I had a best friend, Zoey Stewart, who was a fake heiress married into a wealthy family.
She stole the project plan and explained to her husband, Bryan Perez, that I was new to the job and wanted to learn.
She transferred ten million, saying she wanted to buy me a villa for my comfort.
She sold the luxury car, saying it was for me to use as a means of transportation.
She was caught having an affair with her husband's assistant and transferring company assets, and claimed I tricked her into being a pawn.
Eventually, her husband sent me to prison.
In there, I was killed by her lover, Derron Hall, to silence me.
When I opened my eyes again, I returned to the day her husband questioned me.
Whenever Zoey discussed plans with her lover, she used the excuse of shopping with me to go out.
This time, her husband, Bryan, sent me a message again. He asked me when I would let her come home.
I frowned. I glanced at it and directly deleted the conversation.
Just as I put on the face mask, the phone rang unexpectedly.
My hand, scrolling through videos, didn't have time to retract, and I pressed the answer button.
The next second, his angry voice sounded, "Jane, when will you allow my wife to come home?
"The child has cried three times already. Don't you know she's a mother? How selfish can you be? It was fine before, but now she isn't alone anymore!
"Please understand, I am her husband. You shop with my card and use my car. What do you mean by having her block my number every time?
"I have tolerated you for a long time. Don't you think you're a bit redundant?"
His tone grew heavier with each sentence, clearly indicating his patience had reached its limit.
But my anger was even greater than his.
In my previous life, if it weren't for Zoey, how could I have ended up in prison?
Just because I came from the same village as her and was her only friend, I naturally became her scapegoat!
At that time, I didn't know what she was busy with daily. Since she got married, our contact had gradually decreased.
Countless times Bryan called me. I inexplicably had to cover for her out of goodwill.
Once, I was sleeping in the early morning and had to endure Bryan's angry questioning.
"What are you doing so late? Getting your hair done for so long?"
I almost let it slip in my drowsiness when Zoey hurriedly sent a message. "Just say we are getting our hair done and went to try the package at the massage shop next door. I've already sent him the photos! Thanks, babe."
So later, in Bryan's eyes, I became the culprit for ruining his family harmony.
The next day, he sent me a warning message. After that day, I gradually reduced contact with Zoey.
But in the end, I was still sent to prison by her.
Bryan already resented me. Sending me in made him feel like he was getting rid of a scourge.
Given a second chance, I would never be her scapegoat again!
He lost his patience because I didn't respond for a while.
"Is Zoey with you? Have her answer the phone. The child wants her."
I raised my eyebrows, a cold smile curling my lips.
Holding the phone, I pretended to shout to one side, "Zoey, Zoey? Your husband is calling you."
She wasn't there. Naturally, no one responded.
So I exclaimed, "Oops, sorry, Mr. Perez, she went to get her hair done. The water is too loud for her to hear. It's the same place as last time!
"She'll contact you once she's done."
After saying that, I instantly put on an indifferent face and hung up heavily.
Unexpectedly, five minutes later. Just as I removed the face mask, there was a furious knocking on the door.
Opening the door, the force from outside almost made me fall on my butt.
Bryan actually brought a group of bodyguards to my house.
I was pinned down by the bodyguards, and could only watch as he searched my house angrily.
The small room was quickly turned upside down by him, and there was no sign of Zoey in any corner.
Only then did he furrow his brows and walk up to me impatiently, "Where's Zoey? Where did she go? I watched downstairs for a long time. Your lights were on. How could you have gone out?"
Seeing his face, angry to the point of losing reason, I couldn't help but feel a surge of vengeful satisfaction.
"Where Zoey went, how could she possibly tell me?
I was just her prepared scapegoat!"
Under Zoey's subtle influence, Bryan already harbored hatred towards me and wouldn't believe my explanations.
Seeing my silence, he shot a glance to the side. The bodyguards held me tightly.
He stepped forward and grabbed my jaw forcefully.
He gritted his teeth and said, "I'll give you one last chance. Where did Zoey go?"
Chapter 2Upon hearing this, I couldn't help but laugh mockingly.
"You know she is a mother. She's an adult. How can I control where she goes? Even her mom can't control her."
The next second, the grip on my chin suddenly relaxed.
That hand swung up high and slapped one side of my face.
The crisp sound echoed. My eyes burned with hatred.
