Chapter 3

Clara Somers POV

Because my mother had not yet been safely sent abroad, I had no choice but to remain at the Foster estate for the time being.

Eager to celebrate Justin Foster's recovery, Chloe Somers wasted no time throwing a lavish afternoon tea party in the Foster family's back garden, inviting all of her wealthy socialite friends.

I had been in the kitchen helping prepare pastries when Chloe’s personal maid dragged me out to the garden.

"Oh, look. Isn't this the Somers family’s shameful illegitimate daughter?"

An heiress dressed in Chanel giggled, covering her mouth as she scanned me up and down in my simple apron. "Chloe, is it true that she spent the last three years wagging her tail like a dog to beg for Justin's attention?"

"Exactly," Chloe Somers said, raising her bone china cup to take an elegant sip of tea. Her eyes gleamed with venomous satisfaction. "Her mother was a shameless mistress, so it's only natural she was born without a spine. Too bad all her begging was useless. She served him for three years, and Justin still doesn't want to spare her a second glance."

The group of socialites burst into mocking laughter.

I stood in place, my face blank, as if I weren't the target of their mockery. I turned to walk away.

"Stop right there! Did I give you permission to leave?" Chloe Somers slammed her cup onto the table, marched over to me in a few strides, and delivered a stinging slap across my face.

The force of the blow jerked my head to the side. Five angry red finger marks bloomed on my pale cheek, and a thin trickle of blood seeped from the corner of my mouth.

"What do you think you are, putting on this arrogant, high-and-mighty act in front of me?" Chloe Somers hissed, her voice dropping to a whisper only I could hear. "Did you think you could turn the tables just because Justin Foster looked at you for a split second? Dream on!"

Stepping back, she raised her voice and smiled at her friends. "Girls, since she loves playing the loyal dog so much, why don't we have her bark to entertain us today?"

"Oh, yes! I've never heard an illegitimate daughter bark like a dog before!"

Chloe Somers pointed to the grass. "Clara Somers, kneel. Let's hear you bark a couple of times!"

I slowly turned my head, my frigid gaze locking onto Chloe Somers. She involuntarily shivered under my stare.

"I refuse," I said calmly.

"You dare refuse me?" Chloe Somers's face twisted with fury. Then, she sneered. "Clara Somers, have you forgotten about your mother rotting away in that mental asylum? Believe me, all it takes is one phone call from me, and she won't even get a scrap of food tonight."

My pupils contracted. My hands clenched into tight fists at my sides, my nails biting so deep they nearly drew blood.

Shaking violently, I began to bend my knees, inch by inch. Humiliating tears welled in my eyes, but I stubbornly refused to let them fall.

Right before my knees hit the grass, a deep, icy voice echoed from behind us. "What is going on here?"

Justin Foster, clad in a sharp, dark-gray bespoke suit, strode over, flanked by his bodyguards. His gaze swept across the crowd before landing on my swollen, bruised cheek. His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

The moment she saw him, Chloe Somers’s arrogance evaporated. Like a startled bird, she threw herself into Justin's arms, her tears flowing instantly. "Justin! Thank goodness you're here! She... she was bullying me!"

Justin Foster wrapped an arm around her, his eyes cold as he locked onto me. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Justin, I only wanted to be nice and invite her to have tea with us, but she... she said that you don't love me at all! She said you'd eventually see through me and crawl back to her!" Chloe Somers sobbed, looking utterly devastated. "My friends tried to defend me, but she just stared at us with this terrifying, hateful look..."

Justin's face darkened instantly. There was nothing he loathed more than having his feelings for Chloe Somers questioned.

"Clara Somers, who do you think you are to speak of Chloe like that?" Justin Foster's voice was as sharp as ice.

I stared at the man I had devoted three years of my life to, and felt any desire to explain die inside me. I knew he would never believe a word I said.

Sensing his fury, Chloe Somers’s eyes gleamed with a dark idea. "Justin, don't you keep that massive mastiff in the back? Since she's so proud, why don't we let her go up against your dog? If she survives, I'll forgive her for what she said."

Justin Foster paused, slightly taken aback.

That massive mastiff was incredibly vicious; normally, only professional trainers dared to go near it. Forcing me to face it was no different from a death sentence.

He looked down at the tears shimmering in Chloe's eyes, then back at me—standing there, cold and unyielding as always, looking as though I would never deign to bow to him.

"Fine," Justin Foster ordered, cold and indifferent. "Bring Onyx out."

A massive iron cage was rolled out, holding a giant, pitch-black mastiff that was letting out bone-chilling growls.

The cage door was opened, and Onyx lunged out, charging straight at me.

The socialites shrieked in terror, scrambling to get out of the way.

But the moment the savage mastiff reached me, it froze. It sniffed my scent, and instead of tearing me apart, it whined and sank docilely to the ground at my feet. It nudged my leg with its massive head, letting out a soft, whimpering sound.

During the past three years, Justin Foster had been blind and violently short-tempered; even his own dog had refused to go near him. I was the one who had risked getting bitten every single day to feed Onyx, bathe him, and brush his coat. Animals, it seemed, understood gratitude far better than humans.

Chloe Somers’s face twisted in fury. "What is the meaning of this? Has this dog lost its mind?!"

"Since this beast no longer recognizes its master, there's no point in keeping it around," Justin Foster said, his eyes darkening with malice. "Drag it away!"

Several bodyguards immediately stepped forward, wielding heavy iron rods.

"No!" I finally lost my composure. I threw myself over Onyx, shielding his massive body with my own. "Justin Foster, are you insane? What did he do wrong?!"

"Pull her off!"

The bodyguards forcibly dragged Clara Somers away and began to violently drag Onyx.

Onyx's agonized whimpers and yelps echoed throughout the garden. Even as he collapsed, bloodied on the ground, his eyes remained fixed on me.

I was pressed to the ground by the bodyguards, watching Onyx being tortured with my own eyes. My whole body shook, and a desperate, suppressed cry came from my throat.

Chloe Somers walked over to me, looking down with a cruel, mocking smirk. She leaned in and whispered in a voice so quiet it was barely a breath:

"Do you see now, Clara Somers? You are just like this dog. In the Foster family, if you don't obey your master, you get beaten to death."

"How do you expect to compete with me?"

Breaking free from the bodyguards, I crawled on my knees to the dying Onyx and cradled his head tightly in my arms.

No tears. In this very moment, my tears had completely run dry.