Chapter 2

Vera's POV

Liam stopped moving right away. His face showed clear surprise. His hand pulled away from my waist so fast, like my skin had burned him.

"What are you doing here, Sarah? We broke up, remember?"

His voice sounded more shocked than guilty.

My chest was still moving up and down fast from everything that had just happened between us. My skin felt hot. My body ached badly from the pleasure I never got to finish. I quickly picked my top from the floor and put it on with shaking hands. My fingers trembled as I pulled my top down properly.

I did not want to stay and watch this drama play out.

"We always do this..." I heard the girl mutter under her breath in a bitter voice before her eyes landed fully on me.

Her face twisted with anger.

Before I could even move, she grabbed my hair hard and pulled.

"Ahh!" I cried out. My body bent backward from the sharp pain. "Let me go! I don't want to fight."

"You slut, how dare you touch my…"

"Leave her alone." Liam's voice came out cold and sharp like a blade.

The girl froze on the spot.

Her grip on my hair loosened right away. Then slowly, she let me go. I stepped back quickly, rubbing my head where the pain was still burning.

"I didn't mean to…"

She started speaking with a shaky voice, but I did not wait to hear the rest.

I simply walked out. Fast.

The loud music from downstairs hit my ears the second I stepped out of the room. Teenagers danced wildly, their bodies moving against each other under flashing colored lights. The heavy smell of alcohol and perfume filled the air everywhere.

I walked down the stairs slowly, still feeling irritated, but not because of the girl. Not because of the drama. Because I was not satisfied.

My body still burned from the need that Liam had woken up inside me. That feeling annoyed me more than anything else.

I looked around the living room without thinking, my eyes searching for Andrea where I had seen him standing earlier. But he was gone.

Great.

I let out a tired sigh and pushed my hair back from my face.

I was about to go and look for Anita when a hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder from behind.

"I have been looking for you everywhere. Where did you go? Your mum has been sending messages nonstop."

I turned around fast.

"Anita."

She frowned at me before pulling me closer to the front door where the music was not so loud.

"I took your phone so you would enjoy your time here, and your mum nearly drove me crazy with all her messages."

My eyes went wide immediately.

"Wait... my mum?"

I quickly took the phone from her hand. The moment the screen came on, my heart sank. There were so many messages.

[Where are you? I told you to stay in your room.]

[Why are you not replying? It's almost time to leave.]

[Vera!! Where are you right now, for the last time. I will come and pick you.]

"Oh God."

I typed back fast with shaking thumbs.

[Sorry mom. I will send you my location.]

"I am really sorry, Anita." I groaned softly while still typing. "I have to leave now. Time to go to my stepdad's house."

I rolled my eyes in a dramatic way.

Anita's mouth fell open.

"Oh my God, I am going to miss you so much, Vera."

The smile that came to my lips felt soft and real.

"Me too, bestie." My eyes felt a little watery.

She had been there for me through everything. Every heartbreak. Every stupid choice. Every crazy moment in my life. And now I had to leave my school, my area... basically my whole world.

My phone buzzed in my hand.

"Mum."

Anita winced beside me. "Oof. You're dead."

I laughed softly.

"It's my mum. I really need to go now." I pulled her into a tight hug. "I will text you, okay? Take care of yourself. Have fun and get laid."

We both burst out laughing.

"Shameless girl," she muttered between her laughs.

I held her tighter before whispering into her ear. "Thank you for making me come to this party tonight."

Her smile grew wide and proud.

"I am glad you had a good time."

If only she truly knew what kind of good time it was.

"I will stay back and have more fun," she added with a naughty grin. "You better leave before your mum turns fully red with anger."

We laughed out loud one more time before I finally let go of her.

The moment I stepped outside the house, the cold night air touched my skin immediately. It felt like a soft slap. Then I saw my mum's car parked right in front of the house.

And my mum standing next to it. Arms folded across her chest.

Uh oh.

I swallowed hard and walked toward her slowly and carefully.

"Before you scold me..." I put on my sweetest, most innocent face. "I am sorry. Really sorry."

She stared at me without any expression for a few seconds. Then she said simply,

"You reek of alcohol. Get in the car."

Yes.

She was very angry. I quietly got into the passenger seat while she got into the driver's side. The engine started right away.

The drive was silent. Painfully silent.

I knew better than to open my mouth. When my mum went quiet instead of scolding, it meant she was the most dangerous kind of angry.

