When the Heiress Reclaimed Her Crown

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My husband is the top gynecologist in the city, but he vanished for three days and three nights to care for his secretary who claimed to have depression while I was hemorrhaging during childbirth.

Later, intimate photos of the two of them spread throughout the entire city.

Liam knelt by my hospital bed, his face swollen red from slapping himself.

"Jenna, I was drunk that night and mistook her for you. I deserve to die."

To prove his innocence, he grabbed a scalpel and stabbed it into his own chest. Blood gushed out.

I watched him confess with this insane performance and gave him one last chance.

Until Sophie, his secretary, and I were both held hostage in a remote warehouse.

"Jenna, you grew up in elite European schools. You're strongjust hold on a little longer! Sophie can't take it. She'll lose her mind!"

Liam roared as he begged the kidnappers on his knees. The high-altitude wind chilled me to the bone.

But Liam didn't know that these five years were just a gamble I made with my family.

If I won, I'd spend my life with him.

If I lost, I'd return to the Rivers family and inherit the fortune.

After escaping from the kidnappers, I dragged my battered body to make a call.

"Dad, I lost the bet. I need to leave the country. Can you help me make arrangements?"

My father paused but didn't ask questions.

"Alright. Get ready. I'll send someone to pick you up in seven days."

After hanging up, I found a clinic by the roadside.

After having my wounds simply bandaged, I returned to the villa under the servants' mocking gazes.

I never expected Liam to be waiting at home.

When he saw me, he acted as if nothing had happened, pulling me into his arms.

His mouth opened and closed, but all that came out was a pale: "I'm sorry."

"Sophie has depression and can't handle stress. You know that, Jenna."

I stood still, my heart already frozen solid.

Yes, between Sophie and me, he would always choose that homewrecker without hesitation.

When Sophie was in a bad mood, he could stay out all night on our wedding anniversary.

When Sophie had menstrual cramps and needed care, he could abandon me when I was burning with fever late at night.

When Sophie's parents got food poisoning, he could still skip my mother's funeral to see her.

But I remembered that in the beginning, when I was trapped abroad fighting against my family, he fought his way through the medical world to become a top figure in the field.

He gave everything he had just to be with me.

But now, that man who would firmly choose me had disappeared.

I wiped the tears from my face.

"Liam, but do I deserve to wait for death on the ninety-ninth floor?"

Our eyes met. Liam seemed to notice my weakness.

A flash of emotion crossed his face.

The next second, Sophie suddenly screamed: "Liam, don't leave me! I'm so scared!"

Liam quickly pulled her into his arms, his eyes gentle.

"Don't be afraid, Sophie. I'm right here."

This scene was so familiar.

Years ago, when I was injured after being kidnapped by my father's enemies, he held me in his arms the same way, his eyes full of tenderness.

"Don't be afraid, Jenna. I'm right here."

The same person, the same words.

Only the person in his arms had changed from me to Sophie.

I looked at the intimate pair, my heart filled with desolation.

When Liam looked up again, his face was full of irritation.

"Jenna, is it really necessary to be so aggressive just because I chose to save Sophie?"

"Besides, you didn't die, did you?"

He strode quickly to the third-floor balcony.

"If you want an explanation, I'll give you one!"

But just as Liam took a step, Sophie threw her arms around the man's waist.

"No!"

She cried with tears streaming down her face.

"Miss Rivers, this is all my fault. I won't bother you two anymore!"

"Please don't let Liam hurt himself, okay?"

I somehow laughed out loud.

"Fine. As long as you get out of this city, I'll give Liam one more chance."

But after Sophie left, Liam, who usually never showed his emotions, began roaring and crying hysterically in the villa.

"Jenna Rivers, you always satisfy your own needs without caring about anyone else's wishes!"

"You're so selfish!"

His eyes held a trace of coldness as he turned and left the villa.

I clutched my aching abdomen and picked up my phone to schedule surgery and draft divorce papers.

The divorce procedures were complicated.

As I browsed divorce information on the computer in the study, I accidentally discovered a private folder.

I tried Sophie's birthday as the password.

Photos flooded out of the folder like a deluge.

I knew the answer in my heart, but when I saw the proof with my own eyes, my heart ached so much I could barely breathe.

Every record in the folder featured Sophie.

When I was doubled over with menstrual cramps, they were chasing the sunset by the sea.

When I couldn't get a cab in the pouring rain, they were kissing under the stars.

