She hung up coldly.
The last thing I heard was the sound of two people lost in passion.
Amid those obscene moans, my mother took her final breath.
While arranging her funeral, I happened to see the day’s headline:
“Wealthy Heiress Spends Millions to Propose to Her New Lover—The Ugly Duckling Is Heartlessly Abandoned.”
The fallen knight was exposed for what he truly was—
and a life had been lost because of it.
Soon after, Helena learned of my mother’s death.
She said nothing, just wired me two million dollars.
To her, that sum was a cheap solution.
She had paid me ten times over—what more could I want?
This was love.
The kind of condescending love only Helena could give.
I should have been grateful and accepted it quietly.
But for me, my last tie to the world was gone.
My body was ruined.
My mother was dead.
I was finally free.
Drained, I asked Helena for a divorce.
The first time, she looked at me with disdain.
“Divorce? You really want to leave me?”
“Without me, you’re nothing.”
The second time, she was mildly annoyed.
“Fine, I’m just having fun—it’s not like I’m never coming back.”
“Sweetie, don’t be mad. I’ll take you to Sanya when I return.”
The third time, she grew furious and tore up the divorce papers.
By the fourth, fifth time…
Helena finally agreed.
Looking superior, she said,
“Sean’s right. It’s good for you to calm down.”
“After suffering outside, you’ll realize how good the Rhodes family is.”
She signed with a flourish, expecting me to beg like before.
But she didn’t know—
this time, I was truly done.
I handed the villa keys to Margaret.
Calmly, I said, “I sold the house. The new owner agreed to keep you on.”
“Margaret, you’re the only one who’s been kind to me here. I wish you peace and happiness.”
Her eyes reddened.
She choked up for a long time before whispering,
“Have a safe journey.”
She didn’t ask where I was headed or what I planned to do.
She only knew that I had finally escaped the Rhodes family’s hell.
After a long silence,
I dragged my suitcase out of the cage that had bound me for ten years—without looking back.
And Helena, lost in a blissful dream,
was suddenly jolted awake by a nightmare.
