Breaking all chains

Avery stated her reason, and the room fell into stunned silence.

Even Edward looked taken aback. "You want a written statement? You want me to sign an agreement to cut ties with you?" he asked, laughing bitterly. The sound was twisted, like a sneer carved into a face. “You’ve got some nerve.”

Avery tilted her head slightly and nodded. "If I’m getting married to pay you back for raising me, then I want every chain between us broken. I don’t want to owe you anything in the future. It's best I don’t belong to this family at all."

She wasn’t a fool. They saw her as nothing more than a cash cow. If she let them control this moment, they'd control every part of her life forever. She agreed to the marriage only because she was determined to repay the debt of being raised by such a selfish man.

It broke her heart. This was the father her mother had loved so deeply—the man she’d once told Avery to obey and respect because he had a good heart. Her mother believed he would always protect her.

He had failed them both.

Edward sneered. “You think you're in a position to negotiate with me? You don't get a say. This is simple payback.”

Avery didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Even now, he refused to let her go. He wanted her forever indebted—so that when things fell apart in the future, he could use it against her all over again.

A schemer.

If he’d been this clever in business, the company might never have gone bankrupt in the first place.

She smiled. “Then forget I said anything about the marriage,” she said, turning to leave.

Just then, one of the bodyguards rushed into the room.

“Sir, there's a visitor from the Conrad family.”

Avery froze.

Panic twisted in her gut. If her father didn’t agree to her condition now, she'd be trapped forever—even in marriage. The Sinclair name, once built through her grandmother’s hard work, had been crumbling ever since Edward took control. His selfish decisions and reckless leadership had led to this mess.

Yet somehow, she was the one paying the price.

Edward’s eyes lit up instantly. “Show them in—quickly!”

The family moved to the living room. Even Adele, who had been fuming moments earlier, now wore a wide, flattering smile, sitting primly like the perfect hostess.

A man in a sharp business suit entered, flanked by two uniformed escorts. He offered a crisp, professional nod.

“Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair,” he greeted.

Edward stood with exaggerated warmth. “Assistant Hayes! What a pleasure! Please—tea or coffee?”

Adele echoed sweetly, “Yes, anything at all?”

Jordan Hayes waved off their enthusiasm with a polite smile. “Thank you, but let’s get straight to business.” His tone turned firm. “Today is the deadline for the contract with the Conrad family. Is it a deal or not?”

Edward beamed. “Of course it’s a deal. My daughter is willing and ready.”

“Good,” Hayes replied. “No need to delay. Have her come down. We’re leaving shortly.”

Edward nodded to a nearby maid. Moments later, she returned alone and whispered something in his ear. His face darkened like a storm cloud.

“That ungrateful brat,” he muttered through clenched teeth. Forcing a stiff smile, he nodded at the maid again to try a second time.

Upstairs, Avery took a deep breath. She had made her condition clear. Whatever happened next... would shape her future.

She gently placed her mother’s photo into her suitcase, followed by an old photo of her grandmother. They were her guiding lights. Everything else she packed quickly—essentials, memories, pieces of herself she refused to leave behind.

Then she appeared at the top of the stairs, dragging a large suitcase behind her.

All eyes turned to her.

Assistant Hayes signaled one of his men to collect the luggage, and Avery snapped out of her daze. Her eyes landed on Hayes.

Was this the man she was being sold off to?

He wasn’t unattractive, but he was clearly older—possibly pushing forty. Was this really her match? An old man? Maybe she was cursed in a past life.

With a heavy heart, she stepped forward and extended a folded document toward her father. Edward took it, his expression unreadable—until he saw what it was.

His face darkened with fury as he read. A legal severance of ties. She wanted nothing from the Sinclair family. No name, no inheritance, no obligation. Nothing.

He signed it. Angrily. Without a word.

“This stubborn girl will regret this,” he muttered to himself. “She thinks this is freedom? That fool doesn’t even know the Conrad heir is rumored to be gay. The old man just wants a woman to bear an heir. That’s why this marriage is happening.”

He sneered. “She’ll come crawling back.”

Avery tucked the signed document into her bag and turned back one final time. Her gaze swept the house, her childhood, her memories—both good and bitter.

She swallowed the lump in her throat.

Then she walked out the door.

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