The more anxious Bryan became, the more ridiculous I found him.
He bent down, picked up the phone I had just dropped, and unlocked the screen by pinching my finger.
The phone slapped my face threateningly, over and over.
"Do you think I can't deal with you if you don't speak?
"I got you into the company and can kick you out!
"What do you think will happen if your boss knows all your proposals are plagiarized?"
With my murderous look, he found the contact labeled as my boss and dialed.
Before the call connected, he seemed to remember something. He hung up and then redialed via video call.
The video connected, and the boss was still working overtime at the office.
He frowned at the man's face on the screen. After a moment, his eyes widened.
He stammered, "Mr. Perez?"
Bryan said coldly, "It's me. Do you know this person?"
He turned the phone screen towards my face.
The boss quickly said, "Yes, yes. Is there something wrong?"
"Do you tolerate an employee who advances through plagiarism? Do you know how she completed her work?"
As he spoke, he stared threateningly.
He mouthed, "This is your last chance."
But I still pressed my lips tightly and remained silent.
My indifferent attitude ignited Bryan's anger. He yelled, "Jane plagiarized all her work proposals from my company. If you don't handle this today, I'll have the legal department deal with you!
"I have brought a lawyer today. It looks like you haven't finished work yet."
He crossed his arms in front of his chest, clearly showing an "it's up to you" attitude.
With just two sentences, he completely crushed my boss's intention to speak up for me.
He couldn't afford to offend the Perez Group.
I suddenly let out a cold laugh.
"Mr. Perez, you have no evidence and are asking him to fire me. I can sue you for defamation!"
Hearing my words, Bryan sneered.
"Can't take it anymore? I can do worse. Reveal Zoey's whereabouts. This is your last chance.
"You took ten million, sold my car, and now want to take my wife. Jane, how dare you!"
As he spoke, several bodyguards tightened their grip on me, making it hard for me to breathe.
After getting the boss's decision to fire me, Bryan let out a cold laugh and continued to go through my phone contacts.
Seeing the viciousness in his eyes, I had a bad premonition.
Gritting my teeth, I said, "You're trespassing. Aren't you afraid I'll call the police?"
His actions didn't stop. He smirked as if he had heard a joke.
"Call the police? Need me to dial for you? You took my wife, my son's mother. Who do you think the police will arrest?
"My last chat with Zoey was when she said she'd be with you tonight."
Then, his eyes lit up for a moment.
"Found it."
I watched him dial the landlord's number, and a plan began to form in my mind.
Chapter 3Bryan canceled the lease with the landlord in front of me.
When I wanted to explain to the landlord, the bodyguard covered my mouth tightly, preventing me from making any sound.
Tears welled up in my eyes.
I thought Bryan was even more foolish than me.
If I had really gotten the villa, why would I still be in the rental house?
He hung up the phone. The fury was nearly blazing in his eyes.
"Still not talking?"
The bodyguard loosened his grip. I sneered and said, "Why don't you ask your assistant? He might know."
Bryan's gaze flickered as he looked at me. After a while, he suspiciously took out his phone and called the assistant.
As soon as the call connected, the panting stopped abruptly.
"What's wrong, Mr. Perez?"
"Find Zoey's location for me. I need to find her urgently."
There was a moment of silence before he awkwardly said, "The last few times I dropped off Mrs. Perez and her friend for shopping. When she exited the car, the girl would pull her away immediately, not giving me a chance to speak.
"Later, I got out of the car and rushed to ask. But the girl scolded me, telling me not to meddle. I didn't dare to ask again. Now you're suddenly asking me, and I don't know..."
Bryan's face gradually darkened as he listened.
I just wanted to sneer.
No wonder Derron was Zoey's lover. Their act of shifting blame was so consistent.
After the call ended, he was about to say something when the phone rang again.
It was the nanny calling, saying the child could not be comforted and was crying harder.
Hearing this, Bryan's brows furrowed tightly. He completely lost his patience.
After hanging up, he directly had the bodyguard put me in the car.
"Since you won't talk, I'll search each store!"
When we arrived at the street, he grabbed my collar and roughly dragged me to the ground.
Surrounded by a group of bodyguards, we quickly attracted the attention of passersby.
Within minutes, we were surrounded by several layers of people.
When they heard Bryan say his wife was taken away by her friend, they all showed gossiping expressions.
