After Prison I Rushed into Marriage with a Comatose Tycoon-Chapter 1: Release from Prison, a Warding-Off Wedding

Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Release from Prison, a Warding-Off Wedding

"Inmate 019, you have a visitor."

In the women’s prison cafeteria, Eliza Sutton was having a meal when a guard suddenly called her out.

Eliza Sutton met her father, Harrison Sutton, in the visiting room. It was the first time anyone from her family had come to see her since she’d been tricked into taking the fall five years ago, and she couldn’t help but feel a stir of emotion.

"Eliza, have you been well these past few years?"

"I’m fine."

"That’s good to hear." Harrison Sutton offered a relieved smile. "The reason I’m here, besides seeing you, is to tell you that the family has arranged for your parole. We’ve also arranged a marriage for you—to Shane Lockwood of the Lockwood family. Once you’re married, you’ll be the new Mrs. Lockwood, the most distinguished woman in all of Seabourne. It’s the best possible future for you."

Shane Lockwood. Heir to the Lockwood family, the foremost of Seabourne’s four great clans. He was known for his ruthless and decisive methods, a legendary figure since childhood. He was the dream man of every socialite, the one they all wanted to marry.

However—

"Dad, this prison isn’t completely cut off from the outside world. I saw the news a month ago. Shane Lockwood is terminally ill and only has a few days left to live. Since when is becoming a widow considered the ’best possible future’?"

Harrison Sutton hadn’t expected Eliza to know. He gave an awkward laugh. "I know this is unfair to you, but Master Lockwood specifically requested you. He had your fortune read, and it’s a perfect match. How could I possibly refuse? Besides, you’re a convicted criminal. You have a record. If this weren’t a marriage to ward off ill fortune, what right would you have to even set foot in the Lockwood family’s home?"

Eliza’s heart went cold. That initial stir of emotion had vanished without a trace, replaced by a sneer. "It seems you’ve forgotten, Dad, just who I became a criminal for."

Harrison Sutton looked sheepish and began to plead. "Eliza, please, just help the family one more time. All right? No matter what, you’re still a daughter of the Sutton family. It wasn’t easy for your mother and me to raise you. You can’t just stand by and watch us sink."

Eliza’s expression was frosty. "That’s exactly what you said five years ago when you had me take the fall. If I recall correctly, we even signed an agreement: In exchange for Eliza Sutton going to prison in place of Cedric Sutton, the debt for twenty years of being raised would be considered paid in full."

Cedric Sutton was her half-brother, and he was the one who had committed illegal fundraising back then.

When the scheme was exposed, he had pushed her, his own half-sister, forward to take the blame so he could escape punishment.

"If there’s nothing else, Dad, you should leave."

"Eliza Sutton."

Harrison Sutton called out to stop her. The false warmth was gone from his face, replaced by a cold cruelty on his well-preserved features. "So you don’t care if the Sutton family lives or dies. Fine. But are you telling me you don’t care about the lives of that pair of bastards you birthed either?"

Eliza stopped dead in her tracks. A cold light glinted in her eyes as she stared at Harrison Sutton.

Five years ago, she had been set up by Amelia Sutton and forced to sleep with a strange man. She had later given birth to twin boys in prison.

Her father had rushed over, taken the two children away, and promised her he would take good care of them.

To give her children a chance at a normal life, Eliza had choked back her reluctance and let Harrison Sutton take them. But now, he was using those same children to threaten her. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

’Are my children actually being treated well in the Sutton family?’

Eliza was filled with anxiety and worry. ’What on earth is happening to my children with the Suttons?’

Harrison Sutton stated, cold and merciless, "You marry, the children live. You refuse, and we all die together."

Hatred surged through Eliza. ’This is my ’dear’ father!’

She clenched her fists, the sharp sting of her nails digging into her palms helping her to calm down. "Fine. I’ll marry him. But this is the last time. If anyone ever threatens me with my children again, I swear I’ll make them learn the meaning of mutually assured destruction."

Hearing Eliza agree, Harrison Sutton let out a long sigh of relief. He was about to say something more to smooth things over, but Eliza had already turned and walked away without a backward glance.

...

Back in her cell, Eliza carefully took out a photograph she kept hidden under her pillow.

It was a worn photograph of two newborn babies. They were lying side by side, their big eyes wide open as they waved their tiny hands and smiled sweetly.

Eliza’s fingertips traced over the babies’ faces on the photo, her eyes filled with a liquid tenderness.

"Are you ready to go?" Harrison Sutton urged impatiently.

Eliza tucked the photo securely against her skin. When she pulled open the door to her cell, her expression was like ice.

