Chapter 8

Lauren curled up in a corner of the basement, trembling in the darkness.

She'd always been terrified of the dark.

When she was little, her mother had taken her own life with a knife during a power outage. Trapped in a loveless marriage arranged for business interests, she'd finally broken when the man she'd loved since childhood married someone else.

That night had been terribly dark and quiet. The only sound Lauren could hear was her mother's blood dripping onto the floor.

She'd been afraid of the dark ever since.

As she grew older, Lauren had pushed herself relentlessly to master everything expected of a capable heir, all because she never wanted her father to lock her in the basement as punishment again.

Yet here she was, trapped in the very place she'd spent her childhood desperately trying to escape, imprisoned by the man she'd once loved and helped build a future.

Lauren pressed her hands tightly over her ears, trying to shut out the imagined dripping that always returned whenever she was surrounded by darkness. Huddled against the wall, she wished she could reach back through time and hold the frightened little girl she'd been that night.

Suddenly, she heard the basement's ventilation window being opened, followed by Yvonne's familiar, contemptuous snort.

Then came a faint, unsettling rustling sound.

Something cold and slimy began slithering over Lauren's body.

"Ah!"

She couldn't suppress her scream.

"Yale told me to bring these down for you," Yvonne said with a sneer. "Enjoy."

Without another thought, she turned and walked away.

Yale had always had a taste for exotic delicacies, including snake. The two snakes slithering over Lauren had been defanged.

Lauren had never been one to reveal her weaknesses. If anything, she went out of her way to conceal them.

Only Yale knew how terrified she was of snakes.

And now, the trust she'd placed in him had become a weapon turned against her.

Satisfied with herself, Yvonne went upstairs to bed. Over the years, Lauren had been one of Yale's favorite subjects whenever he talked to her, so naturally, she knew all about Lauren's fear of snakes.

The following morning, a maid opened the basement door and found Lauren sitting inside, her face ghostly pale.

Lauren stumbled out as though fleeing for her life, flinging the two limp, dead snakes onto the floor.

After that night, Lauren had no weaknesses left.

Yale had once been her armor, the person who made her feel protected. But he was no longer her Achilles' heel, either.

By the time she reached the hospital, her father was already in the morgue, his lifeless body covered by a white sheet.

Martha stood beside her, tears streaming down her face.

"Miss Scott, why did you take so long? Your father was already dying last night. He kept calling your name right up until the end."

Martha shook her head sadly.

"Poor man. He had a daughter, but there was no one by his side when he died."

Lauren's knees gave way, and she collapsed in front of her father's body.

"Dad..."

Her eyes were so dry that she couldn't even cry.

In a daze, she went through the necessary procedures with the hospital staff's help, obtaining the death certificate and making arrangements for her father's funeral.

When she finally returned to the mansion, Yale was sitting on the couch with his arm around Yvonne, the two of them laughing and flirting.

"See? I told you she'd come back," Yale said smugly. "She has nowhere else to go, and she still owes me money. She'll never manage to pay off that debt, not in this lifetime."

His confidence was unmistakable.

As long as Lauren owed him a debt she could never repay, there would always be something tying them together. She would always belong to him.

Yvonne giggled. "But who knows whether she's staying because of the money she owes you or because you're so rich and successful now? Maybe she's just too greedy to walk away."

Yale glanced sideways at Lauren, a nasty smile spreading across his face.

"Lauren, don't forget to make me some snake soup later."

Lauren didn't respond. She simply returned to her cramped maid's room and quickly gathered her few personal belongings, along with all the evidence she'd collected to expose Yvonne. Everything went into a single paper bag.

"Yale Sutton, I can't wait to see your face when you finally learn the truth.

"And you, Yvonne Quinn. You'll pay for your vanity and cruelty," she thought to herself.

Without a moment's hesitation, Lauren turned and left through the mansion's back door.

She dropped the paper bag into a trash can beside the property, then climbed into Henry's car.

Together, they disappeared into the thin mist.