Chapter 2

The soundproofing here was poor. I could hear every noise from outside the door clearly.

Seeing that no one had opened the door for a while, Egbert made a phone call.

A few seconds later, a familiar voice came through. "Mr. Alcott, hello, the partnership proposal with Apex Enterprises has been approved, and currently, there remains..."

Before the voice could finish, Egbert interrupted, "Archibald, do you have the keys to Lucia's apartment?"

Archibald was Egbert's subordinate, and also my boyfriend.

He was introduced to me by Avery six months ago. At that time, there was considerable pressure from my parents, and he met all my criteria, so we almost immediately confirmed our relationship as if it were an arranged meeting.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end before Archibald responded affirmatively, "Yes, I do."

"I'm at the door of Lucia's apartment. Bring me the keys."

"Mr. Alcott, what are you doing at Lucia's place so late?" asked Archibald.

It seemed Egbert took a moment to calm himself before he replied, "Lucia has run off with my wife again. Now, my mother is critically ill and wants to see my wife for the last time, yet Lucia refuses to disclose their whereabouts. I will wait for them at Lucia's home today."

There was a long silence on the other end.

"Alright, Mr. Alcott, but there's still a part of tomorrow's project proposal I haven't finished, so I can't leave right now. Can I bring it to you later?" Archibald's voice trembled slightly.

"No need. I'll have my chauffeur pick it up. Just give it to him"

Ten minutes later, my door was successfully opened, and Egbert immediately spotted me in the living room.

His eyes gradually reddened.

"Lucia, you're actually home?" He crossed the room in two strides, grabbed my collar, and nearly lifted me off the ground.

Our eyes met, his eyes filled with ferocious hatred as if he wanted to tear me to pieces.

"Amusing yourself at my expense?" he roared, slamming me to the floor, then began searching my home for any sign of Avery.

After a futile search, he turned back to me.

I hardly had time to mind my own pain as I quickly stood and backed away a few steps, saying coldly, "I never said she was with me today."

"You're her husband, and you don't know where your own wife is, yet you ask me? What makes you think I would know?"

After saying this, I raised my phone, displaying the call log from when I had reported it to the police a few minutes earlier.

"Moreover, you do know that breaking into someone's home is illegal, right? I had already called the police before you came in. I advise you to leave my house immediately, or you'll be responsible for the consequences."

He stepped forward aggressively, grabbing the wrist of my hand holding the phone, and the other hand tightly gripped my throat, backing me against the wall with nowhere to retreat.

Pressing me against the wall, he whispered harshly, "I don't have time for these childish games. Even if my wife isn't with you, you surely know where she is. If you're wise, you'll tell me, or you won't leave here alive today."

As my breathing grew more difficult and my struggles proved futile, my vision began to darken, but just then, he released me.

He picked up my phone, which I had dropped and failed to grip securely, and flipped through it, finding nothing. All my social media apps were blank.

Gasping for air, I hadn't even recovered when, in a fit of rage, he kicked me in the chest, the pain searing through me, causing me to instinctively curl up.

At that moment, the half-open door was pushed open, and several police officers with badges entered.