Chapter 1


    A thin and frail woman with bloodstained hands was pressed forcefully onto the ground.


    “The former best neerwyer has turned into an ipetent.” A cold and malevolent voice


    sounded above Rosalie Leighton’s head.


    Struggling, she raised her head, her gaze locking onto the attractive face before her. It was hard to


    fathom that the popr celebrity from the entertainment circle, someone who appeared so innocent


    to others, could be harboring such ruthlessness.


    “Yvette, why?” Rosalie asked in a trembling voice.


    “You took my sister’s life How can you even ask why Yvette Hamilton’s sneer conveyed a chilling


    edge, her eyes brimming


    with malefic darkness.


    “It wasn’t me. I’m innocent Rosalie managed to utter amidst her difficulty, her head shaking in


    persistent dental, trying to straighten herself up, her gaze unwaveringly fixed on the man standing


    beside Yvette.


    He was none other than Rosalie’s ex-boyfriend. The man who had once vowed to protect her


    eternally


    In the past, even a minor injury to her finger would cause him to worry for hours. Yet now, he merely


    stood there, a passive observer of her torment


    “Z-Zachary.” Rosalie s cry was infused with nearly every ounce of her remaining strength. “Please. I


    beg you believe me.


    He still wore the same suit and leather shoes as before, but as he fixed his dark eyes upon her, they


    held nothing but a haze of coldness


    “Zachary, you’re not feeling sorry for this woman, are you! She’s the one who took my sister’s life!


    Everything Im doing is to


    my sister can rest in peace”


    Yvette held the man’s armi mi


    at him


    tely. Her malicious expression


    sformed into a sort of pitiable charm when she looked


    “She brought this upon herself Sympathy isn’t warranted Zachary Xanthos responded softly, his


    fingers tenderly brushing through Yvettes meticulously styled hair “You can do whatever you want.


    Rosalie’s eyes widened all of a sudden as the mused. “I brought this upon myself? Ha“


    The man who had once cherished Rosalie now reduced her anguish to this dismissive remark.


    Drawing on an unfamiliar well of strength, she broke free from the constraining hold of the person


    pinning her down. She struggled and crawled forward, determined to get closer to the man.


    “Zachary, I don’t know what happened in that car ident. I wasn’t drunk driving that day. It was


    Mnie’s car…. that crashed into mine.


    Thud!


    A foot descended onto the back of her hand heavily, sending waves of piercing pain through her.


    Yet, the agony she felt physically paled inparison to the intense ache in Rosalie’s heart at that


    very moment.


    She strained to lift her head and locked eyes on Zachary, whose leather-d shoe was pressing


    down on her left hand. The realization that he could be so heartless left her in disbelief


    Summoning a deep breath, she said in a hoarse voice. “Did you ever truly love me””


    “The greatest mistake of my life was ever being with you” Zachary’s words were delivered in a tone


    as cold as ice.


    “Zachary, cripple her hands. It was she who caused the ident that took my sister’s life.” Yvette’s


    voice echoed.


    In the next instant, Rosalie heard him utter. “All right.”


    “Ah!” Rosalie abruptly opened her eyes to the present, realizing she had been dreaming about the


    events that unfolded in prison years ago.


    She nced down at her hand, now covered in calluses. After three years of incarceration, her


    hands were no longer as tender and smooth as they used to be.


    Despite the fact that the nails on her ten fingers had regrown, her hand still bore the remnants of the


    injury.


    In the past, her finger bones had fractured, healing over time but not wlessly. The joints appeared


    slightly misaligned, impeding her ability to perform delicate movements.


    Whenever it was cold and damp, the difort in her fingers was exacerbated.


    At times, the pain became so excruciating that she yearned to sever her hands just to escape it.


    Back then, she was used of drunk driving, resulting in the ident that caused the death of


    Mnie Hamilton. Mnie wasn’t just the eldest daughter of the Hamilton family; she was also the


    fiancée of Jonathan Youngblood, a powerful figure in


    Strico.


    Subsequently, Rosalie found herself abandoned and cast aside by her own family. Ultimately, she


    received a three-year prison sentence.


    Ccontent ? exclusive by N?/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.


    Rosalie rose to her feet, retrieving a cleaning tool as she did.


    She was adorned in the fluorescent workwear of a sanitary worker, and the cold weather had


    bestowed a slight reddish hue upon her delicate face. Beneath her eyes rested a captivating nose


    and lips tinted with a delicate shade of pink. Her lengthy hair was unpretentiously tied into a


    ponytail.


    At a cursory nce, one might assume she had recently graduated from college. However, the


    youthful vigor that should have animated her eyes was notably absent, reced by a hint of


    dimness.


