Inside the room, Vincent Hughes sighed. "You're ruthless, Jonathan. She's your blood. A top student at Jiangcheng University, reduced to a husk of a woman. Last week, she was short three hundred dollars for your medicine. She came to me, begging."
Jonathan's expression darkened. "Did you give it to her?"
Vincent shook his head. "You gave a direct order. Did I have a choice?"
"That girl knelt at my doorstep for an entire afternoon," he continued, voice heavy. "She collapsed from starvation right there on the concrete. I was too afraid of you to even call an ambulance. When she finally woke up, she crawled away."
Vincent left out the ugly details.
That day, I had cast aside my last shred of dignity. I had practically thrown myself at him, clothes half-undone, offering my body for the cash. Jonathan's imported medication had been cut off for a week; I was terrified his condition would worsen.
But I had tapped out every resource.
Vincent had looked at me like I was a ghost and kicked me out in a panic.
So that's why, I realized, a bitter taste rising in my throat. It wasn't that he didn't want to lend me the money. He couldn't.
Jonathan sneered, his voice dropping to a dangerous octave.
"Listen to me, all of you. Until I bring Valerie back, no one helps Hazel. She can kneel, beg, or die right in front of your eyes—you do not engage. Valerie is sensitive. If Hazel's punishment is shortened by a single day, Valerie might relapse. Anyone who upsets my precious sister will answer to me."
The room fell silent. The men exchanged uneasy glances.
Even Jonathan's friends found the logic twisted. The silence in the private room was heavy until someone awkwardly broke it.
"Jonathan, aren't you afraid Hazel will find out the truth and leave you?"
Jonathan scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. We share the same blood. No matter the conflict, it's just an internal family matter. Hazel worships me. Even if someone held a knife to her throat, she wouldn't leave. This is just a small lesson." His tone shifted to protective tenderness. "Valerie is different. She's adopted, already at a disadvantage. It's only natural I compensate her."
His voice turned icy. "But remember: what happens here stays here. If word gets back to Hazel, don't blame me when our friendship ends."
I leaned against the cold corridor wall, the chill seeping into my bones. My limbs felt heavy, detached.