Chapter 2

"No problem. Since Tina doesn't like this toy, let it die then. We can just conceive another one next time."

Dashiell dismissed everyone, picked up the scar removal cream, and gently applied it to the snake bite wound on my ankle.

The next second, an icy chill spread through my calf, accompanied by a slimy, nauseating stickiness.

A slender emerald green snake, about as thick as a thumb, slithered out from Dashiell's sleeve.

It climbed up my leg, flicking its scarlet tongue, slowly making its way upward.

This was the first hatchling from the two snake eggs Lily had left behind on the day she died.

Dashiell morbidly believed this might be Lily's reincarnation. He carried it with him daily, showering it with endless affection, seeing the snake as a reminder of her.

He held me down while savoring my terrified expression.

Dashiell's lips curled into a slight smirk, but his words were chilling:

"Tina was a bit too playful this time, but even if those snakes were bought from outside, you shouldn't have destroyed those snake eggs."

"Lily loved snakes more than anything when she was alive, and hated anyone who harmed them. I've said before, in this house, no one is allowed to do anything she didn't like. Since you did, you must face the consequences.A bone-chilling coldness pierced through my body, causing me to tremble uncontrollably with an overwhelming sense of terror and nausea.

Dashiell's fingertips caressed my lips as his eyes gleamed with flecks of excited bloodshot.

"You've done well this time. After you take those fertility supplements, if you're a good girl and carry another boy, I might consider rewarding you by officially marrying you."

Dashiell's words weren't born from a preference for sons over daughters.

It was because not having both a son and a daughter was Lily's regret, and she worried Tina would be lonely.

From the day I arrived at the Thompson family, he had told me:

"Lily will be my only wife in this lifetime. You're nothing more than a breeding tool to fulfill her unfulfilled wishes."

"Your job, besides raising Tina, is to give birth to a boy. If it's a girl, we'll get rid of it. After all, the Thompson family doesn't need anything superfluous."

"Remember this: even if you give birth to a son, he's just a playmate for Tina to grow up with. The child will be registered under Lily's name. Don't you ever dare to entertain any foolish hopes."The bed sheets were once again soaked with fresh blood. The warm, intimate breath drew closer, and Dashiell's eyes grew increasingly red at the corners.

This time, I chose not to comply meekly. Instead, I pushed him away.

"Mr. Thompson, the eight-year term has ended. It's time for me to leave."

As soon as the words left my mouth, a searing, flesh-tearing pain shot through my thigh.

My face instantly turned pale, followed by full-body paralysis and a crushing pain in my chest.

The small snake slithered back to Dashiell's wrist, raising its head as if seeking praise.

Dashiell rewarded it with a gentle stroke. The previous lust vanished from his eyes, replaced by anger:

"Xanthe, Tina was just being playful for a moment. Is it necessary for you to make such a big deal out of it? I don't recall you being this dramatic about the six previous miscarriages."

"You've raised Tina for eight years. Even if she's not your biological child, she's your sister's kid. You have an unbreakable blood tie with her. How can you be so heartless as to abandon her?"

"If you take back what you just said, I'll have someone inject you with the antidote right away."

Unlike Tina's pet snakes, Dashiell's snakes were all venomous.

They wouldn't kill, but they could make one wish for death while clinging desperately to life.Perhaps it was the effect of the toxin, but my thoughts suddenly drifted back to eight years ago.

My half-sister Lily was the envy of every woman in New York City.

Her husband, Dashiell, the CEO of Tempest Corporation, adored her to the bone, and the Gevano family rode his coattails to success.

To cater to Lily's interests, Dashiell transformed from a complete novice to a renowned "Snake Charmer" in the reptile community.

No one understood snakes better than him, and no one loved Lily more than he did.

Lily loved him just as deeply, so much so that despite knowing her body wasn't suitable for childbearing, she still risked carrying twins.