A Life Is Worth Less Than Her Smile

Of course, I had every intention of defying Julian's orders.

After all, there was nothing left in the world for a person to fear when they were backed into a corner.

I grabbed the 350,000-dollar check that was still warm from Kevin's body heat and rushed as quickly as I could to the appointed location.

Several fierce-looking thugs surrounded Dad as they cursed him out.

Dad was curled up in a corner. Gone was the spirited and charming man from before. His hair had turned white, and he looked absolutely haggard.

His hazy eyes lit up when he spotted me. "What are you doing here, Cece? You have to leave right now! It's too dangerous here!"

"I came here to pay them, Dad."

I offered the check to the leader of the thugs, a man with a scarred face. My voice was trembling slightly from fear when I said, "Here's 350,000 dollars. Please give me a few more days to collect the remaining 150,000 dollars."

Scarface took the check from me and spat on it. He then shot a look of disdain at me and sneered, "A few more days? What do you take us for? A charity? You promised to deliver the money in three days. Your father will have to leave his leg with us if there's even a single penny missing."

He then pulled out a gleaming steel pipe from behind him.

The color drained from Dad's face as he frantically protected his leg.

I dashed toward Dad and spread my arms, shielding him behind me. My legs were shaking violently, but I stood my ground.

"I'll definitely pay you! But I won't forgive you if you lay a hand on Dad!"

"You won't forgive us?" Scarface repeated, letting out an amused snort and moving closer to me. "You're quite the looker, pretty lady. I can offer you a compromise. You don't have to pay the remaining 150,000 dollars if you spend a few days with us. What do you say?"

My gut churned uncomfortably as I trembled violently.

Just as Scarface was about to tear my clothes apart, a few black cars roared onto the scene with one of them screeching to a stop right in front of us.

A group of black-clad bodyguards stormed out of the car when the door swung open. Within seconds, they had the thugs immobilized on the ground.

I watched everything unfold before me in shock.

A familiar figure exited the car when the back door swung open.

It was Julian.

He approached me. His tall and broad silhouette cast a shadow that completely enveloped my pathetic state.

"Were you going to sell yourself to these men just for money, Cecilia? Are you that fond of getting involved with trash like them?"

I whipped my head up and stared into Julian's indifferent eyes. I could see my anguished expression reflected in his gaze.

"How dare you criticize me, Julian?" I roared furiously. "I got on my knees and begged you to lend me 500,000 dollars to save Dad's life. Like a fool, I waited for an entire day for you, only to find out that you were spending a small fortune on another woman at an auction!

"Why didn't you pick up any of my calls, even though I called you so many times? Do you even know that if I had been a minute too late, Dad might have lost his leg?

"You're the one who forced me into a dead end, and yet you're turning the tables on me and criticizing me? What gives you the right to do such a thing?" I screamed hysterically.

Julian's face twisted as a glint of remorse flickered in his eyes. He recalled how I had begged him—how he had promised to help me.

Just then, Rachel got out of the car. She placed a gentle hand on his arm and shot a troubled look at me, saying, "Don't blame Julian, Cece. I'm the one who distracted him by asking him to buy the painting for me. I just liked it too much. He only forgot his promise because of me…"

She paused for a moment as she swept her gaze over the thugs on the ground.

"But, Cece," she continued. "Even if Julian was busy bidding on the painting for me, you shouldn't degrade yourself to such a level just for the sake of money! Have you forgotten about what happened to Jillian—"

"Shut up!"

Julian interrupted her before she could finish her sentence, but the rage that he had been suppressing reached a boiling point once more. His eyes burned with hatred as he glared at me.

"You're just as despicable as ever, Cecilia Mendez," he gritted out. "You sent someone to their death ten years ago because of the same circumstances. Who are you trying to kill this time?"

An icy sensation gripped my heart as tears spilled down my cheeks. I opened my mouth, wanting to explain myself. I wanted to tell him that the circumstances were different ten years ago.

However, my words turned into a silent, bitter laugh when they left my lips.

From Julian's perspective, I was already a criminal.

"Julian Luther," I said calmly. "You've never believed me."

I pulled Dad, who was still in a state of shock, to his feet. We then staggered away from that place that suffocated me.