“Ahh—”

Scalding hot water came down like a waterfall. A woman's raw, broken scream echoed through the dark basement, like some tortured ghost wailing in pain.

“Would you look at that, Miss High-and-Mighty Annabelle Taylor fell this low. Tsk tsk. Just look at yourself—honestly, you don't even look human anymore.” Lily Collins leaned into Ethan Stevens’ arms, looking down on Annabelle with a mocking grin. Her flashy makeup and sharp smile made her eyes glint with twisted satisfaction.

Ethan’s hand lazily trailed along Lily’s waist as he smirked, “Babe, what are we even doing here watching that pathetic mess? Wouldn’t our time be better spent doing... something more fun?”

Lily giggled, her voice sugary and annoying. “Oh, Ethan... not so rough…”

Annabelle could barely lift her head. The skin on her face had blistered and peeled from the boiling water, red and swollen beyond recognition. Her eyes, bloodshot and raw, stared unblinking at the two standing in front of her.

Lily Collins. Ethan Stevens.

The stepsister and fiancé she once trusted like her own blood.

She had used everything she had to help them climb the ranks in the capital, pushing them up toward power and prestige—and this was how they paid her back. Drugging her. Locking her up in a basement. Reducing her to a wretched, barely breathing thing.

Hatred burned in every nerve of her tattered body.

She hated them. Hated them with everything she had left.

Lily’s voice was soft, but poison laced her words. “Oh, and Annabelle? You probably don’t know this yet… Your grandfather had a stroke after hearing about your accident… he didn’t make it. Your uncle’s family? They’re knee-deep in legal trouble—can barely keep their heads above water. No one’s coming to get you.”

Annabelle’s body curled up tighter, trembling uncontrollably. Her grandfather had always been healthy—how could this be? And her uncle’s family… there had to be something fishy going on.

It had to be Lily and Ethan. They did this.

“You... monsters.” Annabelle’s voice was choked with despair.

Lily laughed, feigning hurt as she snuggled deeper into Ethan’s chest, eyes still glinting with malice. “Ethan… look at her… she’s still calling me names. How mean... I'm just heartbroken…”"If that mouth of yours doesn’t know when to shut up, then maybe it never should’ve opened at all." Ethan Stevens threw Annabelle Taylor a cold, disgusted glance, then suddenly grabbed a kettle of boiling water and dumped it straight onto her face.

"Aaah—!"

The searing pain twisted her skin, exposing layers beneath, raw and horrifying.

Lily Collins grinned even wider, every word like a knife to the heart. "Oops, my bad. Turns out there is someone who could save you—Alexander Reed. Too bad, though. You drove him away all by yourself."

Jealousy flickered in Lily’s eyes. "Look at you now. What part of this mess do you think Alexander still likes? He divorced you and even handed over two-thirds of the Reed fortune. For what? A face like that?"

Alexander...

Hot tears slid down Annabelle’s cheeks, mixing with pain and regret.

She had been blind. The one who truly loved her—she pushed him away. Instead, she believed all the lies Ethan and Lily told.

"Alex is coming back, you know? And we’re not risking you surviving until then." Lily pulled a syringe from her pocket, eyes gleaming with a cruel smile. "Sis, you’re a doctor—you should know exactly what this is. Once it hits your system, it'll feel like thousands of fire ants crawling through your veins. You won’t be able to live… or die."

Lily grabbed Annabelle's wrist and jabbed the needle in, pushing every last drop in without hesitation.

Pain exploded inside her like wildfire. It was unbearable, like her nerves were being shredded piece by piece. Her brain felt like it was being hammered to pieces, again and again. The worst part? The drug kept her awake—she couldn’t even pass out from the agony. She was trapped in it, mind screaming, body crumbling.

Just as her world was about to go black, the sound of a car revving echoed from outside. Right after, the door slammed open, footsteps thundering in—a tall figure dashed forward, breath ragged, aura fierce.

Could it be...

Alexander Reed?

After what she’d done to him, why would he come?

Her vision blurred, eyelids heavy. The last bits of consciousness slipped from her grasp.

"Lily Collins, Ethan Stevens, in our next life... our next life..."

I’ll make sure you both pay.