"According to the information we have gathered, your wife’s mother also suddenly disappeared twenty years ago and there has been no news since. Do you believe your wife’s disappearance might be linked to her mother’s?"

This series of questions was like blades driven straight into Caleb’s heart.

He clutched his chest, trying to suppress the dull ache, but it was useless.

His brain, which hadn't rested for a day, grew sluggish, struggling to process the information, which made his answers filled with uncertainty.

"Yes, it was 6:30. That day was her birthday. I sent her a message that night, but she didn't reply to me."

"As for that public opinion, I don't know. I don't know if she knew about it."

"Her mother left because her father cheated... I don't..."

He trailed off, suddenly stuck.

Caleb lifted his head, a flash of clarity suddenly appearing in his numb eyes.

Memories buried deep within began to surface.

Before Luna disappeared, she had visited a psychiatric ward; the necklace her mother had left behind never appeared again after being sent for repairs; she had frequently brought up the past events about her parents that she had once found too painful to look back on...

An unprecedented, intense feeling of panic surged into Caleb’s heart.

He felt the hairs on his entire body stand up, and a sour, numb, and astringent sensation spread from his temples throughout his body.

Looking at the phone presented by the police, he picked it up with trembling hands and unlocked it using his fingerprint.

The screen instantly jumped to the WeChat chat interface.

The moment he saw the name at the top of the screen, the blood in Caleb's body froze.

Sienna.

And in the chat history, there were countless explicit videos and photos.

Scrolling up, there was no end in sight.

He suddenly recalled the five-hour erotic video played on the central square screen that had caused such a sensation.

Those doubts that had left him confused and unable to eat or sleep—he found the answers to them all in this moment.

It turned out Luna hadn't disappeared suddenly because she saw that video.

She had known about his business with Sienna a long, long time ago.

The only reason she remained silent was that she was planning her departure.

And that video had come from her own hands.

She had used this resolute method to puncture the surface of their happy marriage for the whole world to see, as a way to take revenge for his unfaithfulness.

And Caleb, immersed in his desires, hadn't sensed a thing.

Not until he reacted did he realize that he had already been standing on the edge of a cliff.

And behind him was a dark, massive rift he had created with his own hands.

He fell into it, dropping endlessly, with no room to resist.

The wind, as fierce as sharp knives, scraped away his flesh; the vultures of desire he had fostered in his heart devoured his blood and meat; the scorching sun evaporated and drew him hollow.

In the end, only an empty, vacant skeleton remained, crashing onto the hard rock below.

With a bang.

Completely shattered into pieces.

Chapter 14

Three days after the video incident, news of Luna's disappearance spread like wildfire.

At the same time, the female protagonist in the video was tracked down by netizens—she was a freshman at S University and the younger sister of Caleb’s college roommate.

With both pieces of news emerging at once, #CalebCheating soon hit the number one spot on the trending topics.

This time, the He family poured massive amounts of funds into it, yet they couldn't suppress the heat, as if someone were secretly fueling the flames.

Overnight, the shares of He Group hit their limit down.

The elder Mr. He suffered a sudden myocardial infarction that very night and was hospitalized.

When the secretary relayed this news to Caleb, his psychological defense line, already on the verge of collapse, completely disintegrated.

The 72-hour golden rescue window had passed, and there was still no word from Luna.

He had searched every place he could think of, even hiring countless private investigators, using connections to pull up all the road surveillance footage in Riverside City.

Still, he couldn't find a single trace of Luna.

Her household record had been canceled, all items in the house related to her had been cleared out, and the last image that appeared on the monitors was at 6:30 in the evening on the twenty-first.

After he drove away from the house, she followed him out, holding a bag in her hand.

What was in the bag?

No one knew.

While the investigators tracked her whereabouts, Caleb held on and made a trip to the hospital.

As soon as he entered the door, Mr. He delivered a fierce slap to his face, making him see stars.

"You unfilial son! You’ve caused such a massive crisis; you’re going to destroy the entire He family!"

He fell to his knees with difficulty, knocking his head continuously before his furious parents and his grandfather, who was still hooked up to a ventilator.

After the thud, thud, thud of the impacts rang out, there was a knock at the door from the outside.

Mr. He turned around with a dark face, only to see a face he hated to the core.

Caleb’s biggest competitor, the current president of the Zhou Group, Damian.

He arrived with seven or eight people. Watching the play of father and son at odds before him, he couldn't help but clap his hands.

"I heard the elder Mr. He was unwell, so I, a junior, came specially to ask after him. I wonder if it's a convenient time?"

Just by seeing his gloating expression, the He family realized something was wrong, and their faces shifted as they started to show him the door.

Faced with their uncompromising reprimands, Damian turned a deaf ear.

He smiled, took out a file, and slapped it against his palm repeatedly.

"If it’s not convenient, that’s fine. Actually, I have another matter to handle today."

"A few days ago, I received a share transfer agreement. The signatory is the largest shareholder of the He Group, Luna. She transferred the seventy percent of shares she holds to me at the lowest price. I have already signed it. I came today to notify you all: tomorrow morning at ten, I will bring my lawyers to the He Group headquarters to handle the relevant matters. I hope you will all be prepared in advance."

These words exploded in the ears of everyone in the room like a thunderclap.

Mr. He couldn't believe what he was hearing and was the first to stand up and oppose it.

"Impossible! The largest shareholder of the He Group is Caleb. He didn't sign it; how could she sell it to you!"

Damian locked his gaze on Caleb, the smile on his face growing more delighted.

"Whether this is true or not, Uncle He, you had better ask your good son. Excuse me."

Caleb was already frozen in place, unable to speak.

He was a complete mess, unaware of where he was or what he had experienced.

Only the sound of his incessant breathing remained, one breath after another.

Echoing in his mind.

Chapter 15

The day the incident broke, Sienna's brother and parents rushed to her side to demand the truth.

She refused to say a word, infuriating her family so much that they locked her away.

Five days after the event, unable to withstand the overwhelming condemnation from public opinion, she dropped out of S University.

That very evening, she finally found an opportunity to slip out.

Upon arriving at the He residence, she stared at the pitch-black room, catching a whiff of dust and rot in the air.

She searched from the living room up to the second floor, finally finding Caleb in the corner of the bedroom.

He was lying amidst a pile of empty liquor bottles, dead drunk and unshaven.

This bedraggled, desolate appearance was a far cry from the immaculately dressed, golden boy he once was, surrounded by adulation.

Sienna approached him in shock and hugged him, her tone thick with irrepressible worry.

"Caleb, what’s happened to you?"

Hearing her voice, Caleb opened his bloodshot eyes.

The moment he saw her face, his first reaction was to think of those chat logs.

Those logs—the source of all the evil that had caused him to fall to this state and driven Luna away—were all because of the person standing before him!

A volcano of rage erupted within Caleb’s heart.

Unable to control himself any longer, he shoved her away and slammed her hard against the wall.

His hands, clamped tightly around her arms, had veins bulging; his face looked grotesque and terrifying.

He squeezed the words out from between his teeth, filled with gnashing hatred.

"Sienna! You! Bitch!"

"I warned you countless times that Luna is my bottom line! How dare you do this behind my back! Are you looking for death?"