Chapter 1

After marrying my billionaire husband, Marcus, I couldn't even afford to eat.

Because all of his assets were managed by Chloe, his financial advisor and first love.

Every single penny I spent required her prior approval.

Even to buy a box of cold medicine, I had to endure the pain and submit a 1,000-word requisition form first.

I only dared to eat one meal of plain white rice a day, yet Chloe still accused me of wasting money.

Until my son was kidnapped. The kidnappers demanded eight million dollars, threatening to kill him if I didn't pay.

Frantic with worry, I rushed to Chloe for the money.

But she just tossed a blank sheet of paper at me.

"How many times do I have to tell you? If you want money, you have to write a request. Write a 10,000-word proposal first, and I'll review it."

"Ten thousand words! That's too much! By the time I finish writing, it will be too late!"

My voice cracked with panic, my eyes red as I begged her to approve the funds to save him.

She let out a cold laugh.

"You really know how to burn through cash, don't you? Eight million dollars right out of your mouth. Who knows if you're actually using this money to feed some bastard child of yours?"

I didn't want to waste time arguing with her. A child's life was on the line. I quickly called Marcus.

Before I could even speak when he picked up, Chloe jumped in to complain, accusing me of wasting money.

Marcus's voice immediately turned impatient.

"Everything goes by Chloe's rules. Besides, that adopted brat of yours deserves to die anyway. Stop bothering us with this nonsense!"

My heart froze.

But there was one thing they didn't know.

The child taken by the kidnappers wasn't some random orphan I had adopted.

He was the biological son Marcus and Chloe had secretly conceived via surrogacy abroad years ago!

I hung up the phone and sent a message to the kidnappers, telling them I was still putting the money together and begging them to wait.

I took a deep breath, trying to reason with Chloe one last time.

"Chloe, a child's life is at stake. Can you really be this heartless?"

"I am begging you. Just release the eight million to save him."

Eight million dollars was pocket change to the Vance Group—just a few days of revenue.

But without it, my boy would lose his life.

Chloe was sitting in Marcus's executive chair, leisurely brushing her toy poodle's fur. Her tone was dripping with disdain.

"Is this how you beg for a favor? I told you, if you want money, follow the rules. Didn't I give you the paper already?"

Just as I was about to explain, a video message popped up on my phone from the kidnappers.

In the video, five-year-old Leo was tied to a steel pillar in an abandoned factory, covered in blood.

A sharp knife was pressed against his tiny cheek.

"Eight million dollars to this account within an hour."

"For every minute you're late, I'll carve a line on his body."

"How many cuts do you think he can survive?"

My hands shook so violently that my phone slipped and clattered onto the floor.

Chloe looked at her freshly done manicure and spared a careless glance at the screen.

"Must be an AI deepfake. Looks pretty realistic, though. You really went all out just to scam some money."

My voice trembled violently as I pleaded.

"It's real! This isn't fake! If we don't send the money in an hour, they will really kill him!"

Chloe scoffed.

"He's just an adopted street rat. Is he really worth eight million? If he dies, he dies."

Her tone was so indifferent, as if she were talking about throwing away a piece of trash instead of a human life.

A sharp pain stabbed through my chest. I clenched my fists.

Marcus and I had found Leo at a charity gala.

Even though he was sick back then, his eyes were so bright and full of life.

Both Marcus and I wanted to adopt him.

But in the end, Marcus told everyone that I was the one who insisted on adopting a sickly orphan.

I didn't care about the rumors. Once I chose Leo, I treated him as my own flesh and blood.

Yet, Chloe always looked down on him. Every time she came over, she called him "bastard" and "trash."

But now was not the time to argue. Saving his life was all that mattered.

My eyes welled with tears.

"I am begging you, please give me the money. Treat it as a loan! I'll sign an IOU to Marcus and pay him back with interest! Just please!"

"Otherwise, he's really going to die!"

Chloe remained completely unmoved.

"Rules are rules. As the wife of the Vance family, how can you be the first to break them?"

At that moment, another message from the kidnapper flashed on my screen.

[Fifty minutes left.]

I couldn't waste another second begging. I lunged forward to grab the security token fob on the desk.

Chloe snatched it first, holding it tight, and slapped me hard across the face.

"You're trying to steal it now? Do you know that's a felony?"

My head snapped to the side, my cheek burning with pain. But I didn't care about the pain. I needed that money.

I looked up at Chloe's smug face.

"You want the eight million? Fine."

"Kneel right there and write the ten-thousand-word fund requisition form. Once you're done, I might consider approving it."

"Short by even one word, and you won't get a single dime!"

I stared at her in utter disbelief.

"There's no time for that! You are murdering him!"

Chloe sneered. "Murdering him? I'm just doing my job."

"Marcus trusted me with the family finances. I have to be responsible."

"If you don't want to write it, then get the hell out and let your little street rat die."

The countdown on the screen ticked down to forty-five minutes.

I had no time to argue. I grabbed a pen and paper, fell to my knees, and started writing furiously on the floor.