Billionaire Ethan Foster used his own body to shield me from an out-of-control car. He lay in a pool of blood, his suit soaked in red. "Lana, now you owe me a life." "You'll never be able to repay it in this lifetime." He was the youngest person to take control of the Foster family—a man who held power over life and death, noble yet cold-hearted. But for me, he'd eat street food with me in run-down neighborhoods. After we married, he tattooed my name over the scar on his collarbone, calling it his badge of honor, something he'd remember forever. Until that day when I came home early and pushed open the master bedroom door. He had a woman pressed against the floor-to-ceiling window, biting her earlobe as he laughed softly. "Baby, don't bite so tight." The man who once risked his life for me was making another woman cry in my bed on our wedding anniversary. I didn't cry. I didn't make a scene. I just silently removed the ring from my finger. "Ethan Foster, I don't want you anymore."
The instant I opened the door, the intimate atmosphere inside came to an abrupt halt. Ethan's movements froze. When he saw it was me, he withdrew his hand from the woman's body. "What brings you here today?" A strong arm wrapped around my shoulders, turning my gaze elsewhere. I knew he was protecting that woman. My eyes stung with tears. With a sharp smack, I slapped Ethan's hand away and stubbornly turned my head, finally getting a clear look at the woman. Crimson lips, dressed in red—she was like a gorgeous rose, beautiful but thorny. I knew her. Vivian Lee, who'd joined the company just three months ago and became Ethan's personal secretary last month. People had already reported to me that Ethan had been treating a young woman very specially lately. Back then, I firmly believed that Ethan, who cherished me like his own life, would never betray me. But before long, more and more incidents reached my ears. Until a friend sent me a video of Ethan beating someone up. In the chaos, I still heard it clearly. Someone had been making toasts, and when it was Vivian's turn, she refused to drink. The person said a few unpleasant things, and Ethan went crazy. That night I sat alone until late, waiting for him to come home. Under my interrogation, Ethan explained that it just reminded him of the past. Back when Ethan and I got together, he lost his family's support. To secure investments, I accepted everyone who came, drinking until I had a stomach hemorrhage. Even when people said disgusting things, I still had to smile and apologize. "Lana, do you know how much it hurt me to watch you smile and apologize to those people for my sake?" "I just saw her as you from back then." "I should have done this long ago!" Hot tears slid down my neck. Held in Ethan's embrace, I trembled for a moment, my emotions in chaos, with no energy left to dwell on it. Until I accidentally learned that the friend who sent me the video had been badly dealt with, and the assistant who'd reported things to me had been fired. That's when I knew—Ethan had really fallen for her. "Miss Anderson, long time no see." "I was just giving Mr. Foster a report." "Got a bit close." "I hope you don't misunderstand." "I'll go back to work now." Vivian wore a proper smile on her face, but her eyes were full of provocation. Before leaving, she thoughtfully closed the door. "When did you arrive?" Faced with Ethan's probing question, I got straight to the point. "When you were biting her earlobe." The man who'd always presented himself as gentle in front of me showed a cold expression for the first time. "Wouldn't it be better to pretend you didn't know?" "You've always been smart." "Why are you being foolish now?" He sighed, his tone full of annoyance. Annoyed that I didn't follow his wishes and pretend nothing had happened.
Before, I trusted him because he'd truly risked his life for me. Now that I'd seen it with my own eyes, I had no interest in playing dumb and humiliating myself. "Being foolish?" I looked up, forcefully suppressing the hidden pain in my heart, my tone cold and hard. "At least I'm smarter than when I chose you all those years ago." At those words, Ethan's expression darkened sharply. His large hand came toward me. I turned my head to avoid it and stepped back. "It's either me or her." "Make your choice." He'd never considered giving up Vivian. Five years together, three years of marriage—he knew my vulnerabilities better than anyone. When I was fifteen, my father had an affair. From then on, my parents fought constantly. Eventually, my father couldn't take it anymore and left home. My mother fell into depression, warning me never to trust love. In the end, she jumped from a building right in front of me. Once, to open my heart, he'd been willing to risk his life to save me. Now he wanted me to share him with another woman. This fickleness shattered the last bit of fantasy in my heart. I bit my lip hard, struggling to calm my burning eyes. I refused to show any weakness. "I'll send you the divorce papers." "Remember to sign them." Propping up my crumbling body, I wanted to leave this place of heartbreak. Behind me, Ethan's cold laugh came, piercing through me like ice. "Divorce?" "Lana Anderson, have you forgotten?" "You still owe me a life." How ridiculous. His life-risking sacrifice had now become chains binding me. I forced out a bitter smile, concealing all emotion. I turned to face him, yielding nothing. "I was deliberately targeted because of you, drank until I had a stomach hemorrhage." "Doesn't that count as repayment?" Unfortunately, those closest to us always know exactly how to hurt us most. With just one sentence, Ethan completely broke through my defenses. "If it weren't for you, would I have ended up in that situation?" "Back then, if my brain hadn't been damaged, I wouldn't have fallen for you." "I'd have more than just today's achievements!" Perhaps remembering those difficult times, he suddenly stepped forward and gripped my shoulder, using enough force to crush bone. "And everything you wear, use, and live in—which of it wasn't given by me?" His large hand lightly patted my face. Humiliation surged through me.
