Chapter 1
Victor was so focused on Chloe that he didn’t even notice what Julia was saying.
His eyes were cold and sharp as he snapped, "Enough! It’s Chloe’s school opening ceremony. As an outstanding student representative, she has spent a long time preparing her speech. No matter what, I won't let her be late."
Bang! The moment the chain was cut, Ethan fell into the concentrated acid pool, screaming.
"No—Ethan!"
Julia’s eyes filled with anguish as she desperately tried to scramble up and catch her son’s small, falling body.
But she was bound tightly. As she struggled, the wound on her forehead split open again, sending blood streaming into her eyes.
Victor had already left carrying Chloe, leaving only the cold, indifferent view of his retreating back.
The moment Ethan hit the acid, his flesh began to corrode and burn away.
Thick white smoke rose, accompanied by the sight of bright red blood.
The pain was so excruciating that Ethan passed out instantly.
Julia desperately tried to tear the nylon ropes apart. Her arms were rubbed raw and bloody, and just as the bindings began to loosen, a flash of hope lit her eyes.
"Hold on, Ethan. Mommy’s coming to save you..."
But a split second later, a blood-covered kidnapper scrambled up from the ground and kicked her back down.
"You damn b***h, still trying to run? Your husband shot and killed several of my brothers. I’m going to make you pay for it!"
Julia’s face was pressed into the dirt as she watched helplessly while another kidnapper pulled Ethan out of the acid pool and placed him in front of a phone livestreaming on the dark web.
Donation notifications chimed incessantly from the app as the kidnapper grinned savagely and began to harvest her son’s organs one by one.
Amid the screams, Ethan’s voice gradually faded until there was total silence.
Julia’s eyes were bloodshot. Her throat felt as if it were stuffed with razor blades, leaving her unable to make a sound.
She couldn’t understand it. She just couldn’t understand.
Why was Victor so heartless? If he had stayed for just a few more minutes, she and her son could have been saved.
But just so Chloe could make her ceremony on time, he wouldn't even wait five minutes.
From beginning to end, he hadn't spared his son a single glance.
Ethan had been butchered, crying for his father until his last breath... How could Victor bear it? How could he dare!
Julia looked utterly defeated. Just as she was about to be dragged before the livestream camera to be gutted like livestock, sirens suddenly wailed outside.
The kidnappers froze in shock. Julia snapped back to her senses and seized the chance to run for her life.
But the police car outside was only passing by.
Pursuing footsteps thundered behind her. Julia trembled as she called Victor, but all she got was a hopeless busy tone.
Gasping for breath, she somehow found the courage to scramble onto the highway.
Ear-piercing horns nearly shattered her eardrums. Under the kidnappers’ murderous glares, she stumbled across the traffic and escaped.
When she finally returned to the Hayes manor, Julia was drenched in blood.
She went to find Victor, but at the study door, she overheard his assistant’s voice.
"Mr. Hayes, should I send men back to the chemical factory to bring Mrs. Hayes and Ethan home? After all, that place isn’t safe..."
Victor’s voice was cold, tinged with impatience.
"What danger? Chloe’s opening ceremony speech couldn't be delayed. I was in a hurry, so I already had the guards take out the kidnappers. Julia and Ethan could just catch a cab back themselves. Chloe’s speech was perfect. Go buy every dessert shop in the city, then have designers set up a celebration party for her and invite the whole school. She'd like that."
The assistant agreed, but before leaving, he couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "Mr. Hayes, since you care for Miss Chloe so much... why adopt her instead of keeping her as a mistress? Is it because you don’t want to hurt your wife?"
Victor let out a cold, mocking laugh.
"Julia? She’s not worthy! I only married her because she looked like Chloe’s late mother... Now Chloe resembles her even more than Julia ever did. How could I not be biased? Chloe is so innocent, the spitting image of her mother... I won’t touch her—at least not until she comes of age."
Every word pierced Julia’s heart like a jagged blade.
Waves of darkness clouded her vision as the world began to spin.
In disbelief, she staggered back a few steps. Her legs gave way, and she plummeted from the third-floor terrace.
