Chapter 2

Once we were locked inside the storage room, Linda did not say a single word. She merely raised her foot in the dark and stomped right on my lower belly. Her high-heeled shoe only served to intensify the pain, making me instantly curl into a ball. My stomach churned. "This is for spending my man's money and seducing him!" she screamed, her voice filled with envy and fury. She glared down at me and commanded the security guards, "Beat her up. Beat her senseless!" Both the security guards were clearly her subordinates. Without any hint of hesitation, they began punching and kicking me over and over again. I clenched my teeth, biting back the cries and groans of pain escaping me. I felt like my bones were being grounded, and my internal organs seemed to have shifted out of place. Yet, Linda continued screaming, "Who do you think you are? You're just a whore!" "I told you—I'm his elder sister. If you don't believe me, ask Aiden. Call him right now. I'll speak to him!" Though I did all I could to explain myself, Linda refused to listen. She only raised her hand to signal a stop to the beating when I was seeing stars. With her high-heeled shoes, she stepped on my shoulder and grinned. "You'd better be good and pay your bill today. Fork out another 50 thousand dollars on top of that. This is what happens when you seduce my man and spend his money. "I'm not afraid of taking a life. Denny will have a way of settling matters for me." I curled up into a ball in pain. In a weak voice, I argued, "That's my money. Like I said, ask him if you don't believe me." Linda's face fell, and she gave me a kick. Then, both the security guards took the cue and resumed punching and kicking me once again. I knew that Linda wasn't going to listen to me no matter what I said. If this went on, I might actually end up dying. After spitting a mouthful of blood from the beating, I managed to feel for my phone on the floor with the last sliver of strength within me. "S-stop… I-I'll pay." Linda gestured to the security guards to stop, seemingly very satisfied that I had given in. She crouched down and gave me a pat on my swollen cheeks. "You should have said so long ago, don't you think so? Why did you have to learn the hard way? A hundred thousand dollars, and not a single penny less." I lay sprawled on the ice cold floor, gasping hard for breath as my lungs throbbed in pain. But I disregarded Linda and called my best friend, Madeleine Lark. It didn't take long for my call to get through. "Maddy, bring 200 thousand dollars to Aidey's restaurant. I need it right now." On the other end of the line, Madeleine froze for a moment. Instantly, she sensed that something was wrong. "Shirley? What happened to you? Why do you sound so—" I interjected, "Don't ask. Just hurry up." Then, I hung up the call. Linda's eyes lit up with a flash of greed the instant she heard "200 thousand dollars." She probably assumed that I was terrified from the beating and had taken the initiative to pay more in order to plead for forgiveness. "I'm glad you came to your senses," she remarked, no longer able to hide the glee on her face.