Chapter 2 Bastard, Pay Me Back!

Sophia only remembered vague pieces of her memory. As for the specific details, she had already forgotten the moment she woke up.

The man downed the drink in his hand. Once he was done, he placed the glass on top of the table and strode towards her.

Before she could react, his hand wrapped around her wrist. A chill shot down her spine. His touch was freezing that she couldn't help but shiver upon contact.

As she tried to squeeze her hand from his grip, he violently pulled her against him. Sophia screamed as her back slammed against the bed. Her body sunk into the cushions as he hovered above her like a predator who had caught up with his prey.

The scent of alcohol forced its way into her nostrils, and soon enough, she found herself pressed under his body. His fingertips swept across her face before they stopped at her chin.

"Since you don't remember what happened, I'll help you recall." There was something about his voice that was mysterious and deadly, like a double-edged knife aimed straight at her heart.

He then moved his hand downwards.

Sophia tensed under his touch, not knowing how to react. Her breath hitched as he gripped her waist.

When she lifted her head, she could see a stack of cash neatly folded by the headboard. Suddenly, she remembered what Cathy had said to her.

'He must be a prostitute!' she thought, eyes widening in realization. 'The woman who has just walked out must be one of his sugar mommies!'

At the thought, she quickly waved her hands defensively. "Wait!" she interrupted. One of her arms rested on top of her chest. To prevent him from misunderstanding her, she quickly explained, "I don't have money on me right now, so I won't be able to afford your service. Y-You shouldn't waste your time."

Kern paused. His eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

Catching him off guard, Sophia used all her strength to push him back. She slid off the bed and shuffled uncomfortably under his confused gaze. "I-I don't want the money anymore," she stammered out. "Just-Just take it as your service fee. I'll be leaving now."

Without another word, Sophia rushed out of the hotel room. Her face was flushed red, and she tried her best to steady her wobbly legs. In fact, she almost fell down several times as she raced across the hallway, but she kept going as if there was some ghost chasing her from behind.

Kern slowly stood up and gazed at the direction in which she had escaped. His dark eyes flashed with an unknown emotion as he fixed his collar.

'Service fee...'

He snorted.

Even after racing out of the hotel, Sophia still couldn't stop the lingering fear in her chest. She didn't calm down until she had reached the other side of the block. She gazed at the towering building and breathed a sigh of relief.

It seemed that her wallet was as good as lost.

Cursing under her breath, she slowly walked back. At this point, she might as well start working to make up for all the money she had lost.

Just as she was heading back, her phone rang.

Sophia took one glance at the caller ID. When she saw Denny He's name pop on the screen, her heartbeat suddenly slowed down.

Why did he call?

She couldn't help but recall the time she had suffered under the He Family in the past two years. Her grip on her phone tightened. After hesitating for a while, she answered the phone.

"Hello..."

"Sophia! Well? Have you had enough fun? What the hell are you doing outside alone?" Denny He roared.

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean?" He scoffed. "I'll give you half an hour. If you aren't here by then, your family's about to pay the price."

Sophia didn't even flinch from the threat. After two years, she had already been used to it.

The man was none other than her husband, but ever since they got married, he never really treated her as his wife. In fact, to him, she was nothing more than a servant.

If it hadn't been for the fact that her father was going bankrupt, she wouldn't have married him.

Sophia had tried so hard to maintain their marriage, but after seeing all her efforts go in vain, she realized that their relationship had always been nonexistent.

After a moment's silence, she closed her eyes. "I'll be right there."

Maybe it was time she gave up on him.

Hanging up her phone, Sophia rushed to the nearest bus station and used the little money she had left to get back home.

Once she arrived, she pushed the door into the villa. Soon, she was met by a man with a gloomy face. Beside him sat her brother, Darren Yang.

"I'm back–"

Before she could finish her words, Denny He stood right up and slapped her on the face.

Sophia stumbled and fell onto the carpet from the impact. Her hand immediately clutched her cheek as she stared up at him in disbelief.

