The man who had followed Conrad for thirty years was now trembling like a leaf in the wind.
“Herman,” Conrad’s voice carried both pain and disappointment. “Back then, you saved my life From that day on, I treated you like a brother. I even gave you my family name. I gave you opportunities. I let your daughter into my company. I let her carry my last name as well.” Ther his tone grew harsher. “And this is how you repay me? This is how you treat my daughter?”
“Mr. Shepherd, I…” Herman’s voice quivered. His face was ashen, words stuck in his throat. H knew everything was over.
Finally, Conrad’s gaze fell on Melinda. The woman who had pretended to be his daughter nov sat collapsed on the floor, her eyes filled with despair.
“Impersonating my daughter. Hurting my daughter.” His voice was like ice. “Good.”
Suddenly, Melinda scrambled forward, clutching at his leg. “Mr. Shepherd! I was wrong! I know was wrong!” she sobbed. “It was my father who forced me! He said if I married Sylvester, ou family would rise to the top! I’m a victim too!”
Conrad kicked her away with a single motion.
“Victim?” His tone was terrifyingly cold. “When you watched my daughter being forced to drink did it ever cross your mind that she was the victim?”
Melinda broke down completely, her makeup running down her face as she wept.
Then, a bodyguard approached and reported, “Mr. Shepherd, the police are almost here.”
Conrad nodded, and his eyes swept over the room. “Everyone who was involved tonight, don’t let a single one walk free.”
Hearing that, Sylvester’s face turned pale. With the Shepherd’s influence, he knew his life was finished.
Sapphire’s POV
The hospital room reeked of disinfectant.
I leaned back against the bed, holding Mr. Brooks’s phone. The screen displayed the live feec from the private room.
They were all still kneeling.
Sylvester’s forehead was split open, streaked with blood, while Herman sat collapsed in the corner, utterly broken. Melinda, on the other hand, lay sprawled on the ground, sobbing so hard she could barely breathe.
Watching them, a wave of dark satisfaction surged through me.
“Dad,” I said softly, “give the phone to Melinda.”
My father walked over and handed her the phone.
With trembling hands, Melinda took it. Her voice was choked as she stuttered, “M–Miss Sapphire…”
I spoke slowly but my tone was sharp. “Melinda, after realizing you were Herman’s daughter,
Your Scapegoat that Brought You Down
7:42 pm
SDB
My father walked over and handed her the phone.
With trembling hands, Melinda took it. Her voice was choked as she stuttered, “M–Miss Sapphire…”
I spoke slowly but my tone was sharp. “Melinda, after realizing you were Herman’s daughter,
something came to mind. Do you remember? More than ten years ago, when you lived in our backyard for a while, you used to steal my toys and dresses.”
A terrified gasp came through the line.
Her pupils shrank, her body going rigid. She remembered. She remembered the things she had tried so hard to bury.
“And when you were caught, you cried and claimed I’d given them to you,” I continued. “My mother pitied you and never held it against you.”
Her sobs grew louder. She shook her head desperately, as if denial could erase the truth.
My voice turned colder. “I never imagined that after all these years, your habit of stealing wouldn’t change. Not only did you steal project data, you even tried to steal my life. You and your father are rotten to the core.”
That broke her completely. Melinda collapsed onto the floor, wailing, her cries ripping through the air.
In her mind, she saw her younger self, the jealous little girl who always coveted what belonged to others.
Herman’s face turned even grayer. He remembered my kind, gentle mother, and how forgiving she had been to his daughter.
And this was how they repaid her.
7:43 pm
