In the VIP room of a nightclub, Larry lounged on a couch, tossing a million-dollar check onto the coffee table. Crossing his legs, he smirked. “Bring out all your prettiest girls. See this? I’ve got money.” After serving ten years in prison, Larry was eager to indulge himself.
The nightclub manager’s eyes lit up at the sight of the check. She called out, “Girls, time to work!” A group of lavishly dressed women entered, forming a line in front of Larry.
“Mr. Slick, which one catches your eye?” the manager asked with a grin.
Larry glanced over the lineup and sneered. “They’re all too old. I like them young. The younger, the better.”
The manager blinked in surprise. “Mr. Slick, these girls are barely twenty. That’s young enough.”
Larry licked his lips with a sleazy grin. “I like them even younger.”
The manager’s smile faltered. Was this man a pervert? A pedophile, even?
Before she could respond, the room’s door was kicked open. Larry looked up to see Celine standing there. The manager gasped, “Oh my, who’s this little beauty? Sweetheart, who are you here for?”
Celine ignored her, her icy gaze fixed on Larry. She opened her palm and said, “Hand over the check!”
“Celine, you’re here!” Larry’s eyes lit up as he took in her flawless face and curvy figure. Compared to the other women, she looked downright plain, and his interest in them vanished. He chuckled, waving the check. “Celine, this is courtesy of your dear husband. I’m your adoptive father, remember? It’s only natural for you two to give me some spending money.”
Larry’s greedy, leering demeanor made Celine’s stomach churn with disgust. She stepped forward, snatching for the check. His face darkened. “You bitch, do you really think you’re some kind of high-society lady now?” He reached out to grab her hair, intent on teaching her a lesson. But before his hand could connect, a thin silver needle pierced his palm.
Larry crumpled to the floor with a heavy thud, his legs giving way. Celine took the check and glanced at him coldly. “Did you really think you could still lay a hand on me?” The needle had gone straight through his palm, and Larry let out a series of pained howls. Without another word, Celine turned and left.
“Celine!” Larry called after her. She paused. Larry’s lips curled into a twisted grin. “You’ve married such a great husband. Should I tell him about how, as a little girl, you sat on my lap in your pretty dresses? You’d just arrived from the city, looking like a porcelain doll—so sweet, so fragrant. I even kissed you, remember?!” Her hands at her sides clenched slowly into fists.
“Celine, what do you think your husband would do if he knew? He’d despise you! Mrs. Alvarez Senior may pamper you, and Adam may be your husband. But do you really think you’re worthy of being part of the Alvarez family?”
Celine said nothing. She simply walked away.
Outside the nightclub, Celine stepped onto the bustling street. She didn’t take a car but chose to walk home. The streets were lively, filled with groups of men and women chatting and laughing. Amid the noise and cheer, she wandered alone, memories of her childhood in the countryside replaying in her mind like a sped-up film. Lucy had paid Larry a sum of money to send her away to his home in the countryside. At first, Larry’s wife was still around. When he got drunk or lost at gambling, he would vent his anger on her. The poor woman, already mentally unstable, eventually took her own life by jumping into a river. After that, it was just Celine and Larry left in that house.