Chapter 7: The Contract

Aysel remained unmoved by his anger, raising her slender fingers in the air. "First of all, I'm over eighteen, which means I'm of legal age. I'm also well-educated..."

"Pfft..." Daisy laughed. "Hahahaha," she couldn't hold back her laughter as she clutched her stomach, twisting on the couch at the ridiculous words uttered by her older sister. She found it so funny that she laughed until tears escaped her eyes.

"Daisy." Jolie quickly called out to her daughter, noticing the furrowed brows of both Anthony and Butler Jones.

Daisy sat up with difficulty, still holding her stomach. It wasn't her fault she had gone hysterical with laughter. The words her sister had just spoken were simply too funny to the ears.

If someone like Aysel, who had nearly been expelled from school for bad grades, could call herself educated, then what did that make her? A genius, perhