Chapter 4

The bodyguards immediately understood Anastasia's order. They hoisted me up and threw me into the water.

It was winter, and the pond was freezing. I shivered violently the moment I hit the water. I scrambled for the shore, but a firm hand shoved me back down.

"Mr. Beck, we can't let you up without the ring," one bodyguard said, his voice flat and cold. "If you want this to end soon, you'd better find it fast."

I bit my lip and resigned myself. I floated and fumbled in the icy, murky water, my fingers probing the dirt over and over.

Dirty water seeped into my sleeves, numbing my fingertips until they almost lost all feeling.

From dawn to dusk, I kept searching. I only managed to find the ring just as Anastasia's parents were about to return.

Clutching it tightly, I made my way step by step to Anastasia's room and gently knocked on the door.

Anastasia opened it, her gaze heavy. "I'm gonna let it go this time, but you'd better stay away from Philip from now on."

She flipped her palm, and the ring I had worked so hard to retrieve floated lightly out the window of the hallway, vanishing into the dark night.

"Philip doesn't like this design. I'll make him a new one."

I watched the ring disappear into the darkness and forced a small smile.

That made sense. She had already decided that the past was a burden, and there was no room for a ring marked by old memories.

Despite Anastasia's parents' lingering reservations about Philip, they couldn't go against her insistence.

Reluctantly, they began meticulously planning the engagement party. It was an extravagant affair, every detail designed to impress.

During the event, guests kept sneaking glances at me.

"Tough luck for Mason. The woman he worked so hard to get back is marrying someone else."

"They grew up together and were perfect for each other. Everyone thought they'd end up together. I honestly never saw this coming."

"If I were Mason, I'd slap that cheating couple instead of attending their engagement party."

Meanwhile, Philip, dressed in a top-tier designer suit, strolled toward the center of the ballroom.

Anastasia held his hand, the love in her eyes almost spilling over.

She cleared her throat. Her usual casual tone faded into one of composed seriousness as she announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to formally introduce—"

Before she could finish, the lights in the ballroom flickered twice and went out completely.

In the darkness, the sharp clatter of chairs mixed with screams, turning the scene into utter chaos.

I instinctively stepped back into a corner, but a hand suddenly clamped onto my wrist, and a foul-smelling handkerchief was pressed over my nose and mouth.

A dizzying, spinning sensation hit me instantly. I struggled desperately, and in the last moments before consciousness slipped away, I could only hear the deafening screams around me.

After God knows how long, I heard Philip's intentionally low growl through the chaos.

"Damn it! Who told you to make a move at the engagement party? Besides, I told you to kidnap me and blame it on Mason. Why did you take him, too?

"You bunch of idiots! It doesn't matter how realistic you act now. You can forget about the final payment! You've ruined my whole plan!"

My awareness slowly returned, and I immediately pieced things together.

It was another one of Philip's schemes, though this time, it didn't seem to go as he expected.

During the struggle, I had felt a gun holster on the other person's waist. These weren't the small-time goons Philip had hired.

What made my stomach drop further was that the voice of the leader sounded disturbingly familiar.