"You actually hit me? Are you all dead? Get over here and help me."

Mia Kane panicked as Shannon Preston ordered people to come help her.

These maids were clearly on Shannon Preston’s side, and they all swarmed over.

The maids pushed and shoved her. It didn’t look like they were using much force, but Mia knew they were all using Dark Force. When they grabbed her arms, they dug their nails viciously into her flesh.

Her whole body ached. Someone was pinching her thighs, the soft flesh of her waist...

They pinched anywhere that was covered by her clothes.

Even... someone was secretly pricking her with a needle.

It was a truly insidious tactic.

Her attackers were well-trained, obviously drilled by Shannon Preston beforehand.

She was already drenched in a cold sweat from the pain. She had to get out of here.

’I know I’m at a disadvantage,’ Mia thought. ’If they manage to restrain me, it’ll be over. There’s no telling how many hidden injuries I’ll have.’

Quick-thinking and fast-moving, she snatched the fruit knife from the coffee table and pressed it against Shannon Preston’s neck.

"Don’t come any closer, or I’ll do it."

Mia never intended to actually hurt Shannon Preston. She just wanted to leave.

Shannon Preston didn’t dare move and followed her out of the room.

"Mia Kane, you’re really done for this time."

"What do you mean?"

Shannon Preston gave a cold smirk and immediately threw herself against the fruit knife.

Mia’s heart lurched. She yanked her hand back at once, but even so, Shannon’s neck was already bleeding.

It hadn’t hit an artery, but she had a coagulation disorder. Blood just wouldn’t stop pouring from the long, thin cut, smearing her neck and cheeks. It was a terrifying sight.

A maid quickly called for an ambulance, while Shannon Preston clutched her neck, staring coldly at Mia.

"The evidence is undeniable this time. Let’s see what you do now... Mia Kane, just you wait for my brother to abandon you..."

Mia staggered back in a daze. Soon, she was pushed aside by the crowd.

She hadn’t even thought of running, but the maids seized her.

"You all saw it! She held Miss Shannon hostage with a knife and tried to kill her! We’re all witnesses."

"I saw it."

"I saw it too."

"Call Mr. Preston!"

Shannon Preston was sent to the hospital. Mia had no idea what her condition was. She herself was locked in the villa, unable to go anywhere.

That night was destined to be a sleepless one.

She lay with her eyes open until dawn, staring at the gift box in her hands. Only a few fragments were left inside, and the belt had been cut to pieces.

「The next day」

The first ray of sunlight fell on her, and she found it a bit glaring.

She squinted against the light and suddenly heard the sound of the door being unlocked.

’Adrian must be back.’

She quickly got up to look. Adrian Preston entered, his face dark.

"Why? I already told you she has a bleeding disorder. Why would you still use a knife on her?"

"I didn’t! She threw herself onto it! Besides, didn’t you see what she did to me? Do you know what those maids did to—"

She was about to lift her clothes to show him the bruises on her arms, but Adrian Preston cut her off with a frown and a cold, harsh voice.

"The security cameras caught everything. You slapped her twice and held her hostage with a knife. Are you going to tell me that Shannon threw herself onto the blade? Do you have any idea how easily you could have severed a major artery? She would have bled to death before the doctors even arrived."

"Are you saying Shannon was willing to risk her own life? Why can’t you just admit you slipped?"

Mia froze mid-motion. Her hand slowly lowered as she gave up on explaining.

She clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms.

’Right now, all the witnesses and evidence are against me.’

’Shannon’s move was truly vicious, cutting the ground right out from under me.’

’I was also at fault. In a moment of panic, I grabbed a knife.’

’That knife turned me into the culprit.’

’I never expected Shannon to be so reckless, to gamble with her own life. It seems she really went all out just to make Adrian despise me.’

"Adrian Preston, now you see my true nature. I’m not a good person. I only got together with you in the first place to get revenge on Chase Lockwood. I ruined Vivian Lynch’s reputation. To get back at that cheating scumbag and his mistress, I was even willing to risk myself."

"You’ve seen it all along the way. I’m unscrupulous when it comes to achieving my goals. So now, whether you call the police to arrest me or you want to divorce me, I have nothing to say."

Adrian Preston’s brow furrowed tightly.

"The maids called the police, but I took care of it. This is a family dispute. I believe it was an accident, that you didn’t really want to kill Shannon. But you never, ever should have grabbed a knife!"

"Then what do you want from me? You want me to go apologize to Shannon Preston? Let me tell you, I’m too proud for that. Apologizing is impossible!"

Mia’s voice rose a few notches.

"I knew this would be the result."

Adrian Preston’s brow locked. His gaze was complicated, tinged with a hint of disappointment.

Mia met his gaze, and her heart clenched with pain.

Still, she straightened her spine and met his eyes without flinching.

’I haven’t done anything wrong. What do I have to be afraid of?’

"In that case, you can stay here and reflect on what you’ve done."

Adrian Preston turned and left, without saying how long he would keep her locked up.

He went to the hospital. Shannon Preston’s neck was wrapped in thick gauze. Her face was pale, and she looked at him weakly as large tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Brother, I almost never saw you again. I never thought Mia could be so cruel... that she’d want to kill me."

"She’s not that kind of person. She just slipped."

"Slipped? So if someone kills another person by ’slipping,’ they don’t have to take responsibility? Brother, you were a police officer. Are you going to be biased? Do I have to be lying here as a cold corpse before you realize how serious this is?"

"Brother..."

Shannon Preston was crying uncontrollably.

Adrian Preston’s brows were knitted, his thin lips pressed into a tight line, his jaw clenched.

It was precisely because he had been a police officer and held the law as his creed that he couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.

"What do you want to do?"

"Kick her out! I don’t want to live under the same roof as a murderer. Brother, she deserves to be punished."

"Then why did you smash her cake and cut up her things?"

"Brother, have you lost all your principles? Is that a reason for her to draw a knife and try to kill someone? Can’t you tell which is more serious? Brother, you disappoint me so much..."

Shannon Preston’s tears streamed down, and she cried even more pitifully.

Her sobs drilled deep into his mind, making it impossible for him to feel calm.

His fists clenched and unclenched.

"What if I have her take a cut from you in return? Would that be acceptable?"

"Really?"

Shannon Preston was stunned.

"Yes. Have you decided where you’d like to cut her in return?"

Adrian Preston spoke each word deliberately, his expression grave. He wasn’t joking; he was dead serious.

Shannon Preston wanted to blurt out that Mia should be disfigured, but she knew it was unrealistic.

"Just a cut on her own arm would be enough. But... if it’s over with just one cut, is the whole thing just going to be dropped?"

Shannon Preston was still not satisfied.

"I won’t let her leave. But she made a mistake, and she should bear the consequences."

"Brother, but her behavior is so extreme. Who knows what crazy things she’ll do in the future."

"I will restrain her. I will ensure she never does it again; I can guarantee it with my own life. Can you, for my sake, forgive her just this once?"

Adrian Preston stood perfectly straight. Although his words were a plea, there wasn’t the slightest hint of humility in his posture.

Shannon Preston was still resentful, but she couldn’t say much more and could only nod in agreement.

"Then have her take a cut, so I can vent my anger!"

"Fine!"