Chapter 5

Stella's POV

I was utterly devastated.

In this very moment, my last shred of affection for Julian was completely extinguished by the freezing rain, leaving behind not even a speck of ash.

I returned to the Mercer villa, ignoring the astonished stares of the servants, and went straight to my room.

I pulled out a dusty cardboard box and took out the items inside, things I had once cherished like precious treasures.

A wooden carving he had whittled for me from a branch on the snowy mountain; a cheap ballpoint pen he had casually handed to me when he was my private tutor; a cufflink he had accidentally dropped.

I used to cling to these things as my light to keep living.

Now, I tossed them all into the trash can. My movements were decisive, without a single shred of hesitation.

"What do you think you're doing?"

A deep voice laced with suppressed fury rang out from the doorway.

I didn't turn around. I ripped the final sketch of his profile into shreds and tossed them into the trash can. The scraps of paper fluttered down like snowflakes.

Julian stood at the door. Looking at the mess on the floor and the familiar items in the trash, his pupils constricted sharply.

"Your face..." He took a step forward.

But as if dodging a plague, I recoiled a large step backward, my gaze cold and defensive. Without uttering a word, I simply bent down, tied the trash bag tight, and carried it out. I walked right past him without even glancing in his direction, as if he were nothing but empty air.

"Stella Mercer, what is with this attitude?!" Infuriated by my complete dismissal, Julian grabbed my wrist. "I'm asking you a question!"

"Let go." My voice was as raspy as sandpaper scraping across a table, devoid of any pitch or emotion. "Julian Vance, whether I live or die has nothing to do with you. I've already cleaned up this trash, so don't ever come back to disgust me again."

I violently shook off his grip and walked straight downstairs.

The next morning, a sharp, wailing cry shattered the silence of the Mercer villa.

"My necklace! That was the custom diamond necklace Mom bought me! How is it gone?!" Wearing her pajamas, Gemma wept pitifully in the living room. She pointed directly at me as I descended the stairs. "It's you! It has to be you! You were the only one who went into my room yesterday! Stella Mercer, you were jealous of me, so you stole my necklace!"

Catherine Mercer and my father rushed in at the noise. Catherine cradled Gemma protectively, turning to glare at me with venom. "You shameless bitch! Is stealing the only thing you learned at that orphanage? How dare you steal your own sister's necklace! Hand it over!"

I stood on the stairs, looking down at this clumsy farce. I had known Gemma wouldn't play nice, so before returning to my room yesterday, I had hidden a micro-camera inside a potted plant in the hallway.

Without saying a word, I pulled out my phone and cast the screen to the living room television. The footage clearly showed Gemma sneaking out of her room in the dead of night and stuffing a sparkling necklace into one of my old shoes left outside my door.

With the proof laid bare before them, the living room fell into a deathly silence. Gemma's face went white, while Catherine's face flushed a deep, embarrassed red.

"Is there any other act you'd like to perform?" I asked coldly, putting my phone away.

Just then, the front door swung open, and Julian's assistant walked in, flanked by several bodyguards in black suits.

Though polite, the assistant spoke with an undeniable air of authority. "Mr. Mercer, Mr. Vance heard that Ms. Gemma Mercer's necklace was stolen, and he was very saddened by the news. Thus, he specifically ordered me to deliver a new necklace to her."

He turned to my father, presenting a metallic crest that represented the Vance family. "Mr. Mercer, Mr. Vance also said that if the Mercers do not know how to punish a thief, he wouldn't mind doing it on your behalf."

Seeing the metal crest, my father's knees buckled, and he nearly fell to the floor.

Catherine and Gemma were ecstatic. Catherine's voice shook with sheer excitement. "It's Mr. Vance! I knew our Gemma was blessed to receive Mr. Vance's favor! Gemma will be Mr. Vance's wife soon!"

Gemma raised her chin triumphantly, casting a provocative glance at me as if looking at a squashed ant.

"Bodyguards! Get the whip! Whip this shameless woman thoroughly!" To curry favor with Julian Vance, my father issued the order without a moment's hesitation.

The thick leather whip whistled through the air, cracking down brutally on my thin back.

*Crack!*

*Crack!*

My skin tore open, and blood pooled as new wounds were carved over the old ones. I bit down on my lip until it bled, refusing to let out a single cry for mercy. Through my blurred vision, I saw Julian standing in the shadows. Seeing his indulgence toward Gemma and his sheer disgust for me, the very last ripple of emotion in my heart turned to cold, dead ash.

I didn't know how many times I was lashed before my body finally gave out, and I blacked out.

When I woke up again, I had been thrown back into the dark utility room. My entire body felt like it was being ripped apart, and a high fever left my mind hazy.

Just then, the door was gently pushed open. A well-dressed, composed middle-aged woman walked in, holding an elegant medical kit.

"Ms. Mercer, I am the housekeeper of the Sterlings. Mr. Sterling heard that you were injured and specifically ordered me to deliver the Sterling family's private stock of medicine."