Chapter 2

The document demanded that I surrender to the police and confess that the building collapse during the earthquake three years ago was my fault.

It claimed I was responsible for trapping the Hayes siblings in the ruins, leading to one death.

But at the time, I was hiking. All company affairs were handled solely by Brandon.

He was the one who cut corners, and the building couldn’t withstand the earthquake, causing the casualties.

Now, he wanted me to be the scapegoat, and to transfer all company shares to Vanessa.

If I agreed to this contract, I’d probably spend the rest of my life in prison.

Chloe read the document, then angrily tore it to shreds:

“Brandon, you’re despicable!”

Chloe snatched the phone, crying uncontrollably at the person on the FaceTime call:

“Brandon! Open your eyes! I’m your sister!”

“Didn’t you say you’d take care of me forever? Come down and save me! I won’t let Amelia sign that thing!”

My heart ached.

They say a sister-in-law is like a mother.

After five years of marriage, Chloe and I had become inseparable, like best friends who could tell each other anything.

Brandon scoffed at her.

“Looking like a ghost and trying to impersonate my sister? That’s not how you beg. My sister, even if not a supermodel, has always been beautiful since she was little. How can you, a filthy bitch, even compare!”

“Amelia, my patience is limited. Sign it, or die!”

The bodyguards at the edge of the pit suddenly accelerated, shoveling dirt and sand down on us.

Someone's keys, mixed in the dirt, had a sharp edge that sliced Chloe’s arm.

“Make your decision quickly, or next time I’ll throw knives down!”

“Chloe!”

I quickly tore off a strip of my clothing to bandage her wound.

I glared up at Brandon.

“Do you think this plan of yours is perfect?”

Brandon sneered.

“So what if it is? No one can save you now.”

I pointed at Vanessa standing beside him.

“Someone is using you to kill, can’t you see? You think you’re some knight charging for love, but you’re just a dog in someone else’s hands.”

“Who are you calling a dog?”

“You know who. Keep this up, and you’ll regret it, eventually.”

Vanessa suddenly picked up a rock and hurled it at us.

“Brandon, don’t listen to her nonsense! She’s just trying to buy time for reinforcements!”

“Bury her faster!”

Brandon immediately stopped thinking, his patience gone.

“Didn’t you eat breakfast this morning? Shovel harder!”

A dozen bodyguards furiously swung their shovels, and our thighs were almost completely submerged.

I immediately pulled a spray bottle from my bag.

With every ounce of strength I had, I swung it upwards, hitting the ground near the lead bodyguard’s feet.

Brandon, however, burst into laughter.

“Pepper spray? Hahahaha…”

“Amelia, and you’re a genius from a top-tier university. Can you fend off ten people with one spray?”

The sand buried us higher and higher, already reaching our stomachs.

Chloe clung to my waist, tears soaking my back, filled with despair.