Silas Gill would bring a woman home from outside on every wedding anniversary under the pretext of letting me train them.

At our tenth anniversary dinner, the woman he brought home was a karaoke bar girl dressed in a Playboy bunny outfit.

"She doesn't have a dress, so you give her your wedding dress and the jewelry I gave you last time. As for shoes, I think the pair you have on your feet is good."

"Oh, right. She's young and doesn't understand many things. You'll have to put in the effort to teach her, especially about sex."

Everyone was waiting to see me make a fool of myself. I once again lived up to everyone's expectations and said I wanted to divorce Silas.

Silas chuckled, looking at me with contempt and mockery.

"Juliette Spencer, haven't you said 'divorce' every single time? I'm sick of hearing it, even more so than your moans in bed!"

"If you really want to divorce me, I'll give you one hundred million!"

The entire room erupted in laughter again, their words implying that I was playing hard to get and didn't know my place.

They didn't know that this was the hundredth time I'd said "divorce" and the only time I truly meant it.

——

All eyes in the room landed on me. Even the karaoke girl who had just arrived covered her mouth and giggled.

"Alright, place your bets! I bet she'll regret it before walking out the door."

"I'll put a million on her not leaving!"

"I'll match thirty!"

The bet about whether I would divorce or not was a common thing on every wedding anniversary.

Many people hated me when they lost and didn't necessarily like me when they won.

I chuckled and shook my head, cursing myself for being useless. It's been ten years since I decided to leave Silas.

"I bet on divorce!"

A low voice came from the crowd and everyone else persuaded him not to overthink. I looked over but couldn't see the figure clearly.

"Silas, I'll mail the divorce agreement to your company. Remember to sign it when you receive it."

I had said "divorce" hundreds of times, but this was the first time I'd mentioned a divorce agreement.

Silas straightened up, the cigarette butt in his hand falling to the ground.

I acted like I didn't see it. I crouched down, removed my heels and gently set them by the girl's feet.

Her name was Sue Larson. She was in her early twenties and very beautiful.

"These shoes might pinch a bit at first, but you'll get used to them if you wear them more."

"As for the dress and jewelry Silas mentioned, I'll have Aunt May bring them to you."

"Before you, Silas brought back nine other girls. If there's anything you don't understand, feel free to ask them. They live on the third floor and your room is the last one on the right."

In our ten years of marriage, the number of women Silas had brought back could have formed his own harem at home.

Tall ones, short ones, fat ones, thin ones, innocent ones, glamorous ones, aloof ones, lively ones – he had them all.

Rumor had it outside that he wanted to be like an ancient king and gather the twelve beauties in his home.

Sadly, I didn't have that fortune; I wouldn't be one of those beauties.

I patted the invisible dust on my shoes, got up and walked barefoot towards the door.

Unfortunately, before I could even step out, a strong force from behind yanked me back.

"Juliette, if you're leaving, then leave clean. Every single thing on your body was bought with my money."

My bare feet seemed to be stepping on the ice at that moment and even my breathing trembled.

"You want me to strip?"

Silas raised his eyebrows. His eyes seemed to see through me.

"When your family went bankrupt, didn't your mother strip you naked and put you on my bed? You leave the same way you came!"

"Or do you regret it? That's fine, kneel and put her shoes on and I'll forgive you."

The group of people behind Silas laughed so hard that they fell backward.

It wasn't long after Silas and I got together that the Spencers went bankrupt and my father jumped off a building, ending up in a coma.

My mother, afraid the Gill Family wouldn't help us, drugged both Silas and me. Later, she tried her best to make a big fuss about the incident and force the Gills to take responsibility.

That night was the beginning of all my humiliation.

It also completely ended the relationship between Silas and me when we were young.

Silas was forced to marry me and on the wedding night, he brought a woman home to humiliate me.

He did everything right in front of me. Even the condom wrapper, I was the one who tore it open and handed it to him.

I was the one who squatted on the floor, cleaning up the entire mess bit by bit.

I lived such a humble life for ten years.

Now, I couldn't live like this anymore.

"I'll take it off."

Before anyone could react, I had already unbuttoned my shawl.

It was a deep winter, but the venue was well-heated.

However, I stood near the entrance. The icy wind clawed at my skirt, raising goosebumps along my bare arms and shoulders.

I reached out to unbutton the buckle at the back of my dress and the thin dress collar slipped off.

Most of my shoulders and the curve of my breasts were revealed.

"Heavens!"

A few timid people in the crowd covered their eyes, unable to watch any longer.

However, the men looked on with great interest.

Only Silas' expression darkened. His lips pressed into a thin line, the only sign of his anger the slight tremor in his fingers as he held his cigarette.

The dress slipped off and I was almost standing in front of everyone naked.

The cigarette in Silas' hand burned his fingertips. He dropped it, swiftly removed his suit jacket and draped it over me.

"Juliette, you've got a death wish!"