There was a faint taste of blood in her mouth. "What the hell?" she sputtered out.

He didn't bother to say another word. Instead, he tossed some glossy papers onto the floor.

Lowering her head, she glanced at the pictures scattered all over the carpet. They were clear photos of her and the man she had slept with that night.

"These photos," she murmured under her breath as she grabbed one of the pictures. "Where did you get them?"

"You have to thank your lovely brother," he sneered.

Sophia turned to look at Darren Yang, who had been silent this entire time.

From the moment she had entered the room, he never said a word to defend her. In fact, he looked like a spectator who was here for a good round. He coughed slightly, pretending to be innocent. "I have no other choice," he defended. "I can't just go around and pretend I haven't seen anything. What would Denny feel?"

These photos were taken by his friends that night in the bar. Denny was the Yang Family's backer, and he didn't want to throw his entire family under the bus just because of his sister's ignorance. This was why Darren sucked it up and told him of the pictures.

"Darren, you..." Sophia trembled in anger. Her fingers dug into her palms as she took a deep breath.

"You've already cheated on me, and you have the right to be angry?" Sophia could see the blue veins throbbing on Denny's forehead as he looked down on her. "Who gave you the right to have an affair? Are you really that desperate to get a man to touch you? Huh? You're really a shame to my family!"

She sat on the ground for a long time as she scanned at the scattered pictures. The expression in her eyes had gradually changed from resentment to detachment.

Slowly, she stood up and stared at him right in the eye. "Since you think I'm a shame to your family, then let's file for a divorce," she said indifferently, as if she had already made up her mind.

Now that she had this chance to escape, she wasn't wasting it. She had already suffered enough in the last two years.

"Divorce?" Denny laughed outrageously. "Do you even know how much you owe me for the last few years? After taking advantage of this, you want to divorce me? You're really shameless."

"Then what else do you want?" she spat. "In the past two years, I've tried my best to be a good fucking wife for the He Family while you spend the rest of your time sleeping with other women. Do you see me slapping you on the face? All you've done is humiliate my name and stamp on my dignity. So tell me, what else do you fucking want?" The more she talked, the more agitated she became. Memories of what had happened in the past few years ran through her mind. She had married someone who she didn't love, and he had done nothing but state that fact over and over again. How the hell did she survive in the last two years?

"Yes! I love to humiliate you. So what?" Denny's hand shot up in the air. He grabbed her by the collar and shoved her onto the sofa. He trapped her hands beneath him. "Do you even know what kind of person you are? How dare you have an affair and shout for your innocence. Don't you think I'm good enough that I didn't show any of these pictures to your family? What else do you want?"

Sophia struggled under him. She slammed her fists against his chest. "Let go of me! I want a divorce."

Seeing that the situation had gotten out of hand, Darren was afraid that his sister would ruin everything for them. He quickly bent over. "Sophia, stop being so stubborn!" he pleaded. "Can't you just enjoy your life with him? Have you thought of our family if you were to divorce? What would happen to our Dad? What would happen to me? He has been supporting us all this time. Do you really want our family to fall apart just because of your stubbornness?"

Sophia already had enough of her brother's helplessness. "Fuck off, Darren! I've had enough."

Denny didn't expect that she would give up her entire family just to divorce him. An indescribable anger filled his chest.

Recalling the pictures of her hugging the unknown man, he couldn't hold it back anymore.

"You want to divorce me so you can go after that man?" he snarled. "I won't let you get what you want!"

She liked that man? Then he would destroy her– destroy all her hopes and dreams one by one!

Even if she was a piece of garbage to him, he wouldn't let anyone else have her!

With a flick of his hand, a loud tear echoed across the room. Her mind went blank as she struggled even more. She gritted her teeth, wanting nothing to do with him.

The man had trampled on her dignity so much that she would never break under his gaze!

Underneath all the chaos pouring in her mind, Sophia grabbed a hold of the fruit knife sitting on the tea table.

Without any hesitation, she clenched her hand around the hilt of the knife and proceeded to try and stab Denny.