Chapter 1

Victor's POV

I froze for a moment. Then, I lowered my head and looked at the woman at my feet. She instinctively looked up. The moment our eyes met, a deafening ringing filled my ears.

I thought I was seeing things. My eyes widened in disbelief. But whatever hope I had left was shattered when Vanessa Crain cried out for mercy.

Clutching my pant leg, she looked up at me and pleaded, "Honey! Please, let Ethan go! We've been framed!"

I couldn't hear a word she was saying. All I could see were the countless hickeys covering her collarbone and trailing down her chest. I closed my eyes for a moment, forcing myself to stay calm.

But Ethan Calloway, my younger brother, tilted his head and sneered. "What's wrong, Victor? Aren't you going to search her? Who knows? We might still have stolen goods on us!"

My colleagues shot me sympathetic looks. One by one, they stepped back, distancing themselves from Vanessa.

In the end, I gritted my teeth and searched her from head to toe. And in doing so, I saw every last mark of passion covering her body.

Suddenly, all those nights she'd told me she was "too tired" or "not in the mood" made perfect sense.

I'd been such a fool. I'd been genuinely worried about her health, even spending several months' worth of my salary on expensive vitamins and supplements. And she'd used all that extra energy on my brother.

Ethan was determined to humiliate me. Right in front of everyone, he raised his voice again. "Man, you've got terrible judgment when it comes to your career, but I'll give you this. You sure know how to pick a woman!"

He licked his lips, pretending to savor a fond memory. "Your wife's a real freak in bed!"

Before I knew it, my fist was flying. The rage building in my chest finally erupted, shattering what little self-control I had left. I landed two solid punches before Ethan screamed and scrambled behind Vanessa.

I pointed at him and ordered her to move. Instead, she slapped me across the face.

Vanessa's eyes widened in shock, but the moment she noticed the blood on Ethan's face, her expression hardened. "Victor! What gives you the right to hit him?"

The wedding ring on her finger had cut my cheek open. But her accusation hurt far worse. She'd even kept wearing the wedding ring I'd given her while cheating on me. What a sick joke!

Seeing the state I was in, my colleagues immediately stepped in. "That's enough! All of you, behave yourselves!"

The suspects were then hauled into the police vehicles one by one. Even when I took a seat at the very back, I couldn't escape the hushed laughter and strange looks. Every glance felt like a needle digging into my skin, filled with pity and barely concealed contempt.

In just a few minutes, I'd become the biggest joke in the entire police department. I was a narcotics officer, yet my own wife and younger brother had been caught using meth.

I'd been a devoted husband, only to find out my wife was sleeping with my own brother. And now, everyone knew.

As soon as we arrived at the station, my captain, Christopher Hayes, pulled me aside and got straight to the point. "Given your connection to the suspects, you can't be involved in the interrogations."

I nodded, understanding why.

He looked at me for a moment before giving my shoulder a light punch, his way of offering some comfort.

When no one was looking, I slipped into the surveillance room to listen to the interrogation.

Ethan's voice came through the speakers, casual and completely unapologetic, "We only did a little meth to spice things up. Come on, you guys know how incredible that stuff feels. We're two consenting adults having a good time. Since when is that a crime?"

He spoke as though he had done nothing wrong, practically bragging about it. Every word felt like a knife twisting in my chest.

"Sure, Vanessa married him, but I'm the one she loves. She even had surgery to make herself a virgin again, just for me. Victor and I have always been enemies. If he's got the guys, tell him to come kill me!"

I clenched my fists so tightly my knuckles ached, barely managing to contain the fury churning inside me. I couldn't bear to hear another word. I stumbled out of the room and rushed toward the courtyard.

Suddenly, someone grabbed my arm from behind. It was Vanessa.

There was an urgency in her expression that I'd rarely seen before. "Where's Ethan? He can't get into serious trouble! I don't care about anything else! I just need to know he's going to be okay!"

Gone was her usual gentle, composed demeanor.

We'd dated for five years and been married for three. Yet she'd never shown that kind of concern for me. Not even when I'd been injured in the line of duty.

I had no idea what I said to her after that. By the time I came back to my senses, my parents had shown up outside my dorm room. Their relentless shouting carried straight through the window.

"You ungrateful bastard! You're his older brother! How could you not protect him?"

"Even your wife is pulling strings to get him released, and you're just sitting here doing nothing!"

The moment I opened the door, my father spat in my face. "We should've sold you off when we had the chance!"

"You've never measured up to your brother, and now you're trying to sabotage him!"

I stood frozen, my head lowered. The spit on my face stung worse than a slap.

Back when we lived in our hometown, my family had been drowning in debt. My parents had actually considered giving me away to another family in exchange for money.

They'd nearly gone through with it, but I'd managed to break free and run home.

Ever since then, Ethan had changed. He'd made it his mission to turn everything into a fight with me.

When I didn't respond, my mother lost her patience and shoved me hard.

I'd just spent 48 grueling hours on a stakeout, followed by several more hours of emotional turmoil. My legs gave out, and my head slammed straight into the railing. Blood streamed down my forehead, blurring my vision.

But Mom acted as though she couldn't see it. She kept pointing at me, refusing to let up. "I want Ethan home by tonight! If he's not, don't ever call me your mother again!"

The door slammed shut with a deafening bang. A moment later, my body hit the floor. When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in a hospital bed.

Vanessa was no longer the hysterical mess she'd been yesterday. Her voice was gentle, tinged with guilt. "Victor, someone set us up yesterday. We were drugged…"

I said nothing. After a long silence, I finally spoke, my voice hoarse, "I don't want to see you."

She sighed, her eyes turning red. "I know I shouldn't have called your parents yesterday. I was just desperate. But Ethan's been released now, so…"

Just then, a message from Christopher popped up on my phone. Apparently, someone had paid another person to take the fall. The case was closed.

At that moment, Ethan sent me a string of videos. The wedding photos around our house had quietly been replaced with pictures of him and Vanessa. There was even his underwear in our closet.

The shoe rack and bathroom, places I'd never paid much attention to, were filled with his belongings.

He followed up with a smug emoji and a message. "Hey, Victor, your house is practically mine now. Your place is nice and cozy. Your wife's even better at keeping me warm!"

I narrowed my eyes. My hand trembled uncontrollably around my phone.

When I didn't respond, Vanessa gave me a shove and continued, "You hit Ethan pretty hard yesterday. His face is still swollen. Don't you think you owe him an apology?"