Chapter 2

Not long after Liam and I got together, Vance Enterprises went bankrupt. My father jumped from a building, becoming a vegetable. My mother, fearing the Hayes family wouldn't help, drugged Liam and me, then did everything she could to blow the incident out of proportion, forcing the Hayes family to take responsibility.

That night marked the beginning of all my humiliation.

It also completely ended the young love Liam and I had shared.

Liam was forced to marry me. On our wedding night, he brought a woman home to humiliate me.

He did everything imaginable in front of me; I even had to tear open the condom wrappers and hand them to him. And I was the one who knelt on the floor, cleaning up the entire mess afterward.

I had lived this servile, humiliating life for ten years.

Now, I couldn't bear it anymore.

"I'll take them off."

Before anyone could react, I unclasped my shawl. It was deep winter, and the heating in the hall was on full blast. But I was standing by the door, and the icy wind howled, gusting under my dress. The exposed skin on my arms and shoulders broke out in goosebumps.

I reached back and unfastened the clasp of my gown; the delicate neckline slid down. My shoulders and the curve of my chest were largely exposed.

"Oh my God!"

A few timid people in the crowd covered their eyes, unable to watch. But the men watched with keen interest.

Only Liam's eyes were dark as ink, his thin lips pressed tightly together. Only the slight tremble of the fingers holding his cigarette revealed a hint of something unusual.

The gown slid to the floor, leaving me almost naked before everyone. The cigarette in Liam's hand burned his fingertips. He instantly tossed it, then ripped off his suit jacket and threw it over me.

"Ashley, you really have a death wish!"

"Everyone, close your eyes! If a single word of what you saw today gets out, I'll make sure you never see tomorrow's sun! Now get out, all of you!"

Liam didn't often lose his temper, especially not in such a setting. Everyone present was an old acquaintance and wisely made their exit. Even the nine young women Liam had brought home before gradually went upstairs. Only Chloe remained.

"Liam, are you satisfied? Can you let me go now?"

I looked up, stubbornly meeting Liam's gaze. Even though tears welled in my eyes, I wouldn't let them fall. I had cried for Liam too many times; now, I no longer wanted to.

"Ashley, don't try those cheap mind games on me. I find them disgusting."

Liam still didn't believe me, warning me not to embarrass the Hayes family.

I took a deep breath and spoke again: "Liam, this time, I truly want a divorce."

Liam reacted as if he'd heard the funniest joke, grabbing the back of my neck and pushing me down, bending my waist.

"You dare to divorce me? Can you afford your father's daily hospital bills? Can you pay for your mother's daily shopping and expenses?"

"Ashley, your mother would be the first to kneel before me, begging me not to divorce you!"

Liam's disgust for my mother and me had reached a point where it couldn't be hidden. He hated my mother for drugging him, and he hated me for my inaction.

"Even if your mother hadn't drugged us back then, I would have married you, I would have helped you. But you just had to use the methods I despise the most! Ashley, you personally destroyed what we had!"

No matter how many times I explained, Liam would never believe it.

Seeing my silence, Liam's brow furrowed deeper. He dragged me, forcing me to my knees in front of that young woman, pressing on my neck to make me put her shoes on.

"Put her shoes on. You've been doing this for ten years; you should be an expert by now!"

For ten years, I hadn't just taken care of Liam; I'd also had to serve those nine other women.