After eight years of marriage to Grant, Sienna received nothing but betrayal in return. In the end, he pushed her—pregnant with his child—down a flight of stairs, all for the sake of another woman. On the very day she lost the baby, a cold, mechanical voice echoed in her mind: her system announced that the strategy had failed, and that her life would end in thirty days. Lying in the hospital ward, Grant tossed a divorce agreement in front of her and said bluntly, "Sign it. She wants to be my wife." To his surprise, Sienna simply smiled, calm and composed, and signed the papers without a word of protest. What Grant did not know, however, was that the woman he had mocked and ridiculed—the very one the entire capital had dismissed as a failure—was in fact a prodigious painter who had shaken the art world of Basel at just seventeen years old. For eight long years, the world's most powerful art agent had been waiting for her return; Sotheby's had long reserved her a seat; and, most ironically, she was also someone whom Grant could never even hope to work with in his own professional field. Thirty days later, Grant suddenly received news of Sienna's death. Overcome with shock and despair, the once-arrogant man knelt before her grave, digging into the earth with his bare hands until his fingers bled. In the days that followed, he held her ashes close, coughing up blood every night, slowly descending into obsession and madness. Yet fate had one final twist in store. One day, at an international award ceremony, Grant looked up—and there, standing before him, was Sienna, the woman he had believed to be dead.

Chapter 1Pain.Agonizing pain.Sienna Sawyer was drenched in sweat, a suffocating wave of cramps tearing through her abdomen.She snapped her eyes open, feeling a chilling emptiness inside her.It wasn't hunger; it was the visceral sensation of having something violently ripped from her very being.Her baby was gone.For three months, she had taken her prenatal vitamins, given up iced drinks, and never even dared to walk too fast.Yet Grant Gauthier had shoved her right down the stairs.She had just been trying to tell him about her ultrasound results when Lyla Lennox called, sobbing about severe menstrual cramps.He hadn't hesitated for a second to leave, impatiently shoving a blocking Sienna out of his way."Move."Just that one word.Her foot slipped, her back slamming into the handrail before she tumbled down the flight.As she fell, her first instinct was to shield her stomach, but the sharp edge of the steps dug mercilessly into her lower back.Sienna remembered it vividly; he had looked back at her.But only for a split second.Then he continued his phone call and walked out the door.Right then, a mechanical voice echoed in her mind.[Target Grant Gauthier's affection level has dropped to a negative value. Mission completely failed.][Penalty mechanism activated. Life countdown: 30 days.]Lying in the hospital bed, Sienna listened to the prompt without a shred of reaction.Thirty days.She turned the number over in her mind, surprisingly feeling a wave of relief.It had been eight years.Ever since she was bound to this wretched system at eighteen, she had been doing the exact same thing—trying to please Grant.The system had told her she had to win his heart, or she would die.So she loved him with everything she had, crushing her talent, her pride, and her dignity to fit into the hollow shell of "Mrs. Gauthier."She loved to paint.Her mentor had called her a once-in-a-century genius, blessed by God with an unmatched sense for texture, color, and composition.But in the end, she gave it all up.All because Grant had said, "You look ridiculous when you paint."Sienna closed her eyes.For the last eight years, she had lived worse than a dog.When Grant complained about her cooking, she stood in the kitchen from dawn until dusk, learning until her ankles swelled so badly she couldn't wear shoes.When Grant called her annoying, she learned to shut her mouth.When Grant brought other women home, she hid in the guest room, smothering her face with a pillow so she wouldn't make a sound.Yet the system kept chiming.Affection minus one, minus three, minus ten...No matter what she did, that number just kept plummeting.And today, it had finally hit zero.It had gone negative.She was tired, so incredibly tired.If she was going to die, so be it.Sienna realized she couldn't even cry.It wasn't that she was holding it back; she just didn't have any tears left.She had cried them all out over the years, leaving behind a strange sense of liberation—the realization that she finally didn't have to force herself to love a man who didn't love her back.Suddenly, voices drifted in from the hallway.A woman's soft, sweet giggle echoed, deliberately hushed but loud enough for every word to pierce through the door."Grant, is she going