Chapter 7

Rebecca's body stiffened before she reflexively shrank back. The hands were damp and sticky to the touch, making disgust roil in her gut. She forced her eyes open and murmured, "Get lost. Don't touch me…" The man didn't expect Rebecca to wake up. Caught off-guard, he wasn't able to dodge her slap. He was then pinned under her. Although Rebecca was still weak, she was still able to accurately step on his groin. Ignoring the man's pained shout, she said, "You've got some nerve laying your hands on me when James specifically ordered you not to." The man was completely at Rebecca's mercy. The pain caused the color to drain from his face. "I… I was wrong. It was Ms. Chambers. Penelope Chambers paid me to sleep with you!" Penelope Chambers! Rebecca stepped on the man's groin again. She staggered off the bed as he let out a bloodcurdling scream. She grabbed a bathrobe and used it to cover herself before rushing out of the room with clenched teeth. It was late at night by the time she made it back to the Sawyer residence. Rebecca's body had filtered out most of the effects of the drug by then. She grabbed a large cup of hot water before hurrying upstairs and kicking open the door to Penelope's bedroom. She hadn't expected the scene before her—Penelope was laying in bed alone. She grabbed Penelope and splashed her with the hot water. Penelope shrieked in pain. She started struggling wildly and screamed, "Have you lost your mind, Rebecca? James! Help me, James!" "Begging for help?" Rebecca asked, her eyes flashing with disdain. She tore Penelope's shirt open before continuing, "Did you ever imagine that this would happen to you when you ordered that man to take advantage of me, Penelope?" Rebecca pulled out her phone and began snapping photos of Penelope. Her wet skin glistened under the flashing lights. She cried pathetically as she covered her chest with her hands. "Don't worry. I can't stand looking at your body that's as flat as a board." A tall and broad figure appeared at the doorway the moment the words left her lips. James snatched the phone from Rebecca and smashed it against the floor. "Rebecca, I just left the room briefly to take a call, and here you are trying to hurt Penny again. I think you haven't spent enough time in the hospital." James' hand was like a vice around her wrist. He was exerting so much force that she was convinced that he would snap her wrist in half. However, before Rebecca could retaliate, she noticed a shadow falling over the top of her head. The phone had ricocheted off the floor and hit the crystal chandelier when James had thrown it earlier, causing it to crash down on them. In the next second, James lunged at Penelope and drew her into his embrace protectively. He had shoved Rebecca directly under the chandelier, causing her to take the full brunt of the impact. Blood spurted everywhere, staining the shattered glass shards that pierced her arms. The pain was excruciating, but Rebecca stubbornly bit her lip. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to hold back the pained sounds from forcing their way out from her throat. James was completely stunned. His throat felt parched. Just as he was about to step forward to examine Rebecca's condition, Penelope grabbed his arm. "Rebecca splashed me with hot water just now, James. It burned my skin. It hurts so much," she whined in a teary voice. James closed his eyes, looking as if he was fighting an internal battle. In the end, he averted his gaze from Rebecca, who was still sprawled on the ground, and picked Penelope up. "She's always had a domineering personality. It's not a bad thing for her to get hurt, so she can learn a lesson. I'm sorry that you got hurt in the process, Penny. I'll send you to the hospital right now." In the end, Rebecca had to call for the housekeeper to send her to the hospital. The wounds on her arms were gruesome. She felt utterly exhausted after the doctor was done stitching her up and succumbed to a deep sleep. It was already the next day when she woke up. She only realized a whole day had passed after she checked her phone. News of Rebecca spending the night at a hotel with an unknown male model dominated the headlines and caused chaos to erupt online. The reporters had gotten a clear shot of her face as the model affectionately cradled her in his arms and carried her into the hotel. "I can't stand it anymore. This woman is utterly shameless. I can't believe she cheated on Mr. Heaton again!" "She's so gross. Mr. Heaton must have been bewitched by her. If I was in his shoes, I would have slapped her a long time ago and found someone else to marry!" "I wonder what the Heaton family did to deserve such a terrible fate. Their son insists on marrying a disastrous woman like her. What rotten luck." Rebecca scrolled through the comments under the article in a daze before she suddenly burst into laughter. It turned out that James had drugged her last night and brought her to the hotel to drag her name through the mud. Once again, he was setting the stage for Penelope. She reached up to wipe away the tears on her cheek as she laughed. It felt like a part of her heart had gone missing, allowing a strong gust of wind to billow through the space left behind, taking away all the stinging pain with it. Rebecca didn't care that her reputation was in shambles. In fact, she wanted James to marry Penelope as soon as possible, so she could leave this place forever. She was hospitalized for three days this time. No one visited her, even though Penelope's ward was right next to hers. In these three days, Rebecca heard Justin and Wanda rush into Penelope's ward to express their heartache. She heard James applying ointment for Penelope before coaxing her to sleep with soft laughter. She also heard Penelope speaking to them petulantly. Rebecca's heart remained perfectly calm as she listened to them. Three days later, someone finally pushed open the door to her ward. James placed a haute couture red dress on the edge of the bed. His demeanor was firm as he said, "Pack up your things. I'm bringing you back to the Heaton residence to attend a birthday banquet."