His half-exposed chest came into view. On his collarbone, the scar tattooed with my name was particularly glaring. Back then, he said he wanted to cover my guilt, so he tattooed my name over it. Looking at it now, it only felt like mockery. "I'll return all of it to you." My resolve to divorce became even firmer, my tone decisive. "Return it with what?" Enraged, Ethan leaned down close to me. The scent of Vivian's perfume mixed with his, choking me with disgust. "Stay here, continue being Mrs. Foster, behave yourself." "Isn't that good enough?" "Behave myself and watch you sleep with her?" "Be driven crazy by you and end up like my mother?" I shook off his hand, my fingertips trembling with cold. "Ethan Foster, I find it disgusting." The word "disgusting" made Ethan explode in rage. He gripped me so hard my hand ached. Unprepared, I was dragged into the lounge and pinned against the door. "Disgusting?" "Who was it that held me and cried, saying she'd never forget me for the rest of her life?" That was my heartfelt confession when he lay in the ICU between life and death, and I knelt by his bedside. "What else was I supposed to do?" I forced back the tears in my eyes with a cold snort. "If I didn't say that, would your parents have let me go?" To get this divorce, I was willing to let Ethan misunderstand. "You're lying to me, aren't you!" Ethan's pupils shook. Clearly, he couldn't believe it. "Does it matter whether it's true or not?" Ethan's eyes flickered, then he began to deflect. "She and I are just playing around." "If you don't like it, I'll fire her." Whether these words were sincere or not, I no longer had the energy to care. I just wanted to leave. A knock sounded at the door. Vivian's affected voice came through. "Mr. Foster, the documents are here." "They need your signature." Ethan frowned. As if deliberately avoiding suspicion, his tone was impatient. "Leave them on the desk." "But Mr. Foster, the documents are urgent..." Seizing the opportunity, I deliberately rammed into the scar on Ethan's collarbone. He groaned and loosened his grip, letting me rush out. At the door, Vivian's eyes were full of triumph, though she pretended concern. "Miss Anderson, did you argue with Mr. Foster again?" "He's busy." "You should be more understanding." I ignored her and walked straight toward the exit. Ethan followed closely, shouting sternly to his security. "Stop her!" The guards immediately blocked my path. I turned back, heart filled with despair. "You're going to imprison me?" "I don't want to force you, but you're not being good." "When you come to your senses, I'll set you free." He said it as if I were the one who'd wronged him. "Come to my senses about swallowing my anger?" I laughed bitterly and left him with harsh words. "Even if you lock me up for a lifetime, I'll never come back to you."
