It's raining so hard. My father's voice was instantly filled with the fury of a raging lion. Even though he was on the other side of the phone, I could feel his terrifying anger.

Someone dared to touch Arthur Vance's daughter. That bastard doesn't know who he's messed with. Savannah, don't be afraid. Tell me where you are.

Give me your exact location. I lifted my head and looked around with a blurry gaze. Everything was obscured by the downpour, but with the faint light of a street light, I managed to read the name at the entrance to the housing development. I'm at the entrance to Pine Ridge Estates.

Curled up against a wall. Pine Ridge Estates. Got it. Savannah, don't move from there.

Don't go anywhere. Find a small shop or a stairwell nearby to take shelter from the rain. I'm sending someone immediately. Don't hang up.

My father's voice was firm with the determination of a man long accustomed to being at the top. 10 minutes, no five. In 5 minutes, my people will be there. My heart felt both warm and pained.

How foolish I had been for 5 years for what I called love. I had severed ties with my family, believing that happiness was a life of sacrifice by Caleb's side. Now I understood my mistake. Silly girl, stop talking and go take shelter.

Dad will handle the rest. My father's voice softened slightly, but the suppressed fury had not diminished in the least. Well see what kind of family these Prescotts are to dare treat my daughter this way. The call wasn't disconnected.

I could hear my father issuing urgent orders to someone. His tone was no longer gentle as it had been with me, but cold and commanding. Marcus, track my daughter's cell phone immediately. I need her exact position.

Take the fastest car and get to the entrance of Pine Ridge Estates. If a single hair on her head is harmed, it's on you. And I want a full report on a certain Caleb Prescott and his family. In 10 minutes, all the data on my desk.

Yes, Mr. Vance. A brisk professional male voice replied. Listening to those swift and effective commands on the other end, my heart, nearly frozen from the rain, began to slowly thaw. So, this is what it feels like to have someone on your side.

I, Savannah Vance, was not alone. At that moment, a black sedan entered the development. Its headlights cut through the rain in two streaks of light. It wasn't the car my father had sent.

It couldn't have arrived so quickly. A man with an umbrella got out of the car and ran to the security booth. He must have been a resident. Instinctively, I pressed myself further into the shadow of the wall.

I didn't want anyone to see me in such a pathetic state. The place where I'd been hit still throbbed. a reminder of the humiliation I had just endured. Caleb, Briana, you're probably in your warm house right now, laughing at my helplessness.

Just you wait. The voice on the phone spoke again, tinged with suppressed anxiety. Savannah, the car is almost there. It's a black Mercedes.

The license plate ends in 777. As soon as you see it, get in. The driver will take you home. Home?

I repeated weakly. To what home? To that parody of a home with Caleb? No, that wasn't my home anymore.

You're coming to our home, silly girl, my father said firmly, as if reading my mind. I'm waiting for you at the villa in Lake Forest. The villa in Lake Forest, the place where I was born and raised, the most exclusive suburb of Chicago. For the past 5 years, I had tried to ignore all of it.

Shut away in that small Prescott apartment, serving them and thinking it was a great sacrifice. Thinking about it now, there couldn't be a more absurd comedy. In the distance, two bright lights cut through the curtain of rain and approached rapidly. A sleek black Mercedes smoothly stopped at the entrance of the development.

The license plate did indeed end in 777. The driver's door opened and a tall man in a dark suit got out with a large black umbrella and approached me at a near run. He looked respectful, but his tension was palpable. Miss Savannah, I'm Marcus, the president's assistant.

You've been waiting long. Please get in the car. He carefully helped me to my feet, nearly frozen, perfectly shielding me from the rain and wind with the umbrella, and escorted me to the warm back seat of the car. The soft leather seats, the pleasant dry air, a stark contrast to the icy hell I had been in just a moment before.

The car smoothly pulled out of Pine Ridge Estates. Through the fogged window, I cast one last look at the apartment that had consumed 5 years of my youth and my feelings. Caleb and your family. None of you should even think of escaping.

The car drove quickly but steadily. The downpour outside was completely insulated. Only the quiet wor of the windshield wipers could be heard. Marcus drove in silence and handed me a clean soft towel.

Miss Savannah, please dry yourself off or you'll catch a cold. I took the towel and dried my hair and face. Even the texture was incomparably softer than the rough ones I had been using, and it smelled of a subtle, clean scent. Looking at the rapidly flashing city neons, I felt that this rainy Chicago was both foreign and familiar.

For the past 5 years, like an ostrich with its head in the sand, I had been hiding in that small apartment, almost completely forgetting the true face of the city. The car left the city center and continued north. The landscape became calmer, the trees more lush.

Finally, the car passed through an impressive wrought iron gate and entered grounds resembling a park. Villas of various styles emerged from the rain. The car stopped in front of a large old-fashioned mansion with enormous grounds and all its lights on. Marcus quickly got out to open my door with the umbrella and escorted me to the heavy carved wooden doors.

The doors opened from within, spilling warm light and illuminating the figure of a man standing in the doorway. It was my father, Arthur Vance. He was wearing an elegant dark silk robe. His posture was firm.

His hair slicked back. Not a single strand was out of place, but there was no trace of the authority and distance he displayed at business meetings. There was only anxiety and concern for his daughter. Savannah, my father, ran to me, grabbed me by the shoulders, and looked me over from head to toe.