Chapter 1

At 8:40 p.m., the sound of a bowl smashing on the floor came from the next room.

I was scrolling through my phone in my own room when I paused for a moment.

My sister-in-law Sophia Jensen's voice rose in stages, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"Jacob, what kind of man are you?"

My older brother Jacob Kerr's voice was then muffled behind the wall, impossible to hear clearly.

The door was suddenly pulled open. Sophia wiped her tears as she crossed the living room and turned into the storage room.

I stood up.

I tapped on the video recorder icon on my phone and aimed the camera at the storage room door.

Sophia came out carrying a hammer as the corners of her mouth tightened like a string pulled taut.

Without saying a word, she headed straight downstairs.

I followed her quietly.

The lights in the underground parking garage flickered on and then off.

She bent over and checked the license plates one car at a time.

When she reached a white Tesla, she stopped.

The license plate ended in 7723.

Her expression immediately turned fierce. She raised the hammer, tensed her arm, and pulled her shoulder back.

Just as the hammer was about to fall, I suddenly spoke.

"Sophia."

Her whole body jolted in fright, and she abruptly turned around.

When she saw me, she froze.

I raised my hand and pointed to the black Lucid Motors opposite her.

"You've got the wrong car. This is Jacob's car."

Her expression darkened.

"Is that so?"

She slowly turned around and walked to the side of the black Lucid.

She looked left and right, but simply couldn't raise the hammer.

Afraid she wouldn't believe me, I pointed to the phone number on the passenger-side window.

"Look, this is Jacob's phone number. It can't be wrong. Go ahead and smash it."

Sophia said nothing.

After quite a while, she forced out a smile.

"Riley Kerr, go upstairs. Don't let me scare you."

I nodded.

Then I turned around, got into my own car, started the engine, and shifted into gear.

Sophia's expression changed.

"Riley, why are you driving?"

"I'm going out to buy groceries."

Her voice suddenly rose sharply as she stood in front of me.

"It's only two steps away. Why are you driving?"

"The weather's hot. I don't want to walk."

I answered very calmly.

The muscles on Sophia's face tightened, and she stared at me for quite a while.

The corners of her mouth turned downward. She was unhappy.

"Then don’t stay out late."

I didn't respond to her.

I drove out of the neighborhood and made two right turns to stop at the paid parking lot of the neighboring residential complex.

I locked it and took a photograph before walking back.

When I passed my own parking space at home, I deliberately took a look.

Jacob's black Lucid was parked properly in its original spot. The car body was spotless, and it had not moved an inch.

I gave a cold laugh in my heart.

I went upstairs, opened the door, went straight into the bathroom, took a shower, and lay down.

Early the next morning, I had seven or eight missed calls.

The property manager's voice squeezed out through the receiver.

"Mr. Kerr, your car has been smashed again."

He sent me a photograph.

I opened it, and my heart suddenly turned cold.