Chapter 1

I was locked inside a basement, a lightless place where the only company I had was the sound of rats chewing at the walls. I pleaded with my wife, Tiana Sabell, through my tears, "Please spare Sabrina! She's only seven years old, Tiana! I'll kneel on the stone steps instead; I'll kneel and fast for a week!"

Tiana snapped, "If you hadn't staged that accident and pretended to save me, I wouldn't have married you! Hayden wouldn't have been abducted and tormented in a coal mine while he was still grieving! You must suffer the consequences of this forced marriage.

"I guess it's true that a dishonest, cruel father like you was bound to raise a child born with such a sinister nature."

I collapsed helplessly on the ground as tears streamed down my face. "I never hired anyone to run you over, Tiana."

Tiana stated coldly, "You're still denying it even when the evidence is right here. You're a great actor, Nicholas, but I'm done falling for your lies."

She then ordered the guards, "You're not allowed to give him any food or water for three days—let him reflect on what he's done."

I pushed Tiana out of the path of a car and got struck by the car myself. I ended up with eight broken ribs, a ruptured liver, and a seven-day coma from blood loss.

I was then proposed to by Tiana after leaving the hospital, and we spent eight happy years together; back then, she used to fuss over me if I so much as splashed hot water on my hand.

It all changed when Hayden Brown, her first love, suddenly reappeared after eight years of having disappeared. It was then that my life-saving act was labeled a fraud, and I was turned into a liar.

I hadn't had any food or water for three days, leaving my lips cracked and my breath smelling of blood. I thought I heard Sabrina's cries in my daze, just when they took her away from me.

"Please don't cry, Daddy. I'll behave well so that Mommy doesn't hate me. I'll pray for Mr. Brown so that she won't be mad at you anymore, Daddy."

It was then that one of the household staff threw a few pieces of bread at me. "Here are some leftovers from Mr. Brown. He's giving them to you as alms—be sure to show your gratitude."

I forced the food down, thinking that I couldn't allow myself to die since I still had to search for Sabrina later.

That household staff scoffed and said, "You're truly pathetic, eating leftovers covered in dirt. It's no wonder Ms. Sabell would fall for someone as noble as Mr. Brown instead."

Hayden's so-called nobility had come from my emerald ring, which was a keepsake from Mom that I had kept after leaving the Zeller family. Tiana handed it to Hayden simply because he liked it. Sabrina was even punished with a night of kneeling just for trying to intervene with the gifting.

It was after some time that someone suddenly kicked the basement door open.

Gina Holden, Tiana's grandmother, looked guilty as she helped me to my feet. "I'm sure Sabrina will pull through this time as well, Nicholas; after all, she had survived six heart surgeries before this.

"You've invested tens of billions of dollars into Sabell Group when they were going under, keeping it a secret from Tiana so that she wouldn't feel inferior. You're the sole reason the Sabell family still exists today, yet Tiana has treated you terribly."

Gina and I arrived at Hemlock Hills to find the stone steps covered in blood. Gina clutched her chest, struggling to breathe from rage while losing her grip on her cane. I trembled as I climbed up the stairs, haunted by the torture Sabrina faced when she was made to bang her forehead on the ground at every step.

I pushed open the doors of the dilapidated chapel and found Sabrina's small, frail body lying in a pool of blood. I immediately broke down as I stumbled to her side. I couldn't believe the bruising on her skin or her knees, which were abraded down to the bone. I let out a piercing cry as dizziness washed over me.

"What did I do to deserve this?" I cradled Sabrina's cold corpse in my embrace.

Gina looked at Sabrina and panicked. She then stammered, "I'm certain that Hayden was the one who led Tiana astray; she never intended to harm Sabrina.

"I'll see to it that she's punished for her actions, so please just give Tiana one more chance to make things right, Nicholas—don't withdraw your investment from Sabell Group."