Chapter 1 Marriage with the living dead

Late at night, bitterly cold, J.C. Women's Prison smelled of death and decay.

Gwen curled up in bed, her sheets too thin to fight back the cold. She reached out and gently touched her aching knees. The dull pain in the joints kept her awake all night.

Three whole years had not got her used to this kind of hardship, after all, she was not as strong as she thought of herself.

This winter had been made worse by the chronic pain and illness accumulated over the years, and Gwen started to suspect if she would still be able to walk out of that door.

Three years after she was forced to plead guilty and sentenced to 10 years in prison, she still had seven more to go.

Gwen shifted uncomfortably to relived her pain. The bed shook and woke the people nearby. Someone got up irritably and grabbed Gwen by the hair.

Gazing at the cruel face of the woman, Gwen’s numbness of the expression said that taking a beating was nothing unusual.

But her silence did not earn her the mercy from the woman; a heavy slap was on its way; Gwen did not even try to shun it; she was too weak and too lazy to struggle; anyway, it always ended the same.

He closed her eyes and waited for the pain to come. Suddenly, there was a sound of footsteps outside. " Gwen, come out!"

Gwen opened her eyes slowly and the woman shook her off. " We are not done."

She put on her only one decent dress lazily and walked out following the officer. " What’s going on?"

“ Zip your lips, don't ask what you shouldn't!”

Without another word, the officer handcuffed and hooded Gwen.

The darkness in the hood brought uncertainty and fear; Gwen's heart sank slowly.

After a while, she was forced into a car. "Where are you taking me?"

Gwen listened to the sound of the engine start; terror filled her heart.

Was she about to be disposed of secretly.

" Well, you'll see."

An old but steady and powerful voice raced Gwen's heartbeat...

Her intuition told her this trip would change the course of her life.

After a pretty long while on the anxious seat, the car stopped; Gwen got out of the car. A man grabbed her arm and led her through several turns before they stopped.

The hood was violently ripped off; Her eyes, long in the darkness, were dazzled by the sudden light.

After a while of adapting her eyes to the changes, Gwen saw an old man standing not far away from her, no expression on his face, an intimidating aura surrounding him.

This was the one who had brought her out, the one she could not afford to offend.

Gwen glanced at him and stared down at the toe of her shoe. She was afraid that this man would suddenly be provoked into doing something to her, something she had no power to resist.

" Well, I've got a favor to ask of you. If you agree, I can drop the charges and get you out early."

"I agree," Gwen interrupted the old man eagerly.

"Aren't you afraid that the favor was against you?"
The old man was surprised at her eagerness.

Gwen shook her head. " What could be worse. What's more, if a man like you really want to lay hands on me, you would not need to ask?"

This person could get her out, of course he could made her evaporate, and she was not ready to die.

The old man nodded. “That being said, you should still get to know it before you decide."

Then he opened the door and entered the room, followed by Gwen. A man was lying on the sickbed.

He was a very handsome man; the hospital gown and his closed eyes could not hide his delicacy from Gwen; his sculptural facial features was irresistibly manifested in the dim light.

Gwen was even confused--how could such a perfect young man have anything to do with her?

"This is my grandson Hugh Lu; he has been in coma for three years, and he is the owner of the car you hit."

Gwen's face turned pale as she stared at the sleeping man. She clenched her fist. Her untrimmed nails dug into her palms and pricked her skin without her notice.

It was him!

Gwen knew that he, too, was a victim, but it was hard to remain her composure at the thought that this man was the reason why she had been retaliated against and tortured on purpose in prison.

Anger, grievance and astonishment intermingled, but she had to swallow them silently and pretend to be calm.

When the old man saw that her hands were shaking, he thought she was feel guilty. " Well, Hugh is in a coma now, and he needs a woman to marry him and take care of him closely. For some reason, it must be you. What do you think?”

Gwen was silent for a moment. Married? To marry a man like Hugh Lu?

Even if she hadn’t been in prison, it would be wishful thinking for her, with her background, to marry into such a rich family as Lu.

She knew that Lu must be up to something...

However, she was not in a position to refuse.

She had only two choices: either she married the living dead in front of her, or she went back to the prison and lived in darkness until she served her time.

" I agree."