She desperately slammed the door, but there was no response. Sarah sat by the door, hearing Mia’s quiet sobs from inside. She fought the urge to open the door. “Mia, hang in there.” It was only the second day. If Mia couldn’t endure this, what about the remaining five days? Should she give up now? There was no sound from behind the door anymore. Sarah looked at the monitor on her phone and saw Mia sitting on the floor, tears streaming down her face. Her fingers trembled as she reached for the door handle, but then she remembered Scott’s advice and slowly pulled her hand back. If she couldn’t even hold on, how could Mia? At noon, Mia was lying in bed, asleep, so Sarah took the opportunity to open the door and bring her some food—her favorite dishes. Day Three.Today marked a turning point. Most patients undergoing Morita Therapy find the first two days the hardest. By the third day, they usually begin to shift from their initial breakdown to a search for themselves
Vivian left Sander’s house with doubts, but she was cautious. Before leaving, she took a screenshot of the footage from the surveillance camera. When she went to the Reynolds family, she made sure to tell William about Mia’s condition. “Grandpa William, I went to see Mia. She’s not doing well at all. Luckily, Miss Sanders has been helping with her treatment. But honestly, her method is quite unusual. She has Mia locked in a room and doesn’t let her get out of bed for seven days. If it were me, I’d go crazy,” she said, worried. William furrowed his brows in confusion. “You’re saying that Sarah locked Mia in?” Vivian quickly sighed. “I wouldn’t call it locking her in. Mia’s sick, and Miss Sanders is doing all of this for her treatment. She mentioned something about an absolute bed rest period.” She paused before continuing. “But, it’s hard to watch. Miss Sanders set up a surveillance camera in the living room to monitor Mia’s condition. I even saw Mia curled up on the bed
“Grandfather, psychological treatments are not something regular departments can compare to. Mia’s mental health has been a long-term issue, and seeing a doctor frightens her. It’s only because of Sarah that she’s started to trust someone,” Zachary said seriously.William gave him a long, deep look. “Even if you don’t agree, I have my own way of handling this.”Chancer Family.Lucy was in her room, her phone buzzing nonstop. She didn’t even need to guess who was calling—it could only be Tom Davis. No one else would be contacting her.It had been three days since everything happened. Today was the fourth day, and she still hadn’t been able to raise enough money. Even after borrowing from friends, she had only managed to scrape together 2.5 million. That was the limit for her. The phone vibrated again, and another message came through. She hesitantly opened it, and to her horror, it was a screenshot from the video. In the image, she was naked, lying on the bed, and her face was ful
She had mostly forgotten the details of that day, but the words Tom said and the memory that flashed through her mind when she saw the screenshot stayed with her. She knew she had drunk too much and thrown herself at him, but under the influence of alcohol, how could she have acted rationally? "Don’t push me too far! I’ve given you the money!" The immense pressure made Lucy feel helpless as she looked up at Tom, who was towering over her. His gaze clearly communicated his intentions. Lucy gripped the ground, her fingers aching. "Let me go!" "Let you go? Dream on!" Tom yanked her backward. Lucy was filled with regret. She rarely went to bars, but those few days of drowning herself in alcohol had led her to drink away her sorrows. "If you dare hurt me, you’ll never see the rest of the money! Don’t forget, I know your name. If you keep going, I won’t be polite!" Lucy screamed. Tom, angrier than before, grabbed her by the hair. "What will you do, huh? How are you go
She didn’t think that Melvin’s place was any particularly secret location. William could easily find it without any effort. “Mr. Reynolds, are you here to see Mia?” Sarah asked. She didn’t need to ask; it was clear he wasn’t there to see her. William stepped into the room and immediately noticed the surveillance footage in the living room. The camera was pointed at Mia’s bed. He didn’t even need to adjust the angle; he could see Mia lying on the bed, her gaze vacant as she stared at the ceiling. With a hint of concern, he asked, “How long has she been staring at the ceiling like this?” Sarah gently responded, “Three hours.” Usually, after waking up, people either fall back asleep or end up zoning out and thinking. William furrowed his brows deeply, his voice cold. “Open the door. I’m taking her home.” It didn’t take much to guess that Vivian was behind this, purposely telling William to escalate the situation. “I feel I should remind you that I’m treating Mia us
Lucy felt a bit embarrassed as she looked at James, dissatisfied. “Is that really what you think of me? I’m your sister! The reason I want to go abroad is because Sarah made it to the Decker competition. I think I’m better than her. I also want to study psychology abroad. Don’t you want me to improve myself? I hardly ever ask to study, and now you’re still not satisfied?” James, knowing his sister too well, immediately sensed something was off. When she mentioned studying, it didn’t sit right with him. He didn’t ignore the fear in her eyes. “Tell me, what’s really going on?” “Nothing! There’s nothing going on! Why are you asking me like that?” “I know you too well. If you don’t tell me the real reason, I won’t let you go abroad.” James said, his expression hardening. Lucy didn’t expect her brother to catch on so quickly. She bit her lip. “Fine. If you won’t send me, I’ll ask Mom. She’ll definitely agree.” James spoke softly, “If you don’t tell me, I guarantee Mom won’t a
