Chapter 2

Every thread of rationality snapped at that moment.

I whirled toward Sebastian. "Why?"

I couldn't stop trembling. "Sebastian, look me in the eyes and tell me! Why? You verified that evidence with me! You know the truth!"

Sebastian finally deigned to meet my gaze.

He looked down at me, suppressing anger from some unknown source. "Evelyn, it's precisely because I verified it that I discovered the problems! Do you realize you nearly destroyed an innocent person?!"

His shouting left me stunned.

He was usually so calm, rarely raising his voice with me.

Even our arguments involved sitting down and talking things through rationally.

Today, in this setting, why...?

Perhaps seeing my eyes redden, he let out a heavy breath.

"You've been blinded by bias all along. If Felicity hadn't provided that crucial alibi in time, I would have made a terrible mistake based on your misleading, destroying my entire legal career."

Misleading?

Innocent person?

I almost laughed out loud, though tears streamed uncontrollably down my face.

"Sebastian, you only believe her, don't you? What about all my evidence—doesn't that matter? Can you say these things with a clear conscience?"

Sebastian looked at me, something flickering in his eyes, a hint of softening.

"Enough!"

A roar erupted behind me.

Before I could turn, a stinging slap landed hard across my face.

The force was so great that my vision went dark, my ears ringing.

"You vicious thing!" my mother shrieked. "Won't you be satisfied until your sister's in prison? How did we give birth to such a worthless creature?!"

My father raised his hand, and another slap landed solidly.

"If I'd known you'd turn out to be such a disaster, we should never have let your grandmother take you in! You're here to collect a debt! To destroy this family!"

Their curses still echoed in my ears.

The burning pain on my face was nothing compared to the tearing apart of my heart.

I looked at Sebastian. His gaze swept over the red marks on my face.

Finally, there was a flash of shock.

He pulled my parents away.

"Sir, Ma'am, please calm down. This matter has been resolved. There's no need to pursue it further."

"The judge has delivered a fair verdict. Now we should go home and celebrate."

My parents immediately dropped their vicious expressions and ran to Felicity.

Felicity's face was covered in tears. "Mom, Dad, I thought I'd never see you again."

And so, the three of them embraced tightly in front of me, as if they'd survived some great catastrophe.

I watched them, my legs feeling like cotton, even retreating felt powerless.

But the pain in my face kept reminding me—this was reality.

My family had always seen me as their enemy.

Once, I naively thought I at least still had Sebastian.

But today, he'd personally let go, allowing me to sink.

And my only safe harbor in this world had long since passed.

What did I have left to lose?

Summoning my last shred of dignity, I straightened my spine, ignoring the swelling on my face and the surrounding stares.

"Sebastian, let's get divorced."

"Mom, Dad... no—Mr. and Mrs. Archer, and Miss Archer, I'll have the severance papers drawn up and delivered to you."

"Make sure you sign them. I'll have my representative collect them."

With that, supported by my attorney, I turned to leave.

They thought I was joking.

Dad: "You've been like a dog in this family since childhood—we could beat you and you'd never leave. You think you can threaten us with this? Dream on."

Mom: "Evelyn, why are you always so unreasonable? Don't come home until you apologize properly!"

Felicity: "How childish. Do you really think we need you?"

I paused, as if waiting for something.

The next moment, Sebastian's voice was emotionless: "You want a divorce? Fine."

"Within three days, you'll come crawling back to me."

I gave a cold laugh and left without looking back.

Outside the courthouse, my defense attorney asked what I planned to do next.

I pulled out a business card from my bag.

Grandmother had left it for me before she died.

A close friend of hers was a law professor at Oxford University, looking for a successor to mentor.

I dialed the professor's number. "Hello, is this Professor Damian King?"

---

Grandmother's memorial service was held as scheduled.

My parents didn't come. Years ago, when they abandoned me because I was sickly, grandmother had cut ties with them.

It was her unwavering determination to bring me to her home that allowed me to survive until now.

Now, grandmother's portrait hung in the center of the room.

She smiled with such kindness, as if still saying to me: "Don't be afraid. Grandmother is here."

I knelt before the casket, tears breaking free.

Memories flooded back like a dam breaking.

I remembered grandmother's calloused hands teaching me to write, letter by letter.

I remembered us living in that modest but warm little house, sharing a single baked potato.

I remembered her hunched back, mending my clothes under dim light, humming off-key lullabies...

"Grandmother..." I choked out, pressing my forehead against the cold coffin. "I'm sorry... I'm useless... I couldn't get justice for you..."

As I drowned in boundless grief, the memorial hall doors burst open with a bang.

Felicity stumbled in, reeking of alcohol.

She marched straight to grandmother's portrait, pointing at my nose and cursing: "Evelyn! How dare you put on this act? Today I'm going to let grandmother see what kind of person she doted on all these years! A slanderer with a viper's heart who framed her own sister!"

While cursing, she pulled out a stack of printed papers from her bag, covered with online posts calling me a "cold-blooded animal," "insanely jealous," and "falsely accusing family."

"You think grandmother's affection makes you special? In the end, you're just the jinx who got her killed!"

She maniacally tore the papers, flinging and scattering them everywhere!

White paper, black curses—falling on grandmother's kind smile, falling on her peaceful casket.

This ultimate desecration, like a final thunderbolt, completely shattered all my rationality and grief.

She was still shrieking madly: "Let me tell you, grandmother got what she deserved! Who told her not to stay away from a jinx like you? You killed grandmother! You!"

I shot to my feet.

All the emotions I'd suppressed throughout the day erupted in that moment.

"Felicity, you're the one who deserves this."