Chapter 1 Released from Hell

Rain lashed against the windows of the Eden Valley Mental Rehabilitation Center.

Inside the director's office, Dr. Jenkins was shaking. He wasn't shaking from the cold, but from the woman sitting across from him.

Anna Rice sat with her legs crossed, lazily flipping through her discharge papers. She wore a plain hospital gown, yet she looked like a queen inspecting her subjects.

"Dr. Jenkins," Anna's voice was soft but sent a chill down his spine. "My hand hurts from the slap I gave you earlier. I hope your bald head is okay."

Dr. Jenkins rubbed his shiny scalp, forcing a terrified smile. "It—it was my honor, Ms. Rice. The car from the Rice family is here. You are free."

"Free?" Anna stood up. "Three years. My father finally remembers me."

She walked out of the office. The moment she stepped into the corridor, the chaotic noise of the asylum instantly vanished.

Dozens of patients—violent, unstable, dangerous—stood lined up against the walls. As Anna passed, they lowered their heads in absolute submission. No one dared to breathe loud.

In three years, Anna hadn't just survived hell; she had tamed the demons.

Outside the iron gates, a red sports car was waiting. Lucy Fox leaned against it, waving frantically.

"Get in! I can't believe they finally let you out!" Lucy yelled.

Anna slid into the passenger seat, her expression unreadable. "Did you find the information?"

Lucy handed her a tablet as she sped away. "William Sterling. The eldest grandson of the Sterling family. Five years ago, a car accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. He's rumored to be cruel, disfigured, and possibly impotent."

"Perfect," Anna murmured, scrolling through the file.

"Perfect?" Lucy glanced at her, horrified. "Anna, your father is using you as a bargaining chip! He wants you to marry a cripple just to secure a business deal. Why did you agree?"

Anna cradled her flat belly. Her eyes darkened.

"Because the doctor who delivered my baby three years ago works for the Sterling family."

Three years ago, she was drugged, slept with a mysterious stranger, and became pregnant. After giving birth, her stepmother, Penelope, told her the baby was stillborn and threw her into the asylum.

But Anna knew the truth. She had heard the baby cry. Her child was alive.

"I will marry William," Anna said steadily and resolutely."I will find my child. And as for the Rice family..." She touched the precious bracelet on her wrist. "I'm going to burn their world down."

The Rice Mansion.

"Mom! I won't do it! I won't marry a monster!" Megan Rice smashed a vase on the floor, screaming. "Dad said if Anna refuses, I have to go! William is a cripple and a psychopath!"

Penelope Howard hugged her daughter, smiling viciously. "Don't worry, my darling. Anna is a mental patient with no money and no power. She has no choice. She will beg and thank us for finding her a husband."

"Is that so?"

A cold voice interrupted them.

The heavy oak doors swung open. Anna walked in, wearing a simple dress Lucy had bought her, but her aura filled the room with suffocating pressure.

Penelope froze. This. wasn't the broken girl she sent away.

"Anna!" Penelope quickly masked her shock with arrogance. "How dare you be so rude, barging in without knocking like some wild animal? Is this what you learned in that place?"

Anna walked straight up to them. She didn't stop until she was inches from Penelope's face.

"I learned many things in the madhouse, Stepmother," Anna tilted her head, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Like how to deal with pests."

"You—"

"I heard you want me to marry into the Sterling family in Megan's place," Anna interrupted, glancing at the terrified Megan. "I agree."

Penelope and Megan let out a breath of relief.

"But," Anna added coldly. "I have a condition."