The Secret First Lady: From Scorned Wife To National Obsession

"Why are you looking at me like that? How dare you stare me down! Do you really think I will not have someone deal with you?"

As the thought crossed her mind that most of the Sullivan family inheritance was still in Gabriela's possession, Monica felt her fury surge higher.

Driven by that anger, she lashed out and swung her limited edition designer handbag straight at Ryann's face.

To her shock, the adopted daughter, who had never fought back before, caught the bag midair and yanked it with force, sending Monica crashing onto the floor.

"Ah!" Monica slammed down hard, clenching her teeth while pain tore through her body, and it felt as if her bones were close to breaking apart.

Panicked, Maren hurried to her side. "Mom! Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

Anger then twisted her face as she spun toward Ryann. "Gabriela, you ungrateful trash! The Sullivan family took you in and treated you well! Not only do you show no gratitude, but you even dared to hit my mother? If you cannot recognize kindness, then maybe breaking a few more of your bones will finally teach you how to behave!"

While helping Monica to her feet, Maren lifted her arm and swung it forward, intent on taking revenge for her mother.

They actually claimed to treated her sister well?

What a complete joke!

Before Maren could even step closer, Ryann moved without hesitation, striking her with a sharp slap and following it up by driving her foot into Maren's stomach.

Barely two seconds passed before Maren, who had been full of aggression moments earlier, collapsed and curled up on the floor.

Maren shot Ryann a furious glare, and her face contorted with rage.

Never once had she believed that someone they locked away and treated as worthless could still possess such strength.

Nor had it crossed her mind that the girl they once bullied without consequence would ever dare to fight back.

Maren cried out in fury while clutching her face and abdomen. "Mom! She hit me! My face hurts so badly! My stomach too!"

Rushing to her side, Monica bent down and tried to soothe her daughter.

A cruel smile spread across Ryann's lips, and her eyes carried a lethal chill as she looked down at both of them.

"The Sullivan family kept me around for more than ten years, so today I came to repay that kindness. Why are you crying now? Shouldn't this make you happy? Didn't you say you wanted to break a few more of my bones? Then go on."

With deliberate steps, Ryann moved closer, and the pressure in her stare grew heavier with each pace.

Faced with the drastic shift in the woman's presence, both mother and daughter lifted their heads in disbelief at a face that felt familiar yet disturbingly different.

"What… what are you planning to do?"

At first, Monica failed to notice anything out of place, but a closer look made her realize that despite the blood covering "Gabriela", there were no signs of serious injury.

Alarm crept in, and Monica pulled Maren behind her while shaking as she forced out a warning. "Stop! If you come any closer, I will—"

"And then what?" Ryann replied flatly, while countless brutal endings raced through her thoughts.

Worried that Gabriela might lose control and really hurt them, Maren ignored the pain and dug through her handbag in a frantic attempt to find her phone and call for help.

Watching her calmly, Ryann spoke with chilling indifference. "Are you trying to call that obedient boyfriend of yours for help? There's no need. He's already here."

In the very next instant, Myles White, Maren's boyfriend, dragged himself into the Sullivan family villa, and a horrifying streak of blood smeared across the floor behind him.

With his voice torn and uneven, he struggled to beg for mercy. "Maren… Mrs. Sullivan… please… save me…"

The night before, Ryann had subjected him to torment that closely mirrored every injury her sister had endured.

Without the pill she had forced on him to keep his body barely functioning, Myles would never have survived the night.

"Mom… It's Myles!" The moment recognition struck, Maren's eyes flew wide as she turned on Ryann in fury. "You insane woman! What did you do to him?"

Frozen in place, Monica could only stare at the bloodied man sprawled on the floor, shock robbing her of any sound.

"I simply repaid what he gave me," Ryann said with casual indifference while casting a sideways glance at the man barely clinging to life. "I twisted his arms and legs, soaked him in concentrated salt water, tore out his nails, and made him swallow a few not-so-legal substances. Nothing more than that."

Once her words settled, she crouched in front of the two women and reached out with a hand stained by her sister's blood, gripping Monica's chin. "Now it's your turn."

Slowly, Ryann's slender fingers tightened, and the pressure against Monica's jaw grew crushing.

A piercing scream tore from Monica's throat, and all color drained from her face as pain overtook her.

"Gabriela!" In desperation, Maren rushed forward and grabbed Ryann's wrist while forcing out a threatening command. "Give back my father's property and leave this house quietly! If you do that, I can act as if none of this ever happened! If you refuse, I swear I won't let you go!"

At those words, Ryann let out a low, mocking laugh that carried pure disdain.

Fury hardened her expression, and she wrenched Maren's arm with brutal force until the bone snapped as she shouted, "Everything Mr. Sullivan gave me belongs to me by right! Who do you think you are to demand it back? And remember this clearly. The villa you are standing in was also left to me by Mr. Sullivan! You will not touch a single thing that is mine!"

Terror swallowed Monica whole, and she ignored her daughter's cries while trying to crawl away across the floor.

Before she could escape, Ryann seized her ankle and dragged her back, lifting a heavy vase with the clear intent to bring it down on her.

At nearly the same moment, a sharp gunshot split the air.

The vase exploded apart instantly, and fragments flew everywhere before burying themselves in Monica's body as her scream echoed through the room.

Reacting at once, Ryann turned sharply, and her eyes locked onto a pair of deep, unfathomable ones.