to cry again? I don't want to make things hard for you."Sienna knew that voice. It was Lyla, the woman who had wedged herself into their marriage for eight years.Grant's voice was low, yet incredibly gentle. "Give me five minutes. I'll handle it and be right out."Handle...Sienna rolled the word over in her mind. Was he going to handle her?The door was pushed open.Grant walked in, dressed in a sharp suit, carrying the lingering scent of Lyla's signature perfume.He glanced at Sienna on the bed, not asking if she was in pain or how the baby was doing.Instead, he pulled a document from his briefcase and tossed it onto her nightstand."Sign it."Sienna turned her head. It was a divorce agreement."Lyla wants the title of Mrs. Gauthier," Grant said, standing by the bed and staring down at her with the same tone he used in board meetings.Sienna stayed silent.Grant frowned, issuing a sharp warning. "Don't try to use this pregnancy to trap me. Even if you have the kid, I won't give you a second glance."So he didn't even know the baby was gone.Or rather, he just didn't care if there was a baby or not.Sienna's hands curled into tight fists, a lump forming in her throat.It was impossible to say she had no feelings left for Grant after all these years.But what did it matter? It was all about to end.Sienna slowly braced herself against the edge of the mattress and sat up.The movement pulled at her injuries, draining the color from her face, but she didn't make a sound."Where's the pen?"Grant froze, clearly not expecting her to be so direct.Based on her usual behavior, Sienna should have been crying, throwing a fit, and clinging to his leg, begging him not to leave.He had an entire contingency plan ready, even preparing to call security if she threatened to end her own life.But none of that happened.Sienna repeated herself. "The pen."Grant pulled a fountain pen from his pocket and handed it over, his gaze locked on her face as he searched for any crack in her composure.Sienna took it, opened the document, and flipped through the pages.The terms were meticulously drafted, but one line stood out starkly: The female party voluntarily forfeits all joint marital assets; the child will be raised by the male party, and the female party shall never appear before the child.No matter how strong she tried to be, reading that sentence felt like a devastating blow, leaving her breathless.But she quickly collected herself, flipping straight to the last page to sign her name.Grant picked up the agreement, verified the signature, and his expression darkened."I'm warning you, signed is signed. Don't come crying to me later. We have absolutely nothing to do with each other anymore.""Okay."Just one word. Sienna didn't offer a single unnecessary syllable, her expression remarkably calm.Her indifference made Grant feel like an absolute clown.His face turned stormy.But Grant knew Sienna. This woman loved him to her very bones; leaving him was like cutting off her oxygen. She couldn't survive it.This calm facade of hers was one hundred percent a ploy to play hard to get.Just wait. In three days, tops, she'd be calling to beg him.Grant put the agreement away and turned for the door."Grant."His footsteps faltered.Sienna's voice drifted over from behind him, soft and flat."I wish you both a lifetime of happiness."Grant kept his hand on the doorknob, unmoving.Sienna's voice continued, "And a lifetime without an heir."Grant whipped around.The woman on the bed leaned against her pillows. There was no hatred on her face, no venom, and her lips even curved into a faint smile.That smile sent a strange jolt through Grant's chest.It wasn't fear; it was an indescribable sense of unease.He had seen Sienna cry, seen her beg, seen her try to please him in every conceivable way.But he had never seen her smile like that."You're out of your mind!"Grant spat viciously before slamming the door behind him.In the hallway, Lyla rushed up to him, her voice light and sweet. "Grant, did she agree?"Grant shoved the papers into his briefcase and wrapped an arm around Lyla's waist. "Let's go. I'll take you home."The footsteps slowly faded away.Silence settled over the hospital room.Sienna stared at the ceiling as the metallic taste of blood rose in her throat.The system's voice chimed again.