Chapter 1
For twenty years, Elara had been the Sterling family’s pampered darling. Then, the real daughter showed up with a DNA report.
That’s when I learned I was nothing but an imposter, mistakenly swapped at birth.
Humiliation burned through me. I packed my bags, ready to leave, but on my last night in the house, Damien Sterling, the eldest son, hauled me into his car.
The brother who’d always been so cold, so distant, pinned me against the plush leather seats, pushing me to tears three times over.
My throat was raw from crying, but he just clamped his hand around my waist, whispering, “I’ve wanted to do this to you for a long, long time.”
Only then did I understand—
His coldness all these years? It was just a mask, a forced restraint.
Soon after, he announced our engagement. No one could talk him out of it.
When Mr. and Mrs. Sterling objected, he stripped them of their authority, becoming the sole ruler of the Sterling empire.
When Brooke, the real daughter, cried and threw tantrums, he cut off all her credit cards, threatening to send her away if she didn’t quit.
I couldn’t accept being with the brother I’d grown up with. I ran countless times, but he dragged me back every single time.
He had eyes everywhere. There was no escape.
Until half a month ago. He’d driven out late at night to buy me a cake I was craving, and he got into a car accident.
When he woke up… he’d forgotten everything.
The Sterling family rejoiced. When they introduced me to him, they didn’t say I was the girl he loved to the point of madness. They just said I was the household maid.
And now, with Damien’s amnesia, they saw their chance to finally get rid of me.
“Here’s a hundred million.”
Mr. and Mrs. Sterling eagerly pushed a check across the table towards me. “Damien has amnesia now, he doesn’t remember you. Take this money and leave, quickly. We raised you, and now we’re begging you—never appear before him again. Never let him find you.”
After a long silence, I finally spoke.
“Fine. I’ll finalize all my overseas paperwork within two weeks and never return to the country.”
I took the flimsy check. This past year felt like a grotesque dream.
They wanted me gone, and truthfully, I wanted to leave too.
Damien had spoiled me rotten this past year, it was true, but I couldn’t bear the weight of his obsessive, forceful love.
With Damien’s amnesia, this was my only chance to escape him.
“What are you doing?”
Just then, the front door swung open. Damien stood there, perfectly tailored in a suit, followed by Brooke. His imposing presence, the aura of a man in power, silently filled the room, making the air feel thick and heavy.
Mr. and Mrs. Sterling’s faces paled. They quickly put on strained smiles. “Nothing, nothing at all. Just giving some instructions to the household maid.”
Mrs. Sterling nudged Mr. Sterling, chuckling nervously. “We’re going upstairs for our afternoon nap.”
Before leaving, she shot me a venomous glare, a clear warning.
I lowered my eyes, clutching the hundred-million-dollar check. I was about to turn back to the maid’s quarters when…
“Stop right there.”
Damien’s voice was as cold as ice.
I froze, head bowed, my heart nearly stopping.
The sound of his dress shoes on the polished floor grew closer. The next second, my chin was roughly yanked up, forcing me to meet his dark, fathomless eyes.
My breath hitched. My mind replayed all those moments—pinned against the floor-to-ceiling windows, pressed into the bedsheets, even held down on the kitchen island.
His thumb brushed against my chin, his gaze frigid. “What perfume are you wearing?”
I opened my mouth, about to answer…
“Don’t wear it again.” He let go, his voice laced with disgust. “Maids should act like maids. Don’t try to seduce anyone.”
My fingertips curled.
He used to bury his face in my neck, chuckling low, asking, “What did you spray? Smells so good.”
I’d shake my head, “Nothing.”
He’d bite my earlobe, laughing huskily in my ear, “Even your natural scent is this good? Elara, truly every part of you was born for me. Don’t you dare leave me. Wherever you run, I’ll find you. Understand?”
I once thought I’d never escape. But this time, fate had given me a chance…
I didn’t explain or argue with him, just nodded. “Understood, Master Damien.”
