My Death, His Ultimate Downfall

up every scandal and endured every affair, trapped by my father's "poison

y broke me. It was when he shut down our mansion's power grid

rdere

er pregnancy. When I confronted her for stealing my money, Carson watched as h

ssion with nowhere else to go. He expected me

during the chaos of an explosion I secre

of my death. And with it, Carso

pte

" My phone buzzed with calls from publicists and damage control specialists. It didn't sting. Not anymore. My heart had hardened

practiced calm that barely masked his irritation.

oice flat. "Another Tu

grated. "Yes, well. Boys will be boys, you know. Just a

hispered rumor, every public flirtation. I smiled for the cameras, stood by his side, and lied to the world, all to protect the facade of our perfe

blivious. "So innocent. Reminds me a bit

ike me, before he broke me. "Is that why you c

the usual channels are already buzzing. TMZ wants a hefty sum

this time?" I asked, my

d. "Remember all those beautiful promises I made to you on our wedding day? How I swore to cheris

cles were already flooding my feeds, juxtaposing his passionate vows with to

, recorded just hours ago, "what's your strategy this time? An

iddle's eager face, at Carson's tr

, my voice steady.

Then, a sharp intake of

larating calm settling over me. "In fact, I have an even

possibly be bigger tha

now gone. "This story," I whispered, though he couldn't hear me, "cost me everything. It cost

unning away from an arranged marriage to a man I barely knew, for Carson, a charismatic but unknown tech enthusiast working for my father's security detail

after the

on. When he finally paid, hours turned into days. Days of terror. Days of brutal humiliation. They carved their brand into my skin, a permanent scar, a reminder of their claim, and of

g me as a fragile victim. He swore he'd never let anything hurt me again. He swore he'd never b

t heal; they seek ne

ce papers. He found them. He fell to his knees, clawing at his face, begging for forgiveness. "It was nothing, Amelie! Just a moment of weakness,

d let you walk away with nothing? He'd see you homeless, broken, just to prove his p

ghost in my own home, a prisoner of his making and my father's wrath. He called i

stories about my "instability," my "fragility" after the kidnap

on life support in our smart mansion. Carson, holding all the strings, all the access codes, played the loving grandson, but he subtly con

"And your grandmother will get the best care money can buy.

nsive jewelry, paraded me at galas, and swore the affairs were over. For a

me, he grew more confident in my captivity, in his belief that I had nowhere else to

Karin

erent. She w

so utterly, profoundly cruel, he probably hadn't even registered it. To ensure their privacy, to avoid any smar

ther's lif

asoned. No harm. But an hour was enough. Her w

at me with fading eyes. "My child," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Don't

es of my hope, my compliance. I had endured everything,

m, but erase myself from his lif

s this big news? Are you finally going to admit you

e eerily devoid of emotion. "I can't give you an heir. And you're right, I am pas

. Tonight, the world would learn of my death. A