Rachel drove to the nightclub alone after work. As soon as she entered the private room, she saw the men inside with the nightclub’s hostesses in each of their arms. Mr. Wayne beckoned to her enthusiastically as he said, “Come over here, Chris. Let me introduce her to you guys. This is Chris, Burton Pharmaceuticals’ sales director. She’s a knockout, isn’t she?”
“Burton Pharmaceuticals’ sales director? Aren’t you President Burton’s ex-wife?”
“You were on the news some time ago.”
The atmosphere in the private room livened up at once. These men were in the same circle, so they knew almost everything about the Burton Family.
Rachel forced a smile at everyone.
Mr. Wayne waved his hand. “Why are we talking about this? Friendly relations should exist between buyer and
seller even if they fail to clinch a deal. Despite their marriage ending with divorce, they still have to run the business. Just look at how magnanimous Chris is-isn’t she still working at Burton Pharmaceuticals? It’s just that she’s put to a little inconvenience by having to work under her ex-husband.”
“Wow, your heart is aching, Mr. Wayne! What are you waiting for, Chris? Have a drink with him!”
Rachel frowned as a glass of wine was shoved into her hand. “I drove here, so I can’t drink alcohol.”
“What’s the problem with that? You can just hire a chauffeur to drive your car. There are plenty of them everywhere.”
“Sorry, but I don’t drink.”
The room instantly went silent. Mr. Wayne put down his wine glass and leaned back against the leather sofa. He then asked, “It’s not like I have to collaborate with Burton Pharmaceuticals. There are so many people here; it doesn’t make a difference for me to sign the contract with any of them. Sincerity is best expressed by one’s willingness to drink, don’t you think so?”
Rachel was very hesitant as she looked at the wine glass before her. She knew very well that once one drank a glass of wine in such a social engagement, they would end up drinking even more. Moreover, Mr. Wayne was deliberately trying to make her drunk. Then, as her eyes flickered, she suggested, “Mr. Wayne, do you mean that you’ll sign the contract as long as I finish this glass of wine?”
“That’s not a problem, of course. Am I the kind of person who goes back on his word?”
“That’s right! What kind of person do you think Mr. Wayne is?”
“Mr. Wayne feels sorry for you, so he’s taking you out to help you relax. You’d better not do it the hard way,” said the toadies around them as they made a fuss.
Rachel raised her glass. “In that case, thank you, Mr. Wayne. Here’s to you.” Then, she downed the wine in one gulp in front of everyone. The strong smell of alcohol spread in her mouth, but she showed everyone the emptied glass without letting her face show any emotion.
“You can drink a lot!”
“Come on, let’s drink another glass.”
“Mr. Wayne, about the contract,”
“Since I’ve promised to sign the contract, I’ll definitely sign it. The contract hasn’t been drafted yet, right? Have your assistant send it to me tomorrow morning, and I’ll sign it right away.”
“It’s not necessary to go through so much trouble. I brought the contract with me,” Rachel replied. As she spoke, she took a document out of her handbag, uncapped the felt-tip pen, and handed the pen and the document to Mr. Wayne.
The room fell silent once again, whereas Mr. Wayne’s greasy face twitched. Obviously, he didn’t expect Rachel to have such things prepared. “It really is rather professional of you to bring the contract along while coming out for drinks, Chris.”
Rachel replied, “Opportunities are for those who are well-prepared, right?”
“Great! You’re simply great. As expected, you’re a clever woman who deserves to work beside Justin Burton.” Mr. Wayne pulled off his tie. Suddenly, he stood up and looked around him. “Get out, everyone.”
Everyone in the private room looked at each other, but none of them dared to say anything as they left, knowing what to do in such situations.
When the last person left the private room, Rachel stood up as well. She asked warily, “What do you mean by doing this, Mr. Wayne?”
Mr. Wayne threw his tie at Rachel right away with a sneer. “Stop pretending. Why play this trick on me when you don’t even bother to pretend? Let’s get even with one another today for what happened back then, shall we?” As he spoke, he unbuckled his belt right away and stepped toward Rachel.
Rachel took two steps back while reaching for her cell phone in her pocket. “What are you doing? This is a public place. Aren’t you afraid that I’ll call the police?”
Mr. Wayne sneered. “Call the police? You can try to. This nightclub is now under my name, and the signal jammers have been switched on. I’d like to see how you’re going to call the police.”
Rachel’s expression changed when she saw the words ‘No signal’ on her phone’s screen.
“God knows how long I have been waiting for this day. Do you know how much trouble the incident back then caused me? I haven’t been able to sleep at night all these years because I’d been waiting to find you!” said Mr. Wayne as he stepped closer and closer toward Rachel.
Meanwhile, the latter kept backing away until she reached the door. She pushed the door handle, only to realize that the door couldn’t be opened as it had been locked from the outside. “Let me out of here!”
“Let you out of here?” Mr. Wayne responded as if he had heard a joke. Then, he picked up the remote control, aimed it at the wall opposite him, and pressed a button.
The wall automatically split in two and opened up with a loud noise, revealing the hidden bedroom inside. The sight of the whip and the ‘instruments of torture shining on the wall under the purple light made one shudder, but Mr. Wayne’s spirits soared. With a look of excitement and perversion on his face, he asked, “How is it? Do you remember it now? Is it the same as the room back then?”
Rachel’s face turned as white as a sheet as a tingling sensation mixed with feelings of nausea instantly spread all over her body. What a pervert Mr. Wayne is-he’s simply a lunatic! He actually had an identical replica of the room back then hidden in the nightclub’s private room! she thought to herself. The instant she came to her senses, she banged the door desperately. “Open the door! Let me out!”
“It’s too bad that the only difference is that you’re no longer mute now.” Mr. Wayne eyed Rachel up and down. “However, it doesn’t matter as long as you bite into this!” Then, he grabbed Rachel’s shoulder while holding a spherical object in his hand.
The night was already dark. After having dinner with Charlotte, Justin coaxed her to sleep since Rachel had yet to return home.
Charlotte could hardly keep her eyes open, but she insisted on waiting for Rachel to come back. “Daddy, why isn’t Mommy home yet?”
“Mommy is too busy with work. You should sleep by yourself today, Charlotte.”
“In that case, tell her to give me a kiss when she comes back. I’ll know it in my sleep.”
“All right, my dear Charlotte.”
It wasn’t until he heard the even breathing next to him that Justin got up and left the room. “Sorry, but the number you’ve dialed is currently unavailable. Please dial again later.” It was already 11.00PM, but he still couldn’t reach Rachel on her cell phone. As he recalled what had happened during the day, his face slowly tensed up, and he called Frankie. “Where is Rachel right now?”
“Hasn’t Miss Hudson gone back yet? I heard from Lisa that she received a phone call from Mr. Wayne before getting off work. He asked her out to discuss the contract.”
“Send me the address,” Justin uttered before leaving home at once.
The air was sultry in the midsummer night as Justin stood in front of the garage door with the car keys in his hand. After standing for half a second, he pulled the car door open and got into the driver’s seat. As he
gripped the steering wheel, his large hands trembled visibly for a moment, but he clenched the steering wheel and forcibly suppressed the feelings of unease soon afterward. With that, the sedan drove out of the villa area and disappeared into the night.