Watching him turn and enter his study, I let out a shaky breath. I was about to go back and pack my luggage when Brooke suddenly lunged at me, slapping me hard across the face!
“Elara, how shameless can you be?!” she shrieked, her voice shrill. “You tried to seduce my brother before, and now he has amnesia, and you’re still trying to hook him?!”
“Let me tell you, my brother already has a fiancée!” She sneered triumphantly. “The engagement news will be announced soon. This sister-in-law is a thousand, a million times better than you!”
My body trembled slightly.
A fiancée?
Right. He had amnesia now. With the Sterling family’s status, prospective partners for a strategic alliance would be lining up.
But it no longer concerned me.
Brooke still wasn’t done. She snapped, “Guards, seize her! Throw her into the cold storage! Let her know the consequences of seducing my brother!”
The bodyguards exchanged uneasy glances. No one dared to move.
Everyone knew how much Damien had doted on me before.
Once, a business partner simply touched my arm, and the next day, that man’s hand appeared on Damien’s desk.
Brooke fumed, shaking with rage. “My brother has amnesia now! She’s neither the lady of the house nor the person my brother loves anymore! What are you afraid of?!”
She pointed at a bodyguard. “If you don’t grab her, I’ll fire all of you!”
The guards still hesitated.
Just then, the study door flew open—
Damien frowned. “What’s all this racket?”
Brooke immediately plastered on a fawning smile. “Brother, Elara was inefficient, and I wanted to punish her by sending her to cold storage, but these bodyguards won’t listen to me!”
Damien’s gaze swept coldly over the bodyguards, his voice chilling. “What did she give you that you won’t even obey your master?”
He looked at me, his eyes filled with disgust. “Drag her away quickly. Don’t be an eyesore here.”
With that, he slammed the door shut.
With Damien’s words, the bodyguards no longer had any qualms.
I closed my eyes, letting the bodyguards drag me away.
I’d always hated the cold, which was why Damien always kept the mansion warm, like eternal spring.
At night, when my hands and feet were icy, he’d even deign to cradle my feet against his chest, warming them.
But now, he had personally given the order to lock me in here as punishment.
The cold was bone-deep. I curled up in the corner, my consciousness fading.
It’s fine. Just endure it.
I’d be free soon.
Soon, I could… be Elara again, not Damien Sterling’s private possession.
Just as I was about to lose consciousness, I faintly heard someone screaming my name like a madman.
“Elara!!”
A figure burst into the cold storage, trembling as he lifted me into his arms.
Chapter 2
When I next awoke, I was met with the harsh, glaring white of a hospital room.
“Elara, how are you? Is there anywhere else you’re uncomfortable?”
A familiar voice reached my ears, followed by a gentle, kind face. Liam Parker sat by my bedside, his eyes bloodshot. He looked like he’d been watching over me for a long time.
“…Liam?”
My memory from before I fainted slowly trickled back. I forced myself to sit up. “Was it you who saved me?”
Liam nodded, his voice laced with lingering fear. “I tried calling you repeatedly, but you didn’t answer. When I rushed to the Sterling mansion, I heard you’d been locked in the cold storage…”
He trailed off mid-sentence as the hospital room TV suddenly blared a news report—
“Sterling Financial Group and Reed Industries formally announce their engagement today. Mr. Damien Sterling and Miss Seraphina Reed will hold their wedding next month…”
On screen, Damien was impeccably dressed in a suit, his face stern, while Seraphina, clinging to his arm, smiled radiantly.
A perfect match, made in heaven.
Liam immediately grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.
A brief silence fell in the room.
After a few seconds, he took a deep breath and looked at me. “Elara, I know about everything that’s happened recently.”
“Before, you couldn’t escape, but now… Damien has amnesia.” His voice was soft but firm. “I’ll take you away. How about it?”
I lowered my eyes. “Thank you, Liam. I’ve already made arrangements to finalize my overseas paperwork.”
“The Sterling family has been in politics for three generations. He can’t leave the country.” I paused. “As long as I go abroad, he’ll never see me again.”
