Chapter 1
My husband–a man born without a heart, incapable of love–suddenly got himself a little “forbidden fruit” on the side.
This girl was straight out of the slums, covered in scars but clean as fresh snow.
For Damien Sterling, a man who’d been drowning in blood and violence since childhood, she was his first taste of addiction.]
I flipped the table at the Black family’s annual dinner, right in front of everyone.[]
And he didn’t even flinch, just sat there, wiped his hands like nothing happened, and had his lawyer toss me divorce papers.[]
“Victoria Sterling, sign it. Those three private hospitals downtown are all yours.“]
I shredded the agreement. So he kept upping the ante.[]
Had me thrown off the dock.
Made sure my family’s drug company went up in smoke–one plant after another.]
Then he had my parents grabbed, tied their bodies to five different motorcycles.
“Sign it, or watch them get ripped apart. Your choice.”
I got down on my knees and begged him, but then came that awful sound-
My parents‘ limbs mixed with blood splattered across my face.[]
“No… NO!!”
When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day I first found out about Sophie.
This time, I didn’t cry or scream. I called my vineyard contacts in New Zealand that same night, ready to liquidate everything and file for divorce.
But when I actually disappeared, Marcus lost his damn mind.[]
…]
In my past life, I’d only seen Sophie’s photo in Marcus’s study.
Living this life over, I wanted to see for myself what kind of magic this girl had that could teach a cold–blooded devil how to “care.”
“Uncle Winston, get my parents relocated to New Zealand within the week. I’ll join them soon.”
n.“[
Winston was our family’s butler who’d been with us for years.
After that, I had my lawyer draft divorce papers.]
Then I went to the shelter church where Sophie volunteered.]
She was on her tiptoes under a leaky stained glass window, using sign language to “tell” Bible stories to a bunch of dirty kids.[]
Sunlight filtered through the broken colored glass, casting patches of light on her–she looked too pure for this world.[]
No wonder… Marcus was obsessed.
“Lookout-!”
Suddenly, an old chandelier came crashing down from above!
Chapter 1
I instinctively stepped back, but Sophie rushed forward, using her back to shield the falling metal frame.]
“BANG!”
A sharp metal hook tore through her shoulder, blood instantly soaking through her white volunteer shirt.[]
But she just frowned slightly, then turned to sign to the crying children:[]
“Don’t be scared. God catches all our pain.“]
I just stood there, stunned.]
Her blood dripped onto the floor like red blossoms blooming in snow.
Half an hour later, I was bandaging her up in the makeshift first aid room.
Her skin was so thin you could see the blue veins underneath, and there was an old scar across her collarbone.[]
“What’s this from…?”
She smiled and signed back: “Got cut by a piece of metal when I was little. Doesn’t hurt.“[]
But I knew how kids from the projects dealt with cuts–they just burned the wound shut to stop the bleeding.
She suddenly grabbed my wrist and traced letters in my palm:[]
“Sis, your hands are shaking.“[]
I jerked my hand back.
Yeah, I was shaking.]]
Because in my past life, these were the same hands Marcus used to press the remote that tore my parents apart.]]
“Wait here.”
I pulled out a check I’d prepared earlier and pressed it into her palm.]
“In a month, I’ll give you an even better gift.“[]
In a month, I’d have my divorce papers.
1
Sophie shook her head and pushed the check back, signing:]
“Helping people shouldn’t cost money.“]
Just then, her beat–up phone started buzzing.
With just one glance, I recognized that number-
Marcus’s private line.]
She picked up, and a man’s deep, cold voice came through the speaker:
“Where are you hurt?”
Sophie couldn’t hear, but her phone had real–time text conversion.
She looked down to type back, and I caught her eyelashes flutter, her ears turning slightly pink.[]
“I’m fine, just a small cut. You don’t need to come…‘
But I could already hear an engine roaring on the other end.
From Black Tower to the projects–helicopter would take twenty minutes, tops.
The man had eyes everywhere, didn’t he?
Sophie had barely gotten hurt and his call was already coming through.
Funny how his “eyes” only seemed to watch Sophie. Not his wife of ten years.
Ilet out a bitter laugh.
Last time I had a bleeding ulcer and spent three days in the hospital, Marcus just had his assistant send over flowers.
The card read: “Don’t die in the hospital. I don’t have time to deal with your body.”
So it wasn’t about not having time.
I just wasn’t worth it.
♡ (0)
