Chapter 1

Adora Matthews was abducted and trapped in the mountains for three years, tortured to the brink of death before she was finally rescued.

The officers who found her drove her home.

As Adora stepped out of the car, she stared at the grand estate before her, an unfamiliar glint in her eyes.

It felt foreign, almost as if she no longer recognized her own home.

She couldn’t be blamed for that.

The Matthews residence had been completely redecorated, adorned with festive decorations, and buzzing with the lively atmosphere of a grand celebration.

"Is this the Matthews' estate?" the officer driving the car asked curiously.

His colleague nodded.

"It is! I called her parents several times to tell them we found their daughter, but they assumed it was a scam and hung up every time."

Another female officer scoffed, shaking her head.

"Their eldest daughter was missing, yet they still had the heart to throw a party?"

Standing under the scorching sun, Adora listened to their conversation, her emotions tangled in a complicated mess.

But she didn’t dwell on it.

All she could think about was the overwhelming joy and relief of finally coming home.

"Adora, go on in," the female officer gently urged.

"Alright."

She nodded slightly, pressing her lips together before stepping toward the estate.

She wasn’t sure if it was her brother’s wedding or some other occasion, but the whole place was bursting with joy and celebration.

And she just so happened to return today.

That was a good sign, right? A double blessing.

Her parents would surely be overjoyed to see her!

The more she thought about it, the more her excitement grew.

Her heart pounded wildly, and her eyes welled up with emotion.

Luxury cars lined the driveway, and the lawn was decorated in a warm and romantic theme.

As she moved closer, a massive three-dimensional poster came into view.

Printed boldly across it were the words: "Engagement Celebration of Eugene Turner & Ruby Matthews."

Adora’s vision blurred, her breath catching in her throat.

The joy that had filled her chest moments ago froze into a block of ice.

Her legs went weak, nearly giving out beneath her.

Eugene Turner—the heir of the influential Turner family was her childhood sweetheart.

Today, he was getting engaged to her adopted sister, Ruby Matthews.

The man who once shielded her, cherished her, and swore to love her for a lifetime was marrying someone else?

Adora stood frozen in place, her teeth sinking into her lower lip, unable to believe what she was seeing.

"Adora, go on in. Your family will be overjoyed to see you. They’ll probably cry tears of joy," the female officer encouraged, noticing that Adora had suddenly stopped halfway up the path.

She assumed it was nerves, being so close to home after everything, but Adora remained frozen.

Her body trembled slightly, her gaze locked onto the massive engagement banner.

It felt like her feet had grown roots, refusing to take another step.

Inside the grand estate, the atmosphere was lively and jubilant.

Music played, laughter rang through the air, and a stunning couple stood at the center of the celebration, surrounded by family and friends.

Just as the guests started cheering for them to kiss, someone suddenly let out a gasp.

"Adora Matthews is back!"

The lively chatter and laughter came to an abrupt halt.

A hush fell over the crowd as all heads turned toward the entrance.

The moment their eyes landed on the woman standing outside, their expressions shifted in shock.

"It really is Adora… but what happened to her?"

"She looks like a beggar who barely escaped a disaster."

"Didn’t she get trafficked into the mountains and give birth to some old man’s child? How did she even make it back?"

"The police brought her here—I saw them."

The guests exchanged glances, whispering among themselves, their eyes filled with disbelief and intrigue.

At the center of it all, the glamorous couple, Eugene and Ruby, stared toward the courtyard, their faces going pale.

"Sister…" Ruby whispered, eyes wide with shock.

Adora was alive and she made it back.

Outside, Adora remained still, completely unfazed by the countless eyes scrutinizing her.

She was once the most dazzling socialite in the city, a woman who could command the attention of any crowd.

No matter how grand the occasion, she always stood out—radiant, confident, untouchable.

No one could outshine her.

Back then, whenever someone spoke of Miss Adora Matthews, they would sigh with admiration.

"Oh, that’s the Matthews family’s precious gem, the dream of every wealthy bachelor in the city."

But all of that came to an abrupt and brutal end three years ago.

That night, Adora and Ruby went out together to attend a banquet, staying out late before finally heading home.

Halfway back, their car suffered a blowout.

The driver got out to change the tire, while the two sisters stood nearby, holding a flashlight to help.

Out of nowhere, a van came speeding toward them.

In the blink of an eye, men jumped out and grabbed Ruby, shoving her toward the vehicle.

Adora fought desperately, trying to stop them, and with the driver’s help, they managed to wrest Ruby free.

But just as the driver was momentarily distracted, one of the kidnappers suddenly threw a sack over Adora, yanking her off her feet.

Before anyone could react, she was stuffed into the van and taken away at full speed.

At first, Adora thought it was just a standard ransom kidnapping.

Once her family paid, she would surely be released.

She couldn’t have been more wrong.

Her captors weren’t ordinary criminals—they were part of a massive, well-organized human trafficking ring that operated across state lines.

