Chapter 1My undercover fiancé vanished four years ago without a trace. When I found him? He'd taken on a new identity—playing house with a bar owner.
In fury, I tore it all down. Blew his cover. Drove her out.
In the end, she died in an alley with a knife in her ribs—trying to keep his enemies from finding him.
From then on, he made me pay for that.
Dug up every skeleton in my family's closet and delivered it all straight to the DA's office.
Even when I was on my knees, begging him to spare my father—
He just looked down at me, his voice flat and cold:
"You were always so good at tearing people apart."
"Guess it's your family's turn."
When I opened my eyes again, my informant slid the same photos across the table.
He was lighting her cigarette, smiling like he'd forgotten what any of this cost.
This time, I closed the file without hesitation.
"Pull the plug. Wipe him from the system."
---
"Cordelia Sullivan, who the hell do you think you are to just end it like that?"
On the other end of the line, Elias Harris's mother's voice was like a jagged knife, piercing right through my eardrum.
I pushed the file back into the wall safe and said calmly, "Mrs. Harris, it's been four years. The search and rescue team pulled out three times, and the task force closed the case twice. I've done all I could."
"Done all you could?" She let out a dry, mocking laugh. "Your father could make the Customs agents reopen cold cases with one word, and your brother could pull border patrol files with a single call. And you're telling me you've done all you could?"
"Mrs. Harris, the Sullivan family isn't a search and rescue dog."
"Say that again?"
I looked down, watching the man in the photo leaning in to light a cigarette for Willow Cavell.
The flame illuminated his brow bone—it looked so much like Elias, yet it looked nothing like Elias at all.
"I said, I'm done looking."
As soon as the words left my mouth, the line went dead silent for a few seconds.
When Mrs. Harris spoke again, her voice was thick with tears.
"Cordelia, I know you feel wronged, but Elias is your fiancé."
"He's alive, and you should be happy about that."
"He's got amnesia, which is all the more reason for you to bring him home."
I asked softly, "Bring him home for what?"
Mrs. Harris was caught off guard.
I answered for her: "To bring him back so I can remind him who he is, who he once loved, and who he's been indebted to for the last four years?"
"How did you become so cold-hearted?"
"Mrs. Harris, I was always this way. You just didn't mind it before because it didn't hurt you."
Mrs. Harris's breathing grew heavy.
"Are you jealous because there's another woman in his life?"
I chuckled, staying silent.
Mrs. Harris immediately seized on that laugh like it was hard evidence.
"I knew it. You're still acting like an entitled brat."
"She saved his life, and that girl has stayed by his side for four years. What right do you have to be jealous?"
I flipped the photo over.
On the back, the informant had scribbled a line: The dive bar owner, Willow Cavell, claims to be the next of kin of "Milo Wilde".
Milo Wilde.
The new name Elias had given himself.
"I'm not jealous."
"You're lying."
"Mrs. Harris, if I were jealous, I would've dragged some guys to that bar today and slammed his real ID right in that woman's face."
Mrs. Harris's voice hitched.
I continued, "And yet you're unhappy that I'm not doing that?"
"You knew he was alive this whole time, but you didn't tell the Harris family. You're trying to kill me."
"I'll mail the photos to you."
"You're not going yourself?"
"I'm not going."
"Aren't you afraid Elias will hate you?"
I looked up at the wedding photo on the wall.
In that picture, Elias was adjusting my veil, his eyes full of nothing but warmth.
Later, he used those same eyes to watch me kneeling on the ground.
He said, "It was the Sullivan family's turn."
My fingertips curled into a tight fist, but my voice remained light.
"Whether he hates me or not, I don't give a damn."
Mrs. Harris finally lost her cool.
"Cordelia, your parents raised you to be so heartless."
"If you want to break off the engagement, fine."
"But the money the Harris family has spent looking for Elias all these years—the Sullivan family is going to pay it back."
I paused, stunned.
"Mrs. Harris, most of those expenses were covered by the Sullivans."
