Discarded Daughter: The Billionaire's True Lady

The cold sea wind whipped against Azaria Warren's face.

Her thin dress billowed around her legs, a frantic dance that mirrored the chaos surging wildly in her chest.

Her father, Arthur Warren, stared straight at her. His eyes were cold and detached, just like a ruthless businessman staring at a useless asset that still had residual value to exploit. There was no trace of paternal affection, no slightest bond of family between them.

Hattie Warren, her stepsister, huddled timidly against Arthur's side. A clean white bandage was tightly wrapped around her eyes, and her slender body trembled constantly, making her look like a vulnerable frightened deer trapped in bright car headlights.

An icy hand clutched tightly at Azaria's heart. She had seen through this farce long ago. All the accidents and misunderstandings were nothing but elaborate traps laid by Hattie again and again.

Hattie's fragile, trembling voice cut through the howling sea wind and broke the heavy silence. "Dad, I'm in constant pain every day because of my injured eyes. I can't see anything, and I'm scared all the time..." She paused softly, then turned to Azaria with pretended kindness. "I don't blame my sister at all. I just... I just need a pair of healthy corneas to regain my sight."

A bitter and mocking laugh burst out from Azaria's throat, rough and sharp just like torn coarse fabric. "Cut the act, Hattie. Your hypocritical performance is getting more flawless each time."

Her elder brother Ford Warren stepped forward abruptly, his face twisted with feigned anger and harsh condemnation. "Azaria! How can you be so cruel? Hattie lost her sight because of your mistake. It is only right for you to make up for her and donate your corneas to her. This is the only way you can repay our family!"

Ford's words were sharp poisoned blades, piercing straight through her ribs and stabbing into her heart. She once adored and trusted this elder brother wholeheartedly, yet all those warm and precious memories had turned into cold ashes in an instant.

She opened her mouth to defend herself, to expose Hattie's lie and fight back against the unfair accusation, but Arthur raised his hand abruptly and silenced her with a cold gesture. His tone was absolute and merciless, exactly like a judge announcing an irreversible verdict.

"Enough nonsense."

He fixed his cold gaze on Azaria, every heavy word pounding on her mind like a stone crashing into the turbulent seawater below the yacht. "The Warren family gave you a wealthy life that you could never own on your own. Now it is time for you to give back everything you owe us."

Azaria froze completely. She swept her desperate gaze across the yacht deck, only to find all her other brothers standing behind Arthur uniformly. Every face was filled with indifferent disgust and firm determination. All of them stood on Hattie's side, unanimously forcing her to sacrifice her eyes for the scheming stepsister.

At that moment, a cold, stark clarity crashed over her as she came face to face with a brutal truth: she would never be a true member of the Warren family. Even though she was the blood-born daughter of the household, she was nothing more than a spare tool in her family's eyes - a reserve organ donor waiting to be drained of every last bit of her value at any moment.

Hattie raised her head slightly, her soft voice covered with disgusting false mercy and hidden greed. "Sister, don't resist stubbornly. Just agree to the corneal donation operation peacefully. After you donate your eyes, Dad and brothers will still take care of you. You still have other ways to live out the rest of your life."

"Take care of me?" Azaria let out a hoarse laugh filled with despair. She finally saw through the whole plan of the entire family.

Arthur let out a harsh and cold laugh, and a ruthless glint flashed across his eyes. "You have no right to refuse, Azaria. Every breath you take in these years is granted by the Warren family. You must use your corneas to make up for Hattie's suffering. This is your unavoidable responsibility."

Terrifying cold dread flooded Azaria's whole body in an instant. She stepped backward instinctively in fear, and the heel of her leather shoe slammed hard against the hard metal railing of the luxury yacht.

Arthur strode towards her without hesitation, his tall and broad figure casting a thick shadow that completely enveloped her, leaving her no room to escape.

"We pulled you out of the impoverished rust belt of Pennsylvania and gave you wealth, status and a stable family. Now you have to pay back the debt with your most valuable thing." His low voice mixed with the roaring sea wind, just like a devil's bewitching whisper.

Panic and rage exploded inside Azaria. She refused to sacrifice her eyes for a lie, refused to become a tool exploited by this cold-blooded family. She struggled fiercely, trying to push away Arthur who kept approaching her, and tried to run for her life towards the cabin.

"I won't agree! I will never donate my corneas!" Azaria screamed hoarsely, but all her angry cries were swallowed by the violent sea wind and dissipated into the vast ocean without a trace.

Seeing her fierce resistance, Ford and other brothers rushed forward together to restrain her. Multiple powerful hands grabbed her arms and shoulders tightly, pinning her in place and cutting off all her escape routes completely.

Hot tears of despair blurred Azaria's vision. She looked up at her father, her voice trembling and broken with the last trace of helpless pleading. "Dad... please let me go..."

Yet Arthur's face remained as cold and hard as carved stone, without any wavering compassion. He leaned close to her ear, his voice turning into a cold venomous hiss only audible to her alone. "Your pair of eyes is bright and perfect. They are the most suitable gift for Hattie."

The whole world fell into a dead silence instantly. All blood in Azaria's veins turned into piercing ice. They wanted her corneas. The whole family wanted to force her to give up her eyesight to satisfy Hattie's selfish desire.

The huge shock and grief numbed her body for a split second. During this moment of stagnation, Arthur lost his patience completely. He pushed her violently in a fit of anger, and her surrounding brothers also shoved her body hard without hesitation.

Azaria's body lost balance completely and tipped backward abruptly. She tumbled over the cold metal railing, falling down towards the dark and endless ocean abyss weightlessly and helplessly.

The last scene she caught sight of before falling was Hattie slowly tearing off the white bandage wrapped around her eyes. Her eyes were bright, intact and completely uninjured. And in those clear and flawless pupils, Azaria saw undisguised, rampant and venomous victory.

Right after that, the icy frigid water of the Atlantic Ocean swallowed her whole in an instant. The extreme cold impacted her body fiercely, and the urgent desire for oxygen burned sharply in her lungs. Thick darkness closed in rapidly and completely. Her last thought before losing consciousness was not fear of death, but a roaring hatred burning far hotter than the freezing seawater surrounding her.