Chapter 1

"Alvin Richmond! People like you don't deserve to be a father! You don't even deserve to be human at all!"

Raoul Stuart, my brother-in-law, was shaking in anger as he hurled those words at me before punching me right in the face.

The other relatives around me also shoved their way toward my face. Some of them threw rotten eggs and tomatoes in my face, and some others continued hurling insults while pointing accusatory fingers toward me.

Yet, even when faced with the out-of-control crowd, I remained calm and indifferent.

A short while later, my supervisor, Cedric Gomez, walked out of court. I immediately went over to him and shielded him from the rowdy crowd.

That was more than enough to anger my wife, Riley Stuart, even more.

She hugged our daughter, Jasmine Richmond, tightly in her arms while glaring daggers at me.

I hadn't felt an ounce of emotion when I stared back at Jasmine coldly as she was being "taken advantage of" by others. I'd even given a "false" testimony for the so-called perpetrator, falsely accusing Jasmine of being the promiscuous one who seduced Cedric out of her own accord.

"How could you still shield him? Are you out of your mind, Alvin Richmond!"

Riley's voice was hoarse as she continued screaming at me, almost at her wits' end. She rushed up to Cedric, wanting to grab hold of him, but I stopped her at once.

"If anyone dares to take another step forward, don't say that I didn't warn you," I warned darkly.

Meanwhile, Cedric never said a word throughout the entire ordeal and simply remained dark and grim.

He was only just about to be promoted to a high managerial promotion, but at that critical juncture, he suddenly found himself embroiled in a "sexual assault case". Now, his future was hanging by a thread.

He handed me a rod while holding another in his hand.

"If anyone dares to stop you today, Alvin, just beat them with all you've got. I'll take responsibility if anything happens later."

I gripped the rod tightly and swept my gaze over the angry faces around us.

"Get out of the way! But if you don't care about getting your bones broken, then go ahead and come at me!"

They were all intimidated by my ruthlessness and didn't dare to approach me.

I gestured for Cedric to leave first.

He patted me on the shoulders and chuckled coldly in a low voice. "A loyal puppy, as always. Can't believe you just 'sold' your daughter for money. Ha!"

Then, he turned his back on me and left.

As soon as he left, I was surrounded once again by the crowd of relatives. Riley threw herself at me, hitting me and screaming in my ears.

Meanwhile, Jasmine began sobbing loudly and brokenly. "Why did you do that, Dad? Why? I am your daughter!"

She wailed in the most heartbreaking manner ever. She said her reputation was ruined, and that she didn't have the guts to keep living.

I gritted my teeth and didn't say another word.

Raoul was furious. He kicked me hard to the ground and said, "Don't you know how young Jasmine still is? How dare you just stand by and watch her get assaulted!"

I wiped away the blood from the corner of my lips and laughed coldly. "She's the one who brought it on herself, dressing so provocatively to a bar party. Whose fault do you really think it is?"

My words were like a knife to Jasmine's heart. She shuddered hard and nearly fainted. Then, she suddenly lost her marbles and ran toward a wall with all her might, meaning to slam her head against it.

However, Riley grabbed her at once, tears streaming down her face.

"Alvin Richmond! You're spouting nonsense!"