Scumbag

Everyone in Asterhaven knew—Maxwell Porter hated Zoey Bradford. Hated how she clung so desperately to their marriage. Hated how she refused to set him free. He asked for a divorce. Ninety-nine times. But the hundredth time, when he thought she'd turn him down like always, her voice cut through the air, cold as ice that had been frozen for a thousand years. "Fine. Let's get divorced."

At my graduation ceremony, I finally gathered the courage to confess my feelings to my longtime crush. But before I could, I was hit by a car. When I opened my eyes again, he was standing right in front of me with a frigid glare. "You're awake? Perfect. Then let's discuss our divorce." I blinked at him, completely dazed. Divorce? Wait—what? I hadn't even confessed yet. How on earth had this turned into a divorce?

During my cousin Monica Bleuthe's birthday party, my boyfriend, Grayson Chapman, who claimed to be on a business trip, suddenly appeared holding her hand and toasting the crowd. We were stunned when our eyes met. Monica hugged his arm intimately. "I forgot to introduce him to you, Ella. This is my boyfriend, Grayson. He's the CEO of the company we worked with last time." Grayson approached me and lowered his voice to say, "It's just a misunderstanding. I'm only pretending to be Monica's boyfriend." We had been in a relationship for four years, and he had never allowed our relationship to go public. He even refused to let me attend any high-end parties with him because he thought I was just an ordinary employee who was not glamorous enough to be introduced to anyone. He had no idea that my father wanted me to gain valuable work experience away from the family business. I hid my identity so that I would be better equipped to take over my family business one day. If I had married Grayson, he would have enjoyed a portion of my family's fortune. Unfortunately, that was no longer possible.

On my wedding day, my fiancé’s childhood sweetheart arrived, wearing the exact same custom wedding dress as me. They stood together, greeting guests, while I smiled and praised them as a match made in heaven. Humiliated, she left the venue in tears. In her defense, my fiancé publicly accused me of being petty and unreasonable. After the wedding reception, he left with her for the honeymoon we had planned together. I didn’t cry. Instead, I called my lawyer immediately.

My husband's first love posted a video on her social media. In the video, the two of them were passing a playing card with their lips. When the card fell, their lips met in a kiss. They didn't stop—lost in the moment, they kissed passionately for an entire minute. Her caption read: [Still the same clumsy piggy! PS: Steve's skills are as good as ever!] I quietly liked the post and left a comment: [Congrats.] The next second, my husband called, yelling at me furiously, "No other woman is as dramatic as you! I was just playing a game with Lanie. Why are you acting crazy again?" It was then that I realized seven years of love meant nothing. It was time for me to leave.

Everyone in Salt City knew that Michael, the city’s richest man, doted on his wife as if his life depended on it. As his wife, I was once the object of everyone’s envy. But when Rachel appeared, I realized for the first time that even the one who loved you the most did not have their heart set in stone. Afraid I would find out, he hid Rachel in a villa on the outskirts of Salt City and spoiled her beyond imagination, all in a place I could not see. Yet every time he was intimate with her, Michael would still warn her coldly, “If you ever let Evelyn find out about this, your good days will be over.” But she was never obedient. Relying on Michael’s favor, she surreptitiously flaunted herself before me every day. Her presence constantly reminded me that Michael was no longer the man who only had me in his heart. So, I chose to respect his decision and vanish from his sight.

After the most wanted bachelor in Renowoods, Marvin Chambers, lost his memory, he began to pursue me relentlessly. I dated Marvin for three years and fell hopelessly in love with him. Just when I was about to tell him I was pregnant, I overheard a girl who used to bully me say to him, "Thanks for pretending to lose your memory and pulling 99 pranks on Serena just to avenge me. "Once you hit 100, I'll be your girlfriend." That was when I finally understood—Shirley Hunt was the one Marvin had always loved. And I was just the fool he used to make her laugh. Later, I died in a plane crash. Marvin lost his mind searching through the wreckage, only to find a single ring. Inside, it was engraved: [Hope You'll Love Me After 100 Pranks]. They say he collapsed crying in the debris and had to be rushed to the hospital after passing out. When he woke up, he turned against everyone who had helped him prank me. Meanwhile, I stood smiling in the snowstorm of Frontania, watching as my medical records went up in flames. He had faked amnesia to win my heart, so I faked my death to teach him a lesson.