"Everyone, close your eyes! If a single word about what you saw tonight gets out, I'll ensure you don't see the sun tomorrow!"

"Get lost, all of you!"

Silas rarely lost his temper, especially in this kind of setting.

Everyone present was an old acquaintance, so they naturally understood and began to leave.

Even the nine girls Silas had brought back earlier went upstairs one after another. Only Sue remained standing there.

"Silas, are you satisfied now? Can you let me go?"

I tilted my head back, stubbornly looking at Silas.

Even though tears welled up in my eyes, I didn't let them fall.

I had cried too many times for Silas. I didn't want to cry for him anymore.

"Juliette, don't play these little tricks of playing hard to get in front of me. I feel sick when I see them."

Silas still didn't believe it and warned me not to embarrass the Gills.

I took a deep breath, then said, "Silas, this time I really want a divorce."

For a second, he looked like he'd heard the funniest joke in the world. Then, his hand clamped around my neck, forcing me into a bow.

"Do you dare to divorce me? Can you afford a single day of your father's hospital bills? Can you afford your mother's daily shopping sprees?"

"Juliette, your mother would be the first one to kneel in front of me, begging me not to divorce you!"

His hatred for me and my mother was beyond hiding.

He resented her for drugging him. He resented me for letting it happen.

"Even if your mother hadn't used drugs back then, I would have married you, I would have helped you. But you two had to use the methods I despise the most!"

"Juliette, you personally destroyed the feelings between us!"

No matter how many times I explained, Silas would never believe me.

Seeing that I didn't speak, Silas frowned even more.

He lifted me and pressed me to kneel in front of the girl, pressing my neck to let me put shoes on her.

"Put the shoes on her. You have been doing these things for ten years. You should be able to do it well!"

In these ten years, I not only had to take care of Silas but also had to serve those nine girls.

I did too many things that I despised myself, whether I should do it or not, whether I was forced or willing.

Now, I just want to end it all quickly.

So, I once again obediently put on the shoes for the little girl.

Maybe I was too obedient, which made Silas lose his fun.

He dragged me into his room angrily and stripped Sue naked in front of me.

I'd seen scenes like this countless times. Sometimes, Silas would even make me guide them.

Like before, I tore open a condom and handed it over.

But this time, Silas pushed it away.

"We won't need this time."

My hand trembled and I withdrew it.

Silas's hands didn't stop, but he surprisingly glanced up at me.

I didn't look at him, nor did I care to anymore.

Silas got angry again and locked me in the bathroom.

There was a lot of noise outside that evening, along with strong winds and snow. I sat there and listened all night.

In a daze, I was jolted awake by a frantic phone ringing.

"Is this Miss Spencer? Your mother has been in a car accident and is currently being rescued. Please come to the Public Hospital immediately."

My heart lurched.

"Silas!"

I slammed my palms against the door, trying to drown out the sounds outside.

Silas opened the door, wrapped in a bathrobe. His loose collar revealed hickeys and the woman in his arms clung to him.

"What's wrong?"

"My mom … she was in a car accident. Can you please take me to the hospital?"

I knelt on the ground and begged him, tears welling up in my eyes, afraid he wouldn't take me because he was upset.

"Juliette, you didn't even bother making up a good lie. It's 3 a.m. in a blizzard. Normal people stay home. Did a car crash into your mother's house?"

Sue sneered, pointing at the dark sky and the heavy snow outside.

Silas chuckled along, not even bothering to look at me. "Juliette, you're even resorting to lies like this?"

"What? Can't stand the sounds we were making?"

Silas locked the door again.

The more I shouted, the louder the noises outside became.

Completely desperate, I grabbed the stool beside me and smashed the window, climbing out.

The sharp glass cut my legs and blood instantly flowed.

I couldn't get a taxi because it was so late and snowing.

I could only run forward like a zombie, leaving shocking trails of bright red blood in the snow.

A black Cayenne stopped beside me after honking twice.

"Get in."

The man in the driver's seat never looked back at me inside the dim and cramped car.

I thanked him repeatedly, but he didn't say another word.

Just as I was about to leave the car, I finally heard him say.

"Juliette, you have options besides Silas."

"If you figure things out, remember to look for me."

A gold-embossed business card was handed over. I took it with both hands, thanking him profusely.

At that moment, my whole heart was focused on my mother, so I didn't look closely and just put it in my pocket.

I stumbled into the hospital emergency room. Before I could even ask, I saw nurses pushing a body covered with a white sheet out of the operating room.

"Is Sarah Ziegler's family still not here?"

"Unbelievable. Her daughter didn't even show up before she died."

Two nurses were talking amongst themselves, their words easily piercing my heart.

I rushed over and lifted the white cloth. My mother's delicate face in the past was full of scars, while her body was covered in wounds of every size.

For ten years, I had resented her because of Silas.

I had even viciously wished for the whole family to die together, but now that she was truly dead in front of me, all I felt was heartache.