Reborn in the Enemy's Embrace

Later, I discovered that he left me at the hotel to die that night because Juliet’s father, Roger Turner, fell ill.

He had suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage while drinking. His hospitalization, recovery, and subsequent recovery cost a lot of money.

Damien insisted on the best for everything. He demanded a private room, the finest nurse, an elite medical team, and top–notch rehabilitation.

He could spend tens or hundreds of thousands, or even millions for Juliet without batting an eyelash.

Yet, he treated me with extreme cruelty.

While Juliet enjoyed his unreserved generosity, I carried a heavy burden.

It seemed that no amount of money and kindness I had shown throughout my life would be able to repay him.

For a long time, I struggled to differentiate gratitude, guilt, and feelings. I couldn’t distinguish them clearly.

Sometimes, I wondered if I really loved Damien. What did I love about him?

Did I fall in love with him when he rescued me?

Did I become infatuated when he risked his life and rushed into the car to carry my parents’ bodies?

Or was it the moment when he gazed at me with concern and fear of losing me when the car exploded?

As it turns out, I was deceiving myself.

Back then, I believed Damien genuinely cared about me.

I believed he loved me as well.

Unfortunately, it was all just a figment of my imagination.

Even the love I once felt for him now felt like a distant illusion.

"Sophia, aren’t you ashamed to keep lingering around the Colemans? You were already an adult when you entered the Coleman family. Have some shame, will you? You’re staying here just to get close to Damien, right?"

That day Juliet fell down the stairs at the Coleman residence was the day I got discharged.

Aunty Lisa traveled to Georgeke as Damien’s father was unwell. He had been undergoing treatment there throughout the year. This time, Aunty Lisa intended to stay with him for about half the year.

I felt scared whenever Aunty Lisa wasn’t around. In her absence, there was no one to protect me.

Damien would treat me even more cruelly without her in the house.

I contemplated escaping or finding refuge in the dormitory. It didn’t matter if I had to rent a house and live in the basement.

But Damien caught me in the act every time. He always brought me back and questioned how long I intended to keep up this act.

"Sophia, the same trick loses its effectiveness once overused." Juliet stood by the staircase and looked at me mockingly.

"Do you know what people are saying about you? They’re saying that you bring bad luck. You have caused the death of your parents,"

"Even Damien’s father fell ill since you joined the family. What’s the point of someone alive?"

"Shut up." I lost control of my emotions after being provoked by Juliet.

Because it was the day of my parents’ death anniversary.

In the first two years after I joined the family, Damien still remembered my parents’ death anniversary. However, he soon forgot about it.

"I would have quickly died if I were you," Juliet’s cousin sneered along with Damien’s friends, all mocking me.

They never regarded me as a human.

"Damien’s not back yet.

"Sophia, I heard you’re lacking a man? Come, let me offer you some warmth while Damien’s away."

I shivered at their disgusting words as if it was a curse.

"Let’s go, come with me." Juliet held my wrist and dragged me down the stairs forcefully.

I retreated in fear, watching as Juliet deliberately released my hand while I struggled. She sneered at me and then tumbled down the stairs.

Everyone was shocked and quickly stood up.

Horror filled me as I watched Juliet lay in a pool of blood on the ground. Then my gaze shifted to Damien, who had just entered. I shook my head anxiously.

It wasn’t me, it wasn’t me.

But nobody would believe me.

Even if everyone other than Damien saw that it wasn’t me, they wouldn’t defend me.

"Sophia! How can you be so evil!" Eva rushed over and slapped me. A punch and kick soon followed.

Touted up in the corner, holding my head. I was too scared to move.

"It wasn’t me..."

It really wasn’t me.

The ambulance arrived and whisked Juliet away.

I watched as Damien anxiously lifted Juliet into his arms. He even glared at me fiercely.

Everyone present bore witness to me pushing Juliet down the stairs. Even the servants from the Coleman family sided with them.

At that moment, I was in a daze. I even started doubting if it was me who pushed Juliet down the stairs.

Once again, I fell into the trap of self–incrimination.

I didn’t know how to explain myself. It seemed wrong to explain myself, but not explaining myself was also wrong. I curled up under the stairs and waited for a very long time.

Finally, Damien returned at dawn.

I stood up with bloodshot eyes and choked out, "Damien, it wasn’t me."

There was a resounding slap as he struck me. My ears rang intensely...

My nose bled, and my hearing was muffled. I probably had a ruptured eardrum. He put a lot of force into that slap.

"Do you know that Juliet’s sister wanted to call the police? You had deliberately hurt her!" he yelled.

He then dragged me up from the ground and forcefully pulled me into the study.

"Sophia, have I spoiled you to the point where you dare to do something illegal?" he roared.

He continued, "What’s next? Do you plan on killing someone?"

I covered my face and looked at Damien, desperately wishing he would believe me. I cried and pleaded, shaking my head.

"Damien, it wasn’t me. It truly wasn’t me," I said, but he did not believe me at all.

"Jack saw it. It wasn’t me. I didn’t push her. It truly wasn’t me," I explained desperately, nearly getting on my knees as I begged him to believe me.

Yet he did not believe me.

"Jack said he saw you push Juliet down the stairs! Yet you still want to deny it!"

My heart sank at his words.

Right, how could I be so foolish to think that Jack would stand up for me? After all, they were the ones who spread rumors about me to ruin my reputation from the start.

"If Juliet doesn’t forgive you when she wakes up, I’ll send you to prison!"

He said he wanted to send me to prison. It scared me. I was unwilling to accept that.

After the death of my parents, I worked desperately and studied hard. My hard work was what gave me my current achievements. I refused to accept having it destroyed in such a manner.

"I refuse to go to prison. I didn’t push her!" I stared at him fearfully. My breathing was shaky.

Terrified, I stood up and found the courage to push him aside. I then desperately fled the Coleman home.

I ran from this place I once thought was paradise but later turned out to be hell.

I ran and hid in a dark alley for a long time. I was terrified. At that moment, I felt utterly alone.

I did not remember when I fell asleep. Nor did I recall who placed a worn but clean blanket over me. I was not sure who left a cup of cheap but clean tea and a lollipop beside me either.

This was not the first time someone had left me a lollipop while I was alone in the dark.

In the past, when my parents were still alive, I would frequently throw tantrums and run away from home. Every time I woke up, there would be a lollipop by my side.

"Who are you?" I mumbled as I looked around.

Who was the person who always silently watched over me?

"Could you take me away if you aren’t human? I’m very cowardly, so I dare not kill myself."

I did not dare to die. If I could genuinely die, I would have followed my parents when they passed away.

On the day of the car accident, I saw the blood of my parents mixing with broken glass.

They said, "Sophia, you must live on. Carry a part of us and live on. Bring us along to witness the future of this world...’

I couldn’t possibly dare to die as I had been burdened with too much.

Damien had people searching for me for many days, but there was no sign of me. It was his and Juliet’s wedding day, but the atmosphere was not very lively.

Perhaps it was my imagination, but both Juliet and Damien did not look well.

"Damien, she’s not coming back," said Violette as she walked over. She looked at Damien and Juliet’s wedding photo and sneered before kicking it.

"How disgusting," she said.