"Let’s go."

After leaving the prison, Eliza didn’t even stop by the Sutton residence. Still wearing the old clothes she’d been arrested in five years ago, she was sent directly to the Lockwood estate.

The Lockwood family was a clan with a century of history and profound influence, their lineage a tangled web of relatives. Knowing Eliza was about to marry into the family, a number of them were already waiting in the living room.

When the Lockwoods saw Eliza in her old, worn-out clothes, they couldn’t resist making snide remarks.

"The Suttons are supposed to be a prominent family, aren’t they? Can’t they even spare a decent dress for her?"

"What kind of fancy clothes could cover up the stench of a criminal? They might as well save the money. Families from a lower station always know how to pinch their pennies. Why else would they trade their criminal daughter for a three-hundred-million-dollar bride price?"

"What can you do? Her fortune reading was good. As long as she can bring some good luck to Shane, we’d have to accept it. Forget three hundred million; we’d pay three billion if we had to."

Master Lockwood shot them a cold glare, and the other family members instantly fell silent. His expression softened as he turned to her. "You must be Eliza. Now that you’ve married into the family, take good care of Shane, and live your life well."

Eliza’s eyelashes fluttered. She understood the unspoken meaning in Master Lockwood’s words: her ability to live a good life in the Lockwood family depended entirely on how well she took care of Shane.

With her gaze lowered in a show of meekness, Eliza replied, "Yes, sir."

The word had barely left her lips when a panicked voice cried out, "The Young Master’s condition is critical!"

Master Lockwood shot to his feet. Snatching his cane, he dashed towards the second floor with surprising speed, the other family members close on his heels.

After a moment’s thought, Eliza followed them.

When she arrived, a doctor was speaking with an apologetic expression. "Mr. Lockwood, we’ve done everything we can for the Young Master. His condition is just too severe. Whether or not he can pull through now is entirely up to his own willpower."

The elegant, noble-looking woman standing by the door broke down, sobbing, "My poor boy!"

Master Lockwood staggered back a few steps.

"Master Lockwood!" the butler cried, rushing to support him.

Master Lockwood waved him off. In that single instant, he seemed to age a decade. Even for a man who had dominated the business world for half a century, the pain of an old man burying his grandson was too much to bear.

Master Lockwood’s gaze fell upon Eliza, who was standing quietly to the side. A flicker of hope returned to his eyes. "Eliza, get over here! Quickly!"

Mrs. Lockwood also remembered Eliza, the bride brought in to change their luck. Forgetting her composure, she rushed over and grabbed Eliza. "You have to save my son!"

Before Eliza could say a single word, Mrs. Lockwood shoved her into the room.

BAM—

’They just shoved me in here without a single instruction. Are they expecting me to save Shane Lockwood with the power of my thoughts?’

Eliza took a deep breath and walked over to the bed to look at the man lying there.

He was incredibly handsome. His features were deep-set and as exquisitely sculpted as if by the hand of a god. Even unconscious, the air of nobility and pride surrounding him hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

A man like him seemed born to be an emperor, reigning high above all, naturally deserving of the masses’ adoration.

But now, his deathly pale face and the faint, grayish-blue tinge between his eyebrows told a different story: he didn’t have long to live.

Eliza sat by the bed for a moment before finally taking Shane Lockwood’s wrist to check his pulse.

"Hm?"

Eliza’s expression changed abruptly. Shane Lockwood wasn’t critically ill at all. He had been poisoned.

’Who knows how many dirty secrets a powerful family like this is hiding? If I get involved, I could lose my life.’

But ultimately, she couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. It wasn’t because she cared whether this husband of convenience lived or died, but because she cared about her two children, who were still in Harrison Sutton’s hands.

If Shane Lockwood died on the very first day of their marriage, the Lockwoods would undoubtedly take their anger out on the Suttons. And knowing Harrison Sutton’s character, he would never spare her children.

Eliza took another deep breath and pulled out an acupuncture kit she kept hidden on her person.

Like flashes of lightning, the Silver Needles pierced the acupoints all over his body.

Her fingertips brushed over them, and the long silver needles began to hum.

A few minutes later, the humming stopped. Just as Eliza was about to remove the needles, the door was pushed open.

Eliza’s heart leaped into her throat, and she immediately pulled out the Silver Needles.

On the bed, Shane Lockwood’s head lolled to the side. With a sickening GAG, he coughed up a mouthful of blood. The dark red fluid soaked into the sheets beneath him.

His face instantly turned a deathly gray. Blood began to trickle from the corners of his eyes, his nose, and his ears. The sight was grotesque and horrifying.