“No, this isn’t true. You’re lying to me-”
63%
Finished
Lucas’s voice cracked as he roared at Lauren. “You were just a high school student back then! How could you have possibly sent me 13 hundred dollars a month? You think I don’t know who really funded me? It was Willow! Only someone like her, a wealthy heiress, would be able to afford that kind of money. You were nothing in the Bennett family! They never give you a penny. So how could you have possibly helped me?”
So, he had always known.
He had always known how badly she was treated in the Bennett household.
Yet when she had come to him, exhausted and beaten down by their cruelty, he had dismissed her pain with a casual “You’re just too sensitive.”
He had known they never gave her money.
And yet, despite receiving ten grand a month, he had never once spared even a hundred dollars to help her.
How could I have been so blind? How could I have given him everything I worked so hard for?
A deep, hollow sorrow settled in Lauren’s chest. She exhaled slowly, her voice devoid of warmth.
“You never entered any competitions. Of course, you wouldn’t know that winning first place in a physics competition comes with a generous cash prize. I regret it now–spending all my winnings prize on you. If I had saved it for myself, imagine how comfortable my life would’ve been. Then again, no one knows the luxury of having money better than you, Mr. ‘Rich Kid‘ Lucas Reed.”
Her words were soft, but each syllable sliced straight through Lucas’s pride like a sharp blade, leaving him utterly humiliated.
“N…no… I don’t believe it… You’re lying…” He was grasping at straws now, trying to convince himself this wasn’t real.
Lauren had no intention of wasting another moment on this unreasonable person…
She shrugged. “Yeah. I’m lying to you. Whatever you say.”
With that, she turned around, linking arms with Gael as she walked away without a second thought.
Her indifference felt like pouring salt in an open wound, a final confirmation that she truly did not care.
Lucas’s rage exploded.
Desperate to chase after Lauren, he pushed his wheelchair forward, the wheels screeching against the floor in a frantic as he tried to chase after her.
“Lauren, stop! Don’t walk away! Explain yourself—” His voice cracked, raw with desperation.
She didn’t turn back.
Even if she could, she didn’t want to.
Within moments, Lauren and Gael were inside the car. GaelF started the car engine, and the vehicle sped
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
#Finished
He sat there, watched the car disappear, his body collapsing back into his wheelchair. His vision blurred.
Muttering under his breath, he repeated, “No… It’s not true…” over and over again.”
But deep inside, he had already come to terms with this harsh reality,
The truth had been laid bare before him, undeniable and unforgiving.
He had come to the hospital for a routine check–up on his leg injury.
But now, he couldn’t care less about them, his mind was preoccupied with Lauren’s words,
There was only one thing on his mind–he needed to see Willow, get to the bottom of the truth.
Willow Bennett, the once–glamorous heiress of the Bennett family, was now promptly taken away by the police.
Her downfall had been as public as it was humiliating.
She had tried to steal a 2.8 million dollars embroidery piece at a high–profile gala.
In front of everyone.
The police had taken her away on the spot, and the scandal had been plastered all over the news that very night.
Lucas had seen the headlines. He knew where she was now.
In the dimly lit detention center, the air thick with unease,they sat facing each other.
For a moment, he barely recognized her. The once–proud, elegant socialite now looked like a broken doll.
Her head had been completely shaved off.
Not cleanly–the patches of scabbed–over wounds marked her scalp, raw and uneven, leaving her with sparse tufts of hair. The effect was grotesque.
A ridiculous, pitiful sight.
The arrogance, the self–importance–everything that had made Willow–had been stripped away without a
trace.
Now, she was nothing.
A peacock stripped of its feathers–showing vulnerability and despair, no longer dazzling, only pathetic.
When her eyes landed on Lucas, her eyes lit up with a spark of hope, yearning for this accomplished lawyer to come to her rescue.
Perhaps he could help. Perhaps he could get her out of this nightmare.
Rut then she took a closer look at him
15:33 Sun, 30 Mar N.
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
The hope vanished.
His clothes were wrinkled and cheap, his face haggard and weary.
He was in a wheelchair.
He looked no better than a beggar.
63%
Finished
Reality slammed into her like a freight train–Lucas was no longer the successful, influential lawyer she had once toyed with.
She swallowed her disappointment.
But he was still the first person to visit her.
“No, this isn’t true. You’re lying to me-”
63%
Finished
Lucas’s voice cracked as he roared at Lauren. “You were just a high school student back then! How could you have possibly sent me 13 hundred dollars a month? You think I don’t know who really funded me? It was Willow! Only someone like her, a wealthy heiress, would be able to afford that kind of money. You were nothing in the Bennett family! They never give you a penny. So how could you have possibly helped me?”