"But the Harris family put our son on the line, we put our lives on the line."
"You can't just walk away now that you've found him. You can't just leave my son with some woman who runs a dive bar."
I rubbed my temples.
"Mrs. Harris, do you actually want me to find him, or do you want me to steal him back?"
"I want you to bring him home."
"And what if he doesn't want to come?"
"How could he not want to? He's just sick."
In my past life, I thought exactly the same thing.
I stubbornly believed that he had just forgotten me, and that once he remembered, he would turn back to me.
But after his memory returned, the first thing he remembered wasn't our engagement.
It was Willow dragging him out of that wreck in the pouring rain, her giving him the name Milo, and her taking that knife wound for him.
I didn't want to prove that I was there first anymore.
Being first didn't mean a damn thing.
Mrs. Harris suddenly softened her tone.
"Cordelia, I'm begging you."
"He used to listen to you more than anyone."
"One word from you is worth more than a hundred from us."
I stared at the unknown message popping up on my screen.
"Ms. Sullivan, I heard you've been looking for Milo for four years."
"This is Willow."
"I want to talk to you."
The next message was a photo.
In it, Elias was sleeping on a narrow cot behind the bar, wearing the red string bracelet I had woven for him with my own hands.
In my past life, Willow had cut that string and tossed it into the trash.
In this life, it was still there.
Willow sent a voice note, her voice cloyingly sweet.
"Ms. Sullivan, he can't live without me now."
"If you really love him, don't scare him."
"People with amnesia are easily triggered. If he remembers something and loses his mind, can you really live with that?"
Mrs. Harris pressed me on the other end of the line: "Who's texting you?"
I didn't answer.
Willow sent another one.
"Tonight at nine, Ferry Dock Alley, Pear-Fire Bar."
"Come alone. Don't bring the Harris family."
"I don't want to make things difficult for Milo."
I stared at the name Milo, and the metallic taste of blood from the past suddenly rose in my throat.
In my previous life, she had set up a meeting with me just like this.
After that night, I had barged into her life like a madwoman and dragged Elias out from behind the bar.
I thought I had won.
I only realized later that it was the beginning of every nightmare I had known.
Mrs. Harris shouted at me in a panic: "Cordelia, talk to me!"
I flipped my phone face down on the table.
"Mrs. Harris, I'll mail the photos to you, along with the address."
"The rest is up to the Harris family."
"You're really done with him?"
"I'm done."
Mrs. Harris wept and cursed at me: "You have no heart."
I hung my head and chuckled softly.
Those who had a heart, in my past life, were the first to die.
Before the call disconnected, she said one last thing.
"Cordelia, if you don't go get him today, don't you dare regret it when Elias comes back for you."
I looked at the final photo Willow had sent.
Elias was awake, turning his head to look at the camera.
His eyes were cold and guarded, like he was looking at a stranger who had invaded his territory.
Beneath the photo, Willow had written:
"He asked me who 'Cordelia Sullivan' is."
Outside the door, the housekeeper knocked.
"Miss, Mrs. Harris is here. She's kneeling at the front door and won't leave."
I shut my phone, my voice sounding impossibly distant.
"Let her stay there."
Chapter 2
"Cordelia, open the door. I know you're in there."
Mrs. Harris kept pounding on the door all night long.
I was sitting in the living room, and my father pushed a cup of hot tea toward me.
"If you don't want to see her, I'll have someone escort her home."
I shook my head.
"She isn't going anywhere."
My brother, Xavier Sullivan, sneered, "Of course not. She's kneeling on our doorstep today so that tomorrow she can claim the Sullivans stood by and watched a hero's mother suffer."
My mother frowned, "Xavier, don't talk like that."
"Mom, am I wrong?"
Xavier handed me his tablet.
Local social media threads were already popping up.
"Wealthy fiancée dumps hero immediately after finding him, hero's mother kneels in despair in the dead of night."
The photo showed Mrs. Harris kneeling right in front of our house.
The angle was calculated perfectly, capturing even the gray hairs at her temples.
