Chapter 10

I felt like I’d been struck by lightning. I sharply looked up at Scarlett.

The barely concealed triumphant smile on her lips confirmed my suspicion.

Hidden item? Mysterious buyer? It was all a trap.

“Mr. Thorne,” my voice trembled, “you can’t agree to this. I’m leaving after today…”

“Damon~” Scarlett suddenly threw herself into Damon’s arms, cutting me off. “I just want that necklace~ You promised me~”

She looked up, tears welling in her eyes. “In your heart, am I less important than a secretary?”

Damon looked down at Scarlett in his arms, then glanced at my pale face.

He reached up and wiped Scarlett’s tears. “Don’t cry,” he said softly.

Then he turned to the staff member. “Tell the buyer, it’s a deal.”

My blood ran cold. “Damon Thorne! You can’t—”

Before I could finish, someone grabbed my arms.

I struggled desperately, my nails digging bloodstains into the bodyguard’s arm.

“Let go of me! Damon Thorne! I’m resigning tomorrow! You have no right—”

My voice was cut off as the car door slammed shut.

The black car sped away. In the rearview mirror, Damon was gently draping his jacket over Scarlett.

In the luxurious suite, I was roughly shoved inside.

The lock clicked shut. I turned to see a filthy beggar staring at me greedily.

The beggar grinned, revealing crooked yellow teeth.

I trembled, stumbling backward. “Don’t come closer… I can give you money…”

“Money?” The beggar laughed, grabbing my wrist, his foul breath hot on my face.

“That lady gave me enough money to last a lifetime! I don’t need money now, I need a woman!”

Desperate, I grabbed a desk lamp to defend myself.

When the beggar lunged, I smashed it hard against his head.

Blood streamed down his forehead, only enraging him further.

“Bitch!” He yanked my hair and threw me onto the bed.

The sound of tearing fabric was particularly harsh in the room.

My nails clawed deep gashes into the beggar’s face, but I was no match for his strength.

Just as I completely despaired—

“Bang!”

The door was kicked open.

Damon Thorne’s bodyguards rushed in, subduing the beggar in a few moves.

“Ms. Hayes,” the lead bodyguard offered me a jacket. “Mr. Thorne sent us to rescue you.”

I trembled as I wrapped myself in the jacket, reaching for my phone to call the police.

The bodyguard quickly snatched my phone. “Mr. Thorne said you’re not allowed to call the police.”

“What does that mean?” My voice was hoarse.

“Ms. Hayes didn’t mean it, she just wanted to vent. Mr. Thorne already arranged for your rescue, and you’re unharmed, so let’s just drop it.”

I felt like I’d been struck by lightning. “He… knew?”

The bodyguard’s silence was his answer.

I suddenly laughed, tears streaming down my face.

It turned out Damon Thorne knew everything, yet still allowed Scarlett to push me into the abyss.

My eyes reddened. “What if I insist on calling the police?”

“No one in this city would dare take your case,”

the bodyguard said expressionlessly.

“Mr. Thorne says he’s giving you a week off. Rest well during these days; consider it compensation.”

With that, the bodyguard’s figure disappeared down the corridor, and the door clicked softly shut.

I slowly slid to the floor, my fingernails digging deep into my palms.

The suit jacket slipped from my shoulders, revealing my torn collar.

I reached to pick it up, but found my hand shaking violently.

My phone rang abruptly. The word “Mom” on the screen stung my eyes.

“Luna, have you finished the handover? The blind dates are all arranged.”

I bit down hard on my lower lip, the taste of iron spreading in my mouth, but it was nothing compared to the pain in my heart.

“Yes, Mom,” I heard my own frighteningly calm voice say. “I’m coming home today.”

The moment the call ended, tears finally burst forth.

Ten years flashed before my eyes like a kaleidoscope—

The figure of a boy backlit in the university campus;

His feverish breath when he was drunk in the CEO’s office;

And tonight, his indifferent words: “It’s a deal.”

Every frame of memory transformed into a sharp knife, slowly dissecting my heart.

Ten years of devoted love, exchanged for repeated humiliation.

I slowly stood up, picked up the jacket from the floor, smoothed my disheveled clothes, and returned to my apartment alone.

My emotions were completely calm.

Within a mere thirty minutes, I calmly cancelled my apartment lease, packed all my luggage, left the keys, and hailed a taxi to the airport.

The taxi splashed through puddles, speeding towards the airport.

There, a one-way ticket awaited, leading to a life without Damon Thorne.