Chapter 1

At Blue Ridge Heights, outside a detached villa, the taxi driver was growing impatient. "Miss, if you don't get out soon, I'm gonna miss out on a whole day's worth of business."

The woman in the back seat, looking elegant, slowly turned her head and met the driver's gaze through her sunglasses. "When I come back, I'll still take your cab. I'll pay double the fare."

The driver's face lit up immediately. "Alright, just make it quick!"

He glanced at the villa beside them.

This was the private residence of Richard Hayes from the Hayes Consortium. What was this woman's connection to him? And why did she get in the cab at Oak Haven Retreat?

Ophelia Hayes pressed the final key on the keyboard, and the security system was cracked. The ornate iron gate of the Hayes Villa slowly opened.

She swiftly slipped into the garden, dug a hole in the castle-like villa wall, and retrieved a long-forgotten red wooden box.

She opened the box.

Inside were simple identification documents and a few papers proving her identity.

Since Ophelia was sent to Oak Haven Retreat three years ago, all traces of her existence had been thoroughly erased by the Hayes.

This was the only thing that could prove her identity.

Ophelia packed up quickly and took out the five thousand dollars she had hidden away.

Before leaving, her eyes flickered.

Since she was here, she wouldn't mind leaving a little surprise for the Hayes.

The Hayes returned from their trip.

"Dad, Mom, I'm a bit tired. I have to go shopping tomorrow, so I'll head to bed early."

Victoria Hayes nodded, "Alright, make sure to cover up tonight."

Emily Hayes was upstairs, playfully chatting with Victoria. She opened her bedroom door.

She was stunned to see a room cleaner than ever, almost sparkling.

Had they been robbed?

Emily's heart raced as she quickly checked the drawers where she kept her jewelry and small stash of money. Empty, nothing at all!

She moved to the bedside table and opened the safe. Again, nothing!

Emily's face turned pale. She sat on the floor, hands on her head, and screamed.

Victoria and Richard, hearing Emily's scream, rushed upstairs.

"What happened, sweetie?"

"Dad! Mom! All my treasures in my room are gone! My jewelry, money, everything is gone!"

Victoria and Richard were shocked and hurried to their room.

A scream louder than Emily's followed.

Emily rushed to their room and saw that even the sofa was gone, causing her to step back in fright. "Could it be a burglary?"

Richard seemed to suddenly remember something and rushed to the basement.

He opened the giant safe, and the cash, along with the guns he stored there, were all gone!

Richard's legs gave way, and he slid down the wall, covering his face and crying. "My things, my life's savings! Who did this?"

Emily and Victoria hurried over, peeking inside. Emily noticed a small booklet in the safe.

"What's this?"

Emily's voice drew Victoria and Richard's attention. Richard looked up, saw the booklet, and his mind buzzed.

He snatched the booklet, his face turning dark.

This was the Hayes Consortium's biggest scandal.

His eyes were filled with rage and malice.

His fists clenched tightly.

"We can't let anyone who sees this booklet live. We must find that person quickly, or the next ones to disappear will be us, the Hayes Consortium!"

Victoria's face turned pale. "What is this?"

"Idiot!" Richard cursed, "If anyone sees this, I'll end up in jail for life. Understand?"

Victoria shivered, unable to speak clearly. "Let's find them quickly. Search the villa inside and out. Maybe they're still here!"

In the taxi, the conversation from the Hayes transmitted intermittently to Ophelia's earpiece. She smirked.

This was the first gift she gave them. The real fun was yet to come.

"Stop in front of Oak Haven Retreat." Ophelia got out in front of Oak Haven Retreat.

She paid double the fare as promised, smiling sweetly. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, have a good day." The driver glanced at Oak Haven Retreat behind her, then sped off, almost fleeing.

Ophelia's sweet smile vanished, replaced by a calm yet crazed look in her eyes.

She walked around to the back of Oak Haven Retreat, where a hole was hidden by weeds.

She kicked away the bricks blocking the hole and crawled inside.

She discarded her trench coat and sunglasses in the hole, revealing her hospital gown. She tousled her beautiful hair and walked straight to a large tree in the center of Oak Haven Retreat.

Ophelia crouched under the tree, as if she were a mushroom that had always been there.

Ophelia rested her chin on her wrist, motionless.

This had been Ophelia's routine for the past three years.

Among the residents of Oak Haven Retreat, she was considered relatively normal. This was because the retreat housed more than just humans.

How to describe it?

Veterans with PTSD, experts who went mad researching nuclear submarines, infamous killers who took dozens of lives in one night—all were concentrated in Oak Haven Retreat.

And Ophelia was the most inconspicuous among them.

Ophelia had fought hard to become the leader in such a group, ensuring she wouldn't be bullied.

Three years ago, she refused to marry an old man from the Sullivan Consortium, framed by Emily.

After being drugged, she stabbed the old man with a fruit knife, rendering him infertile. The Hayes then sent her here.

What did they say back then?

"You ungrateful brat, we sent you to Mr. Sullivan for your own good. Can't you see that? All your education was for nothing!"

Indeed, her education depended on Emily's whims. Dropping out of school and getting engaged to a seventy-year-old man was also at Emily's command.

She once felt grateful, but now, it was laughable.

Ophelia silently returned to her bed, pretending to have been asleep all along.

The doctor on rounds saw Ophelia lying in bed and left satisfied.

Meanwhile, in Weston Tower at Silver Bay, Blake Weston sat in the conference room's leather chair, tapping the armrest lightly.

Across from him, a man in his forties respectfully spread out documents and handed them to Blake.

"Mr. Weston, this is the Hayes Consortium's quarterly financial report. Everything is perfect and meets your investment standards. Shall we finalize the plans for the next quarter today?"