I looked at it for a second and couldn't help but laugh.
My mother looked at me with a pained expression.
"Cordelia, stop laughing. It's not funny."
I handed the tablet back to my brother.
"Willow posted this."
Xavier paused.
"How do you know?"
"In my past life..."
I almost let it slip. I dug my nails into my palm and corrected myself: "She acted way too fast."
My father stared at me for a moment.
"You had a nightmare last night."
I said quietly, "Dad, I'm fine."
"You broke your arm when you were a kid and said you were fine then, too."
"That time, it really was fine."
"You cried so loud the whole neighborhood heard you—you call that 'fine'?"
My mother was amused, but her eyes grew redder.
Outside, Mrs. Harris's wailing suddenly rang out.
"Cordelia, I'm begging you—I'll kowtow to you."
"Just go see him. Don't let that woman deceive him."
"He's my only son."
My mother couldn't sit still anymore.
"Why don't you go out and clear the air?"
I looked at her.
"Mom, there's nothing to clear up."
"Why?"
"Because she doesn't want the truth, she wants to pin me to the wall."
Xavier said with a dark face, "I'll go out and handle it."
I stopped him.
"Xavier, don't touch her."
"She's making such a scene, and you're just going to let her walk all over the Sullivan family's name?"
"That's exactly what she wants you to do."
In my past life, that was the exact moment my brother chased Mrs. Harris away.
The video was edited to make it look like the Sullivan family's security team was manhandling a martyr's mother.
After Elias regained his identity, he watched that video three times.
He said, "The Sullivans are cold-blooded, they don't even mind the crunch when they step on someone's face."
I remembered those words until the day I died.
Xavier looked at my expression and softened his voice.
"Cordelia, what exactly are you afraid of?"
I wanted to say, "I'm afraid of you all dying."
But when the words reached my lips, only one sentence remained.
"I'm afraid of Elias coming back."
The living room fell silent.
My father was quiet for a long time.
"Didn't you spend four years looking for him?"
I gripped the teacup, the scalding steam making my eyes sting.
"I'm tired of looking."
My mother said softly, "Cordelia, that's not what you used to say."
That's true.
I used to say, if he's alive, I'll find him, if he's dead, I'll find his body.
I used to say that Elias promised to spend every birthday with me, and he couldn't break his word.
I used to watch the surveillance footage from the day he went missing a thousand times, until every time I closed my eyes, I saw that exploding car.
But no one told me that an obsession could become a blade.
The doorbell suddenly stopped.
The housekeeper walked in, looking grim.
"Miss, there are reporters outside."
Xavier grabbed his jacket.
"Has she lost her mind?"
The housekeeper said in a low voice, "And there's a woman live-streaming the whole thing."
I opened my phone and immediately found Willow's account.
She was wearing a white dress, standing outside our front gate, holding a worn-out lighter.
In the frame, she was crying her heart out.
"I'm not here to take him away."
"I just wanted to tell Ms. Sullivan that Milo is doing very well right now."
"He wakes up in a panic, he shakes when he hears sirens—he can't be hurt by his past ever again."
The comments were flooding in.
"She's so kind-hearted."
"Can the wealthy brat just leave the man with amnesia alone?"
"She didn't look for him for four years, but the moment she finds out he has a new girl, she loses it."
"The Sullivans are scary, the entrance is swarming with bodyguards."
Willow bowed toward the camera.
"Ms. Sullivan, I'm begging you not to pressure him."
"If you must take him away, then I'll leave."
"But if he leaves me, he'll die."
Xavier laughed in anger.
"Does she think she's his life support?"
My father said in a deep voice, "Don't go out."
I stood up.
My mother grabbed me.
"Cordelia."
I patted her hand.
"She's already built the stage, if I don't show up, she'll be performing until dawn."
Xavier whispered, "What are you going to say?"
"That I'm calling off the engagement."
"Right now?"
"Yes, right now."
When the front gate opened, the flashbulbs were blinding.
