$989,000

Rivera gasped at the sudden crash and her head whipped to the side.

A man in his forties had just been kicked into the room, bloodied and bruised.

He sat up while coughing heavily. His lips were cut and bloodied, and his face was red, bruised, and swollen.

His yellow shirt and jeans were ripped and stained with blood.

"Dad!" Rivera screamed and hurried toward Mr. Sylvester; she trembled, her electric-blue eyes laced with fear. "Dad... how?"

Megan and Mrs. Sylvester shot up and hurried toward Mr. Sylvester, gathering around him.

"Honey!"

"Dad!"

They inhaled a sharp breath as they took in Mr. Sylvester's bloody and battered face.

BANG!

A heavy kick left the door tumbling onto the floor. The family jumped at the sudden noise.

Rivera pressed her lips together; the scent of danger loomed heavily over them.

This danger seemed even more serious than the one she had just faced with James. Her hands trembled, and she shivered uncontrollably.

Mr. Sylvester's eyes widened in horror, and he began to crawl back like he had just seen the devil himself.

Rivera's heart skipped. It seemed this danger was even more terrifying than she ever could have thought.

A shadow attracted everyone's attention. Rivera whipped her head up, and her breath hitched.

The man standing at the entrance was tall, with a slightly burly, lean, and willow-like build; he was sinfully and devastatingly handsome, clad in a charcoal-black suit.

His face was carved with sinful precision: a sharp, angular, chiseled jaw tapering into a masculine and well-defined chin, high cheekbones that caught the light like sculpted marble, and a straight, aristocratic nose that only made him look crueler. A small mole rested beside his right ear.

He had deep-set, cold, and unreadable black eyes—deep like whirlpools and framed by thick brows and long, heavy lashes.

His thick, ink-black, and versatile hair, worn slicked back, exposed the sharp planes of his face and the golden undertones of his Mediterranean olive skin.

He already controlled the space just by standing in the doorway, and the air was knocked clean out of Rivera's lungs.

He looked calm, but there was something about him that exuded danger.

And it was clear how out of place he looked in the ridiculous, run-down, cramped apartment.

He was so sinfully handsome that Rivera never wanted to take her eyes off his face. However, the aggressive aura oozing from him made her subconsciously bow her head.

Behind the man stood two burly and terrifying men in spec-ops tactical gear.

Both of them had pistols in their hands, earbuds clipped to their ears, and menacing looks on their faces.

Mrs. Sylvester huddled Megan closer to her chest. Rivera, who couldn't help but notice her mom's actions, felt her heart drop.

“Arthur Sylvester.” A dark chuckle spilled past one of the man's guards. "How dare you owe the casino a debt of $959,000 and try to escape? You bastard dared to take a loan without meaning to pay it back."

Arthur had also run to other casinos to continue gambling without paying his previous debts.

Arthur shivered, not daring to look at any of them. He rubbed his hands together. "I'll pay it back, I promise. Once I win millions through gambling, I'll pay the casino back. Please."

$989,000? Rivera's heart plunged deep.

It had already been hard trying to feed the whole family.

Arthur would even resort to stealing all their money just so he could gamble. Now he actually owed the casino such a huge amount of money?

Did he even care about any of them? Did he even care about the family's condition?

Tears pooled in Rivera's eyes.

Upon hearing Arthur's hopeless reply, Rivera shook her head bitterly.

If Arthur was going to win through betting, then he wouldn't have owed such a massive debt without winning a single thing!

The other guard scowled in contempt. He strode toward Arthur and lifted him up by the collar before throwing him against the wall.

With a thud, Arthur's back and head hit the wall, and he fell like a sack of potatoes.

"Ahhh!" Arthur screamed.

The guard roared, "Do you expect the casino to believe in your nonsense pipe dream?"

"Excuse me." Rivera raised her head meekly and cut in, attracting everyone's attention. "I don't think you have to resort to torture just because you want your money, Mr...?"

Rivera didn't know where she got the courage to speak to the man, but watching her bruised father being treated in such a way sparked anger within her.

Even though her father had done something shameful, that didn't mean she could bear to watch him get treated in such a manner.

The sinfully handsome man stared directly at Rivera with black eyes that held no ripples or emotions.

Yet it still made Rivera flinch with fear. She had a feeling that this man was the devil himself—cold to the bone, with no emotion or pity!

His enchanting, kissable lips suddenly curled slightly to form a sneer. "No." After a beat, he said, "What can you do?"

Rivera's face paled, and her heart dropped. She could see it; he had no regard for anybody, and all he cared about was his money.

"Fox." The man's low, deep voice was so frigid that it sent shivers down their spines.

"You have 24 hours to pay the whole debt, or one of your daughters will be taken as payment," Fox, the first guard, said as if he knew exactly what the man intended to say.

Rivera's eyes widened. How could they? This was pure cruelty, entirely wicked. "It's impossible! The debt is—"

The other guard suddenly cocked his gun toward Rivera. "Do you believe I will blow your head off if you say one more word?"

He sounded so serious and menacing that Rivera had no choice but to fear him.

A chill rose from her feet, and she trembled.

How did her father end up provoking these types of people?

A deep sense of helplessness and frustration overwhelmed her entire system.

The family was stinking poor. How could they even find $989,000 within 24 hours? The whole family wasn't even worth $4,000...

"Mr. Fox... I... I can't find that huge amount within a day," Arthur's shaky, tiny voice muttered as he slowly sat up, stealing fearful glances at the two burly guards.

"What are you saying? To take your daughter?" Fox shot back.

"Yes," Arthur said firmly, nodding without a shred of hesitation.

Rivera gasped as a cold breeze swept across her neck, causing goosebumps to form on her skin.

She must have heard wrong, right? Her father didn't just choose money over his own daughter, did he?

"Which one?" Fox scowled, his face calm.

Certainly, it wasn't his first time coming across parents who would choose money over their children. A crazy set of people!

Arthur and Mrs. Sylvester exchanged looks, and immediately, their eyes fell on Rivera.

Rivera's eyes widened, and her heart skipped in fear.

"Take her as my repayment!" Arthur declared determinedly.

"Dad!!!"