A flicker of joy crossed Liam’s eyes. He instinctively reached out and grasped my hand. “That’s wonderful! I’ll go with you to get the paperwork done!”
I tensed slightly, subtly pulling my hand away.
He realized his overstep and quickly apologized. “I’m sorry, I just… I got too excited.”
He paused again, his gaze serious and gentle. “But I hope you understand how I feel.”
“It’s been so long. You can tell, right?”
I remained silent, offering no reply.
Of course, I knew.
From the very first day Damien had taken me by force, Liam had been secretly helping me.
He had once proactively offered to help me escape, but I knew Damien’s methods better than anyone.
I’d tried running ten or more times, and not once had I succeeded. The longest I’d lasted was no more than ten minutes before being dragged back.
Once, a man at a bar merely tried to chat me up, and the very next day, his entire presence vanished from the city.
Damien’s influence spread like an inescapable net. I couldn’t get away, and I certainly didn’t dare implicate Liam.
So, I had never responded to his feelings.
I closed my eyes, my fingertips trembling slightly. “Liam, I…”
He seemed to sense what I was about to say and quickly cut me off. “I’m not asking you to respond right now!”
“I just want to tell you…” He took a deep breath, his voice gentle and firm. “Once you leave this place, you can finally live your own life.”
“Do the work you love, go to places you like, and… fall in love, the kind that makes your heart flutter.”
He smiled, a hint of bitterness in his eyes. “Even if it’s not with me, I’ll be happy for you.”
“I just hope you can return to a normal life and not be affected by this past year.”
I froze for a moment, my eyes welling up.
After a long pause, I softly said, “Thank you.”
“Once I leave here, I’ll resume a peaceful life.” I looked out at the bright sunshine through the window, my voice light. “Travel, work, and… fall in love.”
Liam finally breathed a sigh of relief, his brows relaxing. “Then I’ll go with you to get the paperwork done.”
That afternoon, Liam accompanied me to complete the expedited overseas procedures.
“Your visa should be ready in two weeks at the fastest.” The staff handed back my ID. “Have a pleasant trip.”
Stepping out of the embassy, I let out a long breath. The sunlight warmed my face, and a long-lost sense of ease washed over me.
Liam drove me back to the mansion, and all the way, he chatted casually about my arrangements abroad.
He said that once the paperwork came through, I should go first. His family also had businesses overseas, and he would apply to transfer there.
“Elara, don’t feel pressured,” he added quickly, as if fearing I’d refuse. “Our family just happens to be expanding into the overseas market; it’s not specifically for you.”
The car stopped at the mansion gates. I was about to get out when Liam suddenly called out, “Wait.”
He reached out and gently smoothed my wind-blown hair, his movements as tender as if he were handling something fragile and precious.
I instinctively looked up, but the next second, my entire body stiffened.
Not far away, on the steps, an icy gaze was fixed on me!
Chapter 3
Damien stood there, impeccably dressed in a suit, his features stark, his imposing presence silently permeating the air.
My fingertips trembled. I quickly told Liam, “You should go first.”
Liam didn’t notice anything amiss and continued, “Once the paperwork is ready, you…”
“Just go!” My voice was tight, almost a plea, as I looked at him.
He paused, then finally nodded. “Alright. Be careful.”
Only when his car drove away did I dare to turn, walking step by step towards the steps.
Damien remained there, his gaze fixed on me, the emotions in his dark eyes unreadable.
I was trembling all over, I could almost hear my own heart pounding wildly.
Would he be angry?
Or would he be like before, breaking someone’s hand just because they touched me?
But in the end, I heard his cold voice:
“We have guests. Go make some tea.”
With that, he turned and walked away, his footsteps fading.
I stood frozen for a while before I dared to look up.
He… showed no emotion.
It seemed he really had amnesia.
I breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the kitchen to make tea.
But when I carried the tea into the living room, I found there was another person there.
I recognized her at a glance—it was Seraphina Reed, the woman who had been announced as Damien’s fiancée on the news.
