Chapter 3

The ringing of her phone temporarily rescued Sophia from her awkward emotions.

Dozens of missed calls - from Echo, her parents, the company, and Robert.

Of course, Robert had only called once.

He had always been proud in front of Sophia and would never call someone repeatedly.

The company was probably asking why she was absent without notice, and her parents were likely calling about Margaret, so Sophia chose to contact Echo first.

"Sophia, if I couldn't reach you, I was about to call the police! Where on earth did you go?"

Echo sounded very anxious. Sophia said, confused, "But I'm at your place..."

She looked around and only then realized the decor was completely unfamiliar.

This wasn't Echo's place, it looked more like a suite in a high-end hotel.

What was going on?

After comparing notes with Echo about last night, Sophia discovered that she had walked into the wrong private room and mistaken the male escort!

Recalling her drunken behavior, Sophia was so embarrassed she wanted to disappear on the spot.

Echo, however, became very interested in this so-called most handsome male escort.

"Any man who gets that kind of review from you must be pretty good. If you ask me, you should dump that awful Robert and throw yourself into this male escort's arms instead!"

Sophia didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Stop joking. I don't even know who he is. I'm so embarrassed thinking about it now."

Echo said cheerfully, "I'll help you contact him."

With that, she hung up directly.

Sophia felt something wasn't quite right, but her hangover made her brain work slowly. She could only take a shower first, then rush to the company.

Three years ago, after being forced to drop out of school, Sophia joined Robert's company and became his personal assistant.

This was one of Robert's ways of controlling and humiliating her.

Sophia spoke politely, "Could you please slow down a bit? I feel nauseous."

She didn't know if it was because she drank too much last night, but Sophia, who never got carsick, felt like throwing up.

The driver slowed down and even opened the window for her. A cool breeze blew in, slightly relieving her discomfort.

Sophia began thinking about what to do next.

Just as Margaret had said, with her parents and Robert protecting her, it would be hard to fight back against this sister who had ruined her life.

Ask her parents for an explanation? That would probably be a waste of effort too.

Perhaps the only thing that could count as good news was that she could finally end this twisted and shameful relationship with Robert.

After getting out of the car, Sophia quickly walked into the company.

She planned to write a resignation letter and submit it directly to HR.

However, as soon as she entered the office, Sophia was stopped by her colleague, Samantha Shaw.

Very rudely, she dumped a pile of complicated work on her, "Where were you this morning? Hurry up and organize these documents and send them to me. You have two hours."

Everyone else in the office was used to this kind of scene.

Sophia was very capable at work, but everyone knew she was Mr. Howard's plaything and had no room for advancement in any respect.

And she had always chosen to swallow her anger. Any impossible tasks could be dumped on her, and she would naturally complete them.

However, this time, Sophia pushed those documents back.

Samantha froze, her tone turning hostile, "Ms. Windsor, what do you mean by this?"

Sophia said expressionlessly, "I mean, do your own work."

Now, everyone looked up, staring at Sophia in disbelief.

Did the sun rise from the west today?

Samantha was shocked, "What did you say? Say that again!"

Her tone was already full of threats.

But Sophia remained calm, "Do your own work. If you can't finish it, then quit."

Gasps filled the room.

Samantha wasn't someone with a good temper to begin with, and she got angry on the spot, "Sophia, have you forgotten your place here? 'Quit'? Do you think you're Mr. Howard's wife? Don't forget, you're just a plaything!"

With that, she slammed those documents back on Sophia's desk.

Sophia swept them all onto the floor.

Samantha took a deep breath and said word by word, "Sophia, pick them up and apologize to me, or don't blame me for reporting this to Mr. Howard!"

Even when Sophia was in the right, Robert would never take her side.

This was an unspoken rule that everyone in the company knew.

Sophia gestured toward the door, "Go ahead."

Samantha froze.

If she really had to go report it, she didn't dare.

What was Sophia trying to do?

Just then, the door to the secretarial office was pushed open, and Robert appeared in the doorway.

Everyone immediately snapped out of their spectator mode and stood up respectfully, "Mr. Howard."

Robert glanced at the documents on the floor and said casually, "Sophia, apologize."

This simple sentence made Sophia's heart clench.

He didn't even know what had happened, yet he demanded she bow her head and admit fault.

Right, in Robert's mind, she was just such a worthless existence who could be bullied at will.

But that was in the past.

With this thought, Sophia faced Samantha's smug expression and said, "Ms. Shaw, you're the one at fault. I won't apologize to you, even if Mr. Howard asks me to."

Samantha's smile immediately froze on her face, while others stared wide-eyed in shock.

Robert frowned, "Sophia!"

His tone carried a strong warning and threat.

But Sophia looked at him calmly.

Robert finally lost his patience, grabbed her wrist, and dragged her into his office.

He threw her to the floor without mercy and said coldly, "You dare disobey my orders?"

Fortunately, the CEO's office was carpeted with imported rugs, so Sophia didn't feel any pain.

She slowly stood up and looked directly into Robert's cold eyes, "Yes, from now on, I won't listen to you anymore."

As she said this, Sophia felt relief, satisfaction, and a barely noticeable trace of pain in her heart.

But Robert's eyes only showed anger at having his authority challenged.

He slowly approached Sophia and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look up at him.

"Won't listen to me? Sophia, someone who killed her own sister, where do you get the nerve?"

Sophia laughed. "You're right, someone who killed her own sister has no right."

But Margaret wasn't dead!

Robert's grip tightened.

He didn't quite understand what Sophia was trying to say, but he sensed danger in those words. "What exactly are you trying to say?"

Sophia clenched her fists and looked up, "Robert, I want to break up with you."