[Countdown penalty engaged. The host's bodily functions will rapidly deteriorate. Time remaining: 29 days, 23 hours, 16 minutes.]Twenty-nine days.It was enough.Enough time to settle everything she had left to do.When the nurse pushed the door open to change her dressing, the room was empty.The hospital wristband had been removed and left on the nightstand next to the pillow, pinning down a small note."Voluntary discharge."The nurse picked up the band, hesitating over whether to call her family.But then she remembered this patient. She had been here for three days, and not a single person had come to visit.The man who showed up today hadn't even taken a seat, standing for less than five minutes before leaving.The nurse sighed and tossed the band into the drawer.With family like that, calling would be pointless anyway.Sienna took a cab back to the estate.The driver shot her several glances through the rearview mirror, clearly thinking she looked terrible.The cab seat pressed painfully against the injury on her lower back, and she kept her hand pressed to her abdomen.It was empty now, but her body hadn't seemed to process the loss yet, sending sharp cramps through her every now and then.[Time remaining: 28 days, 21 hours, 08 minutes.]The system's countdown ticked constantly in her mind like an endless alarm.Sienna leaned against the window and closed her eyes.She had to go back and pack her things, erasing all traces of her eight years there.The front door of the estate was unlocked.When Sienna walked in, she noticed several pink suitcases sitting by the living room sofa.A new pair of heels sat in the entryway, the soles completely clean, clearly placed there just today.A woman's laughter drifted down from upstairs.Sienna paid it no mind, heading straight to the second floor and into the bedroom she had occupied for eight years.She began pulling her belongings together.Just then, the master bedroom door opened.Lyla stepped out in slippers, her hair down, wearing a men's dress shirt that barely covered her upper thighs.Sienna recognized that shirt.She had designed it herself, from picking out the fabric to sewing the seams, even hand-selecting each button from the textile market.For their first anniversary, she had spent two whole months crafting that gift.But when Grant received it, he merely glanced at it, said, "It's fine," and never wore it once.And now, it was draped over Lyla's shoulders.Lyla leaned against the doorframe, her tone overly affectionate as her eyes raked up and down Sienna's frame."Oh, Sienna, why didn't you let me know you were coming? I would have had Zachary pick you up."Zachary was Grant's private driver, answering only to him.Lyla saying that was an obvious attempt to position herself as the lady of the house.Sienna continued packing, completely ignoring her.Lyla waited a few seconds, and when she got no reaction, her smile faltered.She walked over and stood deliberately close to Sienna, rolling up the sleeves of the shirt."The fabric on this shirt is so nice. Grant said you made it?""Great craftsmanship. It's a shame he didn't like it and kept it shoved in the back of his closet. I dug it out to try it on, and it actually fits me quite well."Sienna acted as if she hadn't heard a word, not even sparing her a glance.Lyla raised her voice slightly. "Sienna, don't blame me for just moving in. Grant told me to. He said I'd be Mrs. Gauthier sooner or later, so I should come over and get used to it.""You have it on inside out."Sienna finally spoke."What?""The shirt is inside out. The side with the buttons on the left is the front," Sienna said without looking up. "There's a tiny character I embroidered behind the collar. You can check it yourself."Lyla instinctively reached for the collar and flipped it over. Sure enough, a microscopic initial was embroidered on the inner lining.The stitching was dense and neat, obviously the result of painstaking effort."If you can't even dress yourself properly, stop making a fool of yourself."Lyla's face instantly darkened. She was about to fire back when Grant suddenly walked over.He was holding a cup of coffee and wearing loungewear, looking relaxed and at ease—a stark contrast to the cold man throwing divorce papers in the hospital.Lyla immediately trotted over to hook her arm through his, her voice turning soft again. "Grant, Sienna said I look like a fool in this shirt. Is she mad at me?""If that's the case, I should just take it off."Grant looked down at her before fixing a cold glare on Sienna."I gave her the shirt. If you're angry, take it out on me."Sienna replied, "Since I gave it to you, it belongs to you.""Who you give it to is none of my business."With that, she opened the drawer of the nightstand and pulled out its contents, one by one.They were all photos of Grant.Photos of him in meetings, eating, and the rare moments he actually smiled.Chapter 2Pain.Agonizing pain.Sienna Sawyer was drenched in sweat, a suffocating wave of cramps tearing through her abdomen.She snapped her eyes open, feeling a chilling emptiness inside her.It wasn't hunger; it was the visceral sensation of having something violently ripped from her very being.Her baby was gone.For three months, she had taken her prenatal vitamins, given up iced drinks, and never even dared to walk too fast.Yet Grant Gauthier had shoved her right down the stairs.She had just been trying to tell him about her ultrasound results when Lyla Lennox called, sobbing about severe menstrual cramps.He hadn't hesitated for a second to leave, impatiently shoving a blocking Sienna out of his way."Move."Just that one word.Her foot slipped, her back slamming into the handrail before she tumbled down the flight.As she fell, her first instinct was to shield her stomach, but the sharp edge of the steps dug mercilessly into her lower back.Sienna remembered it vividly; he had looked back at her.But only for a split second.Then he continued his phone call and walked out the door.Right then, a mechanical voice echoed in her mind.