---- Chapter 7 By the time I arrived at the scene, all I saw was red. A vivid, terrible red. So bright it scorched the eyes. That night, I was forcibly taken to the Mankin family's home. The old matriarch stood before me, but her gaze was fixed somewhere far beyond me. She didn't look at me when she spoke. "Mindy," she said, her voice as brittle as dried paper, "your family owes the Mankin family a life. Grayson was the most outstanding child of his generation. And now he's dead, because of something so absurd. That debt your parents left behind, now you'll pay it." I knelt on the cold floor in silence. Not a single tear came. Numb, I nodded. ---- That night, I signed the agreement. A seven-year contract- unequal and cruel in every possible way. Grayson's younger brother, Charles, had suffered a complete psychological breakdown from the trauma of his brother's death. He became unmoored, his memory fractured, his emotions chaotic. The old matriarch demanded that I stay by his side for seven years. To grow up with him, to serve him, to be whatever he needed. A shadow, a scapegoat. A vessel for his rage and grief. From that moment on, I became his most obedient dog. No emotions. No resistance. But no one knew the real reason I agreed so easily to her conditions. Ihad seen his face-an exact mirror of Grayson's. If I couldn't protect Grayson, then at least I could ---- protect his brother. Or so I thought. But life has a way of showing you just how much you've overestimated yourself. When I finally left Charles's villa, I took only my identification. Over the years, he had tormented me in every way possible. And yet, he had never denied me the finest clothes, the best food, the softest sheets. He couldn't afford the shame of doing otherwise. All those clothes, those sparkling accessories- everything he had bought me-I left them behind without a second thought. Walking alone through the empty streets, the sunlight felt unreal, like something from a distant life I couldn't return to. Passersby gave me wide berth, clearly unsettled by the mess I must've looked. ---- Then, a woman approached me. Middle-aged, kind eyes, warmth in her movements. She reached out and gently held me by the shoulders. "Sweetheart, you're hurt. What happened? Do you need me to call someone? The police?" I looked at her and smiled. It had been so long since anyone had shown me kindness so simple and sincere. "No," I said softly. "I just fell. It's nothing. I'll go buy some medicine in a bit, take care of it myself." But just as the words left my mouth, the world tilted. Everything went dark, and I collapsed.