Chapter 5
The next moment, David suddenly grabbed my hand roughly. Seeing the diamond ring on my finger, he became furious. “Cora! What kind of stunt are you pulling now? Trying to
disgust me on purpose?”
“I’m not,” I looked up to explain.
But he wouldn’t believe me. “Not playing games? Where’d you pick up that cheap ring, pretending you’re engaged?”
I had no idea why he was reacting so strongly. His outburst was frightening.
In a choked voice, I said, “It–it was given to me by my fiancé.”
“Fiancé?” David glared at me. “You live here every day–I know everything about you. Where did you get a fiancé from?”
“How disgusting!” he spat, disregarding my resistance as he forcibly pulled the ring from my finger, scraping it hard enough to draw blood. He threw it across the room, and it landed under the sofa.
Ignoring the pain, I crouched on the floor, reaching under the sofa to retrieve my ring. Behind me, I heard Helena’s puzzled voice, “That ring looks familiar, If I’m not mistaken, it’s a rare piece featured in last month’s Bazaar magazine. How could she…?”
Before Helena could finish, David sneered, “Do you really think the daughter of a maid could own such an expensive ring? It’s obviously a cheap knockoff she bought online!” His emphasis on “cheap knockoff” was loud and clear.
it I knew he was doing it on purpose, but I didn’t argue. Ignoring their voices, I kept searching for my ring. Eventually, I lifted the sofa to find it. Thankfully, it was undamaged. I put away carefully, no longer daring to wear it on my finger.
Helena’s voice came again. She seems quite capable and quick on her feet. Why don’t you let her serve as my personal maid for a few days?”
“Sure, whatever makes you happy,” David agreed without a second thought.
Chapter 5
David then pulled me aside and said, “For the next few days, stay by Helena’s side and serve her well. And use this time to reflect on yourself!”
Over the next several days, Helena kept me busy with errands. Once, she even called me in the middle of the night to buy condoms. I went out in the pouring rain and bought five different kinds from the nearby convenience store. But when I returned, David scolded me, saying I should’ve anticipated her needs and bought them in advance.
As he berated me, tears welled up in my eyes. Who was he planning to use them with?
Seeing this, Helena interjected, “Forget it, David. Look at her–she’s so inexperienced that a little oversight is natural. It’s not her fault; I just suddenly wanted to try these.”
But David didn’t care. He walked up to me and said, “As a maid, you should have the sense of a maid, not entertain thoughts you shouldn’t have!”
Thoughts I shouldn’t have? Did he mean my feelings for him? In the past, words like that would’ve hurt me deeply. But now, I didn’t feel the pain anymore. Instead, I found it almost laughable.
He always believed I couldn’t live without him. But in less than two weeks, all of this would be over. Or maybe, I wouldn’t even need to wait that long. I looked up at David. “If you think I’m not doing a good enough job, I can just move out.”
“Again with this? I don’t agree!” He left me no room for negotiation, always so domineering and arrogant. In the past, I couldn’t stand it. But now, with my fiancé returning soon, I was about to start a brand–new life.
After Helena settled in, David spent nearly every day with her, accompanying her to meals, revisiting old haunts, and going with her to prenatal checkups. He no longer hovered around me with his endless demands. For once, I had some peace.
The day they went for a prenatal checkup, Erik called. He arranged for his assistant to take me to try on wedding dresses, and I gladly agreed. Just as I slipped into the dress, David called.
“Where are you?” he demanded.
“I’m trying on wedding dresses,” I replied calmly.
Did
43.3%
Chapter 5
“Again with this nonsense!” he snapped, his voice grating. “You’ve lived in the Johnson household since you were young. Who could you possibly marry? You-”
Before he could finish, I hung up. He was too loud; I didn’t want to listen.
Maybe he couldn’t handle me hanging up on him. He started bombarding my phone with calls. If this had happened in the past, I’d have been terrified of him getting angry. But now, I had no patience left.
I picked up once more, irritated. “I’m busy. Stop calling me!” I hung up again, not giving him a chance to taunt me further, then turned off my phone.
Looking at myself in the mirror, dressed in the wedding gown, I suddenly imagined David’s frustrated expression. Oddly, the thought brought me a strange sense of satisfaction.
Unexpectedly, David abandoned Helena’s checkup and rushed back home that night. He pounded on my door. “Cora, open the door!”
“I’m counting to three. If you don’t open it, I’ll break it down!”
He wasn’t bluffing. I sat on my bed, waiting for him to do it.
Three, two, one…
But in the end, the door wasn’t broken down.
The next morning, when I finally opened the door, I found David standing there, silent and unmoving.