After being passed from one buyer to another, Adora was eventually sold deep into the mountains.

For the next three years, she was shackled in a filthy pigsty, forced to eat and sleep alongside the animals.

She endured unspeakable torment—abuse, starvation, and repeated attempts to violate her.

The only reason she hadn’t been violated was because of the man they mockingly referred to as her “idiot husband.”

At the last moment, every time, he would step in and stop them from sexually assaulting her.

She once believed she would never escape, that she would die in that godforsaken hellhole.

But fate had other plans.

A nationwide anti-trafficking operation finally led to her rescue.

For three years, she dreamed of returning home.

She imagined countless reunions, countless scenarios of what that moment would be like.

Never had she imagined this.

She came home to find her boyfriend and sister celebrating their engagement.

The suffocating silence lasted only a moment before a guest awkwardly broke it with forced politeness.

“Adora… you’re back?”

Adora blinked lightly, shifting her gaze away from the engagement banner to the older woman who just spoke to her.

She offered a faint smile.

"Mm, I’m back."

Someone else chimed in, their voice laced with concern. "You must have suffered a lot… just look at you, so pale and thin."

Before the words had fully left their mouth, a family member beside them nudged them sharply, hissing under their breath, "Why are you even talking to her? Didn’t you hear? She’s sick. It might be contagious!"

"But just talking to her won’t get me infected," the person mumbled, unwilling to back down.

The awkward exchange was cut short when members of the Matthews family came rushing out.

Her mother, Lillian Rang, froze at the top of the steps, eyes widening as she took in the girl standing below.

It was her eldest daughter—the once-stunning young woman whose beautiful long hair had been hacked into a jagged, uneven mess.

Her clothes were ragged, so worn that they barely held together.

The shoes on her feet were obviously men's, too large and ill-fitting.

And the exposed skin on her arms and ankles was riddled with dark bruises and deep red marks from restraints.

Lillian's gaze traveled from Adora’s face down to her feet, her breath catching in her throat.

The shock hit her like a wave, leaving her speechless.

After a long pause, her lips finally moved.

"It’s really you… Adora?"

The moment she saw her mother, the hope and joy in Adora’s heart reignited.

Unable to hold back, she took a step forward.

"Mom, I’m home!"

As she spoke, she noticed her father and brother emerging as well.

Overcome with emotion, she called out again, "Dad! Brother!"

Her father, Theodore Matthews, wore a complicated expression as he looked at her.

After a brief pause, he gave a small nod.

"Mm. It’s good that you’re back."

With that, he turned to his wife, their eyes meeting in silent understanding.

Both were recalling the information they received last year, when the police first informed them that their daughter might still be alive.

They had all gone to the station back then, only for Ruby to see the report.

It stated that Adora got trafficked to the mountains and forced into marriage with multiple older men.

She later gave birth to a child, one who was born deformed and missing limbs, and she was diagnosed with HIV.

The night they returned from the police station, Lillian didn’t sleep a single minute.

For an entire month, she was plagued by insomnia, losing over ten pounds, crying until she had no more tears left to shed.

But in the end, for the sake of the Matthews family's reputation and the health of everyone in the household, she forced herself to make a painful decision—she told the police to stop searching.

And yet, her eldest daughter was still found and brought back.

"Mr. Theodore, your daughter has returned. Why are you reacting like this?"

The lead officer frowned, his expression dark as he looked between the couple.

Their indifference, even coldness, was impossible to ignore.

In his years of handling abduction cases, every family they reunited had waited anxiously at the door, rushing to the police car the moment it arrived.

They would collapse into a tearful embrace, overwhelmed with emotion.

The scenes were always deeply moving.

But this family?

Their faces were unreadable, distant, almost as if they had no intention of acknowledging her at all.

Hearing his name, Theodore finally snapped out of his thoughts.

Stepping forward, he forced a polite smile and spoke with the officers.

"Officer, we truly appreciate your efforts. It’s just that… well, last year, didn’t you say there was no hope? That the situation was too dangerous?"

Back when they had gone to the station, the police explained that the old town was made up entirely of people from the same clan—tight-knit, fiercely protective of each other.

Even officers who entered were often beaten mercilessly, making it nearly impossible to rescue trafficked women.

"What are you trying to say?" the officer challenged.

"Now that we have saved her, you’re not happy about it?"

"No, no, of course not!" Theodore let out an awkward chuckle, stepping toward his daughter.

"Adora, it’s good to have you home. Your mother and I have been worried sick—we’ve probably aged ten years from the stress."

Adora looked up at her father, her gaze settling on his face.

He didn’t look like a man who had lost sleep over her—no signs of aging, no haggard lines from stress.

He looked like the same composed, well-groomed man he had always been.

Still, she smiled faintly and rasped, "I missed you too."

"Adora…" Lillian stepped forward, parting her lips to speak, but as soon as she got close, an unbearable stench hit her.

She instinctively raised a hand to cover her nose.