The Runaway's Revenge

a funeral. She sat in front of the vanity mirror, staring at her own reflection. The white lace of her wedding dress felt heavy, like a cage made of silk and be

herself. Her voice trembled, barely audible over the d

ou. I can't leave you alone in this world." Liana, ever the dutiful daughter, had swallowed her dreams

the right things when their parents were watching. She truly believed that even if

mother-in-law. Instead, she saw Raka. He wasn't wearing his tuxedo ja

orframe. He didn't look at her with admiration. He looked at her like

.. it's a lot to take in," Liana rep

id the ceremony, the papers are signed. Just come downstairs, smile for the cam

draft in the room. Liana felt a shiver run down her spine. A week. She ju

m she found w

ing house they lived in felt haunted. Liana spent her days wandering the cold hallways, her art supplies still packed in cardboard boxes in

the mansion. Liana was heading to the kitchen to make some tea when she noticed something stra

ing chores. It was high-pitched, flirtatious. Then c

ess' hears you, we're in trouble," R

eeling like she had swallowed glass. She moved closer, her

the young maid who had been hired just two weeks before the wedding. They weren't just talkin

too busy playing the mourning daughter in her room. Why did you even

father's will was tied to that old woman's friendship. If I didn't marry Liana, I'd lose the CEO c

saction for a man who disgusted her. She didn't cry-not yet. Instead, a cold, sharp clarity washed over her

g softly on the marble. She didn't

face turning pale. Raka, however, didn't look guilty. He looked annoyed. He

to knock," he said, his v

sharp. "Is that all I am? While you roll around with t

edit cards, and you have the family name. Just go back upstairs and pretend you d

here is nothing civil about this, Raka

you going to do? Run away? You have no money, no parents left, and no care

idn't recognize the man she had promised to spend her life

tugging at the diamond ring that felt like a parasite. It was tight, stubborn, but she pulled until her

he maid, who was trembling

ay, calling her ungrateful, calling her a fool. But Liana didn't stop. She went to the guest room, gr

widow of a living marriage, a divorcée befor

ity blurred into streaks of color. Eventually, her legs gave out near a high-end shopping plaz

sobbed into her knee

use

d. Standing in front of her was a little girl, maybe five or six years old. She had long, dark hair and

eyes wide with curiosity. "You look like the sad

nded more like a sob. "I'm not a princess,

ld you not

sed in a sharp charcoal suit that screamed power, even with a black umbrella held over his head. His face was chis

life, Liana recognized the face from business ma

ked to the bone, looking like a drowned bird. His eyes flicked from Lian

ow," Adrian said, h

nd she has paints! Look!" M

looked at her wet clothes, her messy hair, and the way she held onto her art supplies like t

bly stiff and formal. He didn't ask if she was okay. He didn't offer hi

ng in the puddles. She suddenly broke free from her father's grip and hugged Liana

oyance and something else-a flash of frustration. "I apologi

pirit wasn't entirely broken. "She's just being kind," Liana said,

rivals, and certainly not a girl who looked like she had just crawled

ity," Adrian snapped. He pulled Mika ba

ng her hand. Liana watched them go, feeling the cold seep into her bones. She didn

in the yellow raincoat had just decid

lost everything today-her mother's house, her husband, her reputation. But as she looked at her paint b

ast, but toward a future she couldn't yet see. A future where she would have to face a man even more dif

e had to surv