Chapter 3

Renee used every connection she had, but she could no longer find a trace of my existence.

That crumpled death certificate became the only clue.

At the hospital, the smell of disinfectant was sharp and suffocating.

Renee went to the doctor on duty. “Has anyone been brought in recently from the underground casino on the West Side?”

How ridiculous.

That underground casino had been Renee’s territory.

She could have gotten me out with a single word.

Instead, she let me suffer inside.

The doctor pushed up his glasses and thought for a moment.

“Yes. About five or six days ago, a young man was brought in. He was already too far gone when he arrived. It was horrific. Almost every bone in his body had been broken. All ten of his fingernails had been torn out, and there was not a single patch of unbroken skin left on him. In the end, he lost too much blood, and his organs failed. We did everything we could, but we couldn’t save him.”

Renee suddenly felt a sense of dread. Her fingertips went cold. “What did he look like?”

The doctor shook his head and sighed. “His face had been destroyed. It was impossible to tell. But he seemed like a pretty tough man. He never cried out once, not even at the end.”

“It couldn’t have been him.”

Renee cut him off sharply.

“He isn’t that tough. He couldn’t have endured that much.”

Renee tried desperately to convince herself, but deep down, something had begun to crack.

She left the hospital as if she were fleeing from something and drove back to the villa where Andrea was locked up.

She pushed the door open. Complete silence greeted her.

She hurried toward the basement. The iron door was left ajar.

Andrea lay curled in the corner. Her clothes had been torn and disheveled.

Dark bruises marked the exposed skin of her body.

Her arms were wrapped tightly around herself. Her eyes were empty. Her body would not stop trembling.

In front of her stood Jacob. His clothes were in disarray.

Anyone with eyes could see what had happened.

My eyes turned blood red. My reasoning shattered.

I wanted to tear the flesh from his bones and drink his blood.

Jacob hurried to explain. He said, “Renee, you have to believe me. I didn’t do anything. I was just too worried about her, so I came in to bring her some water. But she started taking off her clothes the moment I walked in.”

Andrea did not understand any of that. How could she have done something like this?

It was a lie anyone could have seen through at a glance, yet Renee believed him.

“Loose woman!”

She stepped forward and slapped Andrea hard.

Andrea was already weak from the fever and hunger.

The blow knocked her to the floor. Her forehead smashed hard against a shattered iron piece.

Andrea lay on the floor. She had lost consciousness entirely.

Finally, Renee panicked.

She ordered the bodyguards to carry Andrea to the hospital.

She had not expected to run into the men from the underground casino as soon as she arrived at the hospital.

“Ms. Austin, how do you know this girl?”

Renee leaned against the wall. Her fingers were trembling uncontrollably.

“What do you mean?”

One of the men licked his lips.

“You know, she might not have been right in the mind, but just to get back her brother’s ashes, she gave the boys a real treat. Shame about Jacob Murphy. Did not even last a few days before he kicked it. But this dumb girl? She could take it. We had fun with her for three days.”

“What in the world are you talking about?” Renee’s voice came out sharp and shrill.

The men at the casino looked at each other and let out mocking laughs.

“Ms. Austin, you must’ve forgotten. You were the one who personally brought Jacob to us. A debt had to be paid, fair and square. That kid was soft, though. He couldn’t take it, so he died. But this idiot was loyal. She insisted on getting that box of ashes back…”

“That’s impossible!”

She staggered backward and hit the wall.

Then, behind her, the light above the operating room went out.

The doctor walked out, removed his mask, and announced expressionlessly, “I’m sorry. She was brought in too late. The blood loss was severe, and combined with the high fever, her injuries were too extensive. We couldn’t save her.”