[Target Grant Gauthier's affection level has dropped to a negative value. Mission completely failed.][Penalty mechanism activated. Life countdown: 30 days.]Lying in the hospital bed, Sienna listened to the prompt without a shred of reaction.Thirty days.She turned the number over in her mind, surprisingly feeling a wave of relief.It had been eight years.Ever since she was bound to this wretched system at eighteen, she had been doing the exact same thing—trying to please Grant.The system had told her she had to win his heart, or she would die.So she loved him with everything she had, crushing her talent, her pride, and her dignity to fit into the hollow shell of "Mrs. Gauthier."She loved to paint.Her mentor had called her a once-in-a-century genius, blessed by God with an unmatched sense for texture, color, and composition.But in the end, she gave it all up.All because Grant had said, "You look ridiculous when you paint."Sienna closed her eyes.For the last eight years, she had lived worse than a dog.When Grant complained about her cooking, she stood in the kitchen from dawn until dusk, learning until her ankles swelled so badly she couldn't wear shoes.When Grant called her annoying, she learned to shut her mouth.When Grant brought other women home, she hid in the guest room, smothering her face with a pillow so she wouldn't make a sound.Yet the system kept chiming.Affection minus one, minus three, minus ten...No matter what she did, that number just kept plummeting.And today, it had finally hit zero.It had gone negative.She was tired, so incredibly tired.If she was going to die, so be it.Sienna realized she couldn't even cry.It wasn't that she was holding it back; she just didn't have any tears left.She had cried them all out over the years, leaving behind a strange sense of liberation—the realization that she finally didn't have to force herself to love a man who didn't love her back.Suddenly, voices drifted in from the hallway.A woman's soft, sweet giggle echoed, deliberately hushed but loud enough for every word to pierce through the door."Grant, is she going to cry again? I don't want to make things hard for you."Sienna knew that voice. It was Lyla, the woman who had wedged herself into their marriage for eight years.Grant's voice was low, yet incredibly gentle. "Give me five minutes. I'll handle it and be right out."Handle...Sienna rolled the word over in her mind. Was he going to handle her?The door was pushed open.Grant walked in, dressed in a sharp suit, carrying the lingering scent of Lyla's signature perfume.He glanced at Sienna on the bed, not asking if she was in pain or how the baby was doing.Instead, he pulled a document from his briefcase and tossed it onto her nightstand."Sign it."Sienna turned her head. It was a divorce agreement."Lyla wants the title of Mrs. Gauthier," Grant said, standing by the bed and staring down at her with the same tone he used in board meetings.Sienna stayed silent.Grant frowned, issuing a sharp warning. "Don't try to use this pregnancy to trap me. Even if you have the kid, I won't give you a second glance."So he didn't even know the baby was gone.Or rather, he just didn't care if there was a baby or not.Sienna's hands curled into tight fists, a lump forming in her throat.It was impossible to say she had no feelings left for Grant after all these years.But what did it matter? It was all about to end.Sienna slowly braced herself against the edge of the mattress and sat up.The movement pulled at her injuries, draining the color from her face, but she didn't make a sound."Where's the pen?"Grant froze, clearly not expecting her to be so direct.Based on her usual behavior, Sienna should have been crying, throwing a fit, and clinging to his leg, begging him not to leave.He had an entire contingency plan ready, even preparing to call security if she threatened to end her own life.But none of that happened.Sienna repeated herself. "The pen."Grant pulled a fountain pen from his pocket and handed it over, his gaze locked on her face as he searched for any crack in her composure.Sienna took it, opened the document, and flipped through the pages.The terms were meticulously drafted, but one line stood out starkly: The female party voluntarily forfeits all