At night, Scarlett decided to fill me in on the partner for the dinner party, a notoriously difficult man in the industry named Mr. Charlie. His difficulty wasn't rooted in personality but in his habits. Whenever a cooperating company sent a woman, she would invariably face some form of humiliation.

"Vanessa, I'm on my period, so I'll have to trouble you," Scarlett said nonchalantly before excusing herself to the bathroom.

I was left alone to deal with Mr. Charlie, who stared at me from across the table with a predatory gaze. A sense of crisis arose instantly, my heart pounding as I felt the immense power disparity between us. My body, already sore from the previous night's ordeal, was no match for him.

The tension escalated quickly. Mr. Charlie's hands were rough and insistent, tearing at my clothes, exposing the marks on my body. His greasy face loomed closer, his breath hot and rancid against my skin. I felt utterly powerless.

"Smelly bitch, you just got out of someone else's bed and came to me, right?" he sneered, his voice dripping with contempt.

Just as I thought I couldn't endure any more, the door was kicked open with a resounding bang. Louis stood there and for a fleeting moment, he looked like a god descending from heaven. Relief washed over me, but it was short-lived. The disgust in his eyes made my heart sink.

Mr. Charlie lay in a pool of blood, groaning. I fumbled to button my torn clothes with trembling hands, but the fabric was shredded beyond repair.

"Ah! Vanessa, you..." Scarlett gasped, covering her mouth in feigned surprise. She stood safely behind Louis, her pristine appearance contrasting sharply with my disheveled, violated state. I felt like a wrinkled piece of trash compared to her.

Bitterness surged in my heart and I gritted my teeth, raising my hand to slap Scarlett. My palm stung with the impact, but it wasn't enough. I swung again, but Louis caught my wrist mid-air. The look in his eyes conveyed that he thought I was making trouble for no reason.

My vision blurred with tears as I wrenched my arm free and rushed out of the room. Scarlett's voice followed me, dripping with false innocence. "It was obviously me who called you because I felt something was wrong. Why is she like this? I'm going to see your mom tonight. How can I go now?"

Her aggrieved, coquettish voice lingered in my ears as I quickened my pace, desperate to escape.

But before I could get far, Louis caught up with me and carried me to the car parked outside.

"Let me go!" I shouted, struggling against his grip.

He didn't release me, his hold firm as he pushed me into the passenger seat. My heart pounded with a mix of anger, shame and despair. The car's engine roared to life and I slumped back into the seat, the fight drained out of me.

"What are you throwing a tantrum about?" Louis's voice cut through the tense silence in the car.

I panted, struggling to catch my breath, still holding on to a sliver of hope. "Louis, if I say that all this tonight was planned by Scarlett, will you still protect her?"

He frowned and there wasn't a trace of trust in his eyes. "Take care of yourself," he replied coldly.

I laughed bitterly, realizing the futility of my words. Of course, he would stand by his fiancée's side. I was nothing to him, just a convenience he could summon and dismiss at will.

"Let's end it, Louis. I don't want to be a mistress and maintain a shady relationship with you every day."

He snorted, his expression hardening. "You also know that you're shady. You've taken my money, so you have no right to tell me to end it!"

"I didn't take it!" I protested.

"Then how did the money disappear?" He shot back, leaving me momentarily speechless.

After a pause, Louis curled his lips into a mocking smile. "If you ask me, it's just that Mr. Charlie didn't have the money tonight. If Vanessa is satisfied, what can't be done?"

He opened a box and bundles of money fell on me, the paper edges stinging my skin. He pushed me down again, his weight pressing me into the seat. Sweat dripped onto me as his hot breath fanned my face.

"Is it enough?" he asked, his voice dripping with contempt. I didn't know if he was referring to the money or something else. My body was in the mud and my dignity was trampled alongside it.

My phone lit up and I saw a message from the doctor: 50,000 dollars. My head buzzed and my chest felt tight, making it difficult to breathe. Tears fell onto the seat as my resolve crumbled.

"I knew you could get it if you paid," Louis sneered.

I didn't refute him again. My mother had been the backbone of our family, but now she had been lying in the hospital with her eyes closed for two years. Every day, I wiped her body, my mind consumed with how to come up with the 50,000 dollars we needed for her care.

Louis's voice broke through my thoughts, a constant reminder of my current reality. "You're nothing without me," he said, his tone devoid of any emotion. "You should be grateful for what you have."

Grateful? For what? The humiliation? The pain? The constant reminder that I was nothing more than an object to be used and discarded?

As the car sped through the night, I realized that my life had become a prison. Louis was both my captor and my tormentor and Scarlett was his willing accomplice. The weight of my circumstances pressed down on me, but I knew I had to find a way out. For my mother's sake and for my own, I had to break free from this nightmare.