After the plane crash, I rejected the captain—my brother-in-law’s—final life jacket that he had as he handed it to me. Instead, I allowed myself to plunge a hundred meters from the sky. In my previous life, I had survived after accepting his life jacket. But he died a tragic death in the crash. After his death, I was consumed with guilt. My husband proposed to take care of two households at the same time so that he could look after his sister-in-law. Out of guilt, I reluctantly agreed to his proposal. I even had to give up my only chance of getting promoted to department head of the hospital to my sister-in-law, upon my husband’s insistence. When I was seventy years old, I suddenly saw my brother-in-law, who was supposed to be dead, show up in front of me. He said to my husband, “Bro, thank goodness you came up with that fake-death plan back then. I was drunk and caused the deaths of all the passengers after the plane crash. If not for that plan of yours, as the captain, I certainly could not have escaped scot-free and would have been sentenced to prison for life! “It was too bad we had to keep her in the dark for her entire life.” After a lifetime of sacrifices, I was so furious that I nearly passed out upon hearing my brother-in-law’s words. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day of the plane crash.

Im neunten Monat, kurz vor der Entbindung, war mein Körper schwer von dem Baby, das jeden Tag kommen konnte. Doch mein Ehemann Vito Falcone, Underboss der Familie, hatte mich weggesperrt. In einem sterilen, unterirdischen Krankenzimmer injizierte er mir einen Wehenhemmer. Als ich vor Schmerzen schrie, befahl er kalt, ich solle es ertragen. Seine Schwägerin Scarlett würde nämlich gleichzeitig gebären. Ein Blutschwur mit seinem verstorbenen Bruder bestimmte, dass der erstgeborene Sohn das lukrative Westküsten-Territorium der Familie erben sollte. „Dieses Erbe gehört Scarletts Kind“, sagte er. „Nach Daemons Tod ist sie allein und mittellos. Du hast meine Liebe, Alessia, ganz und gar. Ich muss nur sicherstellen, dass sie sicher entbindet. Danach bist du dran.“ Die Medikamente waren eine ständige Folter. Ich flehte ihn an, mich ins Krankenhaus zu bringen. Da packte er mich am Hals und zwang mich, seinem eisigen Blick zu begegnen. „Genug mit dem Theater! Mir ist klar, dass es dir gut geht. Du willst nur das Erbe stehlen. Um Scarlett auszustechen, greifst du zu allem.“ Mein Gesicht erbleichte. Mein Körper verkrampfte sich, als ich verzweifelt flüsterte: „Das Baby kommt ... Das Erbe ist mir egal. Ich liebe dich, ich will nur, dass unser Kind sicher zur Welt kommt!“ Er lächelte höhnisch. „Wärest du wirklich so unschuldig und würdest du mich auch nur ein wenig lieben, hättest du Scarlett nie gezwungen, den Ehevertrag zu unterschreiben, der ihrem Kind das Erbrecht nimmt. Keine Sorge, ich komme zurück, sobald sie entbunden hat. Du trägst schließlich mein Fleisch und Blut.“ Die ganze Nacht wachte er vor Scarletts Kreißsaal. Erst beim Anblick des Neugeborenen in ihren Armen erinnerte er sich an mich. Er schickte Marco, seinen zweiten Mann, um mich freizulassen. Doch als Marco endlich anrief, zitterte seine Stimme. „Boss ... die Signora und das Baby... sie sind weg.“ In diesem Moment zerbrach Vito Falcone.

I had been married to Rick Clinton for five years, and we had tried every possible way to have a child, but nothing worked. Later, Rick’s mistress, his secretary, became pregnant. Rick proposed a divorce, but we couldn’t agree on the division of assets. The next day, I was murdered by my husband and his mistress. Reborn a week before my death, I looked at the test results in my hand that confirmed Rick’s Azoospermia and smiled.