At this moment, Vivian tried to grab me. I shook her off violently. "Get lost!" "With me gone, it'll be easier for you to take my place." Vivian staggered back with the force, her eyes instantly red and looking very wronged. "Miss Anderson, I know you didn't mean it..." Without thinking, Ethan supported her and frowned as he scolded me. "Lana Anderson, don't go too far!" This act of protection completely severed my last thread of hope. I looked at the security guards, my tone numb. "If you're going to imprison me, hurry up." "Don't waste my time." After being brought back to the villa, I walked into the bedroom myself, locked the door, and refused to see anyone. Unfortunately, my documents and phone were confiscated. I became an isolated island, able only to bite my lip hard in the deep of night to keep tears from falling. Whenever I remembered my mother's warnings, I felt I deserved this fate. One morning, Vivian's delicate laughter drifted up from downstairs. I watched coldly from the balcony as they walked side by side. I don't know what she said, but Ethan lowered his head with a gentle smile. The necklace at his neck was inadvertently revealed. My hands hanging by my legs trembled. I remembered something. "Ethan, man, you're really twisted." "To save Vivian, you could pretend for so many years." Marcus Wright's voice came from the phone. He was Ethan's best friend. Who would have thought— "What Ethan has is deep devotion, okay?" "If it weren't for me, how could he have possibly taken that car for that bitch!" "If I hadn't gotten sick and needed her bone marrow, Ethan and I wouldn't have wasted all these years!" Ethan didn't speak, but it seemed like a tacit acknowledgment. Just two short sentences, and I pieced together the truth. All his deep affection was just for my bone marrow. What he cared about was always me as Vivian's donor. This realization completely shattered me. I finally remembered why I felt Vivian looked familiar when I first saw her. When Ethan was in a coma, his mother took me to pray at churches. A priest told us that great merit was needed to save him. Right then, the hospital called to say my bone marrow matched a patient. For that slim hope, I resolutely donated my bone marrow. Three days later, Ethan woke up. At the time, I thanked the heavens and didn't notice that during his recovery, Ethan would always smile at a fellow patient. Looking back now, that person was Vivian. "You married her out of guilt back then." "Now it's exposed and she wants a divorce." "Wouldn't it be better to part on good terms?" Marcus asked my question. My heart instantly lifted. Unfortunately, Ethan didn't answer. Vivian's harsh mocking laughter answered for me. "Of course it's because of me." "This illness could relapse anytime." "Naturally, it's better to keep her as a blood bag!" As she spoke, Vivian changed her tone and acted cute with Ethan. "Ethan, her wanting a divorce now isn't really working out." "Women need to be coaxed." "Vivian, don't push your luck after getting a good deal!" "Exactly." "If you weren't so arrogant, she'd still be in the dark." "How would she be demanding a divorce!" Loud laughter rang out. My already hollow heart no longer felt pain. What truly sent me into the abyss was what Vivian said next. "If she really divorces, how can I torture her?" "How can I avenge my mother?!" Who was Vivian's mother? What deep grudge existed between us that made her hate me so much? Unfortunately, they quickly changed the topic. This question remained tightly wound around my heart, keeping me awake at night. From that day on, Ethan changed his approach. Every day when he came home, he'd knock on the door. His tone shifted from initially forceful to pleading. "Lana, let's open the door and talk." Knowing he was just putting on an act, I never responded. I just stared at the night sky, calculating how to escape. He cared so much about Vivian that he'd set up such an elaborate scheme for her. The villa's security was impenetrable. Breaking out by force was impossible. I could only wait for him to let his guard down. On the fourth night, shortly after he knocked, there was commotion downstairs, followed by the sound of a car engine. I lifted the curtain and saw his car drive away. Half the guards at the entrance were also gone, and security had noticeably loosened. I held my breath and tiptoed out of the bedroom, pressing against the wall toward the servants' passage. Ethan had once mentioned there was a back door there that many people didn't know about. Just as I was about to reach the passage, Vivian's delicate laugh came from behind. "Where do you think you're going?" I froze completely. Turning around, I saw her with servants, smiling triumphantly. So today's opportunity was just a game Vivian had designed to toy with me. In desperation, I rushed forward and grabbed her, gripping a candlestick I'd taken, pressing the sharp end against her face. "Don't come any closer!" "Come closer and I'll kill her!" Blood immediately seeped out. No one dared move. I took the chance to retreat. But before I could exit the passage, sharp pain struck the back of my head. My vision went black, and I lost consciousness completely. When I woke again, a suffocating sensation came over me. I saw Ethan with bloodshot eyes, gripping my collar tightly. "Where's Vivian?" "Where did you take Vivian?!" I was stunned. Vivian was gone? Seeing me dazed, the enraged Ethan just waved his hand and shoved me down. "Talk!" "Or I'll make you pay with your life!" "I don't know!" Intense pain struck. I coughed up blood, reaching out my hand, but I couldn't stop his movements. My hair was violently yanked, my head slammed against the wall. Blood immediately streamed down my forehead.
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