Willow turned around immediately, her eyes red and puffy.
"Ms. Sullivan, you're finally willing to see me."
She handed me the lighter.
"Milo asked me to keep this for him, he said it gives him a headache when he sees it."
I didn't take it.
"Then keep it far away from me."
Willow froze, as if she hadn't expected me to say that.
"Don't you want to see it?"
"No."
She bit her lip, and tears began to fall rapidly.
"Ms. Sullivan, are you still blaming me?"
"I don't blame you."
"Then why won't you go see him?"
The camera was almost shoved into my face.
Mrs. Harris was kneeling on the side, crying.
"Cordelia, you can't be this heartless."
I looked directly into the lens.
"I, Cordelia Sullivan, hereby dissolve my engagement to Elias Harris, effective immediately."
The crowd exploded.
A glimmer of triumph flashed in Willow's eyes, but she suppressed it immediately.
"Ms. Sullivan, don't do this out of spite."
"I'm not acting out of spite."
"But Milo, he..."
"Whether he calls himself 'Milo' or 'Elias'—it has nothing to do with me."
Mrs. Harris lunged forward to grab my hem.
"How can you say something like that in front of all these people?"
I looked down at her.
"Mrs. Harris, didn't you say I'd regret it if I didn't go get him?"
She went stiff.
I gently pulled my hem out of her grasp.
"Then let me regret it."
Willow suddenly stepped in front of Mrs. Harris, playing the part of a sweet girl protecting her elder.
"Ms. Sullivan, Mrs. Harris isn't well, please don't provoke her."
I glanced at her.
"Ms. Cavell, you call her 'Mrs. Harris' quite naturally, don't you?"
Her face went pale.
The comments were becoming even more vicious.
"The wealthy girl is so cruel."
"Help, why is she bullying his savior?"
"Don't be afraid, Willow, Milo will protect you."
Speak of the devil, the phone rang.
Willow saw the caller ID and immediately put it on speaker.
The man's gravelly voice came through.
"Willow, where are you?"
My blood turned to ice in that instant.
I hadn't heard that voice for four years, but even through the electrical interference, it could still easily cut me open.
Willow looked at me with red eyes, her tone turning soft.
"Milo, I'm at Ms. Sullivan's house. She doesn't want you anymore."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the line.
Then, he spoke coldly.
"Perfect."
Willow's tears finally fell, like a reward for her performance.
She held the phone out to me.
"Ms. Sullivan, he has something to say to you."
I didn't take it.
Elias's voice sounded again.
"Cordelia Sullivan, is that you?"
I stared at the phone, my throat feeling like it was full of sand.
"Yes."
"Stop having people investigate me."
"Okay."
"And don't come looking for Willow."
"Okay."
He seemed surprised that I answered so quickly, and his tone became even colder.
"I don't know who you are, and I don't want to."
I nodded.
"I know."
He paused.
"You'd better."
I didn't say anything else.
Willow ended the live stream, unable to hide her smugness.
She leaned in close to my ear, whispering in a low voice.
"Ms. Sullivan, look, he only listens to me now."
I lowered my eyes.
She smiled even more sweetly.
"So, make your exit with some dignity, and don't make things difficult for me."
I looked up at her.
"Willow, make sure you hold onto him tight."
"What?"
I said slowly, "Don't you ever let go."
Chapter 3
"Ms. Sullivan, your breakup statement is written way too coldly, it makes you look heartless."
Willow sat across from me and slid a legal document over the table.
She was dressed in a simple, plain outfit today, but there was a small pear blossom embroidered on her cuff.
She had this habit of brushing that embroidery while she spoke, as if she were constantly reminding everyone how pure and innocent she was.
I didn't bother to open the document.
"Who let you in here?"
Mrs. Harris sat beside her, her eyes swollen.
"I brought her."
I turned my gaze to Mrs. Harris.
"This is the Sullivan residence."
"I know that."
Mrs. Harris choked back a sob, "Cordelia, Willow isn't a bad person."
