Chapter 3

"Why?!" My eyes burned red as I screamed the question at the smiling couple on the yacht.

They looked like they were enjoying a party while my world was ending.

Celeste was casually playing with a remote control. She pouted her red lips, blinked innocently, and said, "Oops! Penelope, I'm sorry. My finger must have slipped."

I whipped my head back around, and my heart clenched in terror. Among the shattered debris of the demolished boat, Blake's small figure was desperately clinging to a floating piece of wreckage, swaying precariously in the waves. His leg injury had worsened, and blood was gushing out uncontrollably, turning the water around him a horrifying dark red.

'No! This will definitely attract sharks!'

I could not waste another second confronting them, so I turned and swam back with everything I had. Behind me, the two of them laughed without restraint.

Even Zachary sounded uneasy as he stared at the blood spreading across the water. "Celeste... nobody's really going to die, right?"

Celeste giggled as she leaned against him. "Don't worry, Zachary. That's definitely just paint from drawing! Penelope's autistic son never talks and only sits around drawing all day. Maybe he spilled his art supplies."

She paused, then called out to me mockingly, "Penelope, you're always scheming with these pathetic tricks! We're helping your little bastard build survival skills. I heard doctors say things like this can help treat autism!"

Zachary lovingly tapped her nose. "You are just too kind. It's certain people who don't appreciate it."

Then, the two of them pressed the remote again, and more torpedoes exploded along the path I was swimming. Massive walls of water rose up again and again, shoving me farther away and keeping me from reaching Blake.

I used every last ounce of strength to swim toward Blake. "Blake! Grab my hand!"

Just as my fingertips were about to touch his, I watched in horror as half of Blake's arm disappeared into a shark's mouth.

The excruciating pain made him lose his grip, and he plunged into the bottomless dark waters.

"No!"

My world shattered at that moment.

The chaos finally drew a nearby marine rescue team to the scene. But when they pulled me onto shore, I felt no relief at surviving. My heart was already dead.

Zachary and Celeste arrived late, and he casually tossed me a document and a pen while holding her. "The kid's already dead, so just sign this settlement agreement, and we'll put this behind us. We're still family, after all."

I looked at him, my heart cold and empty, without even the energy to hate. I slowly shook my head, my voice hollow. "I can't sign that settlement."

"Penelope, don't push your luck!" Zachary was about to explode in anger.

Suddenly, a timid, childish voice came from behind us. "M-Mommy... w-what happened t-to Blake?"

The expression on Zachary's face froze instantly as he whipped around, his eyes widening in shock. "No... That's impossible..."

He lunged forward like a madman and ripped off the white sheet. "Blake!"