Currently, Mr. and Mrs. Sterling, and Brooke, were all gathered around her, smiling broadly as they discussed wedding arrangements.
Damien sat to the side, not interjecting, listening calmly.
I lowered my head, brought the tea over, and softly said, “Miss Reed, your tea.”
Seraphina looked up at me, a subtle smile playing on her lips.
She reached out to take the cup, but the next second, she suddenly “accidentally” knocked it over—
The scalding tea splashed all over Seraphina.
Before I could even react, Brooke had already swung her hand, slapping me hard across the face!
“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?!”
I opened my mouth, instinctively wanting to explain—
“I didn’t…”
But before I could finish, Brooke shrieked, cutting me off, then turned to Damien to complain:
“Brother! I’ve been meaning to tell you, this maid has impure intentions towards you!”
She pointed at me with a disgusted expression. “She secretly collects your things, she’s clearly a troublemaker! Now that she knows you’re engaged to Seraphina, she’s gone mad with jealousy and deliberately scalded her!”
I felt a chill run through my body, unable to believe she could twist facts like that.
“I didn’t…” My voice trembled, but before I could finish, Seraphina also spoke up.
She looked at Damien, her eyes slightly red, her voice weak. “Damien, with your status, many people will try to cling to you. If we don’t punish her severely, there might be more imitators in the future.”
Mr. and Mrs. Sterling immediately chimed in, “Exactly! She must be severely punished!”
I froze, suddenly realizing—
This was an act.
A trap they had set together.
And Damien despised anyone who tried to seduce him.
Sure enough, the next second, I heard his icy voice:
“Drag her away and carry out the family punishment.”
After saying that, he bent down, scooped Seraphina into his arms, and walked upstairs without a backward glance. “I’ll call the private doctor.”
I didn’t even have a chance to utter another word of defense before two bodyguards seized my arms and roughly dragged me out.
Outside the mansion, the night was deep and dark.
Brooke held a rattan cane with thorns, her face alight with undisguised excitement and malice.
“Elara, you’ve finally fallen into my hands.”
She raised the cane and brought it down hard!
Smack!
The first whip landed, tearing my skin open.
“This whip is for stealing my identity!”
Smack!
The second whip, raw and mangled.
“This whip is for seducing my brother!”
Smack!
“This whip is for being ungrateful!”
…
“Hahaha, scream, why aren’t you screaming wildly now? My brother won’t stand up for you anymore!”
I bit my lip hard, forcing myself not to cry out.
But the thorns on the cane dug into my flesh, each strike feeling like it was tearing me apart alive.
Blood trickled down my back, my arms, my legs… dropping one by one onto the ground.
Ninety-nine lashes.
Brooke seemed determined to vent all her years of rage. She whipped harder and harder until, finally, my consciousness began to blur.
All I could hear was her shrill curses and the dull thud of the cane ripping through flesh.
When the last whip fell, I finally couldn’t hold on any longer and collapsed heavily into the pool of my own blood.
Chapter 4
When I next awoke, I found myself locked in a warehouse.
The wounds on my back had formed a thin scab, and even the slightest movement sent searing pain through me. I forced myself to get up, knocking on the door.
A cold voice from outside replied, “Miss Brooke said you haven’t learned your lesson yet, so you’ll remain locked up for three more days, without food or water.”
He paused, then added, “Master Damien also agreed.”
I slid down the door to the floor, and a sudden, bitter laugh escaped me.
Brooke hated me, and I knew it better than anyone.
Years ago, due to a twist of fate, I had occupied her rightful place as the Sterling heiress, leaving her to suffer outside.
She had finally been reunited with her family, but Damien had refused to let me, the fake daughter, leave, spoiling me rotten, so much so that Brooke couldn’t even make me go away.
Now, Damien had amnesia. He didn’t remember me, nor his insane, possessive love for me.
Brooke finally had her chance for revenge.
I leaned against the cold warehouse wall, not struggling, not knocking on the door again.
Anyway… in a few more days, I would be completely free.
There was no need to add complications at the last minute.
Let it be.