    On this particr day, she was assigned to the night shift. Having dozed off at the Environment and


    Sanitation Administration, she had nearly missed her work hours.


    Just as she was preparing to depart, a colleague engrossed in her phone caught Rosalie’s


    attention. “Huh? Zachary and Yvette are getting engaged. Yvette is truly fortunate to be both a


    renowned celebrity and an esteemeddy. And now, she’s marrying into the prominent Xanthos


    family.”


    A sudden tremor coursed through Rosalie’s body, prompting her to hastily depart from the


    Environment and Sanitation. Administration.


    The names Zachary and Yvette were like aching wounds etched into the very core of Rosalie’s


    being.


    The January night was distinctly cold. Holding a broom, Rosalie diligently swept the road. The


    bones in her hands throbbed in response to the frigid air, sending ripples of difort through her.


    “It’ll be over soon,” Rosalie murmured to herself. For a sanitary worker like her, even essing


    painkillers had be an unattainable luxury.


    Amidst her sweeping, a Ferrari unexpectedly pulled to a stop before Rosalie.


    A man and a woman emerged from the vehicle. Pallor swept over Rosalie’s face as she recognized


    the man.


    He was a scion who used to harass her during her time with Zachary and even earned her


    rebukes.


    “If it isn’t the greatwyer, Ms. Leighton? What brings you to road sweeping?” Timothy Sanders


    inquired with a knowing glint in his eyes.


    The woman by his side giggled, “She’s awyer? How odd!”


    “Don’t underestimate Ms. Leighton. She used to be Mr. Zachary Xanthos girlfriend!” Timothy


    remarked, casting Rosalie a suggestive nce.


    “Your Mr. Xanthos is going to get engaged to Ms. Yvette Hamilton. How about you spend the night


    with me? What I can provide you is far beyond your earnings from road sweeping.”


    Rosalie was not about to allow him to have his way with her. She struggled to evade the man’s


    grasp, but Timothy seized her arm and pinned her against the roadside wall.


    Witnessing his intention to touch her, Rosalie raised her foot and kicked at Timothy, taking


    advantage of his momentary pain to make her escape.


    Timothy’s eyes red red as he refused to relent. He jumped into his Ferrari and began to chase


    after Rosalie.


    By now, Rosalie had dashed to the other side of the road.


    Strangely, despite the usual nighttime activity in this area, it was hauntingly deserted. Not a soul


    was in sight, not even a passing vehicle.


    It was as if there was no one around at all


    The Ferrari gradually cornered Rosalie against the wall.


    As Timothy emerged from the car and lunged toward Rosalie, the sound of approaching footsteps


    filled the air.


    In the stillness of the night, those footsteps reverberated with an uncanny rity.


    Subsequently, Rosalie caught sight of a tall man.


    His bangs nearly veiled his eyes, making it a challenge to discern his countenance. He was garbed


    in a time-weathered suit.


    ‘Step aside! Don’t interrupt me!” Timothy barked at the man.


    The man cast ackadaisical nce toward Timothy, an action that sent an abrupt shiver down the


    latter’s spine.


    It was a gaze devoid of warmth, as though he perceived the other person to be already deceased.


    Timothy spat and swung his fist in an attempt to strike the man, but in the blink of an eye, the man


    had Timothy pinned beneath his foot. With his face pressed into the ground. Timothy appeared


    entirely helpless.


    Right after that, Rosalie bore witness to a lopsided confrontation, a bout that seemed almost entirely


    one-sided.


    Parked inconspicuously at a hidden corner near the intersection, a car housed Carlos Gibson,


    Jonathan’s personal assistant.


    Observing the events unfolding. Carlos muttered his prayers, “Mr. Youngblood, please don’t go


    crazy!”


    If Jonathan were to lose hisposure, the consequences would be unpredictable. It wouldn’t be a


    surprise if he were to


    take a life.


    Carlos had witnessed Jonathan descend into madness once before, and the memory was etched


    deeply into the former’s psyche. Carlos prayed that he’d never have to witness such a scene again.


    The road had been closed off for the night, but the sudden intrusion of these individuals and a


    Ferrari disrupted Jonathan’s


    peace.


    On this particr day every year, Jonathan would seal off the entire road, enveloping himself in


    worn-out attire.


    Nobody dared to question this ritual as if it were a sacred taboo.


    wed,


    Despite Carlos having spent several years by Jonathan’s side, he too remained ignorant of the


    reason behind this practice,


    At this very moment, as he watched Jonathan lift the slightly chubby man and continue to assail


    him, Carlos grappled with indecision over whether he should intervene.


    Right then, Carlos observed the woman who had been on the verge of being attacked utter


    something, and then, inexplicably, Jonathan… halted?