Willow immediately hung her head.
"Mrs. Harris, please don't defend me. Ms. Sullivan looks down on someone like me who comes from a small town."
Xavier listened from the side and let out a dry, mocking laugh.
"You're pretty quick on the draw, aren't you?"
Willow glanced at him timidly.
"Mr. Sullivan, I just want to protect Milo."
"Protect him all the way into the Sullivan family's living room?"
She flipped the document open and pushed it right under my hand.
"Ms. Sullivan, I need you to sign a statement of voluntary withdrawal."
I gave it a quick scan.
The document was written in very polished, professional legalese.
I voluntarily acknowledge that there is no de facto marital relationship with Elias, voluntarily cease all search efforts, and voluntarily agree to stop interfering in Milo's life as his fiancée.
The final clause was the most interesting one.
If Milo faces any danger due to past matters involving the Sullivan family, the Sullivans agree to take full responsibility.
I pushed the paper back across the table.
"Who helped you write this?"
Willow bit her lip.
"A lawyer."
"What kind of lawyer would be reckless enough to draft something like this?"
Mrs. Harris said anxiously, "Cordelia, it's just a formality."
"Mrs. Harris, do you understand what that last clause actually entails?"
"I don't know anything about that."
"It means that if anything happens to Elias in the future, the Sullivans get the blame for it."
Mrs. Harris's expression faltered.
Willow's eyes turned watery immediately.
"Ms. Sullivan, how can you think so poorly of people?"
I stared at her.
"You aren't 'bad', you're just extremely talented at setting traps for people."
She said softly, "I haven't had much schooling, so I don't understand all these complex, high-society schemes."
Xavier sneered, "You don't understand the 'schemes', but you seem to know your way around a legal contract pretty well."
Willow looked aggrievedly at Mrs. Harris.
Mrs. Harris immediately shielded her.
"Xavier, you're a grown man, don't bully a young girl."
Xavier was so angry he nearly threw his glass.
I put a hand on his arm to stop him.
"Xavier, let it go."
A spark of triumph lit up Willow's eyes, as if she had just won a round.
She said softly, "Ms. Sullivan, actually, I have one more thing to discuss today."
"Go ahead."
"Milo has been struggling with nightmares for years, and his health hasn't been great."
"He refuses to go to a major hospital because he's afraid of being tracked."
"I've accumulated quite a bit of debt taking care of him."
Mrs. Harris quickly chimed in, "Cordelia, the Harris family will pay back those costs."
Willow shook her head.
"Mrs. Harris, I'm not asking for money."
After saying that, she placed an itemized list on the table.
It was packed with details for medication, bar repairs, and psychological counseling fees.
The total came to 3.7 million dollars.
I pointed to one of the entries.
"Customized subwoofer, 160,000 dollars—is that also considered a medical expense?"
Willow blushed.
"Milo doesn't sleep well, listening to white noise helps him settle down."
Xavier retorted mockingly, "160,000-dollar white noise? Is he gonna ascend to a higher plane after listening to that?"
Mrs. Harris took the list, looking visibly embarrassed.
"Willow, these expenses..."
Willow's tears were instant.
"Mrs. Harris, I really didn't want the money."
"It's just that Milo mentioned yesterday he didn't want to owe Ms. Sullivan anything."
"He said if Ms. Sullivan feels the four-year search was too expensive, we can pay it back."
My chest felt like it had been pricked by a needle.
"He said that himself?"
Willow nodded.
"He said people like Ms. Sullivan always demand ten back for every one they give."
Mrs. Harris hurriedly explained, "He has amnesia, he doesn't know what he's saying."
I stared into Willow's eyes.
She didn't look away.
This woman's greatest strength has never been playing the victim.
She knows exactly which words cut the deepest.
In my past life, after she died, Elias listened to every single recording on her phone.
She had recorded similar things before.
She said, "Milo, Ms. Sullivan spent so much money for you, I'm so scared she'll use it to force you into something later."
Elias said, "She wouldn't dare."
