It began quietly—on a sunlit afternoon that felt too peaceful to ever hold tragedy—when billionaire entrepreneur Adrien Marlo came home early and found his world collapsing behind the doors of his own mansion.
To the public, Adrien was a titan of industry: gracing magazine covers, praised for his discipline, envied for his success. But beneath all the accolades, his greatest pride wasn’t his empire—it was his six-year-old daughter, Clara.
Clara had been born with a condition that left her dependent on crutches, but she carried herself with a resilience that humbled even her father. Her laughter filled every corridor. Her courage gave him purpose. After losing his first wife to illness, Adrien had promised that nothing would ever steal Clara’s smile again.
When he married Seline, a woman admired for her charm and grace, he thought he had rebuilt the family warmth they’d lost. For a while, it even felt true.
Until the day he heard a cry.
The sound came faintly through the marble hallway—a small, frightened whimper that didn’t belong in a house meant for love. Adrien followed the noise, his heart quickening with dread.
And then he saw her.
Seline, her elegance twisted into rage, stood towering over Clara. One of the girl’s crutches lay on the ground.
“You clumsy little thing!” Seline snapped, her voice sharp as broken glass.
Clara tried to apologize—too softly, too timidly—and then came the slap.
A hand against the face of the child he’d sworn to protect.
Adrien’s world detonated.
“Enough!” His voice thundered through the house, freezing Seline where she stood.
He rushed to his daughter, gathering her trembling body into his arms. Her cheek was red, her eyes wide with fear.
And in that moment, he knew this wasn’t the first time she had flinched like that.
“How long?” he demanded, his voice shaking. “How long have you been hurting my little girl?”
Seline stammered, weaving excuses that shattered under his stare. The woman he thought he loved was gone, replaced by something cold and cruel.
“Get out,” he said quietly—but the fury beneath it made her stumble backward. “Get out of my house. Now.”
The door slammed. Silence fell.
Adrien knelt on the floor, holding Clara close, whispering through tears, “I’m so sorry. I should have protected you.”
That night, his wealth felt like ash. His empire, meaningless. All that mattered was the fragile heartbeat trembling against his chest.