Chapter 1

I was the female CEO who made Wall Street flinch. But I went blind pulling my daughter out of a kidnapping.

Her thank-you? "Can Daddy's girlfriend be my new mommy?"

How did it come to this?

Chloe, my little girl who used to hide behind my legs around strangers, became my eyes outside—guiding me through crowds, never letting go of my hand.

My husband Adrian stepped into my position and carried that weight for six grueling years.

Then comes the day Thorne Group goes public. Our driver brings me to the office, saying Adrian wants me there for the bell-ringing ceremony.

But the moment I'm walked out, I don't hear applause or champagne. Just wind. And then a gasp ripples through the crowd below:

"God—look, Adrian's blind wife is trying to jump off the roof!"

"Everyone knows Adrian and Vivienne Sterling are the real power couple—not him and that blind freak."

The wind whips past my ears. Sirens wail in the distance.

That's when I realize—someone lured me up rooftop on purpose. They wanted a show.

"Evelyn!" Adrian rushes over and grabs me, yanking me to the ground. His voice is sharp with resentment.

"You're blind—why the hell did you come out here? Haven't you dragged me and Chloe down enough?"

I open my mouth to explain, but my daughter's tiny voice cuts through first:

"Daddy, don't save Mommy next time, okay? I wanna get a new mommy..."

"Can your girlfriend be my new mommy?"

I collapse onto the ground.

And then—right as the tears are about to fall—I see light.

Faint at first, then brighter. Shapes bleed through the darkness.

I can see.

I see Adrian's lips move. No sound. But I read them clearly:

"Sounds good."

"Yay! I'm finally getting a new mommy!"

I can't breathe.

"Even her own kid thinks she's pathetic!"

"Six years with a blind wife? That man's a saint! I would've been gone day one."

The crowd starts sneering.

The face I'd imagined a thousand times in the dark—my daughter's face—is now staring at me with disgust.

"Chloe..."

I reach out, the way I always used to, wanting to hold her.

"Get away from me! Don't touch me, you blind!"

Chloe jerks backward, jumping back like I'm disgusting.

"It's all your fault! My classmates all laugh at me for having a blind mom! Nobody wants to play with me!"

Her words hit me like a knife to the gut.

Six years ago, she was taken by kidnappers. I showed up with ten million dollars in ransom to get her back.

But the moment the money hit their account, they detonated the bomb. I threw my body over hers. That's the only reason she's alive.

The price was my eyes. I never saw anything again.

"Chloe."

Adrian finally speaks up, pinching the space between his brows.

"That's enough. Mommy lost her eyes because of—"

"She's NOT blind because of me! She totally did it on purpose!"

My daughter points toward the edge of the rooftop.

"Why else would she be standing over there? She just wants people to feel sorry for her!"

I try to speak. Nothing comes out.

Right then, the media cameras swing toward me like wolves.

"Ma'am—are you up here because you've lost it? Is this your way of guilting your husband and daughter? Some kind of sick revenge?"

The camera flashes sting my eyes. The whispers around me grow uglier and uglier.

People shove me from every direction. I fumble helplessly, hoping Adrian will step in.

But Adrian is standing right next to me. His lips part slightly—then he looks away.

"Adrian, you can't even handle something this small? And you think you can compete with me?"

Vivienne Sterling strolls over, flanked by a wall of bodyguards.

The words are a dig at Adrian, but she steps in front of him, blocking every camera with her body.

"Everyone."

She turns to face the press, her smile perfectly composed.

"Today is a partnership celebration between Sterling Group and Thorne Group. I trust you'll all know when to put the cameras down."

One sentence. The same reporters suddenly bow and start packing up their gear.

She doesn't even raise her voice. One wave of her hand, and she solves the mess I can't.

I used to be that person. I used to be the one who showed up and made people fall in line.

But now—

"Miss Viv!"

Chloe doesn't hesitate. She steps right on my hand and throws herself into Vivienne's arms.

"What took you so long?"

The same daughter who just looked at me with disgust is now giggling in another woman's embrace.

The pain in my hand is nothing compared to the one in my chest.

Adrian watches the scene, something I can't read on his face. Finally, he says quietly:

"Vivienne, thanks again for bailing out Thorne Group. Let me walk you out."

Vivienne scoops up Chloe like it's second nature, then shoots me a look of contempt.

"Adrian, I helped Thorne Group because of you."

She pauses, her fingers hooking under Adrian's tie, giving it a slow tug.

"As for how you'll repay me—you know exactly what I want."

He catches her hand on his tie, but his thumb strokes slowly across her knuckles.

"Behave. We're just business partners."

But his thumb lingers on her jawline a beat too long.

Soft, knowing laughter ripples through the crowd. The three of them walk away together like a family, carried along by whistles and teasing.

And I'm still on the ground, eyes stinging, unable to move.

"I don't get Adrian. Why keep that burden around? Just divorce her already."

"Exactly! Vivienne's been waiting for him for six whole years! And he's stuck babysitting that burden!"

Their words drift into my ears again.

Before, I would've lost my mind arguing with them. I would've clung to Adrian, begging him not to leave.

But this time—they're half-right.

It's time to end this.