Chapter 3

3.

They dragged me into my father's hospital room.

The hospital was eerily quiet late at night. Only the steady beeping of the machines filled the air.

My father lay there, hooked up to a ventilator, his eyes tightly shut.

Liam had them tie me to the foot of the bed. He forced me to my knees.

He took out his phone and started recording.

"Come on. Look at the camera. Tell everyone that your father, Arthur Sterling, is an academic fraud."

I bit my lip so hard it bled. I wouldn't say a single word.

Liam sighed impatiently. He grabbed my jaw and forced my head up.

"I forgot to tell you. This VIP room and these machines aren't cheap."

"If you don't cooperate, I'll have him moved to a crowded general ward to rot."

"Maybe a lazy nurse will accidentally unplug his oxygen. Who knows?"

Every word felt like a blade through my heart.

Scarlett stood by, watching with a blank expression.

"Liam, that's enough. Don't take it too far," she said, her voice light.

Liam chuckled.

"What? Do you still feel sorry for him?"

"Scarlett, you need to realize that I'm the one who can give you a future. Not this loser who can't even protect his dad."

As he spoke, Liam's hand began to wander, sliding under Scarlett's shirt right in front of me.

Scarlett made a weak attempt to resist, but she soon melted into his arms. Her face turned red.

"Don't… Leo is watching."

"So what? You better get used to it." Liam pushed her onto the small sofa in the corner.

"You chose him for long enough. Now it's my turn."

The other guys started whistling and cheering. They pulled out their phones to film.

"Go for it, Liam! Right in front of the ex!"

"Scarlett has a great body. Liam is one lucky bastard."

Watching the chaos, I felt my entire world collapsing.

A wave of intense nausea hit me. I began to gag.

I closed my eyes, refusing to watch the disgusting scene.

I don't know how long passed before they finally stopped their sick game.

Liam adjusted his clothes, looking satisfied. He kicked me in the ribs.

"Now, are you going to talk?"

I spat out a mouthful of blood and looked at him, then at the disheveled Scarlett.

"Liam, Scarlett… you will pay for this. Karma is coming for you."

Hearing that, Scarlett snapped.

She rushed over and grabbed a phone from one of the guys.

"Karma? I'll show you what karma looks like!"

Her fingers flew across the screen. She uploaded the video they just took, along with the screenshots of the auction.

She added a caption: 'Famous Professor Arthur Sterling revealed as a thief? His son kneels to confess the truth!'

"Leo, you brought this on yourself!" she yelled.

I struggled like a madman, trying to stop her.

They knocked me down again. Liam stepped on my wrist until I heard it snap.

"You didn't know when to quit. Don't blame us for being cruel!"

I stared at Scarlett, speaking every word clearly through the pain.

"Scarlett, my father's latest research partner is the world-renowned Professor Silas Hawthorne."

"He's coming back to the States soon. If he finds out what you've done, your family and everyone in this room is finished!"