However, Serena coldly swatted her hand away.


    "You took the photos and sent them to me. If I choose to keep them, that''s my business," she said.


    She added, "As for Zach, I''ve already moved on. If he wants to chase me like a fool, that''s his problem. But you... knowing full well that I have something on you, and still daring toe after me?"


    This time, Serena was the one closing the distance.


    Wendy shrank back in fear, retreating until she mmed into Serena''s car with a dull thud. Her back pressed against the hood, and her legs suddenly went weak.


    Serena leaned in, her sharp gaze locked onto Wendy.


    "You should be terrified of the evidence I hold. If I wanted to, I could make Zach despise you. Without him, you''d be right back in that miserable ce you came from. Don''t push me—I''m running out of patience."


    The mere mention of that miserable ce sent a shiver down Wendy''s spine.


    She didn''t want to go back!


    She couldn''t bear the thought of trudging down those endless, winding mountain roads again. She couldn''t marry some rough, dirt-covered man. Above all, she couldn''t stand the idea of being trapped in that mountain, unable to escape.


    At night, the mountains were pitch ck and bone-chillingly cold. No woman ever made it out alive. Even their bodies were always found and dragged back. Their


    souls could never escape.


    "No! I can''t go back there!"


    Wendy pushed herself up desperately, her eyes wide with fear as she grabbed Serena''s arm.


    "If you delete everything, I''ll pay you whatever you want! Name your price! A few million, ten million-I''ll find a way to get it to you!


    "Serena, you were the one who pulled me out of that hell. Please, if any part of you still remembers, don''t destroy me!"


    Her sobs were raw and ragged, as if the darkness of that ce was once again closing in, choking the life out of her.


    Serena paused for a brief moment.


    So, Wendy still remembered that she was the one who had pulled her out of that nightmare. Then why had she stolen what was never hers to take?


    The ungrateful didn''t deserve sympathy.


    Serena calmly pried Wendy''s fingers off her arm. As she watched the flicker of terror in Wendy''s eyes, a soft, almost gentle smile curved her lips.


    "The life you live is shaped by the choices you make. I have no interest in the millions you squeezed out of Zach, but I do enjoy watching the ungrateful lose sleep over their sins."


    She deliberately stressed the words "lose sleep over their sins", as if they carried a wicked curse.


    Wendy nearly lunged at her, fingers itching to w Serena''s face apart.


    But she didn''t dare. She could only stand there, watching as Serena opened the car door and started the engine.


    Just as she was about to hit the gas, she shot Wendy a cold, piercing look, wordlessly demanding that she move.


    Wendy took two hesitant steps back, but then, from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a familiar figure near the elevator.


    An idea struck her, and she took just a few steps back.


    As Serena''s car brushed past her, a calcting glint flickered in Wendy''s eyes. And then, in one smooth motion, she let herself copse onto the ground. "Agh!"


    "Wendy!" Zach had just stepped out of the elevator when he saw Wendy on the ground. Without hesitation, he rushed over to help her up.


    Inside the car, Serena frowned as she took in the scene. Had she even touched Wendy just now?


    Staging an ident in a parking lot-now that was something.


    Still, staged or not, she couldn''t just sit back and do nothing. She pulled over and stepped out.


    The moment she opened the door, Wendy''s sharp, wailing cries cut through the


    air.


    "Serena! I just wanted to talk to you about yesterday, to clear things up! Why... why do you hate me so much? Did you really have to hit me with your car? Do you really think my life doesn''t matter just because I''m an orphan?"


    Wendy leaned into Zach''s embrace, quietly sobbing.


    Serenazily leaned against her car and let out a scoff. "Even people who stage


    idents know they need to roll on the ground a few times.


    "Not a single scratch on you, yet this is my fault? What happened? Didzmy car suddenly take off at 140 mph, or did your legs just give out, leaving you no choice but to throw yourself onto my hood?"