Lucy didn’t expect her brother to reject her so decisively. What was she supposed to do now?Once she was home, the first thing she did was have someone unlock Tom’s phone. She began sifting through the photos and videos, but found nothing. She searched again, but there was nothing particularly useful. Time ticked by. After dinner, Lucy returned to her room and began searching through the information on the phone again. Before she could even unlock the screen, the phone rang. She jumped, glancing at the caller ID but not daring to answer. Ding-dong! A message came through. She opened it, and saw a threatening message: “I know everything you’ve done. This is Tom Davis.” Tom? Wasn’t he dead? She clearly remembered seeing him lying in a pool of blood, watching his eyes close. Another message came through. “Answer the phone.” A few seconds later, the phone rang again. Hesitant, she answered the call and turned on the speaker. On the other end of the line was a w
Cutting a piece of steak, Zachary heard Mia ask, "Brother, what are you thinking? Don't you like Sarah? Why do you spend every day with Vivian?"Despite her recent withdrawal, she remembered certain scenes.Zachary's pupils contracted. "You recognize people now? Let's show Grandpa later. He's worried.""Brother, did you hear me?" Mia shouted in frustration."Adult matters aren't for you to understand," Zachary said firmly.Unconvinced, Mia dismissed Steven to ask privately, "Did Sarah do something wrong?""Nothing.""Then why break up?""We're not breaking up. I won't leave her."Stunned, Mia pressed on, "Then why buy diamonds for another woman? Why get close to Vivian? Aren't you afraid of making Sarah jealous?"Zachary's eyes dimmed. "Don't worry about this now. The time isn't right, but I won't leave Sarah."Seeing her usually confident brother so exhausted, Mia wondered if he had his reasons."But Sarah's so unhappy.""I know." Zachary set down his utensils.Mia could
Charlie shook his head, his face pale, still refusing to admit it. “It wasn’t me! I don’t know what you’re talking about. Even if that video shows me, so what? How can you be sure I was doing anything wrong? I came in at 2 a.m. to check if the machines could still be fixed. I did it for the good of the factory!”Sarah let out a cold laugh. “Wow. That’s the best you could come up with? You really expect me to believe you were being noble at two in the morning? Don’t forget, we’ve got more than just one camera. You think we only set up one? Every step you took was recorded—and more than that, someone saw you. We’ve got video and a witness. You’re not getting out of this.”Charlie’s face twisted in disbelief. “No way! There was no one there last night—I checked! You could’ve bribed someone just to frame me!”Sarah’s expression didn’t budge. “If you’re that desperate to keep lying, feel free to tell it to the cops. I’m done listening to your nonsense. Mr. Lambert, call the police.
Holding onto the cash, Charlie couldn't stop thinking: if he brought this to the gambling den with Zachary by his side, they could easily multiply it. All he had to do tonight was take one more risk.Before long, it was past midnight—2 a.m. to be exact—when Charlie crept into the factory. Everyone was asleep by then, including the guard out front, slumped over in exhaustion.The workshop was dark and quiet. Spotting the three machines almost immediately, Charlie felt a wave of relief wash over him. He quickly got to work, removing the last screw and prying open the outer shell. With a wrench in hand, he began fiddling inside—until something felt off.He paused.A couple nights ago, he'd gone out of his way to destroy these machines. He'd been shocked when the technician said they could still be repaired, but he brushed it off. Maybe the guy was just good. Maybe tech was just that advanced now.But now he realized—these machines had never been broken.They hadn't been repaired. Th
Upon hearing this, Manager Sullivan's face changed, and he glanced at Charlie, standing among the crowd, with a severe look of malice. Charlie, for his part, was clueless about what was happening. He was sure he had sabotaged the machinery effectively, given his years of experience in the factory and his knowledge of the equipment.But why hadn't it worked this time?He looked towards the technician with a puzzled expression, but the technician's confident gaze only increased his panic.After the meeting, Manager Sullivan called Charlie into his office and immediately started berating him as soon as the door was shut. "What happened? Weren't you supposed to have completely destroyed the equipment? Why does the technician say it can still be fixed? What did you do?"Charlie was even more baffled. He reflected on how he had damaged the equipment, unable to figure out what went wrong. "Manager, I was sure I had completely wrecked it. I even checked again after damaging it to ensure it
Before Sarah could speak, Manager Sullivan blurted out, "Miss Sanders, if I catch whoever did this, they won't get away with it!"Mr. Lambert sarcastically interjected, "What if it's a case of the thief crying catch the thief?"Manager Sullivan became defensive, "Mr. Lambert, you should think before you speak! I'm the manager of this factory. Every day the factory is down, I'm the most anxious of all! Are you really accusing me now? Miss Sanders, if you're going to suspect me as well, you might as well have headquarters fire me."Sarah quickly tried to defuse the situation, "Manager Sullivan, what are you talking about? You're the manager of this factory; of course, I trust your commitment to it. It’s just that this situation is serious. The old equipment that was destroyed in the last batch was due for an upgrade anyway, so that wasn’t a loss. But this time, it’s different."She paused before continuing, "This equipment was ordered from Germany by our headquarters half a year ago.
