Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren)

The second Finley and his men bolted, Leroy collapsed to the ground and vomited stately, ging as he emptied his stomach.

It was not enough he shoved his fingers down his throat forcing himself to pole even more. He kept going, dey heaving until there was nothing left inside him, until he Legion thus eald flone, gasping for breath like a dying

animal.

"Finley... you Hidden Dragons bastards... you forced me to drink piss. I wear, I kill every single one of you!"

The sheer humiliation of it made Leroy's blood boil as he clenched his fists and slammed them into the ground,

Douglas, trembling with rage, walked up to Christina, his face as dark as a storm cloud

Christina hurriedly pulled her torn clothes together, her lips trembling, "Grandpa..."

Douglas struck her across the face hard. "You disgraceful fool! You're the CEO of a company, the face of the Stevens family! And yet, look at what you've done- inviting wolves into your home, practically throwing yourself into their jaws. Christina, your entire family has disappointed me beyond belief!"

His fury was so intense that his whole body shook.

Christina's eyes widened in shock as she stammered, "Grandpa, please. You're not in good healthcalm down, sit down, and rest."

Douglas shoved her hand away, his voice sharp. "If I hadn't shown up tonight, do you have any idea what would've happened to you? To your foolish mother? To your useless, disgraceful little brother?"

Christina's throat tightened, and no words came out. She could not even bear to imagine the consequences if Douglas had not arrived in time.

Hugging her legs, still clad in her torn dress, she broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.

Tonight had shattered her. For the first time, she realized how weak she truly was and how weak the Stevens family had become.

From the corner of the room, a faint groan sounded as Irene stirred, regaining consciousness. "Finley, you bastard! I'll kill you!"

The moment she woke up, she screamed, her eyes darting around as she searched for Finley.

Douglas glanced at her, his face full of disgust. "You damn fool. Do you even realize how close your stupidity came to destroying the Stevens family tonight?"

Irene, still groggy, looked at Douglas in confusion before her expression twisted into anger. "Dad, why are

l.ne

whole tife worrying about this fat

you scolding me? I've spent my

Everything I do is for the Stevens-"

Douglas did not let her finish. With a sharp swing of his cane, he struck her hard

across the back.

Irene shrieked in pain.

"You greedy, brainless woman! Donoveldrama

you even know what almost

happened to Christina just now?" Douglas hit her again, his voice thundering through the room. "She was seconds away from being violated by those Hidden Dragons scum!"

Irene froze. Her face went pale. "What? Finley tried to force himself on Christina?",

She turned, eyes wide, and finally saw her daughter-curled up on the floor, hugging her knees, sobbing like a

lost child.

For a split second, Irene's world stopped. Then, her expression twisted in horror. She let out a wail, clutching her chest.

"Christic... No! This is my fault... I should've listened to you I should've never let those monsters into our home! Finley and those bastards... they'll burn in hell for this!"

Douglas scoffed coldly. "If words could fix things, you'd be running the world by now, you stupid woman."

His anger only grew as he thought about what could have happened. Without hesitation, he raised his hand and slapped Irene across the face-again and again, the sharp cracks echoing through the room.

Irene yelped with every hit, but she did not dare fight back, she had no choice but to take it. Her greed had blinded her. All she wanted was to curry favor with the Hidden Dragons, to climb higher by entertaining them.

Instead, she nearly destroyed the Stevens family. She had reached for the prize-

only to fall into the abyss.