Chapter 4

Joanna's POV

My head snapped up in shock as Cole flippantly continued, "There's no class difference when it comes to work. Hurry up and take off your clothes."

My eyes reddened as I glared at him and demanded, "You want me to strip in front of the cameras?"

In the past, Cole had forbidden me from even wearing skirts. But at that moment, he felt like a complete stranger.

Cole didn't answer my question. Instead, he impatiently ordered the staff members to prepare the recording equipment.

I thrashed around wildly until I exhausted all my strength. "I didn't do it! Let me go!"

However, Cole refused to listen to me and ordered his bodyguards to drag me to the film set.

Natalie trailed after us since she was the director. Her face twisted into a wicked expression when the door clicked shut behind her.

"How does it feel to have both your husband and son betray you? You'd better commit this to your memory. It wasn't easy for me to get my hands on Cole and Andy. I won't let you take them away from me that easily."

She then called the bank manager right in front of me, giving me no time to react to her words.

"Freeze the bank card that's paying for the medical bills right now."

A few moments later, I received a death notice from the hospital.

My heart plummeted into my gut as I screamed, "Give Mom back to me!"

I freed myself from the bodyguards' clutches, lunged at Natalie, and clamped my hands around her neck.

"Have you lost your mind, Joanna Lawson?"

Cole barged into the room seconds after I began strangling Natalie. He didn't hold back at all as he shoved me aside.

Tears streamed down Natalie's face as she blubbered, "Thank goodness you came in the nick of time, Cole. Joanna was about to strangle me to death. She said that I didn't deserve to be Andy's mother…"

Cole shot a sharp glare at me, his expression stormy.

"How dare you raise your hand against Natalie in front of so many cameras! Do you even still care about your reputation as Mrs. Foster?"

I barked out a self-deprecating laugh and shouted, "She killed Mom! There's nothing for me to care about anymore!"

Cole was momentarily stunned before he gritted his teeth. "Using your mother as an excuse for your actions, huh? You really are something else. Since you don't care about anything anymore, I'll make sure you become famous after you're done filming this movie!"

He scoffed before leading Natalie away.

The naked men immediately began to approach me, tearing my clothes off in front of the cameras.

I lost all will to fight back at that moment.

Black spots exploded in my vision. I was hurting everywhere and was unceremoniously dropped on the floor as blood began to seep from my lower half.

…

That night, Cole spent a small fortune to buy a trending topic, making the whole process public.

Natalie, who was an up-and-coming director, won an award after editing the film.

Below the stage, Andy looked around as he sat in his seat, asking, "Didn't you say that Mommy's going to be here, Daddy?"

Cole impatiently glanced at his watch. He was just about to call me when his assistant anxiously burst into the hall, waving his phone frantically.

"Bad news, Mr. Foster! Mrs. Foster livestreamed herself overdosing on sleeping pills just now!"