I once had a carefree childhood. The conditions in the countryside were poor, but I was very happy. I also met a young boy there. After he fell into the water, I tried my best to save him, but when I opened my eyes, there was no trace of him. Despite this, I still kept the things he gave me and remembered our agreement.

In a blink of an eye, my mother remarried and took me with her. Her new husband, a gambler, soon exposed his true nature, beating and scolding both my mother and me. During the years he disappeared to avoid debt collectors, I bit my lips and used all my strength to finally get rid of the group that came after us. Everyone else left me and my mother was all I had.

Even though various expenses had made me heavily in debt, I couldn't bear to give up. The bitterness surged in my heart and I couldn't help hiding in the bathroom to cry. Looking at the pale and haggard person in the mirror, I remembered meeting Louis again two years ago.

The person I thought about day and night was right in front of me and I followed him with joy. But he pressed me down on the bed. When I opened my eyes again, my whole body was sore and 20,000 dollars was thrown on my face. The indifference in his eyes pierced my heart and bled. The little boy who used to be had grown so noble and I was more and more haggard because of the burden of life. I couldn't help but feel ashamed.

Even though I was heavily in debt, I still had a little dignity. I didn't want the 20,000 dollars. But when he needed me, I couldn't help but rush to his side. This had almost become my subconscious reaction. Countless nights, he called me and we did the most intimate things. When I covered his heart, it was cold. In the darkness, I shed two lines of tears. Just like that, I buried all the things he had forgotten in my heart, including my previous name, Linda Walls. Now, there was only Vanessa Harrington.

***

In the hospital, the sterile smell of disinfectant filled the air, mingling with the faint scent of antiseptic. The harsh fluorescent lights cast a clinical glow on everything, making the environment feel cold and impersonal. I sat on the edge of the examination table, clutching the form with trembling hands. My heart pounded in my chest as the doctor's words echoed in my ears.

"You have a special physique and it is difficult to get pregnant. If you give up this pregnancy, you may not have the chance to have children in the future. Are you sure you want to abort it?" The doctor's voice was steady and compassionate, but it only made the decision more agonizing.

I stared at the examination form, my mind racing. This was his child. The thought of it brought a wave of conflicting emotions—pain, confusion and a flicker of hope. Could this be a new beginning, or was it just another complication in a life already filled with turmoil?

The doctor asked me repeatedly, "Are you sure?"

Each time, the question seemed to cut deeper into my resolve. I had come here with the intention of ending this, convinced it was the best choice for my shattered life. But now, sitting in this sterile room, the gravity of the decision weighed heavily on me. My future, my potential to ever have a family, all seemed to hang in the balance.

I trembled slightly, gripping the examination form as if it were a lifeline. Doubt crept into my mind and suddenly, I hesitated. The enormity of the decision loomed over me and for the first time, I wasn't sure what to do.

Forgive me for being a coward. In front of such a heart-wrenching decision, I just wanted to escape. The fear and uncertainty paralyzed me, making it impossible to think clearly. I wished I could just disappear, avoiding the pain and responsibility that weighed so heavily on my shoulders.

"Recover well and try not to think too much. Be careful not to make your cold worse," the doctor advised as I walked out of the examination room. His voice was gentle, but it couldn't penetrate the fog of my turmoil.

I sniffed, feeling a wave of dizziness wash over me. The past few days had been a rollercoaster of emotions and I hadn't even noticed when I had caught a cold. My body felt weak, mirroring the exhaustion in my mind.

Outside the hospital, the world continued as if nothing had changed, but everything felt different to me. The burden of my situation pressed down, making every step heavier. I shivered, wrapping my coat tighter around myself, trying to shield against the chill in the air and the turmoil within.

As I walked away, I couldn't shake the image of the examination form from my mind, the doctor's words echoing in my ears. The decision still loomed and I knew I couldn't avoid it forever. But for now, all I could do was try to find some semblance of calm, hoping that clarity would come with time.

***

As soon as I entered the office, I heard everyone discussing that Mr. Charlie was dead. He had been hit by a truck on the road and died on the spot. The chatter buzzed around me like a swarm of bees, filling the office with a tense and morbid excitement. I paused, pretending not to hear and kept my expression neutral, though my mind raced with the implications.

"Vanessa, Mr. Robins is calling you," a colleague informed me. I nodded and walked towards Louis's office, trying to steady my nerves and compose myself.

When I entered, Louis didn't even raise his head from his work. His presence was imposing, as always, making the large office feel small and suffocating. "Come home with me tonight," he said, his voice cold and commanding, sending a shiver down my spine.

For a moment, my heart fluttered, hopeful that perhaps there was still something between us. But then his next words crushed that hope. "Apologize to Scarlett," he continued, his tone devoid of any warmth.

