The first major case I took over after transferring back to the precinct in the city was a prostitution bust. And the suspect was my husband. The case file was spread open on the desk. The stark black ink on the white paper made my eyes sting. Seeing me zone out, my subordinate gently reminded me, "Captain Hayes, you just transferred back, so you might not be fully up to speed. The suspect is the wealthiest man in the city, Arthur Sterling. And the girl with him is his young girlfriend." "Those two are practically internet celebrities around here. It's the classic 'billionaire CEO and his sweet little princess' trope. There's a massive age gap, but their followers eat that drama up." He lowered his voice, a knowing, slightly amused smirk playing on his lips. "Word on the street is the girl got upset because Mr. Sterling hasn't been spending enough time with her. She threw a tantrum and called the cops on him just to prove a point. It's basically just a rich couple's foreplay. They're just messing around." I didn't say a word. I stood up and walked toward the mediation room. The door was slightly ajar. With one glance, I saw Arthur Sterling bent over, half-kneeling beside the sofa. He was using the sleeve of his multi-thousand-dollar bespoke suit to gently, meticulously wipe a splash of milk tea off her designer sneaker. He handled it like he was polishing a priceless artifact. The girl kicked her legs playfully, her voice a mix of a whine and a pout. "Arthur, are you an idiot? I literally called the cops to arrest you, and you're still treating me like this?" Arthur looked up at her, his eyes overflowing with a profound, tender adoration. A look I had never, ever seen directed at me. "My little star. As long as you're happy, you can have my life." The fluorescent lights overhead flickered. My heart plummeted into a bottomless abyss. If you two love using 911 as foreplay, then as your legal wife, I'll personally escort you to a holding cell. I tightened my grip on the official summons in my hand, turned back to Officer Miller, and said, "Take them to the interrogation room. Process them completely by the book. No skipped steps." Officer Miller hesitated, a look of deep discomfort crossing his face. "Captain Hayes, this... are you sure we need to go that far? You just got back, so you might not know, but Mr. Sterling is a major player in this city. Even the Chief of Police treats him with kid gloves..." "I don't give a damn how big his name is," I cut him off, my tone turning to steel. "Filing a false police report is a crime. Wasting police resources is a crime. This is a law enforcement agency, not his private playground. He gets no special privileges here." Rendered speechless by my absolute resolve, Officer Miller simply lowered his head, mumbled a "Yes, Ma'am," and pushed open the door to the mediation room. Immediately, there was a commotion inside. Chloe's voice was shrill and dripping with impatience. "On what grounds are you detaining us?! I didn't actually mean to report him, it was just a joke!" Closely followed by Arthur's voice. It wasn't rushed or angry; in fact, it was incredibly indulgent. "Stop making a fuss, babe. Just listen to the officers and cooperate. It'll be fine." Footsteps approached, and the two of them walked out. Chloe stormed ahead, her face completely sour, dragging her feet like a petulant child. "This is all your fault! I wanted you to take me to the mall yesterday, but you absolutely had to go to some stupid board meeting! That's why I jokingly said I was going to call the cops on you!" Arthur trailed closely behind her, practically jogging to keep up, his tone entirely placating. "Next time, I'll clear my entire schedule just to take you shopping. Whatever clothes you want, I'll buy the entire boutique and have it moved to our house." Chloe turned and glared at him. It was then that I finally got a clear look at her face. Small face, bright eyes, cherry-red lips. She was undeniably, strikingly beautiful. The most eye-catching thing about her was her platinum blonde hair. Her skirt was so short that if she walked any faster, you'd see her underwear. She looked to be in her early twenties, radiating a flashy, attention-seeking energy. She looked like someone who lived for the spotlight. We were completely, fundamentally different. I was someone who wore a uniform every day and buried myself in police files. We didn't exist in the same universe. A heavy, suffocating weight suddenly pressed down on my chest, making it hard to breathe. Who was Arthur Sterling? He was the apex predator of the city's elite circles. Countless people lined up just for a chance to kiss his ass. But right now, here he was, bowing his head, bending his knees, coaxing her like a teenage boy who had just made his high school girlfriend mad. "Don't