Chapter 3

I thought they would have the sense to back off, but Julian just glared, his brows twitching as he sneered:

“Are you calling my wife a liar?

“So what if it isn’t your birthday? You could still pull some other trick to lure her out!

“If she isn’t hidden here, then you obviously sent her off somewhere else! Who knows what kind of sick games you dragged my wife into?

“Because of you, she didn’t give a toss about our anniversary!”

Bellowing in my face, Julian roared, “You call Chloe back right now, or this will get ugly!”

What a clown.

Chloe wasn’t anywhere in my apartment. Did he expect me to pull a woman out of thin air?

Seeing me stand there motionless, Julian flew into a rage, snatching up a vase beside him and smashing it onto the floor, again spitting menace:

“If I don’t see my wife today, I’m tearing your damn house down!”

Turning around, he rallied the gang with a wave of his hand.

“Get to work, guys! Smash shit until she opens her damn mouth!”

I tried to step in and stop them, but I was completely overpowered. Towering over me, those muscle-bound goons forced their way into my home like a pack of bandits pillaging a village.

They destroyed every single item in their sight, breaking my antique vases and tearing my precious art pieces to shreds.

Sounds of splintering wood and popping glass echoed everywhere, and within seconds, the floor was carpeted in chaos—fragments of fine china, broken teapots, torn vintage scrolls...

Many of the pieces were rare collectibles my parents had brought back as gifts from abroad, and seeing them destroyed set my blood boiling with fury.

Just then, one of the men caught sight of an alabaster vase sitting on my shelf, right next to several diamond-studded and gold accessories.

Their eyes instantly gleamed with unfiltered greed as they snatched up the alabaster piece and the heavy gold chains.

“Well, damn. Didn’t expect this chick to have stuff this valuable lying around!”

“This is real alabaster—must be worth a fortune! And check out this watch, it’s covered in diamonds!”

“This gold chain’s got serious weight, too. Where does she get all this money?”

“Probably knockoffs! Even so, this stuff’s not cheap!”

Blinded by avarice, they pocketed my valuables all while chatting cheerfully.

Watching their brazen act of theft, my temper flared as I barked with rage:

“This is home invasion, robbery, and felony destruction of property! I can call the cops right now and put every single one of you behind bars!”

They paused for a brief second, then burst into uproarious laughter, smashing things even harder with sleazy smugness.

“What are you gonna do about it?”

“Call the cops on us? Think again, silly!”

Julian shoved me violently to the floor, then stood over me with a murderous scowl.

“Before you get the chance to call the cops, we’ll sue you for malicious deception. You tricked and spirited my wife away to God knows where!

“Besides, where did you get this kind of money anyway? Probably selling your body, right?

“You should be grateful we haven’t turned you in for prostitution. Still wanna call the cops? Let’s see who they’re eager to drag away!

“Also, this is dirty money—we’re doing the Lord’s work!

“Keep at it, boys! We’re doing the world a favor!”

Emboldened by his words, the thugs went completely wild, tearing my place apart, plundering every expensive item they could find, murmuring under their breath, “We struck gold! Big money!”

The force of the push hurled me headfirst into the sharp corner of the table. A huge knot swelled on my forehead, sending a wave of blinding pain and dizziness over my vision. It took me a long while to regain my senses.