Crown Of His Affection

The Scars She Hid From The World

REGINA MCBRIDE

The heavy iron gates of the Wilderness Correction Camp groaned as they released me after three years of state-sponsored hell. I stood on the dirt road, clutching a plastic bag that held my entire life, waiting for the family that claimed they sent me there for "rehab." My brother, Brady, picked me up in a luxury SUV only to throw me out onto a deserted highway in the middle of a brewing storm. He told me I was a "public relations nightmare" and that the rain might finally wash the "stink" of the camp off me. He drove away, leaving me to limp miles through the mud on a snapped ankle. When I finally dragged myself to our family estate, my mother didn't offer a hug; she gasped in horror because my muddy clothes were ruining her Italian marble. They didn't give me my old room back. Instead, they banished me to a moldy gardener’s shack and hired a "babysitter" to make sure I didn't embarrass them further. My sister, Kaleigh, stood there in white cashmere, pretending to cry while clinging to her fiancé, Ambrose—the man who had once been mine. They all treated me like a volatile junkie, refusing to acknowledge that Kaleigh was the one who planted the drugs in my bag three years ago. They wanted to believe I was broken so they wouldn't have to feel guilty about the "wellness retreat" that was actually a torture chamber. I sat in the dark of that shed, feeling the cooling gel on the cigarette burns that covered my arms, and realized they had made a fatal mistake. They thought they had erased me, but I had returned with a roadmap of scars and a hidden satellite phone. At dinner, I didn't beg for their love. I simply rolled up my sleeves and showed them the price of their silence. As the wine spilled and the lies crumbled, I sent a single text to the only person I trusted: "I'm in. Let them simmer." The hunt was finally on.

Modern Revenge Scheming Kickass Heroine Comeback Revenge

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Chapter 1

I urgently needed a "sidekick" to finish my final project.

Who would have thought that I'd witness the classic scene of two guys fighting over a girl?

I took a bold step forward and stopped one of the men.

"Hey, I can help you become the sidekick! You can be my research material!"

Seeing that he was unmoved, I bit my lip and sweetened the deal.

"I'll teach you everything, guarantee your success, and I'll be there for you every step of the way."

Later, he cornered me in a booth at the bar, his eyes rimmed with tears, whispering pitifully, "Leanna, where's the after-care service you promised?"

"Bro, you and Corynn are not a good match, understand? I've known Corynn since we were kids. No one knows her better than I do."

I hid around the corner of the stairs, peeking at the confrontation below.

I understood the situation: the childhood sweetheart couldn't compete with the sudden appearance of the male protagonist.

At this moment, the male protagonist was pinned against the wall, his face bruised, yet he stubbornly retorted, "We're already together."

I clung to the railing, glancing at the childhood sweetheart who was indeed rolling up his sleeves.

I quickly ducked back, catching my breath.

Luck was finally on my side.

This semester, I was taking a specialized course called Introduction to Film and Literature.

For my final project, I decided to study the male supporting character in real life.

Literature mirrors reality, so I planned to compare a real-life male supporting character with one from a fictional work.

I wanted to impress my professor and boost my GPA.

But finding the perfect research material was tough. After all, who would run around with "I'm the male supporting character" written on their forehead?

My project progress had come to a standstill.

"You wish!"

Downstairs, the childhood sweetheart grabbed the male protagonist by the collar, his forearm muscles tensed.

His raised fist signaled he was ready to strike.

From my years of reading novels, I could predict how the story would unfold.

After the childhood sweetheart beat up the male protagonist, the female protagonist would feel sorry for the male protagonist and gradually distance herself from the childhood sweetheart.

The childhood sweetheart would convince himself that he had known the female protagonist the longest, and everyone else was just a fleeting presence.

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