Chapter 1 Isabella is Dead

Emerald City.

The Taylor Villa blazed with light, a river of guests flowing through its grand halls to offer their congratulations.

"Congratulations, Mr. Taylor! A monumental day, finding your long-lost daughter!"

"Hayden, truly wonderful news!"

A broad smile stretched across Hayden Taylor’s face as he prepared to respond, but a deafening crash shattered the celebratory atmosphere.

All eyes snapped toward the source of the chaos. A young girl stood beside the ruins of the champagne tower, her thin hand still clenched around the crimson tablecloth she had ripped away, the veins stark against her pale skin. Glass pyramids had cascaded like dominoes, now lying in a glittering sea of ruin.

"Isabella Taylor!" Hayden's smile vanished, his face twisting into a scowl. "What in God's name do you think you're doing?"

The name "Isabella Taylor" sent venomous whispers slithering through the crowd.

"That's her… the real one. I heard they found her four years ago but hid her away. Told everyone she was the maid's daughter, all to protect Bianca."

"If Taylor Corp wasn't on the verge of bankruptcy, Hayden would never have acknowledged her. He's just trying to marry her off to the Johnsons to save himself."

"The poor thing…"

"Poor? If she doesn't marry him, should Bianca? Isabella has no bond with them. It’s not like Bianca, who they raised for twenty years."

"And look closer. Her left eye… she’s blind."

"I heard she got involved with some lowlife, was foolish enough to donate a cornea to him."

"Even with Taylor blood, she's damaged goods. Just trash."

Isabella stood unflinching amidst the broken glass, absorbing their contempt. "I heard everyone is here to celebrate the Taylors finding their biological daughter, is that right?"

She flung the red tablecloth to the floor, her eyes burning with the same rebellious fire they held when she first arrived at this house four years ago.

"The title of 'Taylor Family's daughter'… anyone who wants it can have it. I don't!"

Hayden's expression darkened. "Isabella! Have you lost your mind?"

"Lost my mind?" Isabella let out a sharp, bitter laugh that held no humor, only despair. "No. You're the ones who are insane."

"Four years! For four whole years, you denied my existence! Now your company is failing, and suddenly you remember me? Michael Johnson is fifty-five years old—thirty-six years my senior! His last wife died a month ago, and she was the fourth woman to die in that family…"

Her voice cracked. "Is this a reunion banquet, or my execution ground?"

Olivia Smith, her face a mask of cold fury, gestured to the butler. "Get her out of my sight."

The butler moved to grab Isabella's arm.

"I'm not leaving!" Isabella shoved him away, her gaze locking onto her parents. "I will not accept this marriage!" she screamed, her voice raw.

At this, Chase Taylor, the eldest son, detached himself from the crowd. Dressed in a flawless black suit, he approached her, his gaze as sharp as a blade. "And what makes you think you have a choice?"

Tobias Taylor frowned, his disapproval clear. "Marrying into the Johnson family is the only way to save this company."

"You should be grateful," Kieran Taylor sneered. "This is the best thing that will ever happen to you."

Isabella trembled, looking at the cold faces of her brothers. Why was it always her fault?

Just then, Bianca Taylor rushed to her side, her face a perfect portrait of concern. "Isabella, please," she pleaded, grabbing her hand. "If you don't want to go, I'll do it. I'll marry him. Just please, stop making a scene."

She positioned herself as the family's savior, a noble sacrifice. The crowd murmured in approval.

"What a good daughter Bianca is!"

"Isabella, why can't you be more like your sister?"

Isabella stared at Bianca, ice in her veins. If not for Bianca’s lies, she would still have her sight. If not for Bianca’s calculated slander, her name wouldn’t be poison.

"Bianca!" Isabella's control finally snapped. She lunged forward, her hands closing around Bianca's throat.

"Why did you lie to me? There was another donor! Why did you trick me into giving you my cornea?"

"You could have just hated me, but you set me up! You ruined me! Why?!"

"Bianca!" Hayden shouted, rushing to tear Isabella away.

"Let go of my sister!" Chase commanded coldly.

"If anything happens to Bianca, you're dead!" Tobias snarled, prying at her fingers.

"Let go!" Kieran roared, landing a vicious kick on Isabella's side.

The scene descended into chaos. But Isabella held on, her face a mask of pure rage, her grip unrelenting.

Then, a sickening thud.

Something heavy struck her skull. The strength drained from her body in an instant. Her hands fell away from Bianca, and she crumpled to the floor.

A pool of blood began to spread from beneath her head.

The family swarmed around Bianca, ignoring the girl bleeding on the marble.

"Bianca, are you alright?"

"My darling, did she hurt you?"

Gabriel Taylor stood frozen, a blood-soaked stone ornament slipping from his trembling hand. He stared at the spreading stain. "What… what do we do? I think… I think she's dead." He had only wanted her to let go. He hadn't meant to…

Olivia’s frown was purely pragmatic. "If she's dead, the arrangement with the Johnsons is off."

"Calm down, Gabriel," Hayden said, his voice eerily steady. "It was self-defense. The girl was hysterical. If she hadn't been stopped, she would have strangled Bianca."

Bianca expertly hid a triumphant smile behind a veil of tears. "It's all my fault," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry, Isabella…"

"This isn't your fault, Bianca," Chase soothed.

As they comforted Bianca, none of them noticed that Isabella was still conscious, her life clinging by a thread. Through the haze of her fading vision, she watched them, a single tear of blood tracing a path down her cheek.

Suddenly, the villa's main doors were thrown open.

A man stood silhouetted against the night. Tall, imposing, and rigid with shock.

It was William Brown, her friend's brother. The formidable head of the Brown Group. A man whose world was galaxies away from hers. If not for his sister, Sophia, their paths would never have crossed.

His words from yesterday echoed in her mind. “Don’t go to the banquet tomorrow.”

He had called from an unknown number. “They’re selling you to Michael Johnson. Marry me instead.”

“I’m on my way back. Wait for me.”

She hadn't understood then. Now, she was too weak to even process it. Her gaze drifted toward him, and through the encroaching darkness, she saw an agony in his eyes that mirrored her own… and something else. Panic.

Isabella couldn't hold on any longer. As her world went black, she heard him scream her name.

His voice was shattered and raw with terror.