Chapter 3

Sienna Shaw POV

Early the next morning, I had just woken up.

Lucas Lawson pushed the door open and came in. He bent down to kiss my forehead, his voice mild. “Sienna, you’re awake? It’s time to get changed.”

I obediently sat up.

Lucas Lawson walked to the wardrobe, opened the door, and took out that white formal dress.

In front of the fitting room mirror, I was arching my back, my fingertips just gripping the zipper at the back of the dress.

A pair of warm hands covered mine from behind and naturally took the metal tab from my hand.

Lucas Lawson looked at me through the mirror, the corners of his lips carrying the faintest smile.

His movements were very gentle. His fingertips slowly brushed over my spine as he pulled the zipper up little by little.

Because the dress was slightly tight, the metal teeth inevitably scraped across my skin. My body instinctively tensed, trembling slightly.

Lucas Lawson’s hands followed the motion and pressed down on my shoulders, brushing aside my loose long hair.

He bent down and pressed his face to the side of my neck. His warm breath fell against my cold skin, his voice as gentle as always:

“Sienna, today is a big day. Answer the reporters exactly how we rehearsed last night, alright?”

That tone was like coaxing a disobedient child, so gentle it made a person shiver.

I stared woodenly at him in the mirror and answered, “Okay.”

Half an hour later, I was brought into the International Design Awards ceremony.

Both sides of the red carpet were packed with reporters, and the flashes were so glaring I could barely open my eyes.

Serena Stone wore a gold gown and held the church’s gold trophy that should have belonged to the Shaw family. In front of countless cameras, she smiled brilliantly.

Seeing Lucas Lawson bring me over, Serena Stone lifted her skirt and came forward, taking my hand.

She pressed close to my ear, her voice low and vicious. “If your brain’s broken, you should be lying at home. But thanks to you, you still had to drag your crippled body here today to hand the award to me.”

I heard every word clearly.

I lowered my eyes, the expression on my face still wooden, as a salty, bloody taste quietly spread across the tip of my tongue.

Lucas Lawson wrapped an arm around my waist, protectively supporting me with considerate movements. To outsiders, he looked like a good husband who adored his wife to an extreme degree.

With that nearly tender posture, he brought me in front of a row of black microphones.

The cameras all turned toward us in unison.

Lucas Lawson lowered his head slightly and leaned close to my ear, his voice gentle. “Open your mouth and tell the reporters that the church was a doodle you made when you were insane, and that Serena completed all of it independently. Apologize to her. Sienna is the most obedient.”

I looked at the reporters stretching their necks below the stage, then swept my gaze over Serena Stone’s smug expression beside me.

I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, they were filled with terror.

“Ah—!”

I screamed at the top of my lungs and suddenly overturned the iron microphone stand in front of me.

The iron stand crashed onto the marble floor, and a piercing shriek exploded from the speakers.

“There’s worms crawling inside my head—they’re eating my brain alive!”

I flailed both hands wildly and slapped the completely unprepared Serena Stone hard across the face!

Smack!

The slap was extremely heavy.

Serena Stone staggered back several steps and fell to the ground. The gold trophy in her hands flew out and split in half.

“Sienna Shaw! What are you doing?!”

Lucas Lawson’s expression changed, and he reached out to stop me.

I dodged him and screamed as I charged toward the giant poster on the stage, using my nails to scratch Serena Stone’s face on the poster to pieces.

“Red bugs! They crawled out of the drawings! They’re gnawing at my dad’s brain!”

I howled, my hands clawing at my own face and neck. In an instant, several bloody marks appeared on my skin.

Blood flowed down along my collarbone, staining the snow-white dress at my chest red.

The entire venue descended into chaos. Screams and shutter clicks rang out all at once.

“Don’t bite me! Lucas, save me!”

I slammed headfirst into Lucas Lawson’s arms. My body began to convulse, and I even foamed at the mouth.

Lucas Lawson held me tightly and patted my back, his face anxious and heartbroken.

But from an angle no one could see, a flash of relief crossed his eyes.

He truly thought I had gone mad.

“I’m sorry. My wife’s old condition has relapsed. She has disturbed everyone.”

Lucas Lawson’s face turned cold as he picked me up, still convulsing, and strode out of the venue.

Flashbulbs went off wildly behind us.

I lay limp over Lucas Lawson’s shoulder. Warm blood flowed down my neck, soaking the white shirt over his shoulder.

With my eyes open, I looked past his shoulder and stared coldly at the half-shattered gold trophy lying on the red carpet.