Chapter 1

The college girl I sponsored finally graduated.

On graduation day, she came to my office and claimed she wanted to repay my kindness by working like a slave for me.

Seeing how serious she looked, I decided to keep her by my side as my personal assistant.

Before long, I discovered she was lazy, bullied her colleagues, and even went around telling everyone she was my fiancée.

When I reprimanded her, she quit in a fit of rage.

I thought that was the end of the story.

That was until her mother showed up at my front door with a mob, demanding justice.

She was pregnant.

1.

"Lucian Reed, you spineless coward, get your ass out here right now!"

A roar from outside interrupted my video conference.

Before I could even reach the foyer, the front door was kicked open with a deafening bang.

Mandy's father, Arthur, stood there looking murderous, flanked by her mother and her cousin, Lulu.

Mrs. Summers lunged at me the moment she stepped inside, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Lucian, you're a monster! You knocked my daughter up and then threw her away like trash!"

"She's so innocent. After graduation, she told me she wanted to repay you by working here."

"To keep your dirty secrets, you didn't just fire her―you kidnapped her and hid her away!"

"Don't think being a billionaire lets you play God. She's my only child. If anything happens to her, I'll kill you!"

Looking at Mrs. Summers's hysterical face, I felt a massive headache coming on.

Apparently, Mandy was pregnant and had gone missing.

Her entire family was convinced I was the one responsible for her plight.

I tried to keep my voice calm and professional as I explained, "Ma'am, Mandy chose to resign on her own. As for her carrying my child, that's a total lie. I've always treated her like a younger sister."

Arthur sneered, his face twisting in disgust. "Just a sister? I bet you used that silver tongue of yours to sweet-talk her right into your bed."

"The whole family is here today. Give Mandy back right now, or you're not leaving this house alive."

I almost laughed. This was my house, yet he was talking as if I were the one trapped.

Seeing the aggressive stance of the two people behind him, I pulled out my phone. "Mandy and I are clean. If you have any proof, show it. Otherwise, my lawyers will be seeing you for defamation."

"Her disappearance has nothing to do with me. If you need help, I can call the police for you."

Mrs. Summers suddenly charged forward and slapped the phone out of my hand. She stomped on it with her heavy boots until the screen shattered. "If you call the cops, my daughter's life is over! Isn't ruining her reputation enough? Do you want to destroy her entire future too?"

"Ma'am, for Mandy's sake, I'm willing to overlook your behavior so far."

"Please leave now, or I'll be forced to take action."

Before I could finish, Mandy's father delivered a brutal slap to my face.

He was a blue-collar worker with a massive frame, his muscles hardened by years of manual labor. The blow left me dizzy, my vision swimming with dark spots.

Before I could even regain my footing, they jumped me and tied me to a chair with thick rope.