be angry anymore. I'll cancel all my meetings. I'll go shopping with you, I'll take you to dinner, whatever you want. Okay?" Chloe let out a cold hmph and didn't answer, but her pace noticeably slowed down. I watched them walk into the interrogation room. With a sharp click, the heavy door shut, locking their nauseatingly sweet conversation inside. Officer Miller walked over and asked, "Captain, who's conducting the interview?" "You do it personally," I said, my voice slightly raspy. "Ask every single detail. Especially the exact reason for the 911 call. Don't leave a single word out." Miller nodded and went inside. A few minutes later, Chloe's voice drifted out from behind the door. You could hear the smugness dripping from every word. "Officer, I swear I was just playing around. He's always so obsessed with his company. Getting him to take me dress shopping is harder than pulling teeth." "What's the point of giving me an unlimited black Amex? No matter how much money is on it, the card can't stand next to me in the mirror and tell me which color looks better, right?" Officer Miller likely followed protocol and asked about the prostitution allegation, because the room went quiet for a few seconds. Then, Chloe's voice returned, laced with a giggling smirk. "Oh, I only said that to piss him off. A few days ago, he used his tie to bind my wrists, saying he wanted to try something new... I was just mad that he only cared about his own pleasure, so I intentionally threatened to tell the cops he was paying for it." She paused, clearly showing something off to the officer. "If you don't believe me, look at my wrists. You can still see the red marks. He looks like such a refined gentleman on the outside, but behind closed doors... hehe..." The details were getting progressively more sickening. I couldn't listen anymore. I turned around and leaned against the wall. My mind was an absolute mess. Arthur and I had been married for three years. His family was old money in this city. My family had deep, sprawling political roots in the state capital. When we got married, the elite circles hailed it as the textbook definition of a perfect, equal-status power couple. A match made in heaven. And we certainly played the part flawlessly. We attended all the required holiday galas together. He bought me expensive, thoughtful gifts. I handled the aggressive, politically complex social networking for him. But I was the only one who knew how freezing cold this marriage actually was. He was always calm, detached. He rarely spoke, and he almost never smiled. Even during our most intimate moments, he acted like he was executing a corporate merger. Last year, I made the agonizing decision to transfer back to this city, giving up a highly coveted position at the state headquarters to become a Captain at this local precinct. On paper, it was a promotion. In reality, everyone knew it was a career detour. But I came back anyway. I stupidly believed that if I was closer to him, maybe, just maybe, I could thaw his frozen heart. Thinking about it now, it's absolutely hilarious. I sacrificed my career trajectory to come back, and this was my welcome gift. Watching my husband look at another girl with a burning, passionate tenderness that he had never, ever shown me. In the end, the arrest warrant wasn't issued. The Chief of Police rushed down to the precinct personally, rubbing his hands together, playing the ultimate peacemaker. "Captain Hayes, regarding Mr. Sterling... his corporation is critical to the city's economic infrastructure. Let's just let this go, alright? No need to blow it out of proportion." I didn't say a word, which the Chief took as silent agreement. Given the Sterling family's massive influence, a false police report was never going to leave a scratch on Arthur. I watched Arthur carefully, protectively guide Chloe into his car. I pulled out my phone and sent a text to my mother-in-law. [I just saw Arthur at the precinct. He was brought in on suspicion of soliciting a prostitute.] Arthur's mother replied almost instantly: [Evelyn? You're back in the city? I'm sending my driver to pick you up right now. Don't worry, I absolutely will not let you suffer this indignity.] Half an hour later, I stepped into the Sterling family estate. I could immediately hear Arthur's father roaring in fury, tearing into Arthur so aggressively that the man couldn't even lift his head. It wasn't that his parents were unaware of Chloe's existence. They usually just couldn't be bothered to intervene in his personal life. But this time, the drama had spilled over into a police precinct, officially involving law enforcement. The nature of the scandal had completely changed. The Sterling family's dominant position in the city relied heavily on the political backing of my family in the