I wrenched my hand out of his grip and screamed,

"Don't pretend you care. You think I don't know you're behind all of this?!"

"Clay, my father never forced Priscilla into anything. She chose it!"

"He's the one who saw your potential, who gave you everything. Is this how you repay him?!"

I had called it out, and not a flicker of guilt crossed his face.

He let out a soft scoff.

"That's exactly why I didn't dirty my own hands. Compared to your father stealing Priscilla away from me back then, I've been generous."

"You're his daughter. Of course you'd defend him. But I trust Priscilla. She wouldn't lie to me."

"Now that you know, Margery, you should know what to do."

Clay raised his phone and, without a moment's hesitation, sent three hundred tips into the stream.

On screen, the man let out a thrilled shriek.

"Holy crap, thank you to this champion of justice! Only a hundred to go. Come on, people, push a little harder!"

"Every second you hesitate is mercy this old animal doesn't deserve!"

My fist clenched. He'd actually go this far.

I dragged in a breath.

"Fine. I'll apologize to Priscilla."

But Clay only shook his head.

"Priscilla has a kind heart. She knows your pride is fragile, so forget the apology."

"Just sign over the fifteen percent of shares your father left you. Give them to her as your apology. That's all."

I stared at him, unable to believe it.

"Clay, that's the last thing my father left me."

He gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

"Silly girl. With me to take care of you, what use do you have for any of that?"

"Your father robbed Priscilla of five years of her youth. Think of it as her compensation. You love me so much. You won't disappoint me, will you?"

His tone was as gentle as ever.

And yet all I could hear was the cold beneath it.

In the livestream, they were fifty tips short of five hundred.

Clay lifted his phone again, fingertip hovering lightly over the send button.

"Margery, Priscilla's still waiting for me. I can only give you three seconds."

"Three."

"Two."

My nails dug into my flesh until threads of blood seeped out.

"Fine. I agree!"

Satisfied, Clay made a call, shut down the man's livestream, and pulled every trending topic offline.

At the same time, he had his bodyguards drive away the crowd raising hell at the cemetery.

Watching me sign the contract, he pinched my cheek.

"This is what I love about you, Margery. Sweet and obedient."

"See? Now there's no one left for you to lean on but me. You'll stay this good from now on, won't you? I'll take good care of you in your father's place."

"Friday, the courthouse registry office. Be there to take photos for me and Priscilla. Don't be late, and I promise you a grand wedding at the end of the month."

After Clay left, I stumbled to my father's headstone.

I tried to scrub the paint off his photo with my sleeve.

But the crowd had come back, shovels in their hands.

"So you're this old animal's daughter."

"Your dad steals some woman, and you steal somebody's boyfriend. Your whole family's nothing but shameless trash!"

"Don't think we'll let him off just because you got the stream shut down. Today we grind him to dust and scatter the ashes. Justice will be served!"

Terror seized me. I tried to stop them and was shoved to the ground.

In the blink of an eye, the headstone was smashed to pieces.

Helpless, I called Clay. It rang a long time before he picked up.

"Clay, help me. Those people are back. They're going to do something to my father—"

"Enough, Margery. Don't mention your father to me again. It makes me sick just hearing it. Because of you, the red mark on Priscilla's face still hasn't faded."

"She was terrified that fussing over a dead man would ruin the photos on our registration day. I've been busy doing her facials. Instead of standing around debating corpses, you'd be better off practicing your photography!"

My hand fell limply to my side.

They pinned me down, roaring with laughter as they smashed my father's urn to pieces.

Even his ashes were defiled by their filth.

Then the sky split open with rain, and in a blink it washed everything away until nothing remained.

Only then did they curse their rotten luck and fling me aside.

I knelt there, dazed, clutching a shattered piece of the headstone to my chest.

My father's name was carved into it.

The tears broke loose all at once.

"Dad, I'm sorry."

"Give me a little time. I swear I'll win back justice for you!"

……

Friday came, and the courthouse registry office was packed.

Because Clay and Priscilla, the "star-crossed lovers" in every netizen's eyes, were finally getting their happy ending.

Reporters and gossip-hungry onlookers had all come to witness the moment.

"True love really does conquer all. After everything, they found their way back to each other."

"I always thought Margery's whole vibe was too soft and innocent. How could she ever handle a man like Mr. Henson? It takes a smoking-hot beauty like Priscilla to match him."

"Where the hell did Margery disappear to? Wasn't she supposed to take photos for the happy couple? Or does she finally realize how shameless she and her father were, and she's too scared to show her face?"

At that, the words grated on Clay's ears.

He shot the speaker a cold look, then lowered his eyes to check the time.

Already half an hour past the time they'd agreed on.

These past few days, I hadn't sent him a single message.

I'd always been so docile, so dependent on him.

Even when I was angry, I was always the one to back down first.

That was precisely why Clay had been so certain I would never leave him.

But this time… a sudden unease crept over him, and he reached for his phone to call me.

Out of nowhere, a reporter thrust a phone into the air and shouted:

"Oh my God, Margery just registered her marriage with the gambling king's heir!"