Chapter 4

Mason had put on a totally different demeanor by now. He looked intimidating and unapproachable. Anyone would freeze in his presence.

Without taking a look at Summer, Mason barked a cold command at the man, "Send her home." Then, he entered a Maybach at the forefront of the motorcade.

The inconsistency of his behavior confused Summer. Before this, he was cheerful and seductive around her. Why did he act like they were strangers now? Did he suffer from some sort of dissociative identity disorder?

"Miss, mind sharing your home address?" the burly man respectfully inquired Summer.

She politely turned him down. "It's fine. I'll get a cab home."

"That won't do. Please have mercy on me and don't put me in a tight spot. I need to obey Mr. Hunt's orders. If I don't see you home safely, I might as well be damned!" The man put on a serious look.

Feeling speechless, Summer deliberated for a bit before entering the car. Firstly, Mason would not harm her. Secondly, it was unsafe for a woman to hail a cab back home alone at the bar street that was notorious for its security.

…

Summer reached home late at night.

The housekeeper, Phoebe, was shocked to see her drenched from head to toe. She grabbed a towel and carefully dried Summer's hair, all while nagging, "What's wrong with Ms. Sanderson? It's one thing to have fun with you at night, but how could she let you come home alone?

"What will she do if anything bad happens to you?"

Summer teared up at Phoebe's concern. Phoebe had worked for the Hartford family for three decades and raised Summer.

As for Rose, she was great at acting. Everyone around Summer had nothing but praise for Rose, except for Phoebe.

In Summer's past life, Phoebe had subtly reminded Summer to stay away from Rose, whom she deemed a wretched and evil woman.

Yet, she did not appreciate Phoebe's kind reminders, even getting mad at Phoebe over it.

Phoebe was aware that Rose had brought Summer out for a night of fun. After the nudes were leaked, Phoebe tried to get to Henry and tell him the truth, but she went missing after that.

Years after Phoebe's disappearance, Summer occasionally blamed Phoebe for ditching her at the most trying times. It wasn't until her final moments in her past life that she found out about what happened to Phoebe.

Phoebe, who refused to betray Summer, had been silenced by Rose.

"Ms. Hartford, I know you hate it when I tell you this, but I have to. Ms. Sanderson isn't as nice as she seems. She's very cunning…" Phoebe sounded stern.

"I understand. I'll listen to you and stay away from Rose," replied Summer.

She even gave Phoebe a light hug.

"Huh?" Phoebe was taken aback by Summer's unexpected response. Before this, Summer would always throw a tantrum when she brought up the topic.

"Phoebe, it's been a while since I had your bread pudding. Can you make some bread pudding for me tomorrow on my birthday?"

"Look at you. You're almost 18 years old, and here you are, acting cute before me!" Still, Phoebe doted on Summer very much. "Fine, fine. Even if you ask for the moon, I'll have to get it for you!"

The familiar house and familiar figures gave Summer a sense of security. She could finally enjoy a moment of peace after six years of living in fear and panic.

She thought, "Summer, it's fine to be dumb, but only once. You need to protect those you love from now on!"

…

That night, Summer's parents and Henry were not home because of work.

After Phoebe got the bath ready, Summer enjoyed a hot bath to drive away the cold. Later, she lay in her lush bed. Everything still felt surreal.

In the three years at the mental institution, she was forced to sleep on the chilly, filthy, and damp floor. It had been ages since she had a taste of sleeping in a comfortable bed.

At that moment, her phone buzzed.

"Emailed the videos to you. Forget about the balance. Let's be friends. My bros and I had a lot of fun with that girl—what a fun hoe!

"You don't have to pay the balance. Consider it a 'thank-you' for all the fun. Reach out to me again if you ever need our service!"

The email made Summer nauseous. Those men disgusted her.

She checked her email inbox. Instead of photos, the incident was recorded in a video format, the subject being Rose instead of herself. The fake "gang rape" had actually occurred to Rose in the downpour at the dirty little alley behind the bar.

Chuckling coldly, Summer tossed her phone aside. The framed photo of her and Rose remained on the bedside table. Rose had an innocent smile in it.

Summer glared at it for a moment before turning the frame face down.

The curtains had been drawn back, and the show had just begun.

She thought, "Rose Sanderson, we've got a long way to go!"

…

Rose rinsed her body repeatedly. She couldn't shake off the horrifying scenes from hours ago.

She let out a despairing scream under the shower. Why had things turned out this way?

Summer was supposed to walk into her trap that night at the bar. However, she was nowhere to be found.

Rose, on the other hand, was sexually assaulted by a group of men. She had no idea how many of them had gone at her. Only memories of their foul breaths remained.

Thoughts of the incident made her gag.