Partners Turned Deadly Foes

Beyond the training camp's iron fence, the blood mist still clung to the air. Caleb Lewis grasped my wrist so fiercely that his knuckles whitened: "Either we stand together at the summit, or we fall into hell together—no one lets go first." I turned my head to look at him; the fierceness in his eyes was a mirror of my own. Back then, we were the two sharp blades forged by the Lewis Family. When people on the streets spoke of the "Twin Curse," their voices betrayed an unmistakable dread. We clawed our way out together from a mountain of corpses and oceans of blood. He vowed to protect me for life, and I believed him. On the day he took his place as head of the Lewis Family, I had just finished dealing with the last rival coveting the Lewis Family's territory in an abandoned factory. Sweat trickled down my temple, mingling with the blood on my face, dripping onto the dusty ground. The phone in my pocket suddenly vibrated fiercely, heating up in my hand. I swiped the screen; the bodyguard's voice on the other end was choked with sobs: "Madam, bad news—your daughter suffered a heart attack. She was rushed to the hospital but couldn't be saved." "What did you say?" My voice trembled, and the dagger in my hand clattered to the floor. "The hospital has confirmed it. Please come back quickly and see for yourself." The bodyguard's voice continued, tinged with undeniable panic. I staggered out of the factory, hailed a taxi, and rushed to the hospital. The emergency room lights were already off, the cold glow reflecting off the corridor's tiles, stabbing pain into my eyes. A nurse came over and handed me an empty vial. "This was found in your daughter's room; she was still clutching it." I took the medicine bottle, my fingertips icy cold. The label on the bottle was clear; it wasn't the life-saving medicine Nola usually took, but just an ordinary bottle of vitamin pills.