Someone even shouted, "You never know what's the truth. An aunt in my hometown was taken away by her sister. When they called the police, they found out she had committed bigamy!
"There are still many news stories about girls being trafficked by friends. Look at those taken abroad. Didn't friends deceive them all?
"She doesn't look rich. If she's that bad, she shouldn't be so poor, right?"
"What do you know? Dressing plainly makes it easier to deceive people! Look at those criminals. Don't they all look pitiful?"
Their chatter kept ringing in my ears.
Bryan's face was dark. He directly had the bodyguard take me into the first store.
But the owner said they didn't know me and had never seen me.
But Zoey had used photos of this store as an excuse to go out with me countless times.
After hearing this, Bryan instantly ignited with rage and grabbed my hair on the spot.
My head was forced back.
"Jane, you've been playing me from the start!"
The group quickly rushed out of the store. Bryan said coldly, "Call the police and have them search with us. I'll turn this street upside down to find her today!"
My eyes flickered, and I said softly, "Call the police? Why don't you call the reporters too? Nail me to the pillar of shame for my sins?"
He squinted at the bodyguard and said, "Did you hear that? Grant her request."
Hearing this, I revealed a triumphant smile.
"Cause a scene. It's best if everyone knows.
I want to make sure Zoey never recovers from this!"
Chapter 4The bodyguard walked me through the shops on the street. The results were all the same.
This street was beyond my spending level. I naturally would not come here.
On the way back, Bryan was video chatting with his son.
Hearing the bodyguard's words, he almost crushed his phone.
He said bye to his son through gritted teeth. After hanging up, he threw the phone at my head.
The phone, worth thousands, was fine. My forehead quickly swelled.
More and more passersby gathered. In the video, they had just heard his son's helpless crying for his mom. They looked at me with disgust.
"What kind of person is this? If you're going to kidnap, pick someone without kids. Watching a family get torn apart. Isn't this a sin?"
"Look at her eyes. She did something wrong but still acts pitifully!"
At this moment, the police and reporters arrived together.
There were a few people following them.
As they approached, my eyes widened instantly. Bryan saw my expression and his face darkened.
My parents from the village had been brought over by him. They heard the news that I had kidnapped Zoey on the way. They were sweating with anxiety.
As soon as they saw me, they rushed to my side. The bodyguard holding me released me at Bryan's signal.
Remembering my mother's disappointed face when I went to prison in my past life, tears instantly filled my eyes.
I just reached out to hug her.
I received a slap on the face.
I held my burning face and looked at her in disbelief.
Mother's eyes were red. She said in disappointment, "I thought you were working hard. What have you done?"
She was so angry she couldn't stand steadily. The next second, she fell backward.
I hurriedly reached out to catch her. My hand was ruthlessly slapped away in midair.
"Mom!"
I called out in shock. Father reached out to support Mother. He turned and shouted angrily, "Don't call us. We can't bear it. We don't have a daughter like you! We wouldn't even know if you sold us out someday!"
After experiencing everything in my past life, I regretted my decisions. I originally planned to resolve Zoey's matter this time and then return to the village to be with them.
But I didn't expect my parents to be brought here by Bryan first.
I quickly turned to look at Bryan. He was standing in the distance, whispering with the police.
Just as I was about to speak, someone suddenly pulled my ear.
Mother's eyes were full of tears and disappointment.
"Quickly tell Mr. Perez where you took Zoey! Otherwise, don't call us anymore. We don't have a daughter like you!"
Seeing this, the passersby cursed me even more.
I reached out to cover my ear. It was already so painful that it was bleeding.
Just as my hand touched my face, Father found a stick from somewhere.
He hit the back of my knee heavily.
I screamed and knelt on the ground.
Mother couldn't stop in time. Blood gushed from my ear, soaking one side of my shoulder.
Bryan walked slowly to me and told my parents about me taking his ten million and a car.
My parents were so angry they couldn't stand it. They were almost collapsing in disappointment.
They shouted, "This is a sin! It's our fault..."
At this moment, the police walked to Bryan and whispered something in his ear.
His gaze instantly became sharp.
Then he turned and ordered, "Take her away. Search the property under Jane's name!"
I knew that was the evidence Zoey arranged to frame me.
It was also the paradise she shared with her lover before the incident.
Everything was finally coming to an end.