Chapter 3

Ethan leaned in closer, his lips brushing against my ear as he snarled through clenched teeth, "Tell me, Chloe... if I ruin that face of yours, do you really think your rich boss will still want you?"

My entire body shuddered uncontrollably. It wasn't just terror over his violence; it was the sickening agony of being betrayed so completely by the man I loved.

The crushing pain in my chest and the tearing burn at my scalp radiated through every nerve. I gasped for air, biting my lip until the metallic taste of blood flooded my mouth.

"Three days... Ethan, please... just three days. Trust me..."

Before I could finish, a violent cough racked my throat, splattering blood across his cheeks.

Ethan's rage boiled over. He locked a hand around my jaw, raising the knife to plunge it toward my mouth. "If you won't use your mouth to talk, you won't ever need it again!"

As the blade sliced downward, a furious roar shattered the air.

"Ethan, you're out of your fcking mind!"

Julian swung a heavy metal chair leg, smashing it into Ethan's arm. The knife slipped from Ethan's grip, plunging deep into his own thigh.

A bloodcurdling scream tore from Ethan's throat.

I collapsed completely, limp and trembling, into Julian's arms. Julian opened his mouth to shout the truth, but I grabbed his sleeve with the last ounce of my strength, shaking my head frantically.

Ethan slumped on the floor, clutching his bleeding leg, his eyes burning with venomous hatred.

"Chloe, you really are a piece of work, aren't you? You've got Julian wrapped around your little finger so tightly he's willing to attack me! Do you have any idea who built this team? I did!"

"Without me, you'd still be rotting in your hometown, sleeping with your perverted foster father! A community college dropout who spread her legs to climb the ladder—did you actually start believing you were special?"

"To me, you're just used goods! A worthless, shameless slt!"

He deliberately dredged up the darkest trauma of my past, twisting the knife right into my deepest wound.

I had been assaulted in my youth—a nightmare that had scarred my soul. When I first trusted Ethan enough to confide in him, he had held me, wept with me, and sworn on his life that he would protect me forever.

Now, he was weaponizing it to tear me apart in front of the entire office.

Julian couldn't take it anymore. He lunged forward. "Ethan, you idiot! Chloe did everything to save you! Without her, your mother wouldn't even—"

"Julian, stop! Don't say it!" I cried out, throwing my hands over his mouth.

Security guards finally flooded the room, corralling the rioting employees into a corner. But it was too late. Several coworkers had already pulled out their phones, snapping photos and recording videos under the blinding flash of cameras. Hateful jeers rippled through the crowd, calling us adulterous dogs who deserved each other.

Ethan dragged himself to his feet, limping heavily toward the exit. "Just you wait! I'm going to destroy both of you!"

Watching his retreating back, tears flooded my swollen eyes. I tried to call out to him, but my throat closed up.

Julian wiped the blood from my face with a trembling hand, scooped me into his arms, and sprinted for the hospital.

When I opened my eyes again, it was the following afternoon. My face was wrapped in thick bandages, throbbing with excruciating pain.

I tried to console myself with the thought that the deadline was almost here; soon, the confidentiality clause would expire, and I could finally reveal everything.

Suddenly, the door flew open. Julian stormed into the room holding a tablet, his eyes blazing with fury.

"Chloe, look at this ungrateful bastard you gave your heart to! You literally begged on your knees before the corporate board just to secure a spot for his mother's heart transplant!"

"Not only is he ungrateful, but he's also running a smear campaign against you right now, telling the entire internet you're a narcissistic gold-digger who sleeps around!"

Through the slit in my bandages, I stared at the screen.

Ethan was on a TikTok livestream, clutching a framed photo of me, sobbing hysterically for the camera.

"My girlfriend started sleeping with her boss to get promoted," he cried, playing the heartbroken victim. "She completely abandoned me. My mother is dying in the hospital, desperate for surgery funds, but when I tried to resign to get my severance, Chloe maliciously blocked my paperwork!"

"My mother could pass away at any second, and Chloe told me the old hag might as well die already! I have nowhere else to turn. Please, everyone... I beg you to help me get justice!"

Then, I saw the thick red letters scrawled across my picture:

【Whore — Chloe Miller.】

My blood pressure spiked, and a deafening roar rushed through my ears.