Chapter 4

Frank's eyes turned cold. "I don't understand why you keep trying to blame her for every goddamn thing that has gone wrong in your life. Even if she did upload it to the internet... so what? It's not an AI fake, is it? It really happened."

What? What was that?

When he rescued me, he had wrapped me in his arms and sobbed in agony. He had led his men in a charge against his nemesis' stronghold like a man possessed and slaughtered every last one of them in a blind rage.

Then he came back to my bedside, drenched in blood and staggering from exhaustion. He had taken my hand with such incredible care and whispered, "No one will ever know about this, so don't worry, okay?"

And now everyone knew, yet his response was simply, "Whatever. It happened."

I laughed, grabbed a wooden stake lying nearby, and drove it into Virginia's shoulder. Blood welled from her revolting body, staining her dress and the hickeys on her neck crimson.

She collapsed to the floor and shrieked like a banshee. "Frankie! Frankieeee!"

I stood over her and glared down with undisguised contempt. "You've done it, bitch. You pissed off the wrong person."

A powerful force jerked me away from her before slamming my hand onto the table.

I looked up and saw fury boiling in Frank's eyes.

The last time he had looked this enraged was after my stepmother stole the Capra family's fortune following my father's death. She had locked me inside the house and whipped me with a salt-coated lash. By the time Frank finally reached me, my body was covered in injuries.

The fury in his eyes back then had burned like an inferno. It had seemed capable of reducing everyone who had hurt me to ashes.

But now, that same fury was no longer aimed at my enemies. It was aimed at me.

Frank pulled out a switchblade and drove it through my right hand, pinning it to the table.

Blood gushed from my palm. Agony exploded through me, racing across my body like a disease. Every cell screamed in torment, but I clenched my jaw and refused to make a sound.

"You're right. You've done it. You pissed off the wrong person," he growled coldly. "If you don't want to end up like your mother, I suggest you keep a leash on your temper."

I glared at him through bloodshot eyes.

My mother had finally snapped after enduring my stepmother's endless provocations and slapped her. As punishment, my father had crushed her hand with a mallet, destroying the nerves and ensuring she would never paint again.

When Frank heard about it, he had held my hand with heartbreaking tenderness and vowed, "I'll protect you, Freya, so just focus on your art!"

I had believed him. I had given him everything.

In return, he buried a knife in the hand I painted with.

Cold sweat soaked my skin. My body trembled uncontrollably despite my desperate effort to endure the pain.

"Kill me right now, Frank, or one day I'll kill you!" I screamed through gritted teeth.

He didn't even react to the threat. "The wedding is delayed indefinitely. We'll talk about it after you've learned to live with Vivi in harmony."

With that, he turned his back on me as though I no longer existed. He scooped Virginia into his arms even though the allergic reaction had already begun to spread across his fingers.

He loved her so much that not even his condition could stop him.

Frank carried Virginia out of the studio. I gritted my teeth, yanked the switchblade out of my palm, and rushed to the hospital.

Thankfully, I had gotten there in time to save my hand.

…

It was my wedding day.

I stepped out of the dressing room wearing my bridal gown.

Frank moved into my path with a deep frown.

"I told you the wedding was delayed indefinitely. What do you think you're doing? It's canceled!" he demanded. "Apologize to Vivi, or our marriage will stay on hold forever."

"Wake up, Frank. You're not the groom," I shot back.

He reached for my hand, but I slipped aside, caught his wrist, and twisted it behind his back instead.

"But don't worry about missing out," I said. "I've prepared a very special gift just for you."

He followed my gaze, and his eyes widened.