Chapter 2

My heart plummeted into my gut.

I felt as if my soul was escaping my body as I placed down my phone. Moving on instinct, I opened my laptop and navigated to the publication's website again.

Pretending to be curious about their research, I sent the author of the article a connection request. I also sent them a private message, saying, "Good afternoon. I'm a journal editor. I'm intrigued by the contents of your article. Can we have a chat to discuss it in detail?"

It didn't take long before the author accepted the friend request and replied to my message.

"Of course. I can guarantee that everything that you read in the article is true. In fact, I have records for all the data, including her expenses over the past few years as well as her asking price."

My breath hitched in my throat.

I couldn't help but recall the contents of the article at the mention of my "asking price".

If the author was truly "Winnie", it proved that she had indeed sold me like a product to her classmate's father. I was too scared to even think about the number of times these transactions could have possibly taken place.

I looked at the author's IP address. Coincidentally, we were in the same state.

Tears streamed down my face. I forced myself to calm down, suppressing my fury as I continued questioning the author.

"Have you ever thought about how what you're doing is illegal? Selling your mother as if she's just a product and selling her daughter to human traffickers—both actions are against the law."

The author ignored the anger in my words and sent a laughing emoji.

"So what if it's illegal? No one has proof. The woman's face blindness is so severe that she can't even recognize her own daughter and husband. Also, her daughter was born with a heart condition. She would be doomed to a life of suffering if she continued living, so isn't she better off dead?"

I felt as if I had been struck by lightning.

"What do you mean by that?"

The author's tone was completely nonchalant as they continued, "That's right. The daughter's dead. To be honest with you, my father treats me really well. He was willing to sell off his daughter with his legally wedded wife for my sake.

"I also suffered from a kidney condition when I was a child. Fortunately, my father exchanged my faulty kidney with his dead daughter's. I mean, I might as well take advantage of her functioning organs since she was destined for death, no?

"Oh, that's right. If you want to accuse me of being immoral, isn't my fake mother even more of a sinner? She usurped my mother's rightful place for so many years just because she looks a little similar to her. Her daughter deserved to die for her transgressions, don't you agree?"

I struggled to breathe as my head spun. My voice had gone hoarse from how hard I was crying. I opened my mouth, wanting to let out a wail of despair, but I couldn't make a sound.

Images of Winnie's adorable face began to flash through my mind. She had called me "Mommy" for the first time after wrapping her tiny fingers around my bigger ones.

I couldn't believe that my own lover—the same man who cared for me so meticulously and thoughtfully, was actually so sick and twisted.

Jasper treated the illegitimate child that he had with his mistress as his own daughter more than he treated Winnie as his own daughter, sentencing Winnie to death just because she had a heart condition.

Flames of vengeance consumed my every thought as I drowned in an abyss of fury and despair.

The evidence was conclusive, and all the details were matching up.

I had no doubt that the author of the article was "Winnie", the daughter whom I had raised for the past 12 years.

One would assume that she would develop a genuine sense of kinship with me since we had been together since she was a child, no matter how ungrateful she was. However, no such thing occurred.

Not only did "Winnie" not feel even a shred of remorse, but she also believed that her actions were justified. She didn't see any issue with her parents sending a child to her death.

Thus, I saw no reason to hold back as well. I was going to force this family of beasts to pay for the consequences of Winnie's death.

I tapped the chat window again after I regained my composure.

The author was clearly antsy, asking me which magazine I was an editor for, hoping to continue the conversation.

A frosty expression appeared on my face as my fingers flew across the keyboard.

"Our magazine is one of the top publications abroad. All of our published articles are first assessed by a committee before being approved for print. They will also conduct an assessment for the author of the article. Let's set an appointment if you're free. We can discuss this in more detail in person."

The author didn't hesitate at all and agreed to meet me tomorrow afternoon at a cafe. It was obvious that they had dropped their guard when I mentioned that I worked for a top publication.

I turned off my laptop and dialed Jasper's number.

"Hello? Why are you suddenly calling me today, honey? Do you miss me?" he asked in his usual gentle tone, perfectly hiding the sick and twisted beast that he actually was.

My determination wavered for a split second before my rationality overpowered everything else.

Everything about Jasper repulsed me now.

"Are you free tomorrow afternoon? Can you drop by the cafe? I have a surprise for you."

Jasper immediately canceled all his meetings, promising that he would be at the cafe at the agreed time.

Wanting to ensure that I had everything that I needed, I hired a private investigator and a hacker to dig up information about the abduction.

It was a little ridiculous, but Jasper hadn't done a good job of covering up his tracks. It didn't take long for the investigator and hacker to dig up incriminating evidence about him. Truth be told, if I had doubted him even a little back then, I would have immediately seen through his ploy.

Unfortunately, I didn't doubt him in the slightest, giving Jasper the opportunity to take advantage of my trust in him to keep up his farce.

As the sun set on the horizon, my thirst for vengeance reached its peak as I looked through the information that the private investigator sent me.

"It's time for you to pay for the consequences of your actions, Jasper Gulliver."