Chapter 1

Damien Blackwood had a trophy girlfriend, and Elara Vance simply pretended not to notice. While he showered his mistress with jewels and exotic gifts, Elara was outside, holding their daughter, Lily, watching the stars. When he celebrated his mistress’s birthday with a drone show that lit up the entire city, Elara and Lily were on vacation in Zurich. And when he brought his mistress to the office to fool around, Elara watched the surveillance feed, her face a mask of indifference as she switched it off. Until, one day, the mistress, Brittany Wells, in a fit of jealousy, kidnapped Lily. Both fell from a cliff, landing in the hospital. Elara rushed there, only to hear the doctor informing Damien, "The blood bank is critically low. We can only save one: the child or the adult. "

Damien hesitated. Under Elara’s piercing gaze, he finally said, "Save the child. "

Elara watched, her gaze unblinking, as he signed the form. His pen trembled, hovering for an agonizing thirty seconds before finally, painstakingly, writing their daughter's name. A wave of relief washed over me. Then, I turned to Damien, the man I had loved for ten years. "Damien, what about your promise to me?! " I demanded, my voice raw with fury. I had pursued him for a decade. If he so much as mumbled about not eating enough dinner, I'd scour the entire city to find his favorite comfort food. When he was injured and bleeding after a race, I nearly drained my own veins to donate blood to him. But no matter how much I gave, he only ever found me annoying. It wasn't until the Blackwood Group faced a financial crisis that he begrudgingly agreed to marry me to save his company. That day, I went to him, ecstatic, only to be met with his cold words: "High-society marriages are always about mutual benefit, Elara. I can never give you genuine affection, so just forget about it. "

On the eve of our wedding, I was forced to sign a contract. We became a contractual couple. We would fulfill all marital obligations and enjoy all marital rights—*except* for the clause of mutual fidelity. The only condition was that no matter how wild he got outside, it couldn't affect our family. For years, we stuck to this rule perfectly. Even as Damien went through mistress after mistress, I never once questioned him. But I would never, ever tolerate him harming our daughter. "I'm sorry, I didn't expect Brittany to be so extreme. She saw our family photos today, and in a moment of panic, she just snapped... " Damien tried to explain. My palms were clenched so tight my knuckles were white. Finally, I managed to say, "If you can't control your women, I will. And when that happens, don't expect any mercy from me. "

Damien grunted, acknowledging my words, then stood and walked to the corridor to smoke. For years, we had been like this: a perfect couple on the surface, but in reality, complete strangers. Two hours later, the doctor emerged from the operating room, his face etched with regret. "We saved the child, but she suffered severe brain trauma and is now in a vegetative state. Ms. Brittany Wells was slightly luckier; she's already awake. "

…

I stumbled, disoriented, into Lily's hospital room. My eyes immediately found my daughter's pale, fragile face. I turned back, but Damien was gone, probably to Brittany's room. Fighting back tears, I gently wiped Lily's face. From the open door of the room, I heard two young nurses whispering. "I just passed the stairwell, and I saw Mr. Blackwood talking to the doctor, telling him to save the adult, not the child. "

"No way? Who would do that to their own daughter? "

"Why would I lie? I saw them re-sign the consent forms with my own eyes! "

My heart turned colder than ice. I closed my eyes, two streams of tears silently tracing paths down my cheeks. A towering wave of resentment for Damien rose inside me. That very night, I called Blackwood Manor. My personal assistant, Liam, answered. "Find the marriage contract Damien and I signed years ago. Take a picture and send it to me. And remember, don't alarm anyone. "

…

Fifteen minutes later, my phone pinged. I opened the image in the chat. Clearly visible were the words: "Any party violating this contract must unconditionally agree to divorce and forfeit all marital assets, relinquishing all claims to property. "

Save. File away. I sent copies to my lawyer friend and a contact at the County Clerk's office. Replies came swiftly. 【This contract remains valid indefinitely. 】

【The County Clerk's office has an opening tomorrow; you can apply for a divorce anytime. 】

I stared at the lines of text. Just as I was about to tap 'delete,' a deep, resonant male voice cut through the silence. "Elara, why aren't you asleep yet? "

My heart jumped, and I instinctively snapped my phone shut. Damien walked towards me, his gaze falling on Lily's face. He sighed. "Though Brittany was in the wrong here, I've had the doctors give Lily their full attention, and the blood bank prioritized her. It's just a shame she's so small, her body couldn't keep up... "

I remained silent, watching him with a mocking gaze. Damien frowned, clearly uncomfortable with my look. He mumbled an excuse and left. I knew he was going to Brittany. But I hadn't cared before, and I cared even less now. Over the next few days, when I wasn't at the hospital with Lily, I quietly returned to Blackwood Manor to clear out my things. On the first day of Lily's hospitalization, Damien spent the entire day in Brittany's room. I went back to Blackwood Manor and burned every photo and memento of Damien and me.