state capital. Not to mention, to secure our marriage, Arthur's mother had practically lived in the capital for years, treating me better than her own biological daughter. The moment I walked through the door, Arthur's mother instantly plastered on a warm, loving smile, grabbing my hands tightly. "Evelyn, my dear, you've been so wronged. I am going to teach this useless boy a lesson today, I promise you." Arthur instantly realized what was happening—I was the one who ratted him out. He glared at me, his eyes burning with absolute fury. Before he could even open his mouth, his father barked a low, commanding order: "Apologize to Evelyn immediately! And cut all ties with that Chloe girl, do you hear me?!" Arthur's head snapped up. His eyes were completely bloodshot. "I WILL NOT!" "Chloe is the only woman I am ever going to love! No one is going to tear us apart!" His father was so enraged his hands were shaking violently. "Say that again?!" "If it weren't for Evelyn's family protecting us in the capital, do you think the Sterling Group would be where it is today?! If you dare betray Evelyn, you are no longer my son!" Arthur ground his teeth together. In the end, he didn't talk back, but he didn't offer a single word of apology either. He just kept his head down and stormed out the door. His father turned to me and gave a heavy nod. "Evelyn, go home with him. Talk some sense into him." I gave a slight nod and followed Arthur outside. Just as we reached the front steps, Arthur suddenly spun around, grabbed my arm in a vice grip, and violently dragged me toward his car without saying a word. The car door slammed shut with a deafening SLAM. Before I could even buckle my seatbelt, he slammed his foot on the gas. The car shot forward like a rabid animal. His eyes were burning red. He gritted his teeth and spat out: "Evelyn Hayes, you are unbelievable." "You transferred back here just to spy on me? The arranged marriage wasn't enough to chain me down, so you had to use the police to intimidate me?" I rubbed my arm where his fingers had dug in, not saying a single word. Seeing my silence, he shot me a sideways glare dripping with pure, venomous mockery: "Don't blame me for finding someone else. Take a look in the mirror. You wear those depressing, rigid uniforms every single day. Your face is colder than a corpse." "And let's not even talk about us in bed. Every single time, it's exactly the same. You just lie there with your eyes closed, like a dead piece of wood." "Chloe is younger than me, but she knows exactly how to please a man. Being with her is the first time I've ever felt my heart race. It's the first time I've ever felt alive!" He was likely furious that I had him arrested, so every word he threw at me was designed to cause maximum psychological damage. Every sentence felt like a serrated knife carving into my chest, leaving me bleeding and raw. For three years of marriage, I had stupidly believed that if I was just patient enough, I could eventually warm his frozen heart. Instead, all I got in return was absolute humiliation and freezing indifference. While I was sitting there paralyzed, his phone suddenly rang. I glanced down. The name flashing on the screen was: "Little Star." The moment I saw those two words, my nose stung sharply, and tears threatened to spill over. He quickly answered the call. A sobbing, fragile voice instantly came through the speakers: "Arthur... I cut my finger... it hurts so badly... please come here..." Arthur's face drastically changed. The vicious hostility he had aimed at me vanished instantly, replaced by a voice so soft and tender it didn't even sound like him: "Don't cry, baby, don't be scared. I'm on my way right now. Be a good girl, wait for me." He hung up the phone, violently wrenched the steering wheel, and slammed on the brakes, pulling the car to a screeching halt on the shoulder of the road. He threw out two freezing words: "Get out." "We're at least ten miles from the city center. How am I supposed to..." Before I could finish, he aggressively leaned over, unbuckled my seatbelt, violently shoved the passenger door open, and roared: "GET THE FUCK OUT!" I was brutally shoved out of the car. My foot caught on the curb, and I nearly face-planted onto the asphalt, stumbling several steps before I caught my balance. The next second, the car door slammed shut. The black Maybach kicked up a massive cloud of dust and sped away, completely abandoning me on the side of the road. The biting wind cut through my clothes. I stood completely alone on the edge of the deserted highway. My phone battery was at exactly 5%. I gritted my teeth and dialed the precinct's dispatch number. But before the call could even connect, the screen went completely black. My phone had died. I dragged my freezing, trembling legs down the