A False Salvation For Lady

Prologue

My Husband with a Bounty on His Head Found Me

Cordelia Bryson left her husband five years ago. Since she didn’t even go through the divorce process, some might call it a midnight escape.

But she still saw his face every day—on the newspaper she subscribed to and the village bulletin board outside.

It wasn’t to boast about how remarkably handsome he was, nor to remind people that he was once one of the most promising entrepreneurs in the eastern part of the New Continent.

No—it was because of the bounty.

The enormous amount of money on his head.

Cordelia sighed as she looked at that familiar face posted on the bulletin board again today.

“Still not caught, huh.”

Just when one notice was taken down, a new one would go up. And each time, the bounty was higher. How was that even possible? It’s not like he committed treason or anything…

“…Lucas.”

Cordelia softly murmured the name written under his black-and-white photo.

What kind of feelings is a normal person supposed to have when someone they once lived with—someone they once loved—is now branded a criminal?

Sadness? Desperation?

“But what more should I feel for someone who lied to me and never trusted me to begin with?”

He had ruined Cordelia’s family, then deceived her—someone who knew nothing—and married her. It was far too late for her to generously understand and think he must have had his reasons.

She was too exhausted for that.

So Cordelia chose to forget him when she left. Just like she abandoned her original name and once-noble status.

Now, the only thing that truly mattered in Cordelia’s life was her child.

She tore her eyes away from the bounty notice and glanced at her wristwatch—only to gasp in shock.

“Oh no, I’m going to be late!”

Cordelia hurriedly got on her bicycle and glided through the quiet streets of a western city in the New Continent.

Compared to the dazzling East where the wealthy elite resided, this place was practically the boondocks.

Cars, lemon-hued sidewalks, well-trimmed tree-lined streets, department stores shaped like three-tiered white wedding cakes…

The radiant East had been filled with endless parties and social events…

But beyond the massive lake park, she also remembered a place overflowing with crime, blood, and poverty. The thought made Cordelia narrow her eyes.

Forget it.

What mattered now was not being late for her child’s recital.

She had taken a half-day off from work, but was already late and felt horribly guilty for missing the beginning.

Her child had been so proud to recite a poem that Cordelia loved for the competition.

When she asked if they could memorize the entire seven-part poem, the child had nodded confidently with an air of pride.

Cordelia felt proud—her child was so brilliant—but that shining look in their eyes always made her chest ache.

That expression, that cleverness… they all came from her husband.

“…Huh?”

But just as Cordelia reached the area near her child’s school, she froze in disbelief.

That car—it wasn’t unfamiliar. Wasn’t that the antique-style black car produced by Dussen Corp?

A coincidence. It has to be a coincidence.

She knew it was her husband’s favorite car model, but surely not…

However, when she caught a vague glimpse of the people inside, her heart dropped.

They were his men.

“Haa…!”

No, this couldn’t be happening.

Cordelia couldn’t even think to properly secure her bicycle—she just ran in a daze.

If she were alone, she might’ve simply ridden away and escaped.

But now that she had a child, her entire consciousness was focused on that child’s safety.

She took a wide detour, making sure not to be seen, and dashed toward the small schoolyard.

And of all times—her son’s voice rang out.

“‘And is that Woman all her crew? Is that a Death?’”

His voice, reciting the poem, rode on the crisp autumn breeze and reached her ears with sharp clarity.

“‘Is Death that woman’s mate?’”

And through the tall trees overlooking the schoolyard, she saw him—a tall man standing in the shadows.

Even with the dappled sunlight and leaf-shadows blotting him like a dark mosaic, she could recognize him instantly.

The large frame draped In a long frock coat, broad shoulders, and platinum blond hair, fine in texture.

“Whose kid is that? Smart one. Memorized all that?”

His lazy, amused voice made her breath catch in her throat.

Was this real? After five years, was this really how they would meet again—like this?

The man slowly turned his head.

A sliver of sunlight slanted across his face, brushing past his left eye.

Those deep teal eyes curved like a crescent moon as they locked onto hers—as if to draw her in.

His face and build were intense, like a beast, yet strangely enough, his eyes held a languid seductiveness that gave him a decadent aura.

“It’s been a while, my dear wife.”

“Ah…!”

“Have you been well, forgetting all about me?”

And when Cordelia met his gaze, her legs nearly gave out beneath her.

“I thought I was going to die every single day without you.”

The husband—now a fugitive in the New Continent—had appeared before her and their son.