It was raining cats and dogs in South Hampton City. Even the dark sky felt like it was going to crash on the city.
There was a woman covered in blood collapsed in the living hall of the Lawrence family's manor.
After the tragedy unfolded, everyone left, leaving her alone.
She was hanging onto her last breath on the floor.
The harsh words of her father, her biological father, echoed in her ears.
"Jeanne, who do you think you are? Our family doesn't condone your outrageous behavior! If you weren't that close with Eden, I'd have thrown you out of the house when your mother died after giving birth to you!
"I, Alexander Lawrence, have only two children, Jasmine and Joshua, and you, Jeanne, are no longer my own!
"Whoever so much as helps her or sends her to the hospital will have to go through me! I want this girl to learn the consequences of defying me!"
Jeanne smirked. Her stepsister had snatched her boyfriend and yet it turned out to be her fault?
She squinted her eyes at Jasmine.
Jasmine squatted right in front of her face. She was no longer the cute and innocent girl. What replaced her innocence was a vicious grin.
"Jeanne, how does it feel now that you've been whipped by Father?"
Jeanne shut her eyes. She did not want Jasmine's disgusting look to be the last thing she saw before she died.
"I thought you were the golden child of our family, the princess of the prestigious Lawrence family. I thought you said Eden loved you? But did you know he cares more about me than you?"
If Jeanne could stand or so much as lift a hand, she would strangle Jasmine and drag her to hell together.
"Jeanne, you're a big fat joke! The biggest joke in high society. You lost your fiance and yet people abandoned and isolated you… You might as well just die," Jasmine said with a smirk.
No, Jeanne's will to survive was strong, she could not just die because Jasmine told her to. She had to stay alive regardless of the condition so that she could take revenge on this family.
Jasmine sized up the terrible injuries on Jeanne and it put an evil grin on her face. She grabbed a glass of water, mixed it with some salt, and sprinkled the salt water over the whiplash injuries.
"Argggh!" Jeanne squealed in pain.
Everyone in the Lawrence family was invisible at the moment. They simply watched the torture with crossed arms and soft smirks.
Jeanne's painful squeal fueled Jasmine's excitement.
"I thought you said you wanted to get into Fourth Master Swan's pants?" Jasmine teased.
The excruciating pain on Jeanne's body almost knocked her out cold a few times.
"What's wrong? You didn't get close enough to sleep with him?" Jasmine mocked. "You really think that your pretty face can get you whatever you want? To me, it's an eyesore!"
Jasmine squinted her eyes as she pulled out a knife.
Right before she could slash Jeanne's face with the knife, the door was pushed open with a bang.
"Jeannie!"
The sudden entrance startled Jasmine and she kept the knife away.
Monica came in and saw Jeanne collapsed on the floor. She ran over as her tears rolled down her cheeks endlessly. She did not know how to help her friend up so that she would not make the injuries worse.
"Jeannie, I'm taking you to the hospital," Monica said as she sobbed.
"Don't you dare!" Jasmine bellowed.
Monica glared at her.
"My father said no one is allowed to help her…"
Monica turned a deaf ear. Jasmine, to her, was just a b*stard. She came here not to argue with some b*stard but to help her friend.
"Stop right there!" Alexander came down from the second floor.
"I'm taking her to the hospital!"
"Put her down!" Alexander bellowed.
"Are you just going to let her die here?" Monica screamed.
"This is our family matter, and you're just an outsider, Monica!"
"Anyone with a sane mind can tell that she's dying! And yet as her father, you decided to turn a blind eye and let her die?" Monica screamed her questions at Alexander as her tears continued to roll down her cheeks.
"That is none of your business!"
"It is now! Or Jeanne will die right here, right now!" Monica then helped Jeanne up and wanted to bring her out of the house.
Two steps later, Alexander tossed a significant gaze at his servants.
The group of servants surrounded the girls and separated them, dragging Jeanne away from Monica.
Jeanne was badly wounded and the drag exacerbated her condition. Her face was emotionless and as pale as paper, and the pain had gotten so intense that it numbed her senses.
"Monica, if it's not for your family, I'd have thrown you out forcefully!" Alexander bellowed. He threw another glare at his servants and said, "Bring that girl back to her room and see Ms. Cardellini off!"
"Don't you turn your back on me!" Monica screamed.
Alexander glared at the girl.
"If I can't take Jeanne away from this hellhole today, I'll die here today with her!" Monica threatened Alexander with her life just to save her friend.
"You'll have to answer to my father then!"
Alexander reacted bitterly to the threats.
"I MEAN IT!" Monica bellowed.
The situation came to a stalemate.
Monica dared not linger for long because she was worried about Jeanne's condition. She turned around and rammed herself into the grandfather clock.
Clunk!
A loud clunk echoed throughout the living hall, which startled Alexander.
Monica felt dizzy. She endured the pain from her head and screamed at Alexander once more, "Alexander Lawrence! Make your choice now!"
Alexander glared at the girl coldly and said with a flat tone, "From today onward, Jeanne Lawrence is no longer my daughter. She shall never bear the name of Lawrence anymore!"
Leaving his furious remarks behind, Alexander left.
Jasmine smirked and followed her father away.
Monica took Jeanne away from the servants but Jeanne could barely stand on her feet.
"Jeannie!" Monica helped her up.
Jeanne could barely keep her vision clear and she mustered up all her strength to say, "Thank you, Monica. Thank you for saving me with your life."
"There's no need to thank me. If you die, I don't want to live either." Monica's eyes were red. She squatted to carry Jeanne on her back.
"Hold on, I'll bring you to the hospital."
Jeanne leaned on Monica's shoulder sickly. Her slender shoulder was probably the most warmth that she felt in her entire life.
Monica carried Jeanne out of the door. It was still raining heavily outside.
For some reason, Monica's car was gone and she had lost her phone during or before the confrontation with Alexander.
However, she dared not linger because Jeanne was living on her last breath.
She carried Jeanne through the rain and on her feet. Even when her feet started to bleed, she dared not stop.
Her tears converged with the rain on her face. "Jeannie, don't you die on me. I'll bring you to the hospital…"
"Monica, I'm fine," Jeanne consoled her.
She swore to herself to stay alive and she intended to keep the promise.
Monica managed to bring Jeanne to the hospital but before Jeanne could recover, Alexander sent his servants to the hospital.
The servants arrived with a plane ticket and they were tasked to send Jeanne away from Harken.
From that day onward, Jeanne disappeared from South Hampton City and the whole of Harken, and she was only 18 years old.