Chapter 2

"Jason, thank god you're here." Mrs. Thorne wiped her tears, clutching his hand.

"With her father gone... who knows what those vultures outside might do to our family without you here."

Jason's face was a mask of sorrowful resolve. He squeezed her hand in return.

"As long as I'm here, no one will ever dare touch the Thorne family."

Then, he drew a sealed envelope from his pocket. The words "To My Dearest Wife" were written on the front.

"I... came across this in Mr. Thorne's study," he said, his voice gentle as he handed it to her. "It must be for you.”

He paused and handed it to Mrs. Thorne. "Perhaps you should read it when you feel a little stronger?"

With that, Jason left.

Mrs. Thorne's trembling hands tore open the envelope.

That letter was a fake. I had watched Jason forge it. He seemed to have practiced Mr. Thorne's handwriting for a long time, his fingertips calloused.

As he wrote each word, a pang of sorrow and melancholy welled up in me.

I vaguely sensed that the Jason I remembered shouldn't be like this.

He should have been the bright, flamboyant young man, pure as a fresh breeze and clear moonlight.

Not this... this twisted, dark, ruthless man, almost a demon driven to madness, all for me - someone who didn't remember him at all, someone who had been dead for three years.

Jason, you should have lived your life well.

When Mrs. Thorne returned after reading the letter, her expression was already dazed.

Jason feigned tenderness, stepping forward to support her, and whispered words that pierced her heart.

"Mrs. Thorne, what Mr. Thorne said in the letter is true, isn't it?"

"It was you, thinking you were so clever, working with Seraphina to murder Elara. It was you who raised Seraphina to be just like you, a useless person who only knows how to kill to solve problems. The Thorne family has been caught red-handed; there's no way to recover.

"The Thorne family was destroyed by your hands. He'll never forgive you, even in death."

Mrs. Thorne's body began to tremble violently, her gaze fixed on her husband's portrait.

"I didn't! I never mean to kill Elara." She mumbled.

"She was just an orphan. Who cared if she died? It's been three years. No one will-"

"Won't they?" Jason cut her off, his voice dropping to a venomous hiss.

"After Elara fell to her death three years ago,your people chopped her body into twenty-eight pieces. Each piece cemented into the building.” He continued, the words cold and precise. “I hear they've started renovations on it recently. They might have already dug her up."

"If someone discovers it, the Thorne family will be completely finished. Tell me, will you also be chopped into twenty-"

Jason didn't finish his sentence.

Mrs. Thorne suddenly let out a shrill, ear-splitting shriek, pushing Jason away violently.

She had completely lost her mind.

She lunged towards Mr. Thorne's altar, screaming, laughing, falling into complete delirium, repeatedly yelling.

"I didn't mean it! Old Thorne, I did it all for Seraphina."

"That slut was hogging Jason, so I killed her. Only then could my daughter take her place! I wanted to throw her down! To chop her up!"

Mrs. Thorne then grabbed Seraphina's hand, trembling and pleading through tears.

"Don't come for me, I already cemented you in the concrete."

"Elara, you're dead. Why don't you reincarnate? Why are you tormenting me! Don't extort the Thornes anymore, we're out of money!"

Seraphina had been lost in grief over her father's death, but hearing her mother's words, she was utterly terrified.

She grabbed her mother, blurting out.

"Mom! What are you talking about? Are you crazy?"