Chapter 1 Why Should I Trust You, Lauren?

• Outside the operating room stood a man and a woman. “It wasn’t me, Ethan! I didn’t push your mother! It was Nancy! She did it! S-She—” Facing Ethan’s cold, dark gaze, Lauren’s voice trembled, her face bloodied.
• Before she could finish, Ethan gripped her slender neck, his eyes filled with murder. “Nancy pushed my mother? So you’re saying she tripped, fell, and died so she can blame it on you?”
• Suffocated, Lauren tried to pry his hand away, but to no avail. Her face was red, but she laughed. “So what if she died? That’s none of my business! She pushed Mrs. Parker in the first place! If she dies, then that’s divine retribution!”
• “So if I kill you right here, it’s divine retribution for you,” Ethan spat.
• “Why won’t you believe me, Ethan?!” Lauren roared.
• Ethan looked at her dangerously, his eyes terrifyingly demonlike. “Why should I trust you, Collins?”
• Why should I trust you? A simple retort, but a death sentence for her. Ethan! I loved you for ten years now! You said you wanted to marry me! You promised! Why?! Why did you fall for someone else in just three years?! Why did you fall for that b*stard, Nancy?! Lauren bit her lip, and she was almost out of air. Right when she thought Ethan would asphyxiate her, the operating room’s door was opened.
• Ethan tossed her away like a ragdoll. Lauren’s head slammed against the wall, causing her to bleed from her forehead. After she stood up, the doctor made a solemn announcement, “I’m sorry. Mrs. Parker fell down from a dangerous height, and the impact caused an internal bleeding in her skull. She has passed. As for Miss Xeno, her surgery is successful, but she is still not out of the woods.” Lauren felt her whole world collapse and plunged into darkness after hearing the announcement. A moment later, the doctor handed Ethan a photo his late mother, Giana Kinn, clenched tightly. “Mrs. Parker held on to this tightly even in death.”
• After Ethan took the crumpled photo and opened it, he saw two people entwined in it. Hate flashed in his eyes, then he looked at Lauren. “You’re a real slut, Lauren.”
• All the color drained from her face, then Ethan tossed the wrinkled photo to the ground. When she saw what the photo was, Lauren froze up. A chill ran down her spine, but it was not from the cold. The ones in the photo were her and Ethan’s brother, Elliot. When did this get taken? I never knew about this! Why? How?
• Before Lauren could snap out of it, Ethan gripped her neck again. “You killed my mother for this, Lauren?” He sneered.
• “No, I didn’t! I didn’t push her! I don’t know how this got taken! I don’t—” Lauren roared, “You know I only love you!”
• “Love?” Ethan sneered at her, his eyes filled with disgust. “You love me so much, you f*cked Elliot when I was in mortal danger?”
• “I did not—” Lauren paled even further, which should not be possible. She held back her tears, refusing to show weakness. “I saved you three years ago, remember? Back in that hut in the village, we…”