The color drained from Raquel’s face when she saw what Caleb was holding.

“Give it back to me!”

She reached out to snatch it back, but Caleb deftly sidestepped her attempt. “And what if I don’t? What will you do then?”

Raquel’s tone turned cold as she warned, “Caleb, you’d better behave these days. Don’t give me a reason to come after you.”

Caleb nodded with a smile. “All right, I will. But now you’re the one in a tight spot. How do you plan to deal with this?”

Raquel’s frustration boiled over, and her breaths grew quick and uneven. She desperately wanted to lash out at Caleb but held back. Deep down, she knew this was exactly what he wanted—to escalate the situation. If she caused a scene, it would play right into his hands.

She muttered under her breath, “You’re despicable!”

Caleb laughed. “In this world, how many people could possibly be as despicable as you, Raquel? Before pointing fingers at others, maybe you should take a good look in the mirror and see just how pitiful and absurd you are.”

Raquel pressed her lips together tightly, her face set in a stern expression, and turned to head back to her room.

Letting out a huff, Caleb put the thing away and made his way to bed, intending to catch up on the sleep he’d missed the night before. The secret Raquel most wanted to keep hidden had suddenly been exposed. Caleb knew she wouldn’t let things slide so easily, but he hadn’t anticipated her acting so quickly.

That night, when everyone had gone to sleep, Raquel stood alone at the doorway of Caleb’s room.

“Cale, I was wrong. Can you please give me back my things?”

Caleb didn’t bother to respond. He simply turned over in bed, ready to resume his sleep.

“Cale, do we really have to keep fighting like this? We used to be so close…”

Raquel’s trembling voice made her sound pitiful, but Caleb had no intention of engaging. He pulled the blanket over his head, shutting out her grating voice.

“Do you want me to beg? Fine, I’ll beg. Will that make you happy? Do you want me to get on my knees?”

A dull thud sounded, unmistakably the sound of a knee hitting the ground.

“You enjoy groveling, do you? Then go ahead—crawl for me!”

He expected Raquel to storm off in anger. But to his surprise, he heard the faint shuffling of movement outside the door. She was actually doing it, crawling back and forth in earnest.

Caleb’s hand rested on the doorknob, but he hesitated and withdrew it.

“Leave. Even if you crawl for two hours, I will never forgive you.”

His indifferent tone struck a nerve, pushing Raquel to the brink of madness. She had already humiliated herself before Caleb finally uttered those words. The sting of humiliation and the ache in her knees caused Raquel’s anger to boil over into a towering rage.

Fine, Caleb! You were the one who showed no mercy first. Don’t blame me for playing dirty!

With her hair disheveled, Raquel tore her sleeve, exposing her shoulder. She then cried out loudly, “Help! I’m being assaulted!”

Within seconds, lights flickered on throughout the house. Deborah, flustered and without a moment to fix her appearance, rushed over.

“Raquel, what happened? I thought I heard you shouting.”

Tears streamed down Raquel’s face as she sobbed, “Mrs. Quixall, someone tried to violate me!”

Deborah’s heart sank in shock. “What’s going on? Don’t panic. Take your time to explain. With me here, no one will dare to hurt you.”

“Mrs. Quixall, you must help me. I was deep in sleep when I was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of someone tampering with my door lock!”