highway for what felt like hours. My vision started to blur. Finally, my body gave out entirely, and I collapsed onto the freezing asphalt. When I woke up, the overwhelming stench of hospital antiseptic filled my nose. I was lying in a hospital bed, an IV drip taped to the back of my hand. A doctor walked over, his expression grim and complicated. "You're awake?" "You suffered a miscarriage. The pregnancy was already high-risk, and walking in the freezing cold for that long..." Miscarriage? I froze. My fingers subconsciously drifted down to rest on my flat stomach. So... there had been a tiny life growing inside me... It didn't even give me the chance to realize it was there before it slipped away. The doctor let out a heavy sigh. "Get some rest. You need to recover." After the door closed, I plugged my dead phone into the wall charger. The second it booted up, a breaking news alert popped up on my screen: [Billionaire CEO Arthur Sterling Summons City's Top Surgeons at Midnight Because Young Girlfriend Suffers Minor Papercut!] In the attached photo, Arthur was holding Chloe tightly in his arms, his face etched with profound, agonizing concern. Chloe's hand was zoomed in on, clearly showing a microscopic, superficial scratch near her cuticle. My heart was brutally impaled all over again. While he was holding another woman, terrified over a papercut, I was lying unconscious on the side of a highway, losing our child... I ripped the IV needle out of my hand. Like a sleepwalker, I stumbled out of my hospital room. But as I rounded the corner of the hallway, I ran straight into Arthur and Chloe. Arthur's brow instantly furrowed, his eyes filling with absolute, unadulterated disgust. "Evelyn, are you completely insane? You followed us to the hospital and faked an illness just to stalk me? Weren't you supposed to be the proud, untouchable career woman? How could you stoop to something this pathetic?" I looked at him, my voice trembling so violently I could barely form words. "I had a miscarriage." Chloe's eyes widened in shock. She violently grabbed Arthur's arm. "Arthur! Didn't you swear to me that you hadn't touched her in years?! Whose baby is that?!" "You lied to me! We're done!" Arthur's face panicked. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, desperately coaxing her, "Don't listen to her psychotic lies! I see her exactly once a month for a mandatory dinner, and I haven't laid a single finger on her!" "Baby, you exhaust me every single night. I don't have an ounce of energy left to give to anyone else, I swear!" After placating Chloe, he turned back to glare at me, his tone turning vicious and cruel. "Evelyn Hayes, who the hell do you think you are? You think you can get pregnant from sitting across a dining table from me? Have you looked in a mirror lately?" A crowd of patients and nurses had gathered in the hallway, their whispers drilling into my ears. "Who is that woman? She's wearing a police uniform, but she's harassing Mr. Sterling?" "Did you hear her? She's claiming she had a miscarriage. She's probably trying to trap him with a fake pregnancy to extort him." "Everyone knows Mr. Sterling is completely obsessed with Ms. Chloe. This cop is delusional." Those judgmental stares felt like razor blades slicing my skin. There was nowhere to hide. My body went completely numb, but my brain suddenly exploded with a realization. Last month, Arthur flew to the state capital to visit me. During dinner, he had a few too many drinks. That night, he didn't sleep in the guest room. He held me tightly in his arms, refusing to let go, constantly whispering "Baby" and "Little Star." His voice was so burning and passionate it made my heart race. I thought he had finally dropped his guard. I thought our relationship was finally changing. It was because of that exact night that I made the definitive choice to transfer my career back to this city, hoping we could finally build a real home. But now... seeing the contact name he used for Chloe on his phone—"Little Star"... Hearing him call her that exact nickname over and over again... I finally understood everything. That night, he wasn't calling my name. He had hallucinated that I was her. That night of overwhelming tenderness, that embrace that made my heart pound... It was nothing but a humiliating case of mistaken identity. A violent, agonizing cramp twisted my stomach. I leaned heavily against the wall just to keep from collapsing. Arthur was still whispering sweet nothings to Chloe, his voice so soft and gentle it dripped with honey. It was a terrifying contrast to the freezing, venomous hatred he had just aimed at me. Chloe finally stopped fake-crying. She plastered a condescending, fake smile on her face and sauntered slowly over to me. "Evelyn, you really shouldn't take things so seriously." "Love