This Time, I Won't Die By Your Hands My Ex-Boyfriend

Blake was always upright and kind, gentle and attentive to me.

He never once despised the burn scars on my body. Instead, he told me I was an angel who had survived the flames, and that for the rest of my life, he would shield me from the wind and rain.

With him, no matter how badly we argued, he never gave me the cold shoulder or lost his temper. He would always coax me patiently, again and again.

But this time... after hearing Hubert's lies, he said nothing. Not a word.

When Hubert hung up the call, triumph lit his face.

"Well? Still not going to tell me where Lianna is?"

The guard finally released his hand from my mouth.

I glared at Hubert, fury burning in my chest. "You've broken into my home, restrained me, assaulted me, and spouted lies. Every one of those things is against the law."

I wanted nothing more than to tear this fool apart.

At my defiance, his rage deepened. "Against the law?" He sneered. "Then let me show you what real breaking the law looks like!"

He barked an order at his men. "Smash her place to the ground!"

Obeying instantly, the bodyguards began to wreck everything in sight.

In minutes, my once neat little apartment became a wasteland of broken furniture and shattered glass. Nothing was left intact.

Grinding my teeth, I spat, "Hubert, with such blatant lawlessness, aren't you afraid of the law catching up with you?"

He laughed coldly, full of scorn. "The law? The law punishes leeches like you. You've bled Lianna dry for years—don't you know how much you've stolen from her? Everything in this place was bought with her money. I'm smashing my own things. What crime is that?"

His words rang with righteous fury, as if he weren't a criminal but a judge passing sentence on the guilty.

I checked the time. Less than thirty minutes until Lianna's miscarriage.

The real show was about to begin.

Forcing down my rage, I smiled faintly and drawled, "Why don't you wait a little longer? Your dear wife will be contacting you very soon."

My calmness only made him more frantic. His eyes burned with rage.

"Still stubborn? Fine! Today, I'll utterly destroy your reputation!"

"Take her out!"

The guards dragged me to the gate of the apartment complex.

The commotion quickly drew a crowd. Dozens of eyes turned on me, whispers swelling into a storm.

Hubert seized the opportunity, loudly broadcasting my so-called sins for everyone to hear.

And the crowd believed every word.

"This is disgusting. She's already at this age and still leeching off her pregnant best friend? That's basically murder!"

"Exactly! Her friend is just too kind. If it were me, I'd have kicked her out ages ago."

"Classic fake friend—pretending to care while scheming behind the scenes. My wife had one just like her, and drove her into debt and depression. Even now, she's still on antidepressants!"

"She's a vampire, that's what she is. First her family, then her friends, then her husband. Whoever meets her is cursed!"

"And she's filthy too—already married but still chasing after male models, playing mistress. Sharing a community with a tramp like her was just bad luck!"

Spittle and curses rained down, painting me as some vile, irredeemable villain.

Hubert looked down on me, his smirk full of provocation.

"Well? Still want to keep that hard mouth of yours?"

He thought he had me cornered. That I would crumble under the weight of shame.

Instead, I laughed coldly, lifting my chin in defiance.

"A dignified tycoon—and this is the best you can do?"

"What's a few neighbors cursing me out? Even if they spit until their throats dry, all I need to do is move somewhere else, and it's over."

"If you really want me ruined, Hubert, you should've called some internet influencers. Let them livestream it all. That way, maybe—just maybe—you could make me infamous across the entire country."