Chapter 4

Zara's POV

I didn't understand what James meant at the time. I thought that he had suddenly found his conscience and was actually willing to let me go.

I only realized that something was amiss when I returned to campus and noticed that everyone was looking at me with mockery and disdain in their eyes.

It turned out that explicit photos of me were all over the university's forum.

My mind went blank in an instant, feeling as if my entire world was turning upside down. My hands were shaking so badly that it took me a few tries to key in my password to unlock my phone.

"Breaking news! Fuller Group's CEO's secret lover is Ms. Sherwood, a senior at our university. He's been her long-term sugar daddy since her university days!"

Although my face had been censored in the photos, anyone could still tell that it was me. I also recognized the bed in the photos. It was the same one that James and I used last night.

I was absolutely certain that he didn't have his phone with him at the time, which meant that there were surveillance cameras in the apartment.

My stomach turned. I ran to a flowerbed and vomited until black spots exploded in my vision.

Countless students passed by when I was emptying the contents of my stomach. Some of them snapped photos of me, some recorded me, and some even loudly criticized me.

"She looks pretty innocent. I never would have guessed that she's so promiscuous in private."

"How much do you charge for a night? I'd like to have a taste too."

I felt utterly pathetic as I ran back to my dorm, accidentally tearing a few holes in my clothes as I made my quick escape. However, when I pushed the door open, I noticed that the roommates, whom I had gotten along with swimmingly in the past, were packing their belongings to move to another dorm.

They immediately gave me a wide berth when I entered the dorm. Their expressions were distant when they said, "I didn't think that you were this kind of person, Zara."

"It's not like that," I said, shaking my head wildly. "I'm not his mistress."

But they didn't believe me. After all, James and I had been dating for three years. It was simply impossible that I didn't know that he had a fiancée.

My advisor called me that afternoon. She informed me that my graduate program qualification had been revoked because of my improper character and bad behavior.

I frantically explained that I had been manipulated by James—that I was the victim. However, my advisor just sighed helplessly and said, "The university's two research buildings and equipment were donated by Fuller Group. Our hands are tied even if you really are the victim."

I finally understood what James meant when she hung up on me. He was cornering me into a dead end. He wanted me to understand that this was my fate if I stubbornly continued to oppose him.

The dorm was empty. I was the only one left. My phone was constantly vibrating from all the spam texts and calls. My inbox filled up with all the insults that they hurled at me, calling me a mistress, a bitch, and a shameless whore.

…

It was raining that night.

I called James as I stood outside his villa. The call connected within seconds.

James' words were dripping with a sense of superiority and the anticipation of being proven right when he asked, "Have you learned your lesson, Zara?"

I gripped my phone as a wave of humiliation crashed over me. "I'm sorry," I said despondently.

An amused chuckle echoed from the other end of the line. "You're so smart and pure, Zara. You must know that this is just a temporary measure."

I was briefly stunned before I curled my hands into tight fists.

When I didn't respond, James let out an amused huff and asked, "I guess right, didn't I? As expected, I'm the one who understands you the most in this world, Zara. That's why your punishment isn't over yet. I want you to truly understand that you're the one in the wrong. Don't let me down, Zara."

He ended the call after he was done speaking.

I stood in the rain in a daze and helplessly watched as a few burly men emerged from the shadows. The blood in my veins turned to ice. The last flicker of hope that I had been clinging to was completely snuffed out.

I didn't remember how the hooligans managed to drag me into a deserted alley. They punched and slapped me over and over again, causing my vision to turn red from my blood. In my dazed state, I noticed one of them accepting a call.

"We can do whatever we want to her? Will we get in trouble? Alright. I understand."

The atmosphere shifted after that phone call. One of the hooligans removed his belt, while another took off his pants. One of them ripped my shirt, while one of them grabbed my skirt.

I desperately thrashed around until I managed to get my hands on my phone. I immediately called 911, but I had forgotten that James had specially prepared that phone for me and had removed the phone's ability to dial 911.

With no other choice left, I called the emergency contact that was saved on the phone. However, when the call connected, Melanie's voice echoed from the receiver.

"James is taking a shower right now, Zara. Did you need something? I'll let him know when he comes out of the bathroom."

At that moment, I immediately figured out whose orders the hooligans were following. But it was utterly pointless. I drowned in a bottomless pool of despair for the next 20 minutes.

…

James caught a glimpse of his call history after he came out of the bathroom. "Why did Zara call me just now?" he asked.

Melanie crossed her legs and said, "I don't know. I hung up after I told her that you were taking a shower."

James frowned and immediately called me back. The call rang for a long time, but no one picked up. He let out a helpless sigh, saying, "She must still be throwing a tantrum."

A news notification popped up on his screen the next second.

"A young woman ended her own life by throwing herself into the river after possibly being sexually assaulted by a group of men. The police are still trying to locate her body."