Chapter 10 He Entered

Then, the pair of slippers stopped right in front of her. Emily's heart raced to her throat, accompanied by a familiar ache, and cold sweat beaded on her forehead. She prayed for John to leave quickly, but her prayers went unanswered. He turned around and sat down on the bed. Seeing that he hadn't discovered her, Emily slowly exhaled in relief. The space under the bed was cramped, and Emily had never liked such dark places, which easily reminded her of unpleasant childhood memories. Her stepfather often beat her with shoes when he was drunk. Sometimes she was hit under the bed, and sometimes she hid there to escape the beatings. She could hear her mother's pitiful sobs of pain from the living room outside. Click. John lit a cigarette. He gazed at the bottles and jars on the dresser, as if seeing Sophia sitting there, adorning her face through the mist of time. After finishing the cigarette, John stubbed it out and lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. The bed smelled fresh from the laundry detergent. Sophia would only buy a particular brand if she liked it, and the sheets at home carried this same scent. Even though he had moved her pillow into his own room, he still felt no sense of belonging. When he entered this room, he could feel her presence. John rolled onto his side, resting his head on his arm. He closed his eyes and stretched out his hand, imagining Sophia by his side. "John," Sophia's arms wrapped around his waist, her face pressed against his chest. "Shall we have a child?" "I want a daughter. They say daughters resemble their fathers." She was soft all over, and John loved squeezing her arms and hands. So soft that he wanted to merge her into his very bones. He tightened his arms, and the woman in his embrace giggled and pushed him away: "John, I can't breathe!" On the bed, the tall man lay on his side, his arm stubbornly embracing something—but there was nothing there. Emily spent a dazed night on the cold floor. When she woke up the next day, John was already gone. She hid the jewelry she had stolen from the drawer in her pocket and sneaked back to her bedroom. When she went downstairs, only Aunt Mary, the maid, was there. Breakfast consisted of Chinese-style soy milk, eggs, and milk. Emily pursed her lips; she preferred Western breakfasts. Aunt Mary said, "Mr. John specially instructed that you must finish it all." "Where's Mr. John?" Emily had no appetite. "He went to the office." Emily dropped her chopsticks and prepared to leave. Aunt Mary stopped her: "Mr. John said to watch you finish your breakfast and make sure you take care of your health." The phone call demanding money was like a death knell. Before 9 a.m., Matthew's call came through. Emily glanced at Aunt Mary and hurried upstairs to prepare for her exit, telling the person on the other end, "Wait for me at home." She went to a second-hand luxury goods store and sold the stolen jewelry. Sophia's jewelry was valuable, and she managed to scrape together the money Matthew needed by selling just three pieces. Emily wanted to sever ties with Matthew completely, so she had to come up with a plan, mainly because she couldn't let John know about such a family member. Emily's house was on the outskirts of the city, in the narrow alleys of Williamsburg, where a few households resided. The house was rented; their original home had been lost to Matthew's gambling debts. Emily endured the foul odor and pushed open the door to her house. Matthew was sitting in a chair, wearing boxer shorts, squinting as he read a book. Seeing Emily arrive, he rubbed his hands together and lunged for the bag slung over her shoulder. Emily furrowed her brow and stepped back, taking the bag off and throwing it at him. She didn't like Matthew's closeness. Matthew unzipped the bag and rummaged through it. "Pretty quick," he said with a sarcastic smile. "I should have asked for two million dollars." It seemed like Emily could get two million dollars if needed. Emily was so angry that her teeth nearly gnashed together. She had never seen such an unscrupulous person. "Where's Mom?" Emily looked around. Matthew took out two stacks of money from the bag and stuffed them in his pocket. "She's sick." He wore flip-flops that clacked as he walked, and then he shut the door and left. Emily sighed in relief and walked inside. Her mother was lying in bed under the covers. Emily could tell at a glance what was going on. This was no illness; it was clear she had been beaten. Emily sat behind her and said, "Mom, let's get a divorce. I'll support you." The person under the covers moved slightly but didn't turn around, muttering in a hoarse voice, "We can't divorce. He'll kill me." Emily was frustrated by her mother's lack of fight and timidity, and she hated Matthew's violence. "Forget it. Do whatever you want." Emily walked out of the house in her high heels. A police car was parked in front of Williamsburg, but she didn't pay much attention to it. Until the police stopped her. "Miss Emily, you're suspected of theft. Come with us." She furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about?" She stepped back, not wanting to be taken away in the police car. Many neighbors came out to see what was going on when they heard the commotion and found the young girl from the Miller