

Summer, a rural girl who grew up in a backward countryside, faced harsh treatment from her parents, who made her drop out of school to work and support her younger brother. When the time came for her brother to get married, Summer's parents planned to marry her off to an old bachelor in the village for $100,000. At the same time, Summer's best friend Megan was locked up by her parents, who intended to marry her off to an idiot. Determined to escape, Summer and Megan fled to Rosetown, where they vowed to establish their independence. Through hard work, Summer gradually climbed the social ladder, and one day, a misunderstanding led her to cross paths with Jason, the wealthiest man in Rosetown. Thus, an unexpected romance that would change everything began.

In the Valenti Family, you're born with a chip. It's fused into the bio-watch on your wrist, its digital face counting down every second you have left to live. Everyone could see the numbers ticking down on my twin sister's watch. And on mine. They all knew she would die on our 18th birthday. So Vivian became the untouchable princess of our brutal world. Every diamond-stitched gown was hers. The rarest jewels were hers. Even our father's last shred of humanity was hers. That single sliver of warmth he showed only after his gun was holstered. I used to pity her. Her time was running out. But God, I envied her. She had everything I never did: our parents' love. Then, the night of her 18th birthday party. My parents worried I'd make a scene. That I'd piss off the Don of an allied Family. So they locked me in the cellar. Damp. Cold. While a deadly fever burned through me. I pounded on the heavy oak door, my voice cracking. "Mamma, please! Let me out! I'm burning up. My head is splitting open…" Outside, my mother's voice was a steel trap. "Enough, Sienna! Today is your sister’s 18th birthday. Her last day alive! Stop the theatrics! Can't you suffer in silence for the Family's honor?" "But I'm really sick..." Her footsteps clicked away, fading into nothing. Then the darkness swallowed me whole. And on my wrist, the bio-watch was flashing a critical alert. CRITICAL ALERT: Vital signs mismatch. Paired chip data incompatible. Please verify user.