3. What is he doing here?

Flora's POV

"Go home right now, Flora; this is not the time." Those are the only words that Damien speaks immediately as he continues to keep his gaze away from the both of us seemingly undisturbed that Victoria is attempting to humiliate me right now in his presence.

I am left shocked beyond measure. I can't bear this. I can't comprehend this. What exactly is going on?

" I'm going to need much more than 'go home, and this is not the time,' Damien; you have to explain to me what is going on." I ask, but he is not even saying anything.

He remains seated in his chair, his arms folded and his gaze completely far away from where we are standing.

"All right, enough of the chitty chats you little twat." Victoria's voice reaches my ears, forcing me to turn my head back to her with shock. She scoffs and shakes her head.

"Enough with the fake confidence already. It's not like you have the power to overpower me right now. You are nothing less but the mere ants in my sight and I can decide to turn your entire existence into a whole deep dungeon of darkness with just a snap of my finger if I want to. Now, maintain your level and have some respect for Mrs. Vance." Those words caught deep down in my chest and I feel slight tears of despair begin to drip out of my eyes.

I shake my head briskly. No, this cannot be happening. This is not possible. I think to myself as I give her a relentless hard glare, not willing to look away from her any moment.

"Damien, please tell me that this is a joke," I say with a shaky voice, my gaze still on Victoria, but he doesn't say anything.

Victoria finally scoffs and rolls her eyes rubbing her finger against her forehead. "Are you done talking now?" she requests, and I continue to look at her, completely baffled. "Now I thought you were about to leave," she says with a very sharp glare that scares and angers the wits out of me at the same time.

I want to take hold of her beautiful face and tear it into shreds. There is no doubt that the beauty she possesses is nothing more than mere plastic. I know that.

I grind my teeth together with sorrow brewing within my insides as I continue to look at her for a very long time. Anger, pain, sorrow is developing and slowly building within me.

I am losing my wits right now as I don't know how I lost control of my right hand. It suddenly swings with an express determination, moving straight to her face but her left hand is quick enough to grab hold of my wrist a few meters away from her face.

She smirks and shakes her head. "I don't get it. What makes you think you would be able to lift a finger against me? Do you have any idea who I am?" she requests with an aura of danger looming all over her entire frame.

"I am not going to repeat myself. Now get out!" she declares and I can no longer bear the pain already brewing in my chest. I swiftly turn around, the tears slipping endlessly out of my eyes with a lack of control.

I stomp towards the elevator and head in, pressing the button that would take me down to the bottom floor as fast as I can.

Within a few minutes, I am at the bottom floor, and I head out of the elevator, stomping through the large hall and heading towards the entrance of the building. I am ignoring the curious gazes of everyone around me right now as I struggle to wipe the endless tears and sobs coming out of my face.

Ignoring the whispers and the murmurs surrounding me, I stomp out of the building and finally come before the streets and the express of the city directly in front of the building.

It is now that I realize that the evening has appeared and darkness is slowly descending all over the whole city. A few people are still loitering around, and a few cars are moving through the express, probably on their way home.

I can no longer control the pain in my chest as I get to a stop at a place on the walkway before coming down to the ground and kneeling on the cold earth. The pain takes control of my lungs as I lift my head and scream out loud with so much intensity to the skies.

This is just so crazy. I can't even begin to think. I can't allow what just happened to dissolve straight into my mind. My entire body and mind are in chaos. I can't think straight.

Why would he do that? I don't even know. He didn't even care about my presence. Is this what my life has been? Has everything all been a lie? Has my loving doting husband never even cared about my presence in his life? Can all this be true?

I gnash my teeth together, with warm tears slipping out of my eyes, not even caring that a few people are walking by the sidewalk, gazing at me, with surprise etched in their features.

An old-looking lady even tries to approach me, calling me, but I don't reply to her. My mind is in too much chaos to talk to anybody right now. I need to find a place to get relief.

I spot a nearby bar and neatly walk toward it without even caring about how it might be. I need something to get to myself to help me forget about this pain. The pain is too much. I know I loved him but I did not expect it to hurt this deep. The betrayal. The madness. It's making me want to go mad.

How dare he? And who the hell is that Victoria Hale? Has he been with her all this while? Has she been the one with him that he didn't even care about me?

I stumble into the bar and immediately head towards the bartender.

"A cup of scotch, please," I tell him immediately, and he frowns, scrutinizing me deeply as if confused about my presence in his bar.

He opens his mouth to tell me something, but I raise my hand briskly at him, cutting him off.

"Don't even start, just give me what I want right now," I tell him, giving him a threatening glare, and he nods his head briskly without hesitation.

"Okay, as you wish madam." He declares and turns around to face the bar behind him where all the various categories of wines have been kept. He takes out a bottle and then retrieves a glass cup. He pours in a glass full and drops it right in front of me, leaning against the table and examining me deeply.

"Aren't you a little too rich to be attending this low-life form of a bar?" he asks but then I take the cup and turn around briskly without even bothering to listen to him.

My action was so quick that I did not notice the person who was about to walk past me from behind. I bump into the person, spilling the drink all over his clean, nice-looking-looking, tailored tuxedo suit, and I gasp with despair. What the hell have I done?

"Oh, my goodness. I am so sorry. This was only a mistake. I didn't mean to. Please forgive me." I immediately say, trying to console him when I look up to behold that familiar face and my eyes go wide.

Oh goodness me. Don't tell me it is who I think it is.

He flashes me that beautiful, luxurious smile of his that has always made my heart swoon back in the days and I blink my eyelids rapidly. What the hell is he doing here? I think to myself with my heartbeat thumping fast in my chest.

"Hello, flora. It's been a while," he says, flashing his sparkling white teeth, and I gulp.

I suddenly find myself feeling nervous, just like I did all those years, as I blink rapidly and look away slowly from him. He chuckles.

"You don't have to be shy about seeing me. I expected you to be much more happy." He says, forcing me to look back at him, unable to resist the smile that slowly creeps up my features. My cheeks suddenly feel swollen as I blink rapidly and look away with a flushed face.

He smiles.

"So may I ask what you are doing in a bar attempting to drink your heart away? I know you are not the type of person that drinks, Flora." He says, giving me a questioning gaze as I stare at the already empty glass cup in my hand, biting against my lower lip.