Suddenly I felt like a rat in the gutter, spying on someone else’s happiness.

From that day on, Adrian kept coming to the nightclub, urging me to quit. He said this wasn’t a decent job.

Of course I knew that. But my gambling-addicted father owed Mr. Davis money, and I was nothing but collateral to pay off his debt.

“Sophia… I’ll give you a hundred thousand dollars a month.”

I froze. What did he mean?

“Two hundred thousand. Three hundred thousand… Five hundred thousand. Is that enough? If not, I can add more.”

Clink! The bottle slipped from my hand and shattered. I stumbled back in shock. He… wanted to keep me, just like I once kept him.

Life was a cruel cycle. Everything from the past now pierced me like knives. I shut my eyes, letting silent tears fall.

“I apologize for what I did before. Please, just let me go.”

I wiped my tears and fled, broken.

Curled up in the tiny breakroom, I cried until I lost my strength.

I loved him. After all these years, I still loved him. But now, I was no match for him.

And his hatred for me… was only natural.

I stared at the card in my hand. At first I wanted to return it, but after some hesitation, I went to Mr. Davis’s office.