Chapter 4

Bringing me black tea at dawn was completely out of character.

Theresa placed the cup on my nightstand. Her voice was as flat as the wrinkles on her face:

"Drink it."

I understood.

I thought to myself, they really lacked patience. If they had just given me a few more days, I could have died cleanly, without leaving a trace.

Killing me in the estate now would definitely bring massive trouble to the family.

But I didn't say a word. I picked up the bone china cup without hesitation, its surface burning hot.

I tilted my head back slightly and gulped down the black tea as if it were water, finishing it in one go.

The bitterness sank all the way from the root of my tongue into my stomach, and the cup was empty.

I put it back on the nightstand, lay down, pulled the blanket up to my chin, and quietly waited for the end.

Theresa picked up the empty cup and stood by the bed, looking at me for a few seconds. Watching me wait for death without a ripple of emotion, her fingers gripping the cup trembled slightly.

In the end, she didn't say anything and turned to leave.

The poison kicked in quickly.

First came an agonizing pain in my stomach, like countless claws tearing at my organs. Then came a bone-piercing cold that made my whole body convulse and my jaw clench.

My vision began to blur, and my hearing became muffled as if I were underwater.

After that, there was the roar of family vehicle engines, low and suppressed commands from the bodyguards, Theresa's rare urgent urging, and the glaring lights of the clinic's emergency room.

Under the cold lights of the family clinic's trauma room, a thick stomach tube was brutally shoved down my throat. I vomited so violently it felt like my lungs were tearing apart. I looked as pathetic as one could be.

A family doctor in a white coat looked at me, then turned to Theresa, whose face was taut, and frowned.

"Donna Theresa, you brought her in too late. The poison has already taken effect."

He lowered his voice, laced with suspicion.

I used every last ounce of my strength to grab the cuff of his white coat. My throat was so hoarse it was almost soundless:

"It was me. I stole the pills myself."

The doctor froze, and the way he looked at me became very complex.

I let go, collapsed back onto the bed, and stared at the ceiling.

I thought being too stubborn to die was probably a curse too, where I couldn't even die when I tried.

Theresa stood by the bed, her velvet coat stained with a few watermarks.

Before I fell completely into a deep sleep, I thought I caught a glimpse of a teardrop rapidly sliding from the corner of her eye, smashing onto the cold floor tiles.

After I was discharged and returned to the estate, the entire mansion felt as oppressive as a luxurious tomb.

Everything was still extravagant and orderly, but the air was filled with a suffocating silence.

I became more obedient and quiet than ever before.

Eating quietly, going to school quietly, doing chores quietly, even hugging the walls when I walked.

I lived my life like a shadow, trying my best not to take up space.

For the first time ever, I even initiated a conversation with Leo, that spoiled little young master.

"Be good," I said, wiping the ketchup off the corner of his mouth, my voice completely flat. "Don't make Isabella angry anymore."

He blinked his clear, innocent eyes at me, a trace of strange, naive dependence actually showing in his gaze.

As for baby Rosie, Isabella guarded her against me like she was guarding against an assassin ready to pull a gun at any second.

But taking advantage of the gap during the guards' shift change, I still did what I always wanted to do.

I took off the cross necklace that symbolized divine protection. It was the only valuable thing I owned.

While Isabella was distracted in the music room, I slipped in like a ghost and gently tied that cross onto the stuffed animal by the crib.

May she grow up clean and safe.

Having done all this, I decided to run away.

Fine, I admit I'm a coward. Since I couldn't die, I'd just disappear.

There was no need for any goodbyes.

No one cared about me anyway.

The sun was scorching that afternoon, beating down so hard it made me dizzy.

I walked aimlessly along the deep-water piers our family controlled.

Until a sharp, panicked cry pierced the silence.

"Mara!"