably secretly working overtime. You know how obsessed he is with his work."

Theo immediately denied it. "Impossible! Tomorrow is the wedding. He wouldn’t still be working at this hour!"

Celine fell silent for a few seconds before hurriedly pulling out her phone to check the surveillance footage for my whereabouts.

My heart raced, and a tiny spark of hope flickered.

Would she notice something was wrong?

Would she recognize that the person nearly killed by her hands today was me?

"There's no one at home. Looks like I was right. Don't worry, Theo. Kristian is either still working or just taking his time getting home."

She hung up the phone and turned to those around her, ordering, "Get the car ready. I'll take Liam home first."

The hope that had started to build was immediately crushed.

She would rather believe I was just dawdling on the road than face the reality that the gambler she had tortured almost to death was her fiancé.

"Celine, aren’t you going to play a bit more? You’re leaving so early?"

Her friends, disappointed by the way things turned out, hadn't fully enjoyed themselves.

Celine’s expression instantly turned cold. "Tomorrow is my wedding with Kristian. If I’m not going back to be with him, am I supposed to stay here with you?"

The group fell silent.

But Liam boldly wrapped his arm around her waist, pouting. "Celine, can you stay with me tonight? From tomorrow on, you won’t belong to me anymore, I’m so sad..."

"Liam! You need to know your place. I said I’d spoil you tonight to help you unwind, and you should be grateful. I don’t like greedy men!"

Her harsh words were easily shattered by Liam. "Celine, I bought the suit you love. Tonight, you can enjoy it to your heart's content..."

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

I could hear Celine’s breathing growing heavy, her eyes swirling with lust.

She pulled out her phone and sent me a voice message in a tone so sweet it seemed fake. "Kristian, I had a bit too much to drink at the bachelorette party, so I’m staying at my friend's place tonight. Be good and sleep well, and tomorrow, I’ll marry you."

As soon as she finished, she jumped into Liam’s arms, kissing him passionately.

I watched them leave in a hurry, their backs full of impatience. Silent tears streamed down my face, but the pain from the cuts on my face made it so I couldn’t even cry properly.

So this was her kindness.

So this was her love.

I closed my eyes, and memories rushed in like a tidal wave.

Two years ago, when Celine accepted my proposal, her eyes were filled with starlight.

"Kristian, marrying you is my lifelong wish. In this life, I will love only you."

Six months ago, after working late, I prepared a surprise for her birthday.

Celine held me in her arms, concerned. "Fool, you're a thousand times more important than any gift."

Yesterday, she kissed my lips, vowing solemnly, "Kristian, starting tomorrow, I’ll be your Mrs. Hamilton. Please take care of me for the rest of our lives! I promise, I’ll never let you suffer a single grievance."

The Celine in my memories was nothing like the cruel, violent, and unfaithful woman I saw today.

I curled up in the darkness, my body cold, my consciousness sinking into an abyss.

If this is love, then I would rather have never met her.

The squeaking of rats jolted me awake, cold sweat dripping down my body.

When they saw me stir, they cautiously backed away, but didn’t flee, as if they knew I was too weak to even shoo them away.

The iron door creaked open, and a burly man tossed a bowl of spoiled food into the room.

"Eat. Don’t starve to death. Ms. Alba said you still have to pay off your debt."

I let out a hoarse, desperate whimper, shaking my head with all my might.

I didn’t gamble!

I didn’t owe anyone anything!

The man furrowed his brow impatiently:

"Trying to play some trick again?"

I shakily extended my mangled fingers, dipping them into the water stains on the ground. With great effort, I scrawled an uneven message on the cement floor.

[I am Celine Alba’s husband.]

The man stared at the words for a moment, then burst into laughter, as if hearing the greatest joke of his life. "You're Celine's husband?"

He pulled out his phone and started a live stream, shoving it in my face. "Open your eyes and take a good look. Celine's wedding is about to start. I wonder how many lives you have to dare impersonate her husband!"

On the screen, Celine stood at the entrance of a hotel, wearing a pristine crystal wedding gown, with a bouquet of fresh flowers pinned to her chest, anxiously scanning the crowd.

"Ms. Alba, the auspicious time is almost here. Why hasn’t the groom arrived yet?"

The host’s puzzled voice came from the phone.

Celine frowned, glanced at her watch, said something to her bridesmaids, and then turned to enter the hotel.

My heart tightened. Had she noticed something was wrong?

"Are you done looking?"

The man withdrew his phone and stomped on my writing hand, crushing my fingers.

"I could tell from yesterday that a toad like you wants to eat swan meat! I never thought you’d still be so persistent! You probably don’t know, Ms. Alba's husband is a well-known forensic expert, highly regarded even by the police! Not someone like you, a deadbeat gambler!"

The pain sent me curling up in a ball, but a flicker of hope rose within me.

'As long as Celine notices I’m missing, she’ll definitely come looking for me!'

—

At the hotel, the auspicious time had arrived.

Guests whispered among themselves, and the host adjusted the schedule for the third time.

Celine stood in the lounge, dialing Kristian's number over and over again, but it kept going unanswered.

"Celine, why can’t I reach Kristian? Could something have happened to him?"

Theo, acting as the best man, was nearly in tears from worry.

Celine’s face grew darker. She lifted her wedding gown and rushed outside. "I’m going to find him!"

She sped back home, flinging open the door. The living room was eerily quiet.

Kristian's slippers were neatly placed by the entryway, and Kristian's pristine wedding suit still hung on the coat rack in the middle of the room, the dust cover still on.

"Kristian?"

She checked every room, even opening the wardrobe, but Kristian was nowhere to be found.

She checked the bathroom and confirmed he hadn’t returned home last night.

Celine couldn’t help but let out a helpless laugh before heading straight to the police station.

She knew that Kristian only worked tirelessly on cases when he was called in to restore a body.

After all, every time Kristian restored a corpse, he helped identify the deceased and gave them the justice they deserved.

"Ms. Alba, you’ve come at the perfect time! We were just about to notify you that we’ve found your mother’s whereabouts. Unfortunately, she has been murdered."

Celine’s mother had been missing for half a month.

'So this was the reason Kristian hadn’t returned home, and had even forgotten about the wedding!' She thought.

He must have been waiting for her mother alongside her!

Celine forced herself to suppress the sorrow of her mother’s tragic fate, and asked the officers to take her to find him.

"Kristian had a good relationship with my mother. He... he’s okay, right?"

The officer, however, looked at her in surprise. "Mr. Hamilton finished his restoration work yesterday and left for the day. He even mentioned that he was getting married today and planned to return home to be with you!"

Celine’s unease began to grow like vines, wrapping tighter and tighter around her.

She shakily pulled out her phone and dialed his number again, but still no answer.

Panic surged within her. She immediately requested the police to help search for his whereabouts.

With the police quickly tracing Kristian's movements, they found that his phone had been active at an underground fight ring.

Was that the reason Kristian had run away from the wedding?

Had he discovered her infidelity and was now avoiding her?

Celine’s face drained of color instantly.

—

At the underground fight ring, I was once again dragged onto the fighting stage.

"Today, we’re changing the rules, as per the sponsor’s request."

"Anyone here can tattoo any part of him!"

The host emphasized the word “any,” and the crowd erupted into cheers.

Sharp blades cut into my flesh, leaving a series of deep marks.

I glanced at the clock on the wall, and amidst the overwhelming stench of blood, I closed my eyes in despair.

Suddenly, the large door was kicked open with force.

"Stop! Everyone, stop!"

A familiar voice made my whole body shudder. I struggled to lift my head, and saw Celine rush in with her entourage.