Chapter 1 - The Broken Chain
The Fiancée forcefully tugs Sorrel’s ankle chain backward as the little girl carries a serving tray toward the dining table.
The heavy iron links grind against the polished hardwood floor with a sickening scrape.
Sorrel loses her footing and falls hard onto the floor.
The tray crashes beside her, sending plates scattering across the hardwood.
Shattered porcelain flies in every direction, mixing with the hot soup and roasted vegetables.
The Fiancée laughs viciously.
She stares down at the trembling child with eyes completely devoid of warmth or humanity.
"Crawl faster," she sneers, her voice dripping with pure venom.
"Servants do not keep their masters waiting."
Sorrel whimpers silently, her small knees badly bruised from the sudden impact.
She desperately tries to gather the broken plates with her bare, trembling hands.
Hadrian returns unexpectedly from months of working away on a highly classified security contract.
He walks through the grand entrance, exhausted but incredibly eager to surprise his family.
His heavy leather suitcase falls from his hand when he sees Sorrel on the floor with the chain still attached.
The dull thud of the luggage echoes through the cavernous, quiet dining room.
Sorrel looks up at him, her wide eyes red and overflowing with helpless tears.
"Daddy, please get me out of here," she begs in a fragile, broken whisper.
Hadrian feels a blinding, terrifying wave of rage wash over his entire body.
He immediately sprints across the room, kneels beside his daughter, and unlocks the chain.
He pulls Sorrel gently into his protective arms, shielding her from the cruel woman.
The Fiancée folds her arms, completely unapologetic and utterly arrogant in her stance.
She rolls her eyes as if the rescue is merely a pathetic inconvenience to her evening.
Hadrian grabs the loaded serving tray from the table and hurls it directly into the Fiancée’s torso with lethal precision.
The heavy silver tray slams into her ribs with a brutal, satisfying crack.
Food and drinks burst across her expensive designer dress as she staggers backward.
She crashes into a velvet dining chair and falls heavily onto the unforgiving floor.
The Fiancée pushes herself upright among the spilled food, desperately clutching her diamond engagement ring.
Her perfect makeup is smeared with grease, and her face is twisted in absolute fury.
"I will tell the police that you abandoned her and broke in to attack me," she threatens venomously.
"No one will ever believe a violent, unstable mercenary over a respectable socialite."
Sorrel silently raises her child’s smartwatch, her small, bruised finger hovering over the cracked screen.
Hadrian taps the screen once, activating the hidden, encrypted audio file.
The Fiancée’s own cruel, abusive voice begins playing from the tiny speaker in crystal-clear definition.
Hadrian looks directly at her, his eyes cold, empty, and utterly unyielding.
"Go ahead, start your story with this."
The Fiancée goes completely pale, her confident facade crumbling into absolute panic in an instant.
She stares at the watch, realizing her entire empire of lies is about to burn to the ground.
Then, she slowly reaches into her ruined dress and pulls out a matte-black remote control.
May you like
She presses the single red button without a moment of hesitation.
The massive steel security shutters drop over the windows, sealing the mansion shut as the distinct smell of gasoline floods the air vents.
