Chapter 2

"The bear is going to eat me. Winona, maybe it's better if I die. Then you can finally escape Maxwell's control."

A bloodstained piece of cloth, a few bone fragments—these were the last traces my mother left in this world.

The officer delivering the note looked devastated.

"Ms. Rivers, my condolences. By the time we received the distress call and reached the scene, this was all that remained. The bear had vanished without a trace."

My tears flowed uncontrollably.

Maxwell—all the love I once felt for this man had completely dried up.

After learning from the officer where they'd found my mother's remains, I rushed to those mountains without stopping.

Even finding just a little more trace of my mother would be a blessing.

As I approached the location, I heard moaning sounds.

When I got closer, I felt like I was going mad.

"Maxwell, you're so bad. Isn't it enough that you torment me all the time? Now you have to exhaust me while camping in these remote mountains."

Vivian clung intimately to Maxwell's neck, her face showing pure pleasure.

"Maxwell, you really are heartless, making Winona take the blame for me. She's been in a relationship with you for ten years."

"Getting to publicly announce our relationship made her so happy inside, how could she care about anything else?"

"That woman gets so excited she can't sleep all night just from hearing me say I like her."

Maxwell spoke these cold words so casually, and they pierced straight through my heart.

My heart felt like it was being squeezed tight. Pain and bitterness surged up together.

I had indeed loved him to my bones, willing to stay with him for ten years without any official status. Even when he used my mother to threaten me, I couldn't bring myself to let go.

But I never imagined that all my devotion was nothing but a joke to him, something he never took seriously.

Bitterness spread through my mouth. I finally understood just how pathetic my one-sided love had been.

Before I could retreat, Vivian's sharp eyes spotted me and she shouted my name in fake surprise.

"Winona, what are you doing here? Have you been stalking Maxwell this whole time?"

"That's so creepy."

Hearing my name, Maxwell's smile vanished instantly. He stared straight at me.

I lowered my eyes, unwilling to meet his gaze.

I was afraid he'd see the flames of revenge burning in my eyes.

But Maxwell thought I was feeling guilty. He threw on a shirt and walked up to me.

He gripped my chin tightly, his voice ice-cold.

"Winona, do you really like me this much? Enough to do something as disgusting as stalking?"

"Since you like it so much, I'll satisfy you."

The moment he finished speaking, he planted a heavy kiss on my lips.

His kiss was full of domination and superiority, as if this was a reward he was granting me.

But I only felt disgusted.

His actions, his smell, his very existence—all of it disgusted me.

I bit down hard on his lip. The taste of blood spread through my mouth.

Maxwell pulled back in pain, staring at me in disbelief.

The next second, he grabbed my throat tightly.

"Stop playing these boring games with me."