joint marital assets; the child will be raised by the male party, and the female party shall never appear before the child.No matter how strong she tried to be, reading that sentence felt like a devastating blow, leaving her breathless.But she quickly collected herself, flipping straight to the last page to sign her name.Grant picked up the agreement, verified the signature, and his expression darkened."I'm warning you, signed is signed. Don't come crying to me later. We have absolutely nothing to do with each other anymore.""Okay."Just one word. Sienna didn't offer a single unnecessary syllable, her expression remarkably calm.Her indifference made Grant feel like an absolute clown.His face turned stormy.But Grant knew Sienna. This woman loved him to her very bones; leaving him was like cutting off her oxygen. She couldn't survive it.This calm facade of hers was one hundred percent a ploy to play hard to get.Just wait. In three days, tops, she'd be calling to beg him.Grant put the agreement away and turned for the door."Grant."His footsteps faltered.Sienna's voice drifted over from behind him, soft and flat."I wish you both a lifetime of happiness."Grant kept his hand on the doorknob, unmoving.Sienna's voice continued, "And a lifetime without an heir."Grant whipped around.The woman on the bed leaned against her pillows. There was no hatred on her face, no venom, and her lips even curved into a faint smile.That smile sent a strange jolt through Grant's chest.It wasn't fear; it was an indescribable sense of unease.He had seen Sienna cry, seen her beg, seen her try to please him in every conceivable way.But he had never seen her smile like that."You're out of your mind!"Grant spat viciously before slamming the door behind him.In the hallway, Lyla rushed up to him, her voice light and sweet. "Grant, did she agree?"Grant shoved the papers into his briefcase and wrapped an arm around Lyla's waist. "Let's go. I'll take you home."The footsteps slowly faded away.Silence settled over the hospital room.Sienna stared at the ceiling as the metallic taste of blood rose in her throat.The system's voice chimed again.[Countdown penalty engaged. The host's bodily functions will rapidly deteriorate. Time remaining: 29 days, 23 hours, 16 minutes.]Twenty-nine days.It was enough.Enough time to settle everything she had left to do.When the nurse pushed the door open to change her dressing, the room was empty.The hospital wristband had been removed and left on the nightstand next to the pillow, pinning down a small note."Voluntary discharge."The nurse picked up the band, hesitating over whether to call her family.But then she remembered this patient. She had been here for three days, and not a single person had come to visit.The man who showed up today hadn't even taken a seat, standing for less than five minutes before leaving.The nurse sighed and tossed the band into the drawer.With family like that, calling would be pointless anyway.Sienna took a cab back to the estate.The driver shot her several glances through the rearview mirror, clearly thinking she looked terrible.The cab seat pressed painfully against the injury on her lower back, and she kept her hand pressed to her abdomen.It was empty now, but her body hadn't seemed to process the loss yet, sending sharp cramps through her every now and then.[Time remaining: 28 days, 21 hours, 08 minutes.]The system's countdown ticked constantly in her mind like an endless alarm.Sienna leaned against the window and closed her eyes.She had to go back and pack her things, erasing all traces of her eight years there.The front door of the estate was unlocked.When Sienna walked in, she noticed several pink suitcases sitting by the living room sofa.A new pair of heels sat in the entryway, the soles completely clean, clearly placed there just today.A woman's laughter drifted down from upstairs.Sienna paid it no mind, heading straight to the second floor and into the bedroom she had occupied for eight years.She began pulling her belongings together.Just then, the master bedroom door opened.Lyla stepped out in slippers, her hair down, wearing a men's dress shirt that barely covered her upper thighs.Sienna recognized that shirt.She had designed it herself, from picking out the fabric to sewing the seams, even hand-selecting each button from the textile market.For their first anniversary, she had spent two whole months crafting that gift.But when Grant received it, he merely glanced at it, said, "It's fine," and never wore it once.And now, it was draped over Lyla's shoulders.Lyla leaned against the doorframe, her tone overly affectionate as her eyes raked up and down Sienna's frame."Oh, Sienna, why didn't you let me know you were coming? I would have had Zachary pick you up."Zachary was Grant's private driver, answering only to him.Lyla saying that was an obvious