Chapter 3

Soren stiffened. He grabbed her wrists and saw the scars on the back of her neck caused by electrocution.

"No." His voice was husky. "I'm not here to…"

He was not here to do something like this.

Soren pushed Sophie away, then turned from her in a fluster. He used the harshest words to cover his guilt. "Put on your clothes, you slut! Tomorrow night, you'll come downstairs for the party."

He heard a soft grunt from behind him. However, Soren did not look back.

…

Halfway through the dinner party, Soren was summoned into the study by his father.

The old Don, William, flung a document at him. "Isabella is pregnant. The family needs an heir."

Soren flipped the document open and saw that it was a pregnancy report. He remembered the night he got drunk a month ago. Isabella had been wearing Sophie's lingerie, and her eyes had looked a little like Sophie's.

"Yes, Father." Soren heard himself answer.

…

The next day, they had a wedding rehearsal on a cruise ship.

Isabella was holding Sophie's hand on the deck. She leaned in close to Sophie's ear and asked, "What did you do to Soren last night?"

"Nothing."

"Liar." Isabella gripped her wrist harder. "You wanted to sleep with him, didn't you? And you removed his belt."

Sophie turned pale from the pain, but she did not make a sound.

"Looks like the college forgot to teach you dignity." Isabella suddenly released her hand. "Do you think Don Lucas will like a whore like you who has ridden a thousand men?"

Before Sophie could reply, she said, "Let's play a game."

She backed away from Sophie while smiling strangely at her. "Who do you think Don Lucas will believe? You or me?"

With that, Isabella turned and jumped into the sea.

"Help! Sophie pushed me! She's trying to kill me!" she screamed.

Soren came running out of the cabin and immediately jumped into the sea to save Isabella.

Sophie watched this happen with one thought in her mind—'If I jump into the sea right now, would anyone save me?'

It took her only a second to know the answer. No.

After Isabella was saved, she said to Soren in the hospital, "Sophie said she wanted to be the only woman in your life. She threatened to kill me and then commit suicide if I refused to leave you."

She played a voice recording, and Sophie's voice came through at the next second. "Soren is mine, Isabella."

Soren turned pale. The words Sophie had been forced to repeat in college would end up causing her life.

…

Soren dragged Sophie to the basement after taking her back to the villa.

"Kneel!" he ordered.

Sophie knelt. Her knees touched the ice-cold metal floor. It was the position she was most familiar with back in college.

He took the whip from the wall. It was covered with glass shards.

"I took care of you for ten years." His voice dripped with pain and misery. "I doted on you and protected you! I treated you like my daughter!"

The first lash hit Sophie on the back.

"How dare you have such dirty thoughts about me?"

Then, the second.

"How dare you try to kill my fiancée?"

Then, the third.

"Do you want me all to yourself?"

Sophie trembled, but she clenched her teeth and did not make a sound. Back in college, her screams would only excite the people hitting her.

"Say something!" Soren flung the whip away. He crouched and grabbed her throat. "Say you're wrong!"

"I'm wrong." She sounded calm.

Soren saw that the back of Sophie's shirt was drenched in blood from her old and new wounds. He released Sophie and backed away. "Why didn't you fight back?"

"Fighting back would only make it hurt longer." Sophie looked up, but her gaze was empty.

He rushed over to her and tore her clothes open. Soren saw the wounds criss-crossed on her back. There were even tiny needle holes all over her chest.

Electrocution marks, knife wounds, burn scars… Every part of her skin was damaged.

"Who did this?" His voice trembled.

"You," Sophie replied. "Isn't this what you wanted when you sent me to that college?"

Soren stumbled backward, knocking into a shelf of torture tools. "I had no idea. I just wanted them to discipline you, not—"

"Discipline me?" she interrupted him. She picked up a piece of torn cloth to cover her body. "I learned well, Don Lucas."

She turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist. "Let me check your wounds."

"That's not necessary." She pulled her hand away.

Soren watched her lonely figure disappear up the stairs. He was once again filled with fear. He was not afraid of Sophie hating him. He was afraid that Sophie no longer cared about him.