When I was being bullied by a doctor at my first prenatal checkup, they were entangled intimately in a romantic hotel.

Liam expressed his love, saying he regretted not meeting her sooner.

I let out a bitter laugh, my heart aching all over.

The screensaver on the computer related to me seemed so pathetic compared to these thousands of photos featuring Sophie.

It turned out the happiness I thought I had was built on ruins of lies.

The sounds of a man and woman making love in the living room jolted me from my thoughts.

Their movements continued until midnight.

Torn clothes, lingerie, and mysterious stains on the carpet.

Liam and Sophie lay naked on our marriage bed, their bodies tightly joined.

I trembled with rage and disbelief.

In five years of marriage, Liam had used his supposed germophobia as an excuse. We'd been intimate only a handful of times.

Even when going through the motions of sex, he always frowned with disgust, and afterward would scrub himself raw in the bathroom, as if trying to remove a layer of skin.

I never imagined he would be so shameless with another woman.

I hugged the toilet and vomited until only acid remained in my stomach.

After some time passed, Sophie appeared wearing my silk nightgown, deliberately showing off the red marks on her chest.

"Sorry, Jenna, we made a mess of your room."

"But you can see it too, right? Liam can't bear to let me go. I'm the one he loves."

Seeing my silence, Sophie even provocatively held up the sachet in her hand.

"Your sachet is really useful. Liam got even more intense in bed when he smelled it!"

I recognized the familiar scent and trembled with rage.

The scars on my knees from kneeling to pray for blessings still remained, throbbing on rainy days.

Back then, I had reverently hung the sachet I obtained on Liam's body.

But it became a toy for him and Sophie's flirtation.

When I knelt in the scorching sun until darkness fell, my knees rubbed raw, my entire body peeling from sunburn, what was he doing?

Rolling around in bed with his little secretary, enjoying paradise.

But the next second, Sophie dropped to her knees in front of me with a thud and slapped herself hard.

"I know I've wronged you, but Liam and I truly love each other!"

"I don't want status or to compete with you for anything. I just want to stay by Liam's side."

Her cheeks were red and swollen, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.

Liam seemed to hear the commotion and rushed out from the bedroom.

His expression changed several times before he ultimately chose to believe Sophie.

"Jenna, I never thought you'd stoop to physical violence out of jealousy!"

I found it absurd and grabbed Sophie's collar.

"Sophie, when did I touch you? Stop acting!"

She secretly dug her nails into my arm. I instinctively dodged, and Sophie took the opportunity to fall to the ground. Her knee was bleeding, and she cried heartbreakingly.

"It hurts so much, Liam. I'm bleeding. Will I be okay...?"

In his panic, Liam knocked me to the ground.

Sharp pain shot through my abdomen.

Blood flowed down my legs, but I barely registered it.

Liam quickly opened the car door to take Sophie to the hospital.

"Sophie has poor blood clotting. If anything happens to her, I won't forgive you!"

As we got in the car, Liam suddenly grabbed my arm.

"I remember you and Sophie have the same blood type. Come to the hospital with us!"

Without waiting for my answer, Liam roughly shoved me into the car.

Halfway through the drive, there was a loud crash.

We'd had an accident.

My forehead slammed hard into the front seat. Excruciating pain swept through my lower abdomen.

I tried to lift my head to call for help and saw Liam protecting Sophie firmly beneath him.

He carried Sophie away and calmly made calls to have people handle the situation.

Not until I struggled to crawl out from the back seat did he remember my existence and look at me with some surprise.

"My stomach hurts so much..."

Hearing this, Sophie asked weakly: "Liam, my knee is bleeding so much. Will I die?"

Before, even if I just scraped my skin a little, Liam would be extremely anxious.

He'd apply medicine, feed me candy, and cheer me up.

This time, he looked at me with disgust as I broke out in cold sweat.

"Jenna Rivers, how long are you going to keep up this act?"

"I'm not..."

My voice grew weaker and weaker.

Until the ambulance arrived, Liam never looked at me again.

My forehead was badly swollen, my arms torn and bloody from glass.

Finally, I was sent to the hospital in a daze.

When I woke up, my hospital room was already surrounded by Liam's bodyguards.

Seeing me open my eyes, Liam dragged me all the way to the blood draw room and threw me on the floor in front of the nurse.

"Draw as much blood from her as you can. I just need Sophie to be safe!"

Blood drained from my body at an alarming rate.

By the time there was no more blood to draw and my vision went black, the nurse gasped in shock.

