Chapter 3

When I opened my eyes again, the only sound was the lonely cawing of crows all around me.

I forced my eyes wide, trying to make out my surroundings, and it finally hit me that I'd been kidnapped.

I was in an abandoned factory.

"Is anyone there? Help! Please, help!" I shouted.

I struggled up, fighting off dizzy spells as I staggered forward, desperate to escape.

"Well, look who's awake," a familiar voice called out from behind me.

Before I could even flinch, Kenna grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked me back.

I went down hard. When I looked up, there was Kenna, smiling sweetly, looking innocent enough to fool anyone.

She loomed over me with a smug grin. "What's wrong? Bet you never saw this coming, huh?"

I gritted my teeth, trying not to lose it. "What do you want from me?"

Her slap jerked my head violently to the side.

"Who gave you permission to talk to me like that?" Kenna spat, looking down with pure contempt.

She slammed her foot onto my chest and twisted it mercilessly, grinding down again and again.

Kenna sneered, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "So you really thought divorce was your ticket to a happy ending?

"In these seven damn years, I had to hide in the shadows just to get a glimpse of Marcel. How could you possibly understand everything I've swallowed, all the humiliation I've endured?

"I didn't know anyone could be as shameless as you. You're still hanging onto Marcel like a leech. I guess being a gold-digger is the only thing you're good at, huh?"

She burst out laughing, gave a mocking clap, and a pack of muscle-bound thugs swaggered into the room.

"Marcel will never forgive you for this, Kenna!" I shouted, my voice trembling with rage and fear.

I was not an idiot. I could tell exactly what she had in mind.

"Seriously, Vivian, are you still not getting it?" Kenna scoffed, her tone dripping with mockery.

She kicked me hard, sent me sprawling at the feet of the thugs, and stood there with a lazy smirk.

She sneered, "You actually thought Marcel didn't see through my cupcake trap? Of course, he knew.

"He kept telling me over and over he wanted to divorce you all these seven years, but you just clung on, refusing to leave.

"Now what? Sudden enlightenment this year? Sorry, but you're way too late.

"You wasted my seven years, so now you owe me seven hours in return. Enjoy it while it lasts."

Then she strode off, heels tapping hard against the concrete.

The thugs restrained me, leaving me completely immobile as terror and desperation flooded my entire being.

"Let me go!" I screamed, my voice cracking with pure fear.

Kenna was already gone, her silhouette vanishing from sight.

Tears streamed down my cheeks in agony, all my strength fading away. I was powerless as they ripped my clothes to shreds.

One of the thugs scoffed, "Stop crying. You had it coming, messing with Kenna. She's the type who never lets a grudge go."

"Do yourself a favor and cooperate, and maybe we'll be gentle," another thug jeered in a mocking tone.

I couldn't hear anything else they said. All I could do was stare numbly at the bright light in the sky, growing larger by the second.

Suddenly, there was a thunderous crash. The thugs, who'd just been about to yank down their pants, let out howls of pain.

"Greetings, Ms. Linwood!"

Two neat rows of bodyguards in black suits lined up, bowing deeply in perfect unison, their voices echoing through the abandoned factory.

For a heartbeat, the whole place went eerily silent. The thugs stared at me as if they'd seen a ghost.

"Ms. Linwood? The mysterious heiress of the Linwood Group?"

The guy Kenna left to watch me was pointing at the helicopter with "Linwood" painted across the side. His face was ghostly pale, and he was shaking so badly that it looked like he might collapse.

He dropped to his knees, trembling uncontrollably.

He pleaded, voice quivering, "Ms. Linwood, please. I'm just following orders. Kenna's been out for revenge, and now Marcel's backing her up too. We really didn't have a choice.

"Please, I'm begging you. Let me go. I swear I won't ever do anything like this again."

My lawyer helped me to my feet, wrapped a coat over my shoulders, and I looked down at the trembling guy with a faint, mocking smile.

I said coldly, "Never let a grudge go, huh? What a big talk.

"Go tell Kenna. I'm going to make sure she dies behind bars."

My lawyer dropped me off at a hotel to recover, but there was no way I was getting any sleep that night.

Those scenes kept replaying in my dreams, and when I woke up, my pillow was drenched in tears.

As soon as I opened my eyes, my phone lit up with a call from Marcel.

Without thinking, I answered, and he started yelling at me the second I picked up.

He snapped, "Vivian, are you out of your mind? You actually called the cops?

"Kenna was just playing a joke on you. Elyse ended up in the hospital because of you, and now Kenna just needed to vent, so what's the big deal?

"I'm warning you. Get your ass to the police station and clear this up. If Kenna gets in trouble because of you, you'll regret it!"

I ended the call without a second thought, rolled over, and went right back to sleep.

When I woke up, it was already night. My phone was blowing up with missed calls from Marcel.

When I didn't answer, he just kept sending me a bunch of texts, all of them full of curses.

It wasn't until a few hours before I woke up that he finally started begging me.

I ignored everything else, got up, got myself together, and finally signed the new agreement with my lawyer. Only then did I feel a weight lift off my shoulders.

My lawyer put the documents away.

He asked, "Will you be coming with us?

"Aside from your inheritance, there's a company in Jaremsburg waiting for you to run it."

I furrowed my brow and thought for a long moment. Then I finally nodded my acceptance.