Semua Bab Once a Doormat, Now Untouchable: Bab 151 - Bab 160

Once it was confirmed that Penelope was an imposter, Caleb would not just cut ties. He would make her pay every last one of her debts.The thought of the real Precious, somewhere out there, possibly suffering all these years, made him want to strangle Penelope with his bare hands.It was his fault too. Back then, he had been too desperate to find Precious. The moment he saw that pendant around Penelope's neck, he had let his guard down, careless enough not to question it further.Sydney clenched her palm. Without Penelope in the picture, she would almost have no excuse left to continue this cold war with him. But she had not forgotten her suspicion.Looking directly at Caleb, she seized the moment. "Why was Penelope so afraid of you discovering the pendant wasn't hers?"Caleb fell silent. He had no way to explain. Their relationship was already fragile. If he admitted he had been searching for another woman all this time, the tenuous tie between them might snap completely.Someti

On the way to the police station, Sydney could not stop turning the thought over in her mind. With Eloise, she had always endured and swallowed insult after insult because she knew the old woman's capabilities.She was certain Eloise despised her. Those eyes often regarded her as if she were already dead, yet the woman never struck the final blow.Sydney had no power, no backing. She could not afford to provoke her. To survive, she had to stay meek. She had to endure.However, she had not endured in the Hampton family. Perhaps she had assumed she discovered Adeline's weakness, finally a leverage point to bargain with.At the police station…The officers accepted the bag of clothes and promptly told Sydney to leave.Sydney could not just walk away. "Officer, what's really happening with Tiffany's case? She would never persuade anyone to commit perjury."The officer hesitated. "We've had orders from higher up. It's serious. Until it's settled, no one is allowed to see her."The w

So what if that girl had been the one Caleb cherished most? Back then, she had still been at Penelope's mercy. And Penelope remembered her vividly.Back then…The orphanage teemed with ragged, hollow-eyed children. Unexpectedly, a girl arrived in a delicate princess dress, clutching the director's hand with timid fingers. Her parents had just died, and her eyes were swollen from crying, round and glistening like bruised peaches.She looked heartbreakingly pitiful.The moment the director turned away, Penelope rushed forward and yanked the hairclip from her head.Raised in a loving home, the little girl had seen no malice. Instead, she obediently removed another clip and offered it. "Here, you can have this one too."Penelope slapped it from her hand.…That was the first time Penelope realized just how much she resembled a rat crawling in the gutter, standing beside a child who had once been cherished.Caleb felt a murderous storm surge through him. His vision burned red, and

For a moment, Sydney's mind went blank. That sentence from Caleb would have sounded routine any other time. But here and now, it struck her off guard."Don't worry. It's not a real divorce." He had already made the promise to Penelope.He gripped Sydney's shoulders, leaned slightly closer, and whispered, "Just a staged divorce for a while. We don't even need to file papers."Sydney collected her scattered thoughts, her tone cool. "A real divorce would be fine too."Since he raised the issue, she no longer needed to honor her contract with Adeline."No." His rejection was immediate and firm. Once divorce papers were signed, he would lose her for good. He could not allow that.Even now, he had no idea how he would explain things if he ever found the real Precious. Maybe she had already married. In that case, all he could do was provide financial support and arrange protection to keep her safe from traffickers.The thought brought a strange, guilty sense of relief. He refused to dw

Sydney knew that asking for help required her to adopt the posture of a supplicant. She had to offer something the other person would deem worth their while.For Adeline, who wanted the divorce kept secret, she could comply and prolong the concealment as needed.For Caleb, whose mind was never on their hollow marriage, she could cooperate and let him continue with Penelope in peace.However, Julian was different. Before coming here, she had thought long and hard. In the end, all she could offer was herself.She was gambling that the look he had given her on Alan's birthday night had not been imagined. Gambling that Julian, who had raised her like a sister for nine years, had now, on another whim, developed a man's interest in her. Or perhaps it was just lust.She had poured everything into marrying Caleb. She dared not hope to ever become Julian's proper partner.Thus, when his expression flickered with surprise, she lowered her gaze and whispered, "Julian, I can be your mistress