"Call the police? Go ahead, I'm shaking," Andrew mocked. "Let me tell you something. Even God himself can't save you. My girlfriend has real backing. She's the CEO of Halvea's York Enterprise, Selena York. People like you can't even imagine the kind of world she comes from."

York Enterprise's CEO? That actually was my wife, Selena.

A chill blasted up my spine, turning every drop of blood in my body to ice.

Still, I forced myself to stay calm. My voice was hoarse. "Oh? The CEO of York Enterprise? Are you sure about that? I heard that Ms. York is already married. If you're really her boyfriend, wouldn't that make you her little sugar baby?"

Andrew puffed up proudly. "Sugar baby? You don't get it."

He lowered his voice. "She only married that useless guy because of a marriage of convenience. It's just an act. She's sick of that worthless trash. I'm the one she truly loves. Why else would she hand me a whole gym to run?

"Besides, she already promised me that when the time is right, she'll divorce that loser and marry me. I'm the future owner of York Enterprise!"

"Y-You're disgusting, shameless, and downright filthy!"

Michael's hand shook as he pointed at him.

"Me? Shameless?" Andrew shot back. "You're just jealous because you can't land a rich woman, and I can. I've seen plenty of guys like you."

Before he could finish, he swung a fist toward Michael's face.

"Don't you dare!"

I caught his wrist mid-air. Michael lunged forward, and the two of them started throwing punches at one another.

"How dare you hit me!" Andrew shrieked. "Are you all blind? The boss' boyfriend is being attacked! Get over here and beat these two lunatics to death!"

Four or five huge men rushed us, grabbing our collars and pounding us with fists and kicks. Michael's curses mixed with my guttural growls, and the men's filthy insults closed in around us like a cage.

"Let him go!" I shouted as I tried to shove one of them off Michael, but another coach grabbed me from behind and wrenched my arm painfully.

"Ugh!"

Michael was shoved hard into a machine. His chest slammed against the metal, and he let out a choked groan. His face was drained of color.

My heart dropped.

"Stop! Everyone, stop!" I screamed, losing control. "Do you even know who he is?

"He's the husband of the CEO of Halvea's Pearson Group! He just had major heart surgery and hasn't healed up properly yet! If any of you touch him again, I swear none of you will live to see tomorrow.

"And me! I'm the son of the CEO of Halvea's Carter Group. I'm Romeo Carter. If you lay a hand on us, you're declaring war on the Carters and the Pearsons. Think carefully about whether you're ready for that."

Andrew clutched the cheek Michael had hit and burst into crazed laughter. "Carter Group? Pearson Group? Wow, you two really love to inflate your own worth.

"If you really are who you said you were, would you be here using a 9.90-dollar trial class? Don't make me laugh. Keep beating them. Don't stop until they're begging for mercy!"

I shielded Michael with everything I had. The punches and kicks pounded my back and legs like a storm, and the pain nearly knocked me out. But I couldn't fall.

Michael's heart couldn't take this, and I wasn't going to let anything happen to him!

In the chaos, my hand brushed against something in my bag, the family crest. It was the crest my father, Terence Carter, the CEO of Carter Group, had handed me himself when I came of age.

It was made with pure gold, set with top-grade sapphires, with a unique serial code etched on the back. It was the only symbol of a core member of the Carter family.

I yanked it out and shouted, "Stop! I really am the son of the Carter family. This crest proves it!"

The men froze. Their eyes instinctively shifted toward Andrew. Andrew stared hard at the crest, and suspicion flickered across his face.

I swept my gaze coldly over the room. "Open your eyes and look closely. This crest represents the authority of Halvea's Carter Group. There are fewer than five in this entire city. Its value alone could buy this pathetic gym a hundred times over. Is that enough proof?

"I will remember everything that happened today, everything you did to me, and everything you did to my friend, who is the Pearsons' son-in-law."

My voice turned to ice. "I, Romeo Carter, swear that every single one of you will pay."

The gym went dead silent. Freddie's hand shook around his phone as the coaches started looking terrified.

Then, Andrew suddenly burst out laughing. "Wow, what an actor. You all got fooled by him. He really thinks a cheap metal trinket can scare us. It's hilarious!"

Michael clutched his chest, shaking with rage. "How dare you say his crest is fake?"

"How dare I?"

Andrew pulled a crest out of his pocket. "Because the real Carter family crest is right here."

He held it up triumphantly. "My girlfriend, Selena, gave this to me herself. She told me this was the most important thing she owned. She gave it to me because I'm the one she truly loves. The thing in your hand is just a worthless knockoff.

"Trash. You probably saw a Carter wearing one once and had someone make you a replica. And now you think you can talk a big game with a fake?"

I stared at the crest he held, then looked down at the code on mine. No, this wasn't my crest. My real crest had a tiny chip on the edge from when I fell as a kid. The one in my hand didn't.

Selena had switched it.

The woman who slept beside me for three years, who kissed me good morning, who always seemed gentle and loving, had stolen my family's crest and handed it to her lover.

My chest tightened painfully. Selena had really betrayed me.

Her kindness had been fake. Her affection had been an act. And I, her legal husband, couldn't even compare to some random fling.

"What's wrong? Gone quiet now that you've been exposed?" Andrew taunted. "Come on, what else you got?"

I didn't hesitate anymore. I grabbed my phone and called my father. "Dad, I'm at Selena's new gym. She cheated on me. Her lover gathered people to beat me and Michael. Please come get us."

"What? How dare she lay a finger on my son? I'm coming right now!"

Andrew scoffed. "More lies. You weren't calling your dad. You were calling your sugar mommy, weren't you? But it doesn't matter. No one can save you today."

He snapped at the coaches, "Beat them! Beat these two idiots until they're dead. If anything happens, I'll take the blame."

The coaches surged toward us again. Their punches were even more vicious than before.

Someone shoved Michael violently, and he smashed into the cold glass door. He slid down, and he was as white as a sheet. He clutched his chest as a thin line of blood oozed from the corner of his mouth.

"Michael!"

I shoved past the men and rushed to him.

His breathing was shallow and rapid. "Romeo, my chest… It hurts…"

"Michael, you're going to be okay. We're going to the hospital right now."

I tried to lift him, panic wiping out every other thought. However, Andrew and the other coaches blocked us again.

"Still pretending?" Andrew sneered. "What, you think faking an injury is going to get you a payout? That's not happening."

He spread his hand casually. "You want to leave? Fine. Pay a 500-thousand-dollar membership fee as compensation for disrupting our business. Then bow to us and admit loudly that you were wrong. Do that, and I'll graciously let you go."

A wave of hatred surged through me. I stood and lunged at him. "You monster! I'll kill you!"

Just as my hands were about to clamp around his throat, Selena rushed in and shouted, "Stop!"