Chapter 5 Kneel Before Mrs. Lexton

The stench of cheap cigarettes mixed with stale wine assaulted Anna the moment she stepped inside. The sight before her made her chest constrict painfully.

In the cramped living room, Reymond sat on his shabby sofa, feet propped up on the table as if he owned the world. Next to him, Sienna clung to his arm like a parasite, pouring wine into his glass. They looked like a perfect couple disturbed by an unwanted guest.

"Why did you come back here?" Reymond asked coldly. His eyes scanned Anna from top to bottom with a look of utter disdain.

"I just want my things," Anna replied briefly, ignoring Sienna's cunning smile. Her eyes scanned the dressing table frantically.

It was empty.

The teak wood box where she kept her only treasure was gone without a trace.

"Where is my wooden box?" Anna demanded, her voice hoarse, suppressing her rage. "Where is my necklace, Reymond?"

Reymond laughed cynically. He reached into his trouser pocket, flicked an object into the air, and caught it again. A dull silver necklace with a broken wing pendant swung between his fingers, mocking Anna.

"You mean this piece of junk?" Reymond sneered.

"Give it back!" Anna shouted, lunging forward with her hand outstretched.

Reymond stood up and easily dodged her reach. He walked leisurely toward the open window, letting the wind play with the necklace in his hand.

"Why do you even bother looking for your biological parents?" Reymond said cruelly. Every word stabbed like a dagger. "They’re probably trash just like you. That’s why they threw you away. Your mother was surely a whore; that’s why you’re pregnant with a bastard child too."

"Shut your mouth!" Anna screamed in anguish. "Don't you dare insult my parents!"

Reymond only smirked. He stretched his hand out the window. "Oops, my hand is so slippery."

He opened his fingers.

"Don't!" Anna shrieked.

She ran as fast as she could. But she could only watch as the necklace plummeted down.

It hit the ground below with a pathetic clink.

The air seemed forcibly ripped from Anna's lungs. Her only hope, her only connection to her past, was gone just like that.

"You are a devil, Reymond," Anna hissed, her body trembling violently.

"Reymond was just joking, Anna," Sienna chimed in with a fake sweet tone. "It was just an ugly necklace. Why are you crying over it?"

Anna had had enough.

Something inside her snapped.

SLAP!

A hard slap landed squarely on Reymond's cheek. The sound was deafening.

"Reymond!" Sienna squealed in shock. She immediately ran to hug Reymond's arm. "Anna, are you crazy? Why did you hit him?"

Reymond touched his burning cheek. His eyes blazed with fury.

"How dare you slap me," Reymond growled.

THUD!

Reymond shoved Anna's shoulder without mercy. Anna staggered backward, lost her balance, and fell hard. Her palms scraped against the rough, cracked ceramic tiles. A sharp stinging pain shot through her hand instantly.

"Ah!" Anna winced. Fresh blood began to flow from the wound on her palm.

"That’s what you deserve," Reymond snapped with satisfaction. He stepped forward, ready to vent his anger further.

But his steps halted. The air in the doorway suddenly dropped in temperature. It felt as if a predator had just entered its territory.

A tall, broad-shouldered man in a black suit stood there. He was silent and expressionless.

"Leo?" Reymond exclaimed in disbelief. "What is Uncle Damon's personal assistant doing here?"

Leo's eagle-sharp eyes swept the room. His gaze stopped on Anna sitting on the floor. Then, his eyes dropped to Anna's bleeding hand. Leo’s jaw hardened instantly.

Reymond followed Leo's gaze. He saw Anna looking at Leo with pleading eyes. A petty thought immediately filled his head.

"Oh, I get it now," Reymond hissed cynically. He crouched down and grabbed Anna's jaw roughly. "After me, now you want to seduce Uncle Damon's watchdog? You really can't look at a man in a suit without spreading your legs, can you?"

"Let me go, Reymond," Anna said, trying to fight back.

Leo moved forward silently. He caught Reymond's wrist gripping Anna and squeezed it tight.

"Argh! That hurts!" Reymond groaned. He was forced to release his grip on Anna.

Leo threw Reymond's hand away roughly. "Watch your hands, Young Master Reymond."

"You dare interfere?" Reymond challenged. "She is my ungrateful ex-fiancée. I'm just teaching her a lesson."

Leo looked Reymond straight in the eye. His voice was as cold as arctic ice.

"Madam Anna is no longer your fiancée. She is the legal wife of Mr. Damon Lexton."

A dead silence blanketed the room.

Reymond froze. His brain short-circuited. Meanwhile, Sienna stepped forward with a face full of denial.

"You must be lying!" Sienna shouted, pointing at Leo. "Did this cunning woman pay you to say that? There is no way the honorable Mr. Damon would marry a cheap woman like her!"

Leo didn't even glance at Sienna. His gaze was still locked on the pale Reymond.

"Mr. Damon knows exactly who he married. Including the fact that the child Madam Anna is currently carrying is the sole legitimate heir of Lexton Corp," Leo declared with a firm voice.

Sienna's breath hitched in her throat. The wine glass she was holding slipped from her fingers. It hit the floor with a loud shatter.

"What? Lexton's heir?" Sienna's world felt like it had turned upside down. Her plan to destroy Anna had actually turned the girl into a true Queen.

"That's impossible," Reymond hissed with a hoarse voice. He stared at Anna's flat stomach with a wild look. "That child is Uncle Damon's?"

Reymond shook his head vigorously, refusing the reality. He looked at Leo angrily. "You are all tricking me!"

Leo wasted no more time.

BAM!

A solid punch landed right on Reymond's solar plexus.

"Cough!"

Reymond was thrown back, hitting the wall before falling to his knees, retching on the floor.

"Reymond!" Sienna screamed in panic.

Leo turned his back, ignoring them both. He crouched in front of Anna, his gaze softening. He took a clean handkerchief from his pocket and carefully wrapped Anna's injured palm.

"Forgive me, Madam. I was late," Leo said with deep regret.

"It's not your fault, Leo," Anna whispered softly.

"Let's go home now," Leo said gently, helping the trembling Anna to stand. "Mr. Damon is waiting for you for lunch. Don't let the trash in here ruin your appetite."

Anna stood on shaking legs. She looked at Reymond, who was still in pain. For the first time, she felt protected. Without saying a single word, Anna turned and walked out, following Leo.

Her back was straight. She left her painful past behind in that stuffy apartment, walking toward a future where she was no longer the victim.