Chapter 1

"I planned the kidnapping. If I didn’t ruin her reputation, how would she ever obey me like a puppet and help me get the inheritance?"

All the hopeless romantics’ illusions came crashing down. Right on our wedding day, I learned my own husband was the mastermind behind my abduction.

He stood by and watched his mistress throw acid on me, then locked me in an ice cellar, leaving me to die along with our unborn child.

But I got a second life with a new face. Holding the hidden will in my hands, I came back stronger than ever. I snatched up the billions in family fortune in one fell swoop, leaving him far beneath me.

On his knees, the scumbag begged for mercy. I tossed the divorce papers at him and sneered, "Sign it. Then get ready to rot in prison."

1

The crystal chandeliers hanging over the church wedding hall burned my eyes.

"Did you hear? The bride was kidnapped and held captive for a full day and night. Who knows what happened to her out there?" 

"Poor Mr. William. He’s stuck marrying someone with such a tainted past." 

"Shh, keep your voice down—the groom’s here."

Malicious whispers and judgmental stares pricked at my bare back like thousands of tiny needles. I squeezed my bridal bouquet so tight my fingertips turned pale.

It had been less than a week since that nightmarish abduction. Even closing my eyes, I could still smell the mildew stench of that abandoned warehouse.

"Selene."

William Sinclair dropped to one knee in front of me, holding up the heirloom pearl necklace that belonged to the matriarch of the Sinclair family.

"Don’t pay any mind to what everyone’s saying." He looked up at me, his gaze so tender it felt intoxicating. "I, William Sinclair, swear to the heavens: you are the only love of my life, and I’ll protect you for all time."

Tears streamed down my face.

I threw myself into his arms and clung to him tightly.

When the whole world was talking trash about me, he was my only light in the darkness. Back then, I truly believed I’d married the greatest love the world had ever known.

The audience in the pews were teary-eyed, nudging each other excitedly. "Wow, William is such a sweetheart! Selene must’ve done something incredible in her past life to land a man this devoted." "For real. Guys like him are one in a million these days."

The cold pearls rested against my neck, and tears welled up in my eyes, touched beyond words.

The wedding reception finally drew to a close late at night.

I carried a bowl of hangover soup and headed toward the men’s restroom at the back of the banquet hall. The door stood ajar, and raucous laughter from several men drifted out.

“Man, you’ve got some guts, William! I can’t believe you’d send your own fiancée straight to a bunch of thugs!”

“Your whole loving act today was flawless. I almost bought it myself!”

William’s slurred voice cut through the noise, laced with undisguised contempt. “Those fools actually think I’m head over heels for her?”

My feet froze where I stood.

“How else was I supposed to tame her stuck-up attitude? I had to stage that kidnapping and ruin her reputation first, otherwise she’d never be my obedient puppet.” William let out a mocking snort, followed by the sharp click of a lighter. “My late father’s will left no room for loopholes — I can only claim the inheritance if I marry Selene. Now that her name’s dragged through the mud, she’s got nowhere to go but cling to me. She won’t get a single cent of that fortune.”

“Brilliant move, Mr. Sinclair!” his friends cheered. “Hope those kidnappers didn’t go too far with her?”

“I told them to give her a proper scare. Plus, a few compromising photos are more than enough to destroy her reputation and make her totally dependent on me.”

“Ever since that day, she won’t even dare to look me in the eye. She’s like a docile dog now, doing everything I say.”

A wave of nausea crashed over me, and the porcelain bowl in my hands shook violently.

The pearl necklace around my neck felt like an icy noose, tightening around my throat and stealing my breath.

Horrible memories flooded my mind: the rough hands tearing at my clothes during the kidnapping, the utter despair I felt, and the humiliation of those camera flashes going off again and again.

It was never an accident.

The man I’d vowed to love for a lifetime had personally built this living hell for me.

I bit down hard on my lower lip until I tasted the metallic tang of blood. Instead of bursting in and throwing a hysterical fit, I quietly retreated to the fire escape at the end of the hallway.

I pushed open the heavy fire door, and frigid wind swept through my thin wedding gown.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a private, encrypted number.

The call was answered after two rings.

Staring at the dim glow spilling from the restroom down the hall, my expression turned icy cold, bit by bit.

“Attorney Chen, I need you to activate the hidden clause in old Mr. Sinclair’s will.”

“Also, draw up divorce papers for me.”

There was a brief pause on the line, then the rustle of paper. “Understood.”