From Beggar To Billionaire, From Princess To Prisoner

Every sentence cut deep, and the pain sank straight into Vanessa's chest.

Her body shook uncontrollably, and she bit down hard on her lower lip until blood seeped out and left a bitter, metallic taste on her tongue.

In that moment, Vanessa understood she had already lost. The defeat had been sealed the instant she stepped into this office.

After remaining frozen for what felt like forever, she finally turned to face Shawn, and the color had completely drained from her face.

"Okay." The word slipped out of her mouth, dry and hollow, followed by a breath heavy with despair. "I agree."

As darkness settled over the city, a black Bentley came to a stop in front of a villa by the river.

Without giving Vanessa time to resist, Shawn pulled her inside, and the lights came on one by one.

Beneath an extravagant crystal chandelier, a spotless white grand piano stood beside the wide window, and beyond it, the river shimmered quietly in the night.

Vanessa's eyes locked onto the piano. She was unable to look away.

Back when they were still together, she had once laughed and said to the struggling Shawn, "When we finally have a home, we need a white piano and a balcony where we can watch the stars."

At the time, he had said nothing, and she believed he hadn't taken her words to heart, yet the piano now stood before her, undeniable and painfully real.

A sharp, suffocating ache spread through Vanessa's chest and refused to ease.

Catching the way her attention drifted, Shawn followed her line of sight and released a short, cold scoff. "What is that look for? Do you think this was meant for you?"

Moving closer, he reached out and struck several piano keys at random, and the clashing notes shattered the quiet.

"Do not overestimate yourself. Everything in this place exists only to remind me of how stupid and laughable I used to be," Shawn said.

The cold ridicule in his eyes shattered the fragile illusion she had built, and it dragged her back into the merciless truth. Once again, she had forgotten that this was not about love returning, but about revenge being fulfilled.

Later that night, Vanessa had barely stepped out of the bathroom when powerful arms wrapped around her and hurled her onto the soft mattress.

On top of her, Shawn filled her vision, and his presence carried a brutal sense of dominance.

There were no kisses and no tenderness. What followed was nothing but punishment.

Every movement felt deliberate, as though he intended to carve five years of buried hatred into her body and leave nothing untouched.

Pain tightened Vanessa's jaw as she clamped her teeth down and forced herself to stay silent.

Tears slipped free without a sound and dampened the pillow beneath her cheek.

Taking in Vanessa's tear-stained face, Shawn let out a harsh, mocking remark. "We have been through this before, so why pretend to resist now? Or are you holding yourself back for someone else?"

Rather than answer Shawn, Vanessa turned her head away and bit her lip again, but before she could escape, his hand seized her chin and dragged her back, and an angry kiss crashed onto her mouth.

"Whoever it is, end it completely," Shawn said with cold finality. "I will not accept a woman who betrays me."

Morning arrived with a dull ache spreading through Vanessa's body, and her thoughts felt slow and heavy.

Beside her, the other side of the bed had already gone cold.

Fully dressed and flawless, Shawn stood near the bed while adjusting his tie, and nothing about him hinted at the brutality of the night before.

A glance fell on her, and his eyes held the same indifference one might give an object.

"Last night was acceptable." His thin lips moved, delivering words that cut deeper than anything else. "I will name your price. Two hundred thousand per night. It will be deducted from the cost of your parents' case."

Those words shattered Vanessa's heart, and the ache in her chest made every breath feel heavy and strained.

Without sparing her another glance, Shawn reached for his suit jacket and turned away. "Clean yourself up. I do not want you looking this lifeless when I return."

A loud slam echoed as the door closed, and Vanessa remained in a daze for a while before she finally forced herself out of bed.

Barely a second later, her legs buckled, and she almost crumpled to the floor.

Bruises marked her body, and after she managed to wash up and steady herself, faint sounds drifted up from downstairs.

Inside the living room, the butler was instructing the staff to carry in neat rows of brand-new clothes, handbags, and shoes. Every item was placed carefully inside the walk-in closet, all chosen in her size.

With a respectful bow, the butler said, "Miss Owen, Mr. Madison prepared all of this for you."

Had this happened a day earlier, Vanessa might have read too much into it, but after remembering Shawn's warning from the night before, she felt only bitter irony while staring at the luxurious display.

He had crushed her dignity without mercy, and then he tried to confine her with lavish possessions. Thinking of that, Vanessa lowered her gaze and replied in a calm, detached voice, "Please thank him on my behalf."

A sudden notification sounded from her phone.

The screen showed a message sent from a college reunion group chat.

At the sight of it, Vanessa felt her fingers begin to shake.

Those years in college had held both her proudest memories and her deepest humiliation, all of them tangled with Shawn.

Holding the phone firmly, she typed a quiet "yes" and confirmed her attendance at the reunion.

After the Owen family collapsed into bankruptcy, Vanessa had been disqualified from a design competition she was supposed to enter, and with that, she lost the chance to earn prize money that could have eased the company's burden.

Because of that setback, she placed her remaining hope on the reunion and thought it might offer an opportunity to attract investment.

"Mr. Madison left his phone behind," the butler said politely. "Would you mind bringing it to him, Miss Owen?"

"Alright." After taking the phone from the butler, Vanessa stepped outside and flagged down a taxi, heading straight for the law firm.

At Aegis Law Firm, Shawn had just walked into his office when Bruce Ford, his longtime friend and business partner, lounged against the desk and looked him over with obvious amusement.

"Interesting," Bruce said with a grin. "You look unusually satisfied today. What happened? You spent five years talking about revenge, yet the second she showed up, you took her straight home?"

Any trace of warmth vanished from Shawn's expression, and a sharp chill settled over his features.

"You have no idea what is really going on," he replied flatly. "This is only the start of my revenge."