"Miss Rivers has been taking special medication recently. This blood can't be used!"

Liam's fury exploded instantly, his eyes dark.

"Let's see you try to weasel out of this!"

"Sophie was rightyou're trying to kill her!"

Before he finished speaking, he ordered his men to force me to kneel on broken glass without hesitation.

I cried out in pain, my whole body nearly collapsing to the ground.

Liam covered Sophie's eyes with his hand, not wanting her to see this bloody scene.

He looked down at me from above.

"Jenna Rivers, you think too highly of yourself. Did you really think I'd soften and let you off?"

Intense pain swept through my entire body. I gasped for air.

Sweat slid into my eyes. The last trace of warmth I felt for Liam in my heart vanished completely.

The bodyguards dragged me and threw me outside the hospital.

It was more than ten degrees below zero outside, with heavy snow falling.

I wore only thin clothes but was pressed into the snow.

The bone-chilling cold made me gasp. The freezing wind blew right through me.

Sophie stood under the eaves wrapped in a fluffy blanket, watching my suffering.

Liam raised his hand to tighten the blanket around Sophie.

"Sophie, be careful not to catch cold."

Half my body was buried in the snow. I was shivering so hard my teeth chattered.

My heart felt suffocated.

I slowly bent over, covering my face to swallow my grief.

I went from wailing at first to finally losing all strength, left with only faint breathing.

Until the kidnappers sent a message.

In the video, Sophie's kitten was tied up in a cage.

Covered in blood, it seemed to have lost all signs of life.

Seeing this scene, Sophie nearly fainted.

Her face turned deathly pale as she shouted at the kidnappers through gritted teeth.

"However much money you want, we can give it. Don't hurt my cat"

The kidnapper on the other end laughed.

"Want to save your cat? Of course. A life for a life."

"Break Miss Rivers's legs and send her to us as a hostage."

Liam froze in place, his chest heaving violently.

But I could no longer speak, only begging brokenly.

"Liam, don't..."

A flash of hesitation crossed Liam's eyes.

But the next second came Sophie's crying plea for help.

"Please, I'm begging you. The kitten has been with me since I was little. It's my life."

"If the kitten doesn't survive, I won't live either!"

The man who had been hesitating grew determined after hearing Sophie's cries.

Liam picked up a nearby stick and approached me step by step.

My heart sank to the bottom. I begged.

"Liam, you can't do this to me."

He gritted his teeth and used all his strength to smash the stick into my knees.

My legs were broken alive. Heart-piercing pain drilled through my flesh and into my heart.

Liam held me tightly, his voice trembling.

"Jenna, forgive me."

"I can't live without Sophie. When you come back safely, I'll atone to you."

Sophie smiled smugly at me and turned to the kidnapper in the video.

"We'll send you the hostage right away. You must keep my kitten safe!"

I was dragged and hauled by Liam to the kidnappers' location.

Liam's eyes were filled with crimson.

"Don't blame us, Jenna. I can't let any danger come to Sophie's cat."

"You were born with everything, but Sophie is all alone with only her cat to keep her company."

I was covered in injuries, without even the strength to resist.

"Now that we've brought the person, release Sophie's cat!"

Liam pushed me into the kidnappers' hands.

The kidnapper looked at me mockingly.

"Miss Rivers is truly pitifulworth less than a mistress."

The atmosphere grew cold.

Half-opening my eyes, I watched them hurriedly leave with Sophie.

Only the kidnappers and I remained.

They immediately grabbed my hair and violently smashed my head against the ground.

Once, twice, more than ten times.

Dark red blood flowed continuously from the torn flesh, tasting fishy and bitter when it reached my mouth.

The kidnapper laughed sarcastically.

Seeing that I didn't struggle or beg for mercy, he immediately lost interest.

"Miss Sophie said to leave no survivors. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for provoking the wrong person."

When the cold barrel pressed against my temple, I closed my eyes, my tone extremely calm.

"You really think you can kill me?"

The moment the trigger was pulled, there was no expected gunshotonly the dull thud of heavy objects hitting the ground.

Both kidnappers had been subdued by the men in black my father sent.

Walter, the leader, rushed forward and knelt on one knee.

"Mr. Rivers sent us to bring you home!"

Three minutes later, more than a dozen helicopters circled on the rooftop.

I picked up my phone and sent a text to my lawyer.

"Withdraw all of Liam's medical symposium funding and take back the mansion he's currently living in."