Chapter 1 The Wedding

It was Elinor Naden's wedding day. However, it was a wedding where she alone would be the bride. Her husband-to-be, Jaxson Adams, had been in a car accident a year prior and was now in a vegetative state. Doctors had made it clear that Jaxson might never wake up. He was the heir of the mighty Adams family, a dynasty straddling both legal and illegal empires in Babington City. To carry on the family bloodline, Stella Wright, Jaxson's mother, decided to get him a wife. Despite the tantalizing prospects that came with becoming part of the Adams family, no socialite was willing to marry a man who would likely never awaken. Elinor gazed at her reflection in the mirror, appearing radiant and divine. She had never seen herself look so elegant and regal. Dressed in a pristine white gown that perfectly complemented her graceful figure, her makeup only intensified her beauty. She looked like an angel who had descended upon the world, someone to be admired from a distance but never approached. Yet, even on her wedding day, her heart was devoid of joy, filled instead with a gnawing fear of the unknown. As the ceremony was about to commence, Elinor bit her lower lip and finally made a decision. She stood up abruptly. No one knew that Elinor was already in love. Her boyfriend was Kenneth Adams, the nephew of her fiancé, Jaxson. The scheme was simple. Kenneth would sweep her off her feet at the wedding ceremony, and they would escape to Dallas Island, purportedly the most beautiful and sanctified place on Earth. However, she had not heard a word from Kenneth since the previous night. Elinor grew increasingly anxious, knowing she could not wait any longer. Once the ceremony began, there would be no turning back. She stepped into the corridor and abruptly froze. She overheard a conversation. "Kenneth, the wedding is about to start. Shouldn't you send Elinor a message? What if she doesn't cooperate?" "Cooperate? Does she think the Adams family is a pushover? Whether she likes it or not, she has to marry today, even if it’s to a lifeless body. She must become my uncle’s wife!" Why would Kenneth say such a thing when they had planned everything together? "Really? Well, that puts my mind at ease. But Kenneth, what if Elinor finds out we've been sleeping together? She'll go insane." The conversation continued with each word a slap in her face. Elinor knew exactly what was happening in that room. It involved her boyfriend, Kenneth, and her half-sister, Penny Naden. "In my eyes, you're the only one who matters, Penny. Elinor is just a tool to achieve my goals," Kenneth responded. "And what about me? Will I become a tool in the future?" "You’re different, Penny. You are the woman I love most." The dialogue left Elinor in a state of numb disbelief. No matter how much she resisted the idea, the painful reality was right there before her. Her fists clenched around the hem of the priceless wedding gown, wrinkling it in her grasp. Her eyes filled with tears that refused to fall. Her family had always been of little consequence in Babington City. Her marriage to Jaxson was entirely orchestrated by her stepmother, Lydia Foster, who had plotted endlessly to rid herself of Elinor. Betrayed by her family and her boyfriend, Elinor suddenly realized she was living in a web of deceit, where everyone was scheming to extract the last bit of value from her. There had never been any genuine kindness, but only manipulation masked as benevolence. Not caring about being heard, the man and the woman inside the room grew increasingly bold in their conversation. Elinor, feeling as though she was being tortured, stood at the door for a moment longer before finally turning away. She was the daughter of the Naden family, willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of her family’s interests. But all she received in return was betrayal. If that was the case, she would not let anyone who had deceived or betrayed her off the hook. She would reclaim everything that was rightfully hers. The wedding march filled the venue, and when Elinor appeared in her immaculate white gown, everyone was taken aback. Everyone knew Jaxson's wife was beautiful, but no one had expected her to be so breathtakingly gorgeous. The wedding had proceeded quickly, and oddly enough, the groom was absent from beginning to end. Elinor stood alone at the altar, looking almost like a joke. However, everyone knew that she had married into the Adams family, and her status would never be the same again. She was now Jaxson Adams's wife. As the wedding concluded, a driver escorted Elinor to Jaxson's luxurious mansion. Jaxson was an undefeated legend in the world, both the regular and the criminal underworld. However, few people had ever seen him in person. As a reserved individual, he had chosen to live in a sprawling manor outside the city. The opulent home was filled with decorations, each worth a small fortune. However, at that moment, Elinor had no interest in appreciating the grandeur of the manor. She was about to meet her new husband. When she saw him lying on the bed in the master bedroom, her breath was caught in her throat. His deep-set eyes were closed, framed by his wavy, dark brown hair. Even though he was silent, his mere presence on the bed exuded an aura of unapproachable divinity. His skin was pale, having been in a coma for a year, and the paleness tinged with a sickly whiteness that added a haunting allure to his features. Elinor could not help but think that any woman who met him would want to marry him. Knowing her husband would not awaken, she stood still beside the bed, hesitant to go closer. And just then, Kenneth appeared. With a smirk that made her skin crawl, he held her hand. "Sorry about the ceremony. There were too many people. But don't worry, my darling. Once my uncle is gone, all of this will be yours." That, Elinor realized, was likely his real objective. Her eyes narrowed as she yanked her hand away. "Kenneth, did you think you can do whatever you want just because your uncle is like this? The Adams family is still under Jaxson’s rule," she said. The thought of the abominable things she had heard him say made her sick. "Also, now that I’m married to your uncle, you should probably start addressing me as Mrs. Adams."