I looked out the window instead.

Even though it was late at night, the city was still full of life. Cars moved in every direction. Streetlights glowed bright orange and yellow. People walked around outside, laughing loudly at things only they understood.

Slowly, the car left the busy city roads behind.

Then we entered a large estate. The big signboard at the entrance caught my eye right away.

HAYWORTH ESTATE.

My brows came together in confusion.

Hayworth?

I turned slowly toward my mum.

"Wait... is your new husband not Hayworth, mum?"

"Yes." She gave a short reply. Still angry.

I bit my lip and asked carefully,

"Your new husband owns this whole estate?"

"Yes."

My eyes went wide.

"You married a big shot, mum."

"Yeah, yeah." She finally looked at me for a second. "So behave yourself and be nice."

I nodded quickly.

"Of course."

The car continued moving deeper into the estate before stopping in front of a massive gate. The gate opened by itself.

I blinked in shock.

The compound alone looked bigger than my entire street back home. Lights glowed beautifully around the mansion, making the whole place look like something from a dream under the dark night sky.

My lips slowly fell open.

“Wow.”

Mum drove further inside and parked in front of the huge building. The mansion looked Elegant. Expensive. Everything about it screamed serious money.

A smile slowly spread across my face.

‘I think I am going to love this place.’ I quickly got out of the car with excitement and moved toward the back to grab my bags.

"Leave it," my mum stopped me at once. "The butler will handle it."

My smile grew even wider.

Butler? Damn.

My mum was already walking toward the house, so I hurried after her. The moment we walked in, a smiling man who looked like he was in his forties came toward us right away.

"Mia." He pulled my mum into a warm hug.

My mum smiled before looking at me.

"Vera, meet Paul. Paul, meet Vera, my daughter."

Paul smiled kindly and stretched his hand toward me. "Nice to meet you, Vera."

I shook it politely.

"It's a pleasure."

"Come inside."

I followed them deeper into the mansion, my eyes moving slowly around like a child seeing something new for the first time.

Everything looked expensive. The floor literally shone like still water.

A man dressed neatly walked past carrying our bags upstairs without saying a word. An actual butler.

I was trying very hard not to smile too widely.

"I will show you to your room," my mum said. "You need to sleep early. Tomorrow is your first day at your new school."

"Yes, you should rest, Vera," Paul added in a kind voice.

I nodded.

My mum held my hand gently and led me upstairs. We walked through a long hallway before stopping in front of a large door. She opened it slowly.

My eyes went wide. The room was beautiful. A huge bed sat in the middle. Soft warm lights. Modern furniture everywhere.

Everything was perfect.

"Mum..." I breathed out quietly while stepping inside. "This is so beautiful."

A proud smile appeared on her face.

"If you don't like anything, just tell me and I will change it."

"No." I shook my head quickly. "I love it exactly as it is."

"Good." She smiled softly. "I asked for a burger to be prepared for you. It should arrive soon."

I shook my head slowly.

"Thanks, mum... but I just want to sleep. I'm not really hungry."

"Okay, honey." She kissed my forehead softly. "You should shower, Goodnight."

She walked toward the door before stopping halfway.

Her face became softer.

"Don't make me worry like you did today."

Guilt pressed against my chest like a heavy stone. "Sorry, mum."

But she had already closed the door before I finished the words. I let out a slow breath before turning around.

"This feels like a completely new life."

I fell backward onto the soft bed with a satisfied groan.

I only wanted to rest for a little while, but sleep pulled me under almost immediately.

***

I woke up still wearing yesterday's clothes. My body felt sore and heavy, but I was always used to waking up early no matter what. I stretched lazily and checked the time.

6:32 am.

I yawned. My throat felt dry like sand.

Milk. I needed milk badly.

I pushed myself off the bed and walked out of the room quietly. The mansion felt strangely calm in the morning.

I walked downstairs carefully and headed straight for the kitchen I had noticed the night before. The kitchen was huge too.

I walked straight to the fridge and opened it. My eyes found the jug of milk immediately.

"Found you."

I grabbed it happily and shut the fridge door. Then I turned around, and froze completely.

The jug slipped from my fingers.

Crash!

Glass broke into pieces across the floor loudly. My heart jumped hard into my throat. Because standing right in front of me… Was the one person I thought I’d never see again.

My mouth fell open in complete shock.

"What are you doing here?”