There were no windows in the warehouse, so it was impossible to tell day from night.
I huddled in the corner, unable to sleep because of the pain from my wounds, counting my breaths to pass the time.
Brooke would have someone throw in a stack of photos every day.
The photos were all intimate moments between Damien and Seraphina—
He was pictured with his arm around Seraphina’s waist at a party, leaning in to whisper in her ear;
He bent down to adjust her dress, a gentlemanly and gentle gesture;
He placed a diamond ring on Seraphina’s hand in front of everyone, pulling her into an embrace and kissing her;
On the back of each photo, Brooke had scrawled taunting words in red ink—
“This is what my brother’s fiancée should look like.”
“What are you, anyway?”
“Stop dreaming. He’ll never remember you.”
Three days later, the warehouse door finally creaked open.
Blinding light poured in, and I squinted, seeing Brooke standing in the doorway, looking down at me with disdain.
“Seraphina’s birthday party? My brother went all out,” she said, her smile dripping with malice. “What are you waiting for? Get to the party and serve as a waitress!”
I pushed myself up against the wall, my legs so weak I could barely stand, but there was no room to refuse.
After hastily applying some medicine, drinking some water, and eating a little something, I was rushed to the banquet hall.
True to Brooke’s words, Damien had spared no expense for Seraphina’s birthday party.
The entire banquet hall was decorated to resemble a starry night sky, crystal chandeliers reflecting brilliant light, and champagne towers stacked taller than a person.
But the most striking thing was Damien’s gift to Seraphina.
A blue diamond necklace worth hundreds of millions.
He personally placed it around her neck, and the entire hall erupted in applause.
Even so, whispers rippled through the crowd—
“Did Damien really lose his memory? He used to be so crazy for Elara…”
“Shhh! Lower your voice! The Sterling family is audacious, arranging a fiancée for him while he has amnesia. Who knows what will happen if he ever remembers and overturns the whole family…”
“I heard his amnesia is permanent, the doctors said so…”
I kept my head down, quietly going about my tasks, as if these conversations had nothing to do with me.
Until—
A pair of high heels stopped in front of me.
I looked up, meeting Seraphina’s smiling eyes.
“Elara.” She swirled the champagne in her hand, her red lips curving into a faint smile. “Are you satisfied with the little gift I gave you last time?”
I looked up at Seraphina. “You really don’t have to be like this.”
I said softly, “Damien has amnesia now, he has no feelings for me, and I won’t interfere with you two.”
Seraphina chuckled, her red lips curling into a mocking arc.
“You say that so easily. I’ve loved him for so many years. Do you know how happy I was when I finally got my wish for a marriage alliance?”
Her nails dug into my arm, her eyes swirling with twisted hatred.
“And what happened? He turned around and announced he only wanted you! I loved him so much that I even came to him, offering a hundred billion dollar corporation as a dowry, but he didn’t even blink, and threw me out…”
Her voice started to tremble. “That day, it was pouring rain, and I still went looking for him, only to see him coaxing you into bed again. I witnessed it with my own eyes, him pressing you against the floor-to-ceiling window, with such tenderness, such profound affection, saying that in this whole world, he only wanted you…”
“Do you know how desperate I was that day? And now, your single phrase ‘I won’t interfere’ is supposed to erase all the pain I suffered?!”
She stepped back, elegantly smoothed her dress, her smile sweet and malicious.
“Elara, remember this: I will make you wish for death, but never find it.”
With that, she turned and walked away.
I stood rooted to the spot, cold sweat breaking out on my back. A strong sense of unease washed over me.
I put down the tray and was about to leave when Seraphina’s panicked voice suddenly echoed through the banquet hall—
“My necklace is gone!”
The entire hall erupted in murmurs.
“That’s the blue diamond necklace Master Damien just gave her!”
“Who would be so bold as to steal it?”
In the chaos, Seraphina looked at me pitifully, her finger directly pointing at me. “I only spoke to her a moment ago…”
In an instant, all eyes shot to me.
Damien’s gaze was the coldest, like a blade dipped in ice.
