The cold autumn wind blew fiercely through the mountain trees, carrying heavy gray clouds across the afternoon sky. High up in the hills, the Vance Estate stood as a majestic fortress of stone, glass, and steel, completely shielded from the harsh realities of the outside world.Down at the outer perimeter, however, peace was broken by a desperate, pathetic figure.Clara had not driven away as she had promised herself. After her brief, humiliating conversation over the intercom with Alessia, her mind had completely unraveled. The crushing reality of her eviction notice, her frozen bank accounts, her massive debts, and her total social abandonment had driven her into a state of blind, hysterical panic.She had abandoned her sports car a hundred yards down the winding access road, letting it idle awkwardly against a tree trunk, and had sprinted back up the steep hill on foot.Now, Clara stood directly in front of the towering, wrought-iron main gates of the Vance Estate. Her expensive de
Last Updated : 2026-10-08 Read more