Chapter 2

The stench of his sweaty sock was overwhelming, making me gag.

“No, stop! What are you doing? I’m telling the truth! Is this how you treat your elders? I’m really your dad’s sister. You can call him and confirm!”

I tried to run toward the door, but two more men grabbed me, and the sock was shoved into my mouth.

“Sister? Ha! You’ve got to be kidding me. Playing some twisted game with an old man, calling each other siblings when he’s thirty or forty years older than you? You’re pathetic!”

I wanted to throw up again because the smell was unbearable. However, with the sock crammed in my mouth, it got stuck in my throat, making it even worse.

After my mother divorced her ex, she remarried my dad and had me. That was why I was much younger than Edward and I took my mother’s last name.

“I’m here to take back what’s rightfully mine,” Jenny sneered. “Everything in this house, including the property itself, is mine. Unless you sign these papers, you won’t be walking out of here standing.”

Then, she tossed a stack of documents in front of me.

Looking at that vicious woman, it was hard to believe she was the same Jenny Edward talked about. He used to tell me how kind and well-behaved she was over the phone during the holidays. He said Jenny was sweet and responsible, though Marcus could be a bit of a troublemaker.

However, this? This was not the “well-behaved” Jenny I had heard so much about. Instead, she was ungrateful and unreasonable and clearly treated the law as if it did not exist!

I had returned home to handle my inheritance. It had not been easy for me to make a living abroad, so I had always believed in supporting other women. I thought that if I was going to name an inheritor, it would be Jenny, my niece.

Yet now, I was furious. I never imagined my chosen inheritor would treat me that way. Did she really think they were above the law?

I struggled, refusing to cooperate, but Marcus grabbed my hand and held it up for everyone to see.

“Jenn, check out her nails! She’s got gold and diamonds on them.”

“Custom nails from Moonlight cost eight grand a set, and I’ve never even gotten that done. But look at her, living the life! That old man sure didn’t hold back when it came to her. Guys, the diamonds and gold on her nails are your bonus. See if you can pull them off.”

I stared in horror as the men approached me like a pack of wolves, their eyes gleaming with greed. In a moment of desperation, I shoved Jenny to the side and tried to run.

“You little bitch, did you just push me? Guys, beat her up! If anything happens, I’ll take the blame!”

Fists and kicks rained down on me like heavy stones. The searing pain spread across my body as I felt several of my ribs snap. Soon, they tied me up and started kicking me around like a soccer ball.

My face scraped against the rough gravel in the yard, tearing my skin until it was raw and bloody. Small stones embedded themselves into my flesh and, mixed with my tears, caused excruciating pain—like salt being rubbed into my wounds.

I writhed on the ground, howling in agony like a mad dog on the verge of death, while they laughed and mocked me.

“An estate worth millions, and she thought she could take it from us. Let’s see if she lives long enough to spend a dime.”

“Jenn, she’s not moving anymore. Do you think we went too far? What if this gets messy?”

I felt a flicker of hope—maybe Marcus still had a shred of conscience left.

However, Jenny quickly snuffed that out. “I can’t believe you’re such a coward, Marcus! Who cares? If anything happens, our dad will take the fall. We’re his only children. Do you really think he’ll let anything happen to us? Worst case, he’ll beg our aunt to smooth things over with money.

“And don’t think Daddy’s going to come save you. We’re his only flesh and blood. He’s too old to have more kids now. No matter how much he might like you, me and Marcus are his real family.”

I closed my eyes in despair. They really were lawless.