Back then, I thought "she wouldn't dare" was him protecting me.
Later, I realized it was him resenting me.
I picked up the pen.
Xavier held my hand.
"Have you lost your mind?"
My mother also urged, "Cordelia, don't you dare sign it."
I stared at that statement.
"Delete the last two clauses."
Willow froze.
"What?"
"I'll sign the voluntary dissolution of relations, I'll stop investigating him, and I won't go near him."
"But the Sullivans won't be your scapegoats, and we aren't paying your bills."
She bit her lip, looking aggrieved.
"Ms. Sullivan, Milo will think you're being petty."
"Whatever he thinks, let him."
Mrs. Harris suddenly spoke up, "Cordelia, just sign the whole thing."
I looked up.
"Mrs. Harris?"
She avoided my gaze.
"Elias only trusts Willow right now."
"Just go along with her for now, don't provoke Elias."
Xavier said angrily, "You're asking Cordelia to fill the pockets of your son's savior?"
Mrs. Harris cried, "What else can I do? My son doesn't even recognize me."
"So you decide to bully my sister instead?"
"You Sullivans are wealthy and powerful, what's 3.7 million to you?"
My mother was trembling with rage.
But I suddenly felt all my anger drain away.
It turns out some people don't wait for the truth to be revealed before showing their true colors.
As long as there's profit in front of them, they'll automatically choose their side.
Willow pushed the pen closer.
"Ms. Sullivan, why don't you just sign it?"
"See, nobody wants to make this messy."
I picked up the pen and struck through the final two clauses of the statement.
The smile on Willow's face froze.
I signed my name.
"Is this dignified enough for you?"
She stared at the struck-through clauses.
"Ms. Sullivan, you're making it very difficult for me to explain this to Milo."
I set the pen down.
"That's your problem."
Her expression shifted, and she suddenly pulled out her phone.
"Milo, she signed it, but she said your bills are my business."
On the other end of the line, Elias's voice was deep and grim.
"Put her on the phone."
I didn't take it.
Willow put it on speaker.
"Cordelia, do you enjoy making things difficult for Willow that much?"
My chest felt tight with sharp pain.
"3.7 million dollars—shouldn't I pay that?"
"You searched for me for four years, didn't you want a result?"
"I gave you that result."
"Is the result you're giving me just to humiliate my savior?"
I laughed softly.
"Elias, you've lost your memory, but your temper hasn't changed a bit."
There was a moment of silence.
"You know me?"
"I used to."
"Then you should know that I hate it when people threaten those around me."
I looked at Mrs. Harris, who was looking at me with a pleading expression.
As if one wrong word from me would mean Elias would never come home.
I said softly, "I know."
"Apologize."
Xavier stood up abruptly, "Elias, who the hell do you think you are?"
Elias said coldly, "Xavier, you're there too?"
I held Xavier back.
"I apologize."
My mother cried out, "Cordelia."
I spoke clearly into the phone.
"Ms. Cavell, I'm sorry."
Willow's tears fell.
"It's okay, Ms. Sullivan. I know you just loved him too much."
I looked at her, suddenly realizing how pathetic I had been in my past life.
I had always viewed her as a romantic rival.
In reality, she treated everyone as a mere stepping stone.
On the phone, Elias left me with one final line.
"Don't ever show up in front of Willow again."
I folded the statement and handed it to Willow.
"Take it."
Willow took it and laughed softly.
"Ms. Sullivan, Milo said the red string bracelet should be returned to you, too."
She took the red string bracelet out of her bag.
The string had been cut into two pieces.
My hand stopped in mid-air.
Willow blinked innocently.
"It was too old and cutting into his wrist, so I cut it off for him."
Xavier cursed under his breath.
I took the broken string into my palm, my fingertips grazed the frayed edges, and a numb pain shot through me.
Willow stood up, bent over, and smiled at me.
"Ms. Sullivan, next time we meet, I hope you can sincerely wish us well."
I looked up at her.
"There won't be a next time."