can't be forced. Arthur doesn't have a single shred of feelings for you. The harder you try to hold on, the more pathetic you look." I stared at her with dead eyes, not saying a single word. She acted like she didn't even notice my silence, continuing her arrogant monologue. "To put it bluntly, the person who isn't loved is the third wheel. If you just let go now, it would be a lot easier for everyone." Saying that, she suddenly pulled up the hem of her designer crop top, revealing a blue tattoo on her waist: Arthur's Little Starlight. Then, she violently yanked the hem of Arthur's shirt up, intentionally showing me the exact same spot on his waist. On Arthur's waist, there was indeed a line of small, tattooed text: Chloe's Protector. Seeing those words, I wanted to laugh hysterically, but I also wanted to vomit. The ruthless, cutthroat CEO of the Sterling Group, a man whose gaze was as cold as a butcher's knife in the boardroom... willingly tattooed that nauseating, cringey garbage onto his body. It felt like someone was taking a sledgehammer to my chest, pounding it until it was completely numb. So he was capable of going insane for someone. It just wasn't me. Chloe proudly dropped his shirt. Her fingers lightly traced his waistline as she pouted playfully. "Arthur said I was the only woman in the world who could make him do something like this. Evelyn, could you ever make him do that?" A violently nauseating wave of bile rushed up my throat. I turned to walk away. Chloe suddenly reached out to grab me. The very second her manicured fingertips brushed the sleeve of my uniform, she dramatically threw her body weight backward, shrieking as she collided with a metal medical cart. CRASH! Glass IV bottles shattered all over the floor. Chloe sat amidst the broken glass, clutching her arm. A tiny trickle of blood seeped through her fingers. "Arthur!" she sobbed, struggling to catch her breath. Arthur's eyes instantly turned demonic. He lunged forward and grabbed me violently by the collar of my uniform. "EVELYN HAYES! ARE YOU ASKING FOR A DEATH WISH?!" "APOLOGIZE TO HER. RIGHT NOW!" I shoved his hands off my collar, acting on pure instinct. "I didn't even touch her! Why the hell should I apologize?!" His face turned an apocalyptic shade of purple. He roared at his bodyguards standing nearby. "Hit her! Slap her until she begs for forgiveness!" Two massive bodyguards instantly tackled me. One pinned my arms behind my back in a vice grip, while the other raised his hand and delivered a brutal, full-force slap to my face. SMACK! The sound echoed through the hospital corridor like a gunshot. My cheek burned with agonizing, blinding pain. "Are you going to apologize?" Arthur glared at me, his eyes colder than the Arctic. I gritted my teeth, blood seeping from the corner of my mouth. "No." SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! The slaps rained down on me, each one heavier than the last. My head was violently whipped to the side by the force of the blows, only to be forcibly yanked back to face forward, helpless as I watched the hand strike me over and over again. The crowd of onlookers was completely paralyzed by terror. Not a single person dared to intervene. Chloe was nestled safely in Arthur's arms, covertly peeking out from behind his shoulder, a twisted, victorious smirk hiding on her lips. After more than a dozen brutal slaps, my face was swollen, bruised, and burning. My vision was swimming. Arthur raised his hand, signaling the bodyguards to stop. He spoke with a terrifyingly calm, dead voice. "I am going to ask you one last time. Are you going to apologize?" I shook my dizzy, throbbing head. Blood dripped steadily from my chin onto my uniform. "I... didn't... push her." His eyes turned to absolute ice. He bent down, picked up a jagged shard of broken glass from the floor, grabbed my arm, and viciously slashed a deep, bleeding gash into my skin, in the exact same spot Chloe claimed she was injured. "Then remember this pain! Let's see if you ever dare to touch her again!" Blood instantly erupted from the wound, pouring rapidly down my arm. He didn't even spare me a second glance. He scooped Chloe up into his arms and walked away. The hallway emptied out. I leaned heavily against the wall. My face was throbbing, my arm was bleeding, but none of it compared to the apocalyptic, freezing cold inside my heart. He never believed me. Never. My words were completely worthless compared to a single fake tear from Chloe. Since he had made his choice, he couldn't blame me for being ruthless! Gripping the crumpled ultrasound report in my hand, I stood silently in the hallway for a few moments. Then, I dialed two numbers I had memorized by heart. That night, squad cars surrounded the hospital.
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