My throat tightened and I had to clench my teeth to stop my entire body from trembling. "Why?" I managed to ask, struggling to keep my voice steady.

"Because you treat kindness as a donkey's liver and lungs," he replied, his eyes still fixed on his paperwork, as if my presence was nothing more than a nuisance.

In the past ten years, I had seen through people's hearts and learned to discern their true intentions. If I couldn't see through Scarlett's manipulative schemes, it would have been a waste of all those years of hardship and beatings. I forced myself to speak slowly and clearly, "I won't go."

The atmosphere grew colder, the tension thickening the air. Louis's face darkened and his eyes finally met mine, filled with an icy resolve. "If you leave this door, the deputy director will be replaced," he threatened, his words slicing through my resolve.

Thinking of my mother's medical expenses, I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms, drawing blood. The pain helped me focus, but it also highlighted my helplessness. He repeated, "I'll ask you again, are you going?"

My pride shattered and I bit my lip until I tasted blood. After so many years of enduring hardship and humiliation, I was no longer the carefree girl I used to be.

"...Yeah," I whispered, the word barely audible but carrying the weight of my surrender.

Instantly, a flood of grievances and resentment welled up in my chest and my body swayed with the weight of it all. As I opened the door, I was met with Scarlett's smug, smiling face. She raised her eyebrows proudly and I passed by her indifferently, refusing to give her the satisfaction of a reaction.

"Louis, do you think I look good in this outfit? I'm so nervous to meet your mom tonight," she cooed, her voice dripping with false sweetness.

My stomach ached, a knot of anxiety and despair tightening with every word she spoke. I didn't know if it was because of the tension or the mother-son bond that had once connected us. I forced a smile and rubbed my stomach, trying to soothe the ache, but tears dripped onto the back of my hand, betraying my true feelings.

I had been to the Robins Family home before. Maria, Louis's mother, had been urging me to get married and at that time, I happened to be with Louis. We had just been intimate and there was still a trace of tenderness on the bed when he had pulled me to his family home in a fit of rage.

Back then, there had been hope and a sense of belonging, however fragile. The Robins Family home had felt like a sanctuary, a place where I might finally find some stability and love. But now, as I stood there with Scarlett flaunting her victory, that hope felt like a distant memory, buried under layers of pain and betrayal.

The car ride to the Robins Family home was silent and tense. Louis drove with a cold determination, his knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel. I sat beside him, my mind swirling with thoughts of the past and the uncertain future. Each bump in the road seemed to echo the turmoil inside me and I wondered how I had ended up in this twisted situation.

I didn't see through him and he was just using me to deal with the matter. Along the way, my heart was pounding, my mind was in a mess, but I couldn't suppress the smile on my lips.

As we arrived at the Robins Family home, memories of my previous visits flooded back. The grand entrance, the meticulously maintained garden, the warmth that had once welcomed me now felt like a cruel mockery.

"Louis." I reached out, trying to hold his hand, seeking some form of reassurance. He smoothly slipped his hand into his pocket, avoiding my touch without leaving a trace. The rejection stung and I awkwardly pulled my hand back.

As we approached the door of the Robins' house, my heart pounded in my chest. The last time I had faced this threshold, it had been a place of judgment and disdain. Now, returning after a year, the dread was no less intense. The moment I stepped inside and met those critical eyes, I knew my nightmare had only just begun.

The atmosphere inside was thick with tension and unspoken resentment. The past year had not softened the disdain the Robins Family held for me. Every glance, every murmur, was a reminder of my unwelcome presence.

"I think Scarlett is really satisfied. Compare it with what you brought last time," someone muttered, loud enough for me to hear. I paused, the words cutting deep. They weren't just talking about gifts or material things; they were comparing us as people and I was always found lacking.

"She is pitiful and wronged. She cries at every turn, as if I bullied her. She just told me the truth. The whole family is rotten fish and shrimp. She looks so miserable. She will defeat you in the future," another voice chimed in. The words blended into a cacophony of judgment and ridicule. Tears welled up, blurring my vision and muting the sounds around me.

With a creak, the door suddenly opened wider and I forced a smile, trying to appear relaxed. "Auntie is right," I said, my voice strained. Through Louis's eyes, I saw that my smile was forced, a facade crumbling under the weight of my pain.

I pushed past him and entered the room. The air was heavy with judgment and Maria's displeasure was palpable. "Did you listen to what Louis said?" she demanded, her tone sharp and unforgiving. Her frown deepened when she looked at me, her eyes filled with disdain.

"I get annoyed when I see you. I've told you very clearly, can you stay away from our Louis! You bring all bad luck! Apologize to Scarlett quickly!" Maria's words were like daggers, each one hitting its mark.