family surrounded by police. "Oh no, what did she do?" "It would be great if her parents got arrested sometime." "Shh, don't say that. If that scumbag hears it, he might retaliate." After someone said this, everyone fell silent. Emily was taken to the police station, where the jewelry she had sold was being held. The owner of the jewelry store was also there, and Emily realized she had sold the jewelry too cheaply. One piece alone could have fetched three times the total amount she had sold everything for. "I didn't steal anything," Emily protested. "Call John." Emily was confident. The policeman tapped his fingers on the table. "It was Mr. John who reported the theft." "He kindly took you in, and you stole from his wife's possessions." Upon hearing this, Emily felt like she had been struck by lightning. "Take her into custody," the policeman ordered. Emily struggled violently. "I don't believe it. I want to see John." She had only taken a few pieces of jewelry from Sophia. What was the big deal? Sophia was dead, and her things were useless anyway. She needed the money urgently; what was wrong with that? John must have thought the house had been burgled and called the police. The police had come to her. John definitely didn't know. Emily shouted, "I need to call John. He's my boyfriend. He must have reported the theft because he thought something was missing! If he knew I took it, he wouldn't have called the police." The policeman handed her her bag. "Go ahead and call." Emily took out her phone from the bag and dialed John's number. She didn't want to spend time in jail. A few seconds later, the call connected. "John, I'm at the police station now," Emily's voice was filled with grievance. "There are all kinds of people here. I'm so scared. Can you come and get me?" "Give the phone to the policeman." "Okay." Emily smiled and waved at the policeman to take the phone. After the policeman took the phone, Emily folded her arms and waited for him to release her. The policeman glanced at Emily while talking on the phone. Emily thought John must be telling the policeman to let her go. Anyway, she had taken things from the Joneses, and as long as John didn't pursue it, she wouldn't be held responsible. "What did my boyfriend say?" Emily asked eagerly after the call ended. The policeman handed her the phone back. "Mr. John said there would be no settlement. He will not tolerate any actions against Miss Emily and hopes we will handle it according to laws and regulations." "What?" Emily widened her eyes in disbelief. "That's impossible!" John wouldn't do this to her. Nobody wanted to waste time talking to her, and they all turned to their work, driving Emily to the brink of madness. She grabbed the iron bars and shouted, "I want to see John. You're lying to me. He didn't say that." Emily's eyes widened. "We're about to get married. Why are you keeping me here just because I took something from my boyfriend's house?" Nobody paid attention to Emily's shouting all night. She was exhausted in the second half of the night and fell asleep in the corner. In her daze, she heard a familiar voice. Emily opened her eyes suddenly. "John!" Indeed, the tall and straight-backed man was sitting at the police desk. Emily quickly stood up and rushed to the nearest spot she could get to him, gripping the railing. "John, did you come to pick me up?" John glanced over with an indifferent gaze. For the first time, Emily sensed something was off. "John, this isn't a place for humans. Please take me out of here," Emily panicked. John nodded after exchanging a few words with the policeman and made his way towards Emily. He was wearing a black suit today, accompanied by a burgundy tie. His slender legs were encased in tailored trousers, and his polished leather shoes clicked crisply against the floor as he walked. He stopped in front of her, looking down at Emily with eyes as cold as a stranger's. Emily felt wronged. "John, I know I shouldn't have taken Sofia's things, but I had my reasons. If you get me out of here, I'll tell you why I took the jewelry." "Miss Emily," John began, his voice distant. "Thieves deserve punishment." Actually, theoretically speaking, John shouldn't have known about it; it was just a few pieces of jewelry missing. Emily shuddered. "Were you aware I was there that night?" John lowered his lashes, casting shadows on his eyelids. He hadn't noticed her that night, but when he woke up the next morning, he found Emily hiding underneath the bed. The thought of Emily being in Sofia's room disgusted John immensely. Emily wouldn't have entered Sofia's room for no reason. John found out someone was blackmailing Emily. With a bit of imagination, he understood everything, especially since the jewelry Emily sold was a gift he had given to Sofia. He remained silent, acknowledging it in his heart. Emily felt utterly chilled. "John, are you really going to decide this way?" Emily stepped forward. "Don't forget, Sofia betrayed you, and it was me who saved you when you were almost dead. I gave up my beloved career to save you and almost died of a heart attack because of it." At the mention of her heart, John's expression subtly changed. But Emily didn't notice and kept rambling on. "John, if you have any conscience at all, you shouldn't treat me like this. Sofia is dead."