"Baby, you're so sweet..."
In the darkness, Valerie Schultz heard a man's hoarse and magnetic voice. Her hands were bound by a belt, and her eyes were blindfolded with a black tie.
"Good girl, now spread your legs, I need to be inside you."
......
Valerie suddenly opened her eyes, her forehead covered in a cold sweat. It had been five years, but why would she still dream about this?
She got up and went to the bathroom to wash her face. She felt very thirsty, so she went downstairs to get some water.
"I don't want to marry that ugly old man! Ever since he was burned and disfigured five years ago, his heart done turned dark! I heard he even killed two women!"
In the living room, Molly Schultz roared, "If anyone should marry him, it should be Valerie! Anyway, she has even given birth to a child! She is just a whore!"
"Molly!" Tony Schultz, her father, roared, "Valerie is your elder sister!"
Molly gritted her teeth and cried, "Dad, I am your biological daughter. Valerie is just a child who got brought back by mistake. I've struggled in poverty for 18 years because of her! Now I've finally returned to the Schultz family and built my career. You can't make me marry someone against my will!"
"Yes," Molly's mother, Louise Schultz, chimed in, "Molly has become famous in the business world. How can we sacrifice her? Besides, we have raised Valerie for 23 years, and it's time for her to repay us."
Valerie tightly gripped the cup in her hand. They wanted to marry into the Middleton family, but didn't want Molly to do it. Consequently, they contemplated offering her as a sacrifice.
She took a deep breath and went downstairs. "I can get married on behalf of Molly, but we have to sign an agreement. Otherwise, what if you use your so-called parental kindness to coerce me into doing something wicked again?"
Tony was taken aback, and so were Molly and Louise.
Valerie took a paper and pen, wrote down a few sentences, and signed her name. "Enough with the charade. I'll marry the Middleton." With that, she rushed to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water, then made her way up the stairs.
Molly saw Valerie head upstairs and whispered under her breath, "Has Valerie lost her mind, Mom? Doesn't she want her boyfriend anymore?"
Louise swiftly placed her hand over Molly's mouth and glanced toward Valerie, anxious that Valerie might retract her promise.
Valerie heard it all. A bitter laugh escaped her lips. Just five days ago, she had a boyfriend whom she had loved for six long years. But that was all in the past now.
He had betrayed her.
To her, getting married implied moving to a new place. Anyway, her heart was dead, and this family was like hell to her. She didn't receive any love or warmth here.
But still, as she imagined herself walking down the aisle toward her unknown future, tears welled up in her eyes and a heavy weight settled in her chest.
......
Three days later, Valerie was brought to the Middleton family. Willard Middleton didn't show up, and didn't register their marriage immediately. Instead, he asked her to move into the Middleton Villa first.
Tony sent her over right away. He urged her to win over Willard's favor and persuade him to invest in the Schultz Group.
In the evening, Valerie sat quietly in the bedroom, waiting for Willard.
"Tick!" Suddenly, the lights flickered and went out, leaving her in complete darkness.
Valerie trembled in fear. Ever since that fateful night five years ago, she had developed a phobia of facing the darkness alone. She even had to switch on a small night lamp at the head of her bed every night.
Every nerve in her body was on edge, and she couldn't shake the feeling that something was lurking in the shadows.
She was so petrified that she didn't even realize that the door had been opened.
As she sat there, paralyzed with terror, she felt a cold, sticky substance brush against her feet and crawl up her arm.
Valerie's face drained of color. She let out a piercing scream and recoiled in terror, but stumbled back and collided with the hard, frigid wall, nearly losing consciousness due to the excruciating pain. Despite this, the mysterious thing continued to inch closer toward her.
A hoarse voice sounded, "Darling... I'm your husband..."
At the same time, the lights in the room were turned on in an instant. Valerie finally saw what was in front of her.
It was a man with a grotesque face! He was hunched over like a dwarf, his visage riddled with scars, resembling a malevolent spirit that had emerged from the depths of hell. Clad in a bathrobe, he lay on the bed, staring at her with his lifeless eyes.
"Ah!" Despite mentally bracing herself, Valerie let out a bloodcurdling scream upon seeing the man before her - a being that defied all human and supernatural descriptions!
The man giggled, "Darling, what's wrong? Are you afraid of me? But you promised to marry me!"
Valerie felt as though she was on the brink of losing her sanity! She scrambled off the bed in a state of panic and bolted out of the room, trembling uncontrollably. She didn't dare to cast a second glance at the man!
"Ha-ha!" As Valerie's figure vanished into the corridor, the person on the bed discarded his bathrobe and removed his gloves and mask, revealing a cherubic and chubby face. It was actually a little boy!
"There's no way you can be my mommy!" he chuckled mischievously.
