Chapter 5

When Margot opened her eyes again, she was back at the Reid residence. She was about to sit up when she heard a loud crash from the living room. Cameron smashed a vase in his hand to the floor. "I don't care what it costs. Find those men. My wife was assaulted. If anyone dares let this get out, I'll end them myself!" Vera leaned against Cameron's shoulder, gently rubbing his back. "Cameron, Dr. Monroe is a victim in all this." At the mention of Margot's name, Cameron's expression turned terrifyingly dark. He slammed his fist down hard on the glass coffee table and said, "It doesn't matter. It's already happened. How could I possibly accept a wife who's been defiled? How is she any different from her sister now?" Margot stood in the corner, her hands clenched tightly. Cameron's words were like sharp knives carving into her heart, making it impossible to breathe. He hadn't even bothered to ask her what happened, and yet he'd already decided she was ruined. Early the next morning, Margot arrived at the memorial service that Cameron had arranged for her mother and sister. In the main hall, photographs of the two people who had been alive just a month ago now sat beside their urns. Margot kept rearranging the flowers. It seemed like the only thing that could ease her pain even slightly. From 8:00 am until 12:00 pm, not a single person came to the memorial service. Even Cameron, who had promised to give her mother and sister a proper send-off, never showed up. Margot glanced at the time. The time for burial was approaching. She looked at the empty hall and walked out alone, carrying her mother's and sister's urns. The moment she stepped out of the memorial hall, a crowd of reporters surrounded her. "Dr. Monroe, we heard you were assaulted by several men in an alley yesterday. Does Colonel Reid know about this?" "Dr. Monroe, were you actually assaulted or was it consensual? Some people are saying you seduced them. Are you really just as promiscuous as your sister?" "Dr. Monroe, first your mother was killed trying to scam someone, then your sister killed herself in shame after fooling around with men, and now you're involved with men too. Is your whole family like this?" Each sharp, mocking question felt like a needle driving into Margot's bones. Her eyes turned bloodshot as she glared at the crowd in fury. "Shut up! My family is none of your business, you people who can't tell right from wrong!" Margot tried to escape, but someone roughly pulled her back. "Dr. Monroe, are you feeling guilty? News of your affair has spread throughout all of Southbridge. You're just as shameless as your sister. Aren't you afraid Colonel Reid will throw you out?" Margot lost her footing and fell to the ground. The urns flew from her hands. In the chaos, someone stepped on one of the urns. It burst open, and the ashes scattered across the ground. Margot crawled forward on her knees like a madwoman, her hands trembling as she tried to gather the ashes into her palms. "Get away! All of you, get away!" However, the crowd seemed to deliberately trampled on her mother's and sister's ashes. Margot fell apart completely. "Don't step on my mother's and sister's ashes. Please, I'm begging you, don't step on them!" The reporters ignored her completely, all pointing their cameras at the wretched Margot. Margot tried to stand, but someone shoved her hard. She fell backward, and a sharp pain shot through the back of her head. Then, someone in the crowd let out a terrified scream. "Blood! So much blood!" The next second, a dozen military jeeps slowly pulled up. Before the vehicle even stopped, Cameron jumped out. "What the hell are you people doing?" Cameron stared at Margot lying in a pool of blood, his expression unreadable. He reached out to hold her, but his hand stopped mid-air. He turned to his secretary, Caleb Greene. "Take my wife to the hospital." Caleb looked at Cameron with some hesitation. "Colonel Reid, that's not really appropriate. You should carry Mrs. Reid yourself." But Cameron turned his back, refusing to look at Margot again. "She's filthy." Those words fell like a massive stone crushing down on Margot's heart.