attempt to position herself as the lady of the house.Sienna continued packing, completely ignoring her.Lyla waited a few seconds, and when she got no reaction, her smile faltered.She walked over and stood deliberately close to Sienna, rolling up the sleeves of the shirt."The fabric on this shirt is so nice. Grant said you made it?""Great craftsmanship. It's a shame he didn't like it and kept it shoved in the back of his closet. I dug it out to try it on, and it actually fits me quite well."Sienna acted as if she hadn't heard a word, not even sparing her a glance.Lyla raised her voice slightly. "Sienna, don't blame me for just moving in. Grant told me to. He said I'd be Mrs. Gauthier sooner or later, so I should come over and get used to it.""You have it on inside out."Sienna finally spoke."What?""The shirt is inside out. The side with the buttons on the left is the front," Sienna said without looking up. "There's a tiny character I embroidered behind the collar. You can check it yourself."Lyla instinctively reached for the collar and flipped it over. Sure enough, a microscopic initial was embroidered on the inner lining.The stitching was dense and neat, obviously the result of painstaking effort."If you can't even dress yourself properly, stop making a fool of yourself."Lyla's face instantly darkened. She was about to fire back when Grant suddenly walked over.He was holding a cup of coffee and wearing loungewear, looking relaxed and at ease—a stark contrast to the cold man throwing divorce papers in the hospital.Lyla immediately trotted over to hook her arm through his, her voice turning soft again. "Grant, Sienna said I look like a fool in this shirt. Is she mad at me?""If that's the case, I should just take it off."Grant looked down at her before fixing a cold glare on Sienna."I gave her the shirt. If you're angry, take it out on me."Sienna replied, "Since I gave it to you, it belongs to you.""Who you give it to is none of my business."With that, she opened the drawer of the nightstand and pulled out its contents, one by one.They were all photos of Grant.Photos of him in meetings, eating, and the rare moments he actually smiled.Chapter 3Pain.Agonizing pain.Sienna Sawyer was drenched in sweat, a suffocating wave of cramps tearing through her abdomen.She snapped her eyes open, feeling a chilling emptiness inside her.It wasn't hunger; it was the visceral sensation of having something violently ripped from her very being.Her baby was gone.For three months, she had taken her prenatal vitamins, given up iced drinks, and never even dared to walk too fast.Yet Grant Gauthier had shoved her right down the stairs.She had just been trying to tell him about her ultrasound results when Lyla Lennox called, sobbing about severe menstrual cramps.He hadn't hesitated for a second to leave, impatiently shoving a blocking Sienna out of his way."Move."Just that one word.Her foot slipped, her back slamming into the handrail before she tumbled down the flight.As she fell, her first instinct was to shield her stomach, but the sharp edge of the steps dug mercilessly into her lower back.Sienna remembered it vividly; he had looked back at her.But only for a split second.Then he continued his phone call and walked out the door.Right then, a mechanical voice echoed in her mind.[Target Grant Gauthier's affection level has dropped to a negative value. Mission completely failed.][Penalty mechanism activated. Life countdown: 30 days.]Lying in the hospital bed, Sienna listened to the prompt without a shred of reaction.Thirty days.She turned the number over in her mind, surprisingly feeling a wave of relief.It had been eight years.Ever since she was bound to this wretched system at eighteen, she had been doing the exact same thing—trying to please Grant.The system had told her she had to win his heart, or she would die.So she loved him with everything she had, crushing her talent, her pride, and her dignity to fit into the hollow shell of "Mrs. Gauthier."She loved to paint.Her mentor had called her a once-in-a-century genius, blessed by God with an unmatched sense for texture, color, and composition.But in the end, she gave it all up.All because Grant had said, "You look ridiculous when you paint."Sienna closed her eyes.For the last eight years, she had lived worse than a dog.When Grant complained about her cooking, she stood in the kitchen from dawn until dusk, learning until her ankles swelled so badly she couldn't wear shoes.When Grant called her annoying, she learned to shut her mouth.When Grant brought other women home, she hid in the guest room, smothering her face with a pillow so she wouldn't make a sound.Yet the system kept chiming.Affection minus one, minus three, minus ten...No matter what she did, that number just kept plummeting.And today, it had finally hit zero.It had gone negative.She was tired, so