Chapter 8

"Denise, don’t be so full of yourself. You really think you can threaten me? Take a look at this," Jason said, pulling a memory card out of his pocket. Denise’s face turned pale the moment she saw it. "W-Why do you still have it?!" Wasn’t that card the one she had tossed out already? "You thought I didn’t back it up? Seriously? If you dare run your mouth to Samantha about us, this video’s going viral in seconds." What a sly bastard. Denise clenched her teeth. "Then I'll just tell everyone in Seaville that the guy in that video is you!" Jason sneered. "And you think they’ll actually buy it?" "You..." Denise started to feel the pressure now—this guy wasn’t easy to deal with. "So, what now? Ready to back off? Still trying to mess with me? Please, you're way out of your league," Jason said smugly, clearly enjoying watching her squirm. Suddenly, Denise burst into tears. Jason froze. Wait, what? Why the sudden waterworks? "Hey, aren’t you a little too old to be crying like this?" Jason asked, scratching the back of his neck. "I’m only nineteen, still a freshman! Crying isn’t against the law," she huffed through tears. Jason: "..." Nineteen? He was literally ten years older than her. Great, now he felt ancient... and she’s still a student? But then Denise sobbed even harder. "Everyone’s bullying me... My own dad wants to sell me off to some random guy, my stepmom’s always coming at me, even my sister picks on me—and now you too! You’re all terrible to me..." Jason frowned. Her dad was trying to pawn her off to another man? Could that have been related to last night? She could totally be acting... still, even Jason couldn’t help but feel a little bad seeing her like this. "Alright, alright. I’ll take you to the hospital, okay?" he said helplessly. "Yay! Thanks, Jason!" Denise perked up instantly. Knew it—fake crying. This girl was a handful, but she was way more lively than her sister. Honestly... kinda more likeable. At the hospital, the doctor checked her over—nothing major, just bruises and scratches. Cleaned up and bandaged, she was fine. Jason couldn’t help but furrow his brows seeing the injuries on her back. Arthur and Vivian had totally downplayed it. This wasn’t discipline—this was abuse. The bruises looked brutal. For some reason, Jason suddenly felt unsettled. What kind of life was she even living at that house? Stepping out into the hallway, he grabbed his phone and called Ben. "Run a full check on the Montgomerys’ second daughter—Denise. Now." Back inside, Denise lay on her stomach in bed, the doctor having finished treating her. "Keep the area dry for a week," the doctor reminded her. "Thanks for earlier, Jason. If you hadn’t shown up, Arthur might’ve really beaten me to death." "Oh, so that’s how you’re thanking me?" Jason raised a brow and pulled out the IOU slip. Denise froze, clearly caught off guard. "Denise, you better explain yourself. Is that really all I’m worth to you?" Jason asked, holding the paper up dramatically.