Chapter 1

The courtroom stood imposing, its silence commanding respect.

Sebastian stood tall, confidence radiating from him. "Your Honor."

"The prosecution maintains that the root of this case isn't an accident at all, but rather years of jealousy and resentment festering in the plaintiff's heart—my wife, Evelyn's heart."

My head snapped up, my eyes locking with his calm, unruffled gaze.

I couldn't believe my ears.

"Sebastian... what are you saying?"

"Objection!" My attorney shot to his feet.

"Overruled," the judge said, barely glancing up. "But counsel for the defense, choose your words carefully."

Sebastian gave a slight nod, his eyes sweeping over me with chilling detachment, each word cutting like a knife:

"Evelyn has always lived in Felicity's shadow. She's jealous of the natural affection our parents show Felicity, jealous of Felicity's outgoing personality—which even won her more of grandmother's love. She's confided in me many times about this pain... but I never imagined this twisted jealousy would lead her to use her grandmother's tragic death to frame her own sister!"

His words nearly knocked me off my feet.

He, Felicity, and I—we'd grown up together.

He knew exactly what kind of high-pressure environment I'd lived in.

Just because I was an unplanned child, my parents saw my birth as a burden and favored her from the start.

If I hadn't insisted on studying law, finally acquiring the armor to protect myself, I might not even have the life I have now.

And grandmother was the only family member who truly loved me.

She was the only one who treated me like real family, the only one who would publicly call out my parents' favoritism.

Her death cut me to the core.

Sebastian knew. He knew how desperately important this fight for justice was to me.

"You're lying!" I lost control, jumping to my feet. "Sebastian, I saw her with my own eyes, stumbling drunk as she got in that car! You know that!"

Yes.

I was there when the accident happened. I witnessed everything.

Felicity was dead drunk, high on drugs, acting like a madwoman.

She'd broken into grandmother's house to steal jewelry but got caught.

Grandmother herded her toward her car, begging her to leave.

But the moment grandmother turned her back, Felicity gunned the engine and ran her down.

I saw it all, woken by the commotion.

The cold determination in Felicity's eyes at that moment—I couldn't have been mistaken.

My rebuttal echoed through the courtroom: "This was absolutely premeditated murder!"

Behind me, my parents spoke in almost pleading tones:

"Evelyn, please... stop this... it was just an accident. Why do you have to destroy this family?"

"We've told you since you were little to give in to your sister! You've always had it out for her! Now you want to send her to prison? How can you be so cruel?"

Each word was like a dull blade, sawing repeatedly at my already shattered heart.

And each word became ammunition for Sebastian.

My closest people—when I needed them most, they all turned their knives on me.

Facing my outburst, Sebastian merely displayed an expression of near-pity.

"What we see with our own eyes can sometimes be clouded by bias, darling."

He calmly approached the judge, presenting documents. "Your Honor, this is surveillance footage and transaction records from Skyline Bar. The timestamps clearly show that at the time of the incident, my client, Felicity Archer, was at this bar twenty miles away. She wasn't even at the scene."

I stood frozen, thunderstruck.

Bar records?

Impossible.

The person at grandmother's house that day was definitely Felicity.

That face—I'd recognize it even if it were burned to ash.

Felicity smiled at me, triumphant.

A terrible thought crept into my mind.

False evidence.

Could it be?

Sebastian was a principled lawyer. Would he really fabricate evidence for Felicity?

As I reeled in shock, Sebastian leaned down to speak with Felicity.

When he raised his hand, his sleeve slid back, revealing an intricately woven silver bracelet.

And almost simultaneously, Felicity revealed her wrist, displaying an identical—

Two matching bracelets.

In that moment, everything became clear.

This wasn't a lapse in professional ethics or yielding to family pressure.

This was betrayal.

I felt like I'd plunged into an ice cellar, barely able to stay on my feet.

Last night, during our bedtime conversation, when Sebastian promised to get justice for grandmother, he'd been so gentle, so resolute.

But now—he'd transformed into an executioner, joining my family in pushing me toward hell.

Sebastian turned and produced an expert report, implying the dashcam data I'd submitted contained "minor anomalies" and meaningfully suggesting the plaintiff had sufficient technical expertise to alter it.

His presentation was logically airtight, vividly painting an image in everyone's minds of someone "twisted by jealousy, willing to forge evidence to frame her own sister."

My attorney looked at me, bewildered. "Evelyn, how did I not know about this?"

I opened my mouth but no sound came out.

The data models dancing across that report were calculation methods I'd sketched out for him on my tablet during countless late nights.

Those technical details were industry secrets I'd shared freely over glasses of wine.

He'd quoted a line from one of my lectures: "The most sophisticated forgery is always built on the most authentic foundation."

My husband, Sebastian Thorne, my most intimate partner—he'd personally weaponized everything I'd taught him and turned it against me.

I watched the jury members exchange knowing glances.

Watched the judge furrow his brow, reassessing me, the "technically proficient" plaintiff.

Then the judge's gavel fell.

"Based on substantial reasonable doubt regarding the evidence, this court finds the defendant, Felicity Archer, not guilty."

Felicity's face exploded with joy. She rushed over and threw her arms around Sebastian.

Then, like a victorious peacock, she walked step by step toward me.

She leaned in, speaking so only I could hear: "See? Dear sister, you'll never win. Not even with your man."