incredibly tired.If she was going to die, so be it.Sienna realized she couldn't even cry.It wasn't that she was holding it back; she just didn't have any tears left.She had cried them all out over the years, leaving behind a strange sense of liberation—the realization that she finally didn't have to force herself to love a man who didn't love her back.Suddenly, voices drifted in from the hallway.A woman's soft, sweet giggle echoed, deliberately hushed but loud enough for every word to pierce through the door."Grant, is she going to cry again? I don't want to make things hard for you."Sienna knew that voice. It was Lyla, the woman who had wedged herself into their marriage for eight years.Grant's voice was low, yet incredibly gentle. "Give me five minutes. I'll handle it and be right out."Handle...Sienna rolled the word over in her mind. Was he going to handle her?The door was pushed open.Grant walked in, dressed in a sharp suit, carrying the lingering scent of Lyla's signature perfume.He glanced at Sienna on the bed, not asking if she was in pain or how the baby was doing.Instead, he pulled a document from his briefcase and tossed it onto her nightstand."Sign it."Sienna turned her head. It was a divorce agreement."Lyla wants the title of Mrs. Gauthier," Grant said, standing by the bed and staring down at her with the same tone he used in board meetings.Sienna stayed silent.Grant frowned, issuing a sharp warning. "Don't try to use this pregnancy to trap me. Even if you have the kid, I won't give you a second glance."So he didn't even know the baby was gone.Or rather, he just didn't care if there was a baby or not.Sienna's hands curled into tight fists, a lump forming in her throat.It was impossible to say she had no feelings left for Grant after all these years.But what did it matter? It was all about to end.Sienna slowly braced herself against the edge of the mattress and sat up.The movement pulled at her injuries, draining the color from her face, but she didn't make a sound."Where's the pen?"Grant froze, clearly not expecting her to be so direct.Based on her usual behavior, Sienna should have been crying, throwing a fit, and clinging to his leg, begging him not to leave.He had an entire contingency plan ready, even preparing to call security if she threatened to end her own life.But none of that happened.Sienna repeated herself. "The pen."Grant pulled a fountain pen from his pocket and handed it over, his gaze locked on her face as he searched for any crack in her composure.Sienna took it, opened the document, and flipped through the pages.The terms were meticulously drafted, but one line stood out starkly: The female party voluntarily forfeits all joint marital assets; the child will be raised by the male party, and the female party shall never appear before the child.No matter how strong she tried to be, reading that sentence felt like a devastating blow, leaving her breathless.But she quickly collected herself, flipping straight to the last page to sign her name.Grant picked up the agreement, verified the signature, and his expression darkened."I'm warning you, signed is signed. Don't come crying to me later. We have absolutely nothing to do with each other anymore.""Okay."Just one word. Sienna didn't offer a single unnecessary syllable, her expression remarkably calm.Her indifference made Grant feel like an absolute clown.His face turned stormy.But Grant knew Sienna. This woman loved him to her very bones; leaving him was like cutting off her oxygen. She couldn't survive it.This calm facade of hers was one hundred percent a ploy to play hard to get.Just wait. In three days, tops, she'd be calling to beg him.Grant put the agreement away and turned for the door."Grant."His footsteps faltered.Sienna's voice drifted over from behind him, soft and flat."I wish you both a lifetime of happiness."Grant kept his hand on the doorknob, unmoving.Sienna's voice continued, "And a lifetime without an heir."Grant whipped around.The woman on the bed leaned against her pillows. There was no hatred on her face, no venom, and her lips even curved into a faint smile.That smile sent a strange jolt through Grant's chest.It wasn't fear; it was an indescribable sense of unease.He had seen Sienna cry, seen her beg, seen her try to please him in every conceivable way.But he had never seen her smile like that."You're out of your mind!"Grant spat viciously before slamming the door behind him.In the hallway, Lyla rushed up to him, her voice light and sweet. "Grant, did she agree?"Grant shoved the papers into his briefcase and wrapped an arm around Lyla's waist. "Let's go. I'll take you home."The footsteps slowly faded away.Silence settled over the hospital room.Sienna stared at the ceiling as the metallic taste of blood rose in her throat.The system's voice chimed again.