So, he had always known.
He had always known how badly she was treated in the Bennett household.
Yet when she had come to him, exhausted and beaten down by their cruelty, he had dismissed her pain with a casual “You’re just too sensitive.”
He had known they never gave her money.
And yet, despite receiving ten grand a month, he had never once spared even a hundred dollars to help her.
How could I have been so blind? How could I have given him everything I worked so hard for?
A deep, hollow sorrow settled in Lauren’s chest. She exhaled slowly, her voice devoid of warmth.
“You never entered any competitions. Of course, you wouldn’t know that winning first place in a physics competition comes with a generous cash prize. I regret it now–spending all my winnings prize on you. If I had saved it for myself, imagine how comfortable my life would’ve been. Then again, no one knows the luxury of having money better than you, Mr. ‘Rich Kid‘ Lucas Reed.”
Her words were soft, but each syllable sliced straight through Lucas’s pride like a sharp blade, leaving him utterly humiliated.
“N…no… I don’t believe it… You’re lying…” He was grasping at straws now, trying to convince himself this wasn’t real.
Lauren had no intention of wasting another moment on this unreasonable person…
She shrugged. “Yeah. I’m lying to you. Whatever you say.”
With that, she turned around, linking arms with Gael as she walked away without a second thought.
Her indifference felt like pouring salt in an open wound, a final confirmation that she truly did not care.
Lucas’s rage exploded.
Desperate to chase after Lauren, he pushed his wheelchair forward, the wheels screeching against the floor in a frantic as he tried to chase after her.
“Lauren, stop! Don’t walk away! Explain yourself—” His voice cracked, raw with desperation.
She didn’t turn back.
Even if she could, she didn’t want to.
Within moments, Lauren and Gael were inside the car. GaelF started the car engine, and the vehicle sped
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
#Finished
He sat there, watched the car disappear, his body collapsing back into his wheelchair. His vision blurred.
Muttering under his breath, he repeated, “No… It’s not true…” over and over again.”
But deep inside, he had already come to terms with this harsh reality,
The truth had been laid bare before him, undeniable and unforgiving.
He had come to the hospital for a routine check–up on his leg injury.
But now, he couldn’t care less about them, his mind was preoccupied with Lauren’s words,
There was only one thing on his mind–he needed to see Willow, get to the bottom of the truth.
Willow Bennett, the once–glamorous heiress of the Bennett family, was now promptly taken away by the police.
Her downfall had been as public as it was humiliating.
She had tried to steal a 2.8 million dollars embroidery piece at a high–profile gala.
In front of everyone.
The police had taken her away on the spot, and the scandal had been plastered all over the news that very night.
Lucas had seen the headlines. He knew where she was now.
In the dimly lit detention center, the air thick with unease,they sat facing each other.
For a moment, he barely recognized her. The once–proud, elegant socialite now looked like a broken doll.
Her head had been completely shaved off.
Not cleanly–the patches of scabbed–over wounds marked her scalp, raw and uneven, leaving her with sparse tufts of hair. The effect was grotesque.
A ridiculous, pitiful sight.
The arrogance, the self–importance–everything that had made Willow–had been stripped away without a
trace.
Now, she was nothing.
A peacock stripped of its feathers–showing vulnerability and despair, no longer dazzling, only pathetic.
When her eyes landed on Lucas, her eyes lit up with a spark of hope, yearning for this accomplished lawyer to come to her rescue.
Perhaps he could help. Perhaps he could get her out of this nightmare.
Rut then she took a closer look at him
15:33 Sun, 30 Mar N.
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
The hope vanished.
His clothes were wrinkled and cheap, his face haggard and weary.
He was in a wheelchair.
He looked no better than a beggar.
63%
Finished
Reality slammed into her like a freight train–Lucas was no longer the successful, influential lawyer she had once toyed with.
She swallowed her disappointment.
But he was still the first person to visit her.
“No, this isn’t true. You’re lying to me-”
63%
Finished
Lucas’s voice cracked as he roared at Lauren. “You were just a high school student back then! How could you have possibly sent me 13 hundred dollars a month? You think I don’t know who really funded me? It was Willow! Only someone like her, a wealthy heiress, would be able to afford that kind of money. You were nothing in the Bennett family! They never give you a penny. So how could you have possibly helped me?”
So, he had always known.
He had always known how badly she was treated in the Bennett household.
Yet when she had come to him, exhausted and beaten down by their cruelty, he had dismissed her pain with a casual “You’re just too sensitive.”
He had known they never gave her money.
And yet, despite receiving ten grand a month, he had never once spared even a hundred dollars to help her.
