Chapter 1

My best friend, Lucy Paige, was raped and ended up taking her own life. But I decided to protect the rapist's identity.

Her mother once knelt before me, begging for the truth, but I shut the door in her face.

Even when the villagers came to my house in anger, I let my dog chase them away without hesitation.

Ten years later, when I was dying in bed, my other best friend, Ivana Priscilla, returned to the village.

She had become the richest woman in the country and she came back for revenge.

The first thing she did after coming back was force me onto a public memory trial stage, like the ones used for criminals facing execution.

"Selena, you heartless monster who covered a crime. Lucy and I were blind to ever call you a friend!"

"Lucy has been dead for ten years and you let her killer go free all this time!"

"Today, I'll use the memory extractor I invented to show everyone who you really protected!"

But when the real rapist's face appeared on the big screen, her expression turned completely pale.

The stage that Ivana arranged for me was huge.

The whole village filled the town square until there was no room left to stand.

Reporters had their cameras ready and the livestream spread across every major platform.

I was already dying.

My organs were failing and only medicine and nutrient fluids kept me alive.

Yet they still dragged me out into the town square like a criminal.

A man rushed forward and grabbed my throat, screaming, "Selena! Why did you protect that monster?"

"You ruined my family! Why didn't you just die instead?"

He choked me so hard that I almost lost consciousness and my vision gradually went dark.

The crowd went wild, roaring in anger, "What a heartless woman! Her friend was raped before her death and she knew who did it but stayed silent!"

"Her friend jumped into the river to end her life. Her poor mother begged her until her knees bled and she still refused to open the door!"

"She even set her dogs on people. How disgusting can she be?"

All of their curses were aimed at me.

Ivana stood nearby, her brows tightly furrowed.

In this entire world, other than Lucy's parents, no one hated me more than she did.

Ten years ago, Lucy Paige, Ivana Priscilla and I were the closest of friends.

However, after Lucy was assaulted and took her own life in the woods near my home, our friendship fell apart.

In her suicide note, she wrote that I saw the man who raped her.

From that moment on, everyone believed I was protecting the rapist.

And the truth was… I did protect him.

Ivana stepped in front of me, her voice cold and sharp.

"Selena, I'll give you one last chance."

"Tell me who the rapist is, then turn yourself in to the police. It's not too late yet."

"But once I start the machine, the high-frequency pulses will crush every bone in your body again and again. You won't even have a chance to defend yourself!"

My face went pale in an instant. I struggled and screamed in panic, "Iva, no. You can't look into my memory!"

She grabbed my wrist tightly, her teeth clenched. "Scared now? It's too late for that. I'm getting justice for Lucy!"

Tears ran down my face as I begged, "Iva, please… don't do this. If you show my memories, you'll regret everything."

She gave a bitter laugh, her eyes red with fury. "Regret? The only thing I regret is ever calling you my best friend!"

Two guards forced me into a metal chair.

Cold cuffs locked my hands and feet in place.

I struggled, but they pressed a heavy helmet over my head.

A thousand tiny needles stabbed into my scalp, digging deep into my mind.

I screamed as my body shook violently.

In that moment, it felt like my soul was being torn apart.

Even so, the crowd beneath the platform stayed furious.

Rotten vegetables and spoiled eggs flew through the air, hitting the stage as they screamed insults at me.

"Fake friend! Rapist's protector! Go to hell, you witch!"

On the big screen, my memories began to play in reverse.

The first one appeared for everyone to see.

It was three days after Lucy's death.

They had dragged me to her wake.

Everyone demanded that I tell them who the rapist was.

Some spat on me, others threw stones.