Chapter 5
Before I could even react, Brooke had already rushed over with the bodyguards.
“Search her!” she shrieked.
I struggled to back away. “I didn’t steal it…”
But the bodyguards roughly pinned me down, publicly stripping my clothes.
“Found it!” Brooke announced triumphantly, holding up the blue diamond necklace.
She swung her hand back and slapped me again. Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth.
“Haven’t you learned your lesson from last time?!” she screeched.
My vision swam, but I still insisted, “I didn’t steal it… There are security cameras here, we can check the surveil…”
Smack!
Another slap cut me off.
Brooke turned to Damien, her voice venomous. “Brother, it seems she’s still not over you. Last time she deliberately scalded Seraphina, and this time she stole Seraphina’s necklace. I think we need to make her completely understand her place!”
She flashed a cruel smile. “I just saw a vagrant outside the hotel. How about we let them spend the night together?”
My blood ran cold.
But the next second, I heard Damien calmly say, “Mm-hmm,” his eyes filled with utter disgust.
At that moment, I felt like I’d been struck by lightning.
I didn’t care about anything else. I lunged, grabbing his sleeve. “I didn’t steal this necklace! I have no intentions toward you whatsoever! Damien, check the cameras, I…”
Brooke’s face contorted in rage, and she sharply interrupted, “Drag her away!”
A bodyguard roughly yanked my hair.
I clung desperately to Damien’s sleeve, my fingertips turning white.
But he, one by one, pried my fingers away.
An icy sensation spread from my fingertips to my heart.
As the last finger was pried open, I heard him say—
“Dirty.”
At that moment, I bit down hard on my teeth, tears streaming uncontrollably down my face.
Memories flooded back like a tide: the days he cherished me, the times he’d worry for hours if I so much as bumped myself…
A year ago, I had a fever of 102 degrees, and he flew back from overseas overnight, staying by my bedside for three days without closing his eyes.
Six months ago, a wealthy heir chatted me up at a party, and the next day, his family business declared bankruptcy.
Three months ago, I wanted a cake from the west side of the city in the middle of the night, and he drove himself to get it, resulting in a car accident.
For the past year, he had claimed me countless times, day and night, like an addiction.
And now, standing beneath the glittering crystal chandeliers in the banquet hall, he personally handed me over to a filthy vagrant.
He even slowly wiped his fingers with a handkerchief, as if touching me was something repulsive.
The bodyguards threw me into a dim guest room and locked the door from the outside.
I curled up in the corner, the wounds on my back burning.
Not long after, the door was pushed open, and a man reeking of stale sweat and grime walked in.
He was in rags, his hair matted, and he bared a mouth full of yellow teeth, his eyes gleaming with a repulsive light.
“Little beauty…” He rubbed his hands together and lunged at me.
I screamed and dodged, grabbing a bedside lamp and throwing it at him. He grunted in pain, cursed, and slapped me across the face.
“You little bitch, try disobeying again. Miss Brooke said I could do whatever I wanted tonight…”
He pressed me onto the bed, his filthy hands tearing at my collar.
I screamed and kicked, my nails raking blood across his face, but he bound my hands with his belt.
Just as he was about to succeed, I felt the flower vase on the bedside table.
Smash!
The vase shattered on his head. He groaned and collapsed.
I broke free, stumbling out the door.
The hallway was empty. I ran barefoot, terrified the vagrant would chase me.
In a panic, I pushed open a slightly ajar door and slipped inside.
The room was pitch black. I held my breath, shrinking into the corner.
I was safe…
I was about to let out a sigh of relief when the bathroom door suddenly opened—
“Who’s there?”
Damien’s deep voice, laced with a hint of intoxication, drifted out.
My blood ran cold.
Chapter 6
In the darkness, Damien’s footsteps grew closer. I instinctively edged towards the door, but then his voice echoed again:
“Seraphina?” His voice was low. “Why are you in my room? Didn’t I say there’s no need to rush between us, and we should wait until after the wedding to share a room?”