If Terri really drank the wine, she’d be nothing more than a dish served up on the table.
“I think I’ll pass. I’m allergic to alcohol. If needed, I can call Valerie and have her come instead.”
Terri tried to step back, but a few women on the couch grabbed her by the wrist.
“You took advantage of Valerie being in Scotland to seduce her man. Like mother, like daughter—both of you are shameless sluts. Who the hell are you pretending to be, huh?”
“Be smart and drink up. If you obediently become Valerie’s stepping stone, well, you might suffer a little less.”
One of them yanked her hair and shoved her back onto the couch.
Another woman picked up a glass of liquor from the table, grabbed Terri by the chin, and forced it down her throat.
She couldn’t break free. The burning alcohol slid down her throat as tears streamed down her face.
Once the glass was empty, the two women suddenly let go of her.
Right then, the door opened.
Blayne walked in and immediately saw Terri slumped on the couch, her face flushed.
Valerie covered her mouth in disbelief. “What happened here?”
The fat man exchanged a look with her, then sighed as if troubled. “Miss Valerie, Miss Terri insisted on taking your place to negotiate the contract with me. I tried to decline, but she just started drinking. I… I really didn’t know what to do.”
He was making it sound like Terri had tried to steal Valerie’s contract.
Blayne’s expression darkened as he looked at Terri, his face turning cold. “Has Valerie not treated you well enough? You couldn’t slander her, so now you resort to this kind of shit?”
Being accused time and again, ignored, and misunderstood—Terri’s eyes turned bloodshot. “I didn’t slander her, and I wasn’t trying to steal anything. I came here because Valerie told me to pick up the damn contract!”
Blayne rubbed his temples in frustration. “Dammit, Terri. I never thought your jealousy could go this far. You can’t stand to see your sister have anything, can you?”
Terri’s voice trembled. “I didn’t—”
Seeing the growing disdain in Blayne’s eyes, Valerie knew she had achieved her goal. She subtly signaled to the others in the room.
Then, with teary eyes, she clutched her chest, looking heartbroken. “It’s my fault. I should’ve done better. Don’t blame Terri—she’s still young…”
And with that, she collapsed into Blayne’s arms.
Panic flashed across his face. Without hesitation, he scooped her up and rushed out.
His eyes were filled with urgency and concern.
Meanwhile, Terri wiped her tears and stumbled out the door, struggling to stay on her feet.
That’s when it hit her—there was something in that wine!
A drunk, unaccompanied woman in a private room of a club… She suddenly realized exactly what Valerie was trying to do.
The drug took effect quickly. She staggered, pressing against the wall as dizziness overwhelmed her.
With her last bit of strength, she unlocked her phone and tapped the only pinned contact.
Blayne’s phone buzzed. Seeing the caller ID, his chest tightened for some inexplicable reason.
On the hospital bed, Valerie noticed the change in his expression.
She bit her lip and gave a frail smile. “It’s okay, Blayne. If you have something to take care of, go ahead. I’ll be fine here on my own.”
At her words, Blayne didn’t hesitate.
He hung up.
In the end, it was a female server who called an ambulance for Terri.
The doctor diagnosed her with a drug overdose.
Not only was it an aphrodisiac, but if left untreated, it could’ve caused neurological damage.
That was the polite way of putting it.
Terri calmly thanked the doctor.
Then, she pulled up her bank account.
It was the card Oswald had given her when she agreed to marry Blayne.
It had been locked. The balance was zero.
Of course, it was empty.
The night Blayne had humiliated her while drunk—over Valerie—Terri had already signed the termination agreement.