Fresh from the gambling den, Charlie was ecstatic, clutching a bundle of cash and laughing wildly. "Zach, we won thirty thousand! Can you believe they just let us walk out?"He found it unbelievable, but Zach seemed unfazed. They hadn't just taken the house; they'd also won a considerable amount from other gamblers, and even helped the house make a profit. It was no wonder they weren't stopped.Holding the money, Charlie mused, "Zach, you wouldn’t believe it. The rich just keep getting richer. Today, our factory received a shipment of equipment, and I heard just one machine costs millions. Compared to them, this thirty thousand really isn't much."Zach casually mentioned, "It seems like the Sanders factory is the only big one left around here."Charlie quickly retorted with a smirk, "Actually, in West Ridge, Sanders isn’t the biggest."Zach raised an eyebrow, "Really? I thought I knew West Ridge pretty well. Apart from Sanders, I haven’t seen any factory bigger than theirs."Char
Charlie finally got it—Manager Sullivan was forcing him to take on this task. He gritted his teeth and determinedly agreed, "Manager, I'll do it."Manager Sullivan smiled approvingly, "That's the spirit! Good employees like you are what this factory needs. Don't worry, the higher-ups won't let your efforts go unrewarded. If you pull this off, you could be looking at a bonus of several thousand."Charlie nodded, "Tonight, then?"Manager Sullivan's expression grew serious as he nodded back, "Yes, tonight."That afternoon, Charlie clocked out and went straight to find Zachary. He couldn’t go back to the old gambling den—they had made a mess last time and were probably blacklisted. As for the money he owed, Charlie didn’t care anymore. After all, they had won a lot last time only to have it stolen, which he figured squared things. Still, that didn't stop him from wanting to gamble again.Just a few days later, he found Zachary and even brought what he considered a fine cigar.As for
Outside the Sanders factory, several trucks were parked at the entrance. Sarah followed Manager Sullivan and Mr. Lambert, watching the unloading process. "Manager Sullivan, all this new equipment has arrived today, right from the headquarters' stock, and it's too late to ship from Germany now," Sarah observed, her voice serious.Mr. Lambert smiled, "I didn't expect you to handle this so quickly, Miss Sanders. It's only been a few days since you went to headquarters to file a complaint, and you've already got the equipment here.""It's all for the good of the factory," Sarah replied, her face still stern. "So, Manager Sullivan, the factory can operate normally now, right? Getting the production line back up is inevitable."Manager Sullivan's expression wasn't much happier; he hadn't expected Sarah to pull this off so quickly. He forced a smile, "Of course."As the equipment was moved into the factory, Manager Sullivan returned to his office, wiping sweat from his brow with his handk
Sarah was puzzled. "An explosion at such a critical moment would make anyone suspicious, wouldn't it? It looks like someone's trying to cover something up."Zachary nodded, his face showing disdain. "You're not the only one who thought so. But Old Mr. Wilson presented the last batch of drugs from their factory, which were supposed to be delivered to hospitals. The tests came back clean, and they claimed the explosion was due to a mishandling of ingredients."Sarah raised an eyebrow. "And everyone just bought that?""Yes, everyone did.""So, you want to prove the explosion wasn't an accident and use that to bring down the Wilson family?" Sarah asked softly.Zachary's face paled; he shook his head slightly. "It's not just that. I want to do more, but..."Sarah shrugged, as if she was used to this kind of talk. "Let me guess, the timing isn't right yet?"Zachary looked at her sincerely. "Sarah, I'm really glad you came to help me with my wounds. When the time is right, I'll come to
Sarah didn't respond to Zachary's earlier words—she simply moved with even more care as she cleaned and bandaged his wound. Her eyes stayed fixed on the task at hand, but her expression was unreadable.Zachary, watching her in silence, gave a soft laugh. "You do care about me, Sasa. No matter what you say, you're not as heartless as you pretend to be."Sarah shook her head, her voice calm but cool. "You're overthinking it. We're both from East Coast—I just don't want to see you die. Besides, you're getting engaged to Miss Wilson in just over half a month. I’m clear of our positions. So please, don't say things like that again."Zachary's face changed instantly. He knew she was right—his engagement to Vivian was a chasm between them, one that he couldn't just leap across. Not while the truth remained buried.That engagement wasn't just a label. It was a shield. A smokescreen. A compromise he'd made to protect Sarah. But knowing she believed it, that it stood between them, only deepe