[Countdown penalty engaged. The host's bodily functions will rapidly deteriorate. Time remaining: 29 days, 23 hours, 16 minutes.]Twenty-nine days.It was enough.Enough time to settle everything she had left to do.When the nurse pushed the door open to change her dressing, the room was empty.The hospital wristband had been removed and left on the nightstand next to the pillow, pinning down a small note."Voluntary discharge."The nurse picked up the band, hesitating over whether to call her family.But then she remembered this patient. She had been here for three days, and not a single person had come to visit.The man who showed up today hadn't even taken a seat, standing for less than five minutes before leaving.The nurse sighed and tossed the band into the drawer.With family like that, calling would be pointless anyway.Sienna took a cab back to the estate.The driver shot her several glances through the rearview mirror, clearly thinking she looked terrible.The cab seat pressed painfully against the injury on her lower back, and she kept her hand pressed to her abdomen.It was empty now, but her body hadn't seemed to process the loss yet, sending sharp cramps through her every now and then.[Time remaining: 28 days, 21 hours, 08 minutes.]The system's countdown ticked constantly in her mind like an endless alarm.Sienna leaned against the window and closed her eyes.She had to go back and pack her things, erasing all traces of her eight years there.The front door of the estate was unlocked.When Sienna walked in, she noticed several pink suitcases sitting by the living room sofa.A new pair of heels sat in the entryway, the soles completely clean, clearly placed there just today.A woman's laughter drifted down from upstairs.Sienna paid it no mind, heading straight to the second floor and into the bedroom she had occupied for eight years.She began pulling her belongings together.Just then, the master bedroom door opened.Lyla stepped out in slippers, her hair down, wearing a men's dress shirt that barely covered her upper thighs.Sienna recognized that shirt.She had designed it herself, from picking out the fabric to sewing the seams, even hand-selecting each button from the textile market.For their first anniversary, she had spent two whole months crafting that gift.But when Grant received it, he merely glanced at it, said, "It's fine," and never wore it once.And now, it was draped over Lyla's shoulders.Lyla leaned against the doorframe, her tone overly affectionate as her eyes raked up and down Sienna's frame."Oh, Sienna, why didn't you let me know you were coming? I would have had Zachary pick you up."Zachary was Grant's private driver, answering only to him.Lyla saying that was an obvious attempt to position herself as the lady of the house.Sienna continued packing, completely ignoring her.Lyla waited a few seconds, and when she got no reaction, her smile faltered.She walked over and stood deliberately close to Sienna, rolling up the sleeves of the shirt."The fabric on this shirt is so nice. Grant said you made it?""Great craftsmanship. It's a shame he didn't like it and kept it shoved in the back of his closet. I dug it out to try it on, and it actually fits me quite well."Sienna acted as if she hadn't heard a word, not even sparing her a glance.Lyla raised her voice slightly. "Sienna, don't blame me for just moving in. Grant told me to. He said I'd be Mrs. Gauthier sooner or later, so I should come over and get used to it.""You have it on inside out."Sienna finally spoke."What?""The shirt is inside out. The side with the buttons on the left is the front," Sienna said without looking up. "There's a tiny character I embroidered behind the collar. You can check it yourself."Lyla instinctively reached for the collar and flipped it over. Sure enough, a microscopic initial was embroidered on the inner lining.The stitching was dense and neat, obviously the result of painstaking effort."If you can't even dress yourself properly, stop making a fool of yourself."Lyla's face instantly darkened. She was about to fire back when Grant suddenly walked over.He was holding a cup of coffee and wearing loungewear, looking relaxed and at ease—a stark contrast to the cold man throwing divorce papers in the hospital.Lyla immediately trotted over to hook her arm through his, her voice turning soft again. "Grant, Sienna said I look like a fool in this shirt. Is she mad at me?""If that's the case, I should just take it off."Grant looked down at her before fixing a cold glare on Sienna."I gave her the shirt. If you're angry, take it out on me."Sienna replied, "Since I gave it to you, it belongs to you.""Who you give it to is none of my business."With that, she opened the drawer of the nightstand and pulled out its contents, one by one.They were all photos of Grant.Photos of him in meetings, eating, and the rare moments he actually smiled.