Chapter 3

"That's what you get for infuriating me! I'm going to ruin you right this instant! No matter what I do, Mr. Hunter will always cover for me!" Celia sneered.

Stab!

The skewer drove into Lumina's scalp. It was so painful that Lumina shuddered—she almost cried. Anger flared up inside her. She grabbed a skewer from the table, raising it to strike Celia's face in retaliation.

Right before the skewer could hit Celia's face, however, Jackson caught her wrist.

His grip was tight, his tone cold as he said, "Miss Price didn't do anything to you. Why are you hurting her?"

Lumina looked up at the uncaring man, blood streaming down her face. Her voice trembled as she said indignantly, "She didn't do anything to me? Look at my face and my head! Who do you think did this?"

Jackson paused, frowning slightly. "It's just a couple of scratches. Put a bandage on it and you'll be fine. She has Mr. Hunt's protection. If you hurt her on purpose, you'll be the one to suffer in the end. I'm stopping you for your good."

Lumina was stunned at first. She looked at the man she had loved for three years with red eyes. A wave of mixed emotions crashed over her.

Celia sneered in satisfaction. "Tsk, you really have no idea what's good for you. At least your bartender boyfriend sure knows which way the wind blows!"

Lumina wiped the blood from her face and turned to look at Celia, who was still gloating.

While Jackson was still distracted, Lumina's hand shot out. She grabbed a freshly grilled skewer of meat from the next table and flung it in Celia's face.

Smack!

Celia howled in pain as the hot food burned her, her fair cheek instantly turning red.

Jackson's face turned cold; he ran over to Celia, shoving Lumina away.

Lumina stumbled and fell to the ground, thrown off balance. Her ankle twisted. Worse, she landed on her injured right cheek. Blood gushed from the wound, and she quickly lost consciousness.

Just before she fainted, she heard Celia's furious screech.

"How dare you burn me? I'll make Mr. Hunter avenge me! I want you to suffer a hundred times worse!"

-

When Lumina opened her eyes again, the first thing she saw was the face of a middle-aged nurse. Seeing her wake up, the nurse sighed.

"Look at you! You're so pretty, but you're nearly disfigured. What a pity. Now that you're awake, don't forget to pay your hospital bill later."

Pain shot through Lumina's head and face. Her eyes red, she asked, "The man who brought me here… Didn't he pay the bill?"

The nurse looked at Lumina and sighed several times before saying kindly, "Someone called an ambulance for you. No man sent you here. If the department head hadn't covered your expenses, you'd still be bleeding. Anyone can see you've been victimized. You youngsters need to be careful about who you date."

Lumina's nose stung, her eyes welling with tears. The nurse shook her head and left the room.

Soon after, hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. A group of men in black burst in, slamming the door behind them.

Lumina noticed the words "CG" embroidered on their uniforms, and her heart sank.

It was said that the heir of the Hunter family had assembled a special team, the "Celia Guards", to clean up after Celia and keep her happy.

No wonder Celia was so untouchable. The stories were all true.

The men in black roughly dragged Lumina out of bed, pinning her limbs to the ground. In the darkness, burning hot torture tools pressed down again and again on her bare arms, legs, and face.

Lumina screamed in agony, her whole body seized by fear.

"Let me go… Ngh…!"

Just as she tried to cry for help, someone shoved a cloth into her mouth, and more torture tools scorched her body. She writhed uncontrollably, her hands clawing at the floor, tears rolling down her face from the pain.

The five men became crueler as they saw her suffer.

"That's ninety times now! Ten more to go. Mr. Hunter said you must pay her back a hundredfold, just as Miss Price demanded!"

"Everyone in Arriva City knows Miss Price is Mr. Hunter's favorite, but you burned her with a skewer of barbecued meat! No wonder he sent us to teach you a lesson!"

"If you know what's good for you, apologize to her on camera right now!"

The leader of the "Celia Guard" held up his phone and started filming Lumina. Lying on the floor, covered in burns and stripped of all dignity, Lumina stared at the group with bloodshot eyes. Even as she longed to kill herself from the overwhelming pain, she remained defiant.

"I'll never apologize! Tell your Mr. Hunter that I never provoked Celia! She abused me for nine years straight! She's the one who owes me an apology!" she insisted, her voice ragged.

The leader paused, disappointed by the footage he had gotten.

"Mr. Hunter said it himself. You made Miss Price cry for so many nights and visited more than a hundred psychologists! Do you think he's accusing you falsely?"

"He'll know the truth in six days!" Lumina snarled.