“Jadie, this is the last straw. You’re not a kid anymore, stop being so childish!” Zach warned Jadie, his voice shaking. Jadie nuzzled her face into Zach’s chest, his clothes soaking wet from her tears.
“We’ve been joined at the hip since we first met. You promised that you’d never leave me. Zach…can you promise me that you’ll never fall in love with someone else? If you do, I’ll be alone…”
Zach and Jadie had been friends since they met at the orphanage. Only the two of them could understand the hurdles they had gone through together.
However, Zach was a greedy man, and nothing could ever be enough to quench his thirst for power and status.
‘If only I’d thought of having the Jent family in the first place, then I would have Yvonne by now…This power battle between the Young and Jent families is way too tempting, how could I say no?
‘Perhaps there might be others who aren’t swayed by the temptation of money, but one thing’s for sure, no one would ever refuse power. Once I have that power, I’ll be able to control Ventropolis once more and the Arnold family will be in the palm of my hand.’
“Jadie, how could I ever break the promise we made? I’ll never leave you.” Zach coaxed Jadie as he wiped away her tears. Jadie returned to her room.
Madelyn heard the sound of doors closing and waited for Zach to leave. Just as she stepped out of her room, a figure suddenly appeared before her.
Madelyn looked up and was met with Zach’s cold gaze, and her heart immediately skipped a beat.
“Eavesdropping?”
Suddenly, she felt a huge force bear down upon her. Madelyn clenched her mug tightly, lowered her eyes and faintly explained herself, “I just came out to get some water. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. Your private affairs have nothing to do with me. I swear I won’t say a word to anyone! I promise!”
Madelyn tried to escape but was forcefully grabbed by Zach once more as he slammed her hard against the wall. The water in her mug spilled all over her hands.
He snapped, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Madelyn shot him a defiant look. ‘Rosario and Jadie are both at home; I doubt he’ll dare to actually hurt me.’
Zach snatched the mug from Madelyn’s hands and thumped it forcefully on the table beside. her. He noticed her gaze was cold,”…So you like being a tease, huh?!”
“What the hell are you talking about? Fuck off! I’m going to bed.” Madelyn shot back.
Suddenly, Zach grabbed Madelyn’s wrist forcefully and dragged her out the door. Madelyn struggled to break free from his grasp, and managed to do so as they reached the end of the hallway.
‘What the fuck is wrong with him?”
It was almost midnight and Madelyn was dressed in a thin pair of pajamas and the temperature outside was below zero.
‘I’ve never been kicked out of the house in the middle of the night like this. Not even Hayson would do such a thing!
“It’s so fucking late, what the fuck are you doing?!” Madelyn crossed her arms trying to shield herself from the cold wind that was blowing.
Zach forcefully pinched her cheek hard with one hand, the other pinning her down against the wall, “I’ve been too nice to you recently, haven’t I?”
“Nice? Zach, do you even know what ‘nice’ means?”
“I didn’t think you’d show up during dinner today. You brought this upon yourself. If you really cared about Jadie, then you shouldn’t have gotten so close with Yvonne! It’s obvious. that you only care about of yourself!”
Madelyn hissed in pain, “This dick!”
Zach’s face turned grim as he tightened his grasp on her. “You’re that desperate to get a private meeting with her, aren’t you?”
Madelyn winced in pain as she stuttered, “I… I don’t know why she showed up.”
“If you feel like I’ve ruined your day today, then I sincerely apologize for it, and you don’t have to worry about me. We can go back to how we were before, and you can completely ignore me. Just don’t take your anger out on me just because you can’t handle your personal affairs properly.”
‘He’s so cruel, how dare he say I’m greedy? It’s just a damn meal. How stupid can he be!’
She continued, “I’m living under your roof right now and I don’t have anywhere else to go. If you really think I’m such a headache, then I’ll move out right now! I can survive on my own, even without the Jent family.”
She thought, ‘I’m not the same person I was before. If he hadn’t driven me to my breaking
point, I wouldn’t have known how far I can go. From living in fancy mansions to sleeping on the streets, I’ve experienced it all.’