How could I have been so blind? How could I have given him everything I worked so hard for?
A deep, hollow sorrow settled in Lauren’s chest. She exhaled slowly, her voice devoid of warmth.
“You never entered any competitions. Of course, you wouldn’t know that winning first place in a physics competition comes with a generous cash prize. I regret it now–spending all my winnings prize on you. If I had saved it for myself, imagine how comfortable my life would’ve been. Then again, no one knows the luxury of having money better than you, Mr. ‘Rich Kid‘ Lucas Reed.”
Her words were soft, but each syllable sliced straight through Lucas’s pride like a sharp blade, leaving him utterly humiliated.
“N…no… I don’t believe it… You’re lying…” He was grasping at straws now, trying to convince himself this wasn’t real.
Lauren had no intention of wasting another moment on this unreasonable person…
She shrugged. “Yeah. I’m lying to you. Whatever you say.”
With that, she turned around, linking arms with Gael as she walked away without a second thought.
Her indifference felt like pouring salt in an open wound, a final confirmation that she truly did not care.
Lucas’s rage exploded.
Desperate to chase after Lauren, he pushed his wheelchair forward, the wheels screeching against the floor in a frantic as he tried to chase after her.
“Lauren, stop! Don’t walk away! Explain yourself—” His voice cracked, raw with desperation.
She didn’t turn back.
Even if she could, she didn’t want to.
Within moments, Lauren and Gael were inside the car. GaelF started the car engine, and the vehicle sped
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
#Finished
He sat there, watched the car disappear, his body collapsing back into his wheelchair. His vision blurred.
Muttering under his breath, he repeated, “No… It’s not true…” over and over again.”
But deep inside, he had already come to terms with this harsh reality,
The truth had been laid bare before him, undeniable and unforgiving.
He had come to the hospital for a routine check–up on his leg injury.
But now, he couldn’t care less about them, his mind was preoccupied with Lauren’s words,
There was only one thing on his mind–he needed to see Willow, get to the bottom of the truth.
Willow Bennett, the once–glamorous heiress of the Bennett family, was now promptly taken away by the police.
Her downfall had been as public as it was humiliating.
She had tried to steal a 2.8 million dollars embroidery piece at a high–profile gala.
In front of everyone.
The police had taken her away on the spot, and the scandal had been plastered all over the news that very night.
Lucas had seen the headlines. He knew where she was now.
In the dimly lit detention center, the air thick with unease,they sat facing each other.
For a moment, he barely recognized her. The once–proud, elegant socialite now looked like a broken doll.
Her head had been completely shaved off.
Not cleanly–the patches of scabbed–over wounds marked her scalp, raw and uneven, leaving her with sparse tufts of hair. The effect was grotesque.
A ridiculous, pitiful sight.
The arrogance, the self–importance–everything that had made Willow–had been stripped away without a
trace.
Now, she was nothing.
A peacock stripped of its feathers–showing vulnerability and despair, no longer dazzling, only pathetic.
When her eyes landed on Lucas, her eyes lit up with a spark of hope, yearning for this accomplished lawyer to come to her rescue.
Perhaps he could help. Perhaps he could get her out of this nightmare.
Rut then she took a closer look at him
15:33 Sun, 30 Mar N.
Chapter 199 A Bitter Awakening
The hope vanished.
His clothes were wrinkled and cheap, his face haggard and weary.
He was in a wheelchair.
He looked no better than a beggar.
63%
Finished
Reality slammed into her like a freight train–Lucas was no longer the successful, influential lawyer she had once toyed with.
She swallowed her disappointment.
But he was still the first person to visit her.
Even though he didn’t seem to be doing well himself, but maybe… just maybe, he could do something.
Willow forcing herself to look as pitiful as possible, she spoke in a soft, trembling voice.
“Lucas… help me.”
Once, she was as elegant and pure as a daffodil, truly exuded a sense of delicate vulnerability when she tried to appear pitiful.
But now?
280
Even though he didn’t seem to be doing well himself, but maybe… just maybe, he could do something.
Willow forcing herself to look as pitiful as possible, she spoke in a soft, trembling voice.
“Lucas… help me.”
Once, she was as elegant and pure as a daffodil, truly exuded a sense of delicate vulnerability when she tried to appear pitiful.
But now?
280
Even though he didn’t seem to be doing well himself, but maybe… just maybe, he could do something.
Willow forcing herself to look as pitiful as possible, she spoke in a soft, trembling voice.
“Lucas… help me.”
Once, she was as elegant and pure as a daffodil, truly exuded a sense of delicate vulnerability when she tried to appear pitiful.
But now?
280