I stood there, feeling the weight of their disdain pressing down on me. Who was really clinging to whom and whose life was being disrupted? I glanced at Louis, hoping for some sign of support or understanding, but all I saw was his cold, indifferent profile. He stood there, a silent witness to my humiliation, offering no comfort, no refuge.

The room felt like it was closing in on me, every judgmental stare, every whispered insult, amplifying my sense of isolation. I wanted to scream, to cry, to flee, but I was rooted to the spot, trapped in a nightmare that had no end in sight.

My pride and dignity were shattered and any hope I had of finding solace in Louis or his family was gone. I was nothing more than an unwelcome intruder in their world, tolerated only because of Louis's inexplicable insistence on keeping me around.

As I stood there, trying to maintain some semblance of composure, I realized that my battle was not just with the Robins Family or even with Louis. It was with myself, with the remnants of the person I used to be and the shadow of who I had become.

My eyes locked onto Scarlett's swollen face and I couldn't help but sneer. She had really gone to such lengths to manipulate the situation.

"Apologize now! You have no father and your mother is dead. You have no manners," Maria spat, her words slicing through the air like a knife.

The string in my heart suddenly snapped. My eyes reddened with fury as I yelled, "Why do you curse my mother!" My voice trembled with rage and sorrow. I glanced at Louis, who stood there with an indifferent expression and his coldness only fueled my anger.

"Just apologize, okay?" Louis said, his tone devoid of any warmth or understanding.

Tears blurred my vision as I forced out the words, "I'm sorry." The apology tasted bitter on my tongue, a hollow gesture that only deepened my humiliation. I pushed past Louis and turned to leave, my heart heavy with pain and resentment.

Outside, the cold wind bit at my skin, but it couldn't numb the ache in my chest. It was hard to get a taxi near the villa halfway up the mountain and I held back my tears, feeling lost and defeated. I didn't even know what I was arguing about anymore, my mind a whirl of confusion and hurt.

"My mother is not dead yet. She can still be saved..." I mumbled to myself, the words a desperate mantra. She was a vegetable, had been for two years, but I would stay by her side for twenty years if I had to. I would never give up on her.

The cold wind blew harder and my head grew dizzy with each step. I hadn't walked far when my vision began to blur. The world spun around me and I fell, collapsing into a familiar embrace.

Strong arms caught me before I hit the ground. Even in my dazed state, I recognized Louis's scent, a mixture of expensive cologne and something uniquely him. I wanted to push him away, to demand why he was here, but my body was too weak to respond.

His grip tightened around me, lifting me effortlessly. Despite everything, my heart ached with a confusing mix of love and anger. As he carried me, I let my head rest against his chest, the fight draining out of me. The cold wind whipped around us, but in his arms, there was a fleeting sense of warmth and safety, a cruel reminder of what I could never truly have.

I opened my eyes in a haze, barely able to make out the figure in front of me. Louis's face was dimly illuminated by the flickering firelight, casting eerie shadows across the room. The acrid smell of cigarette smoke hung heavily in the air, choking me and making my throat tighten.

"Louis," I croaked, my voice barely more than a whisper. "Can you... lend me another 30,000 dollars?" Each word felt like it was tearing at my already fragile vocal cords.

Louis’s eyes were cold and unfeeling, a stark contrast to the warmth I once knew. "You always ask for money, Vanessa. You are quite something."

His icy tone cut through me like a blade. I was desperate, with the deadline set by the doctor rapidly approaching. This money was crucial; it was the only hope I had for saving my mother's life.

"Why?" he continued with a cruel edge in his voice. "Did you get a bigger appetite when I paid you 20,000 dollars last time?"

Without warning, he grasped my chin roughly, forcing me to meet his gaze. I felt the sting of his contempt. My tears, which had been gathering, slipped into my hair and vanished without a trace.

"Vanessa, you still claim you're not a prostitute, but every action of yours screams otherwise."

My lips trembled, but no coherent words came out. His words were a cruel reminder of my reality and his touch, intended to silence me, only deepened my humiliation. If enduring this torment could get me the 50,000 dollars, then I would sink into this mire willingly.

Suddenly, the shrill ring of a phone pierced the oppressive silence. Louis ended his harsh treatment abruptly, his face showing a brief flash of annoyance. He pulled on his coat with a single, fluid motion, preparing to leave.

The sharp pain in my abdomen intensified, causing me to curl up and clutch my stomach. Cold sweat drenched my forehead as the pain became almost unbearable. My breaths came in ragged gasps and I felt faint.

Louis hesitated for a moment, his hands faltering as he finished putting on his coat. "Louis, I’m in so much pain," I pleaded, my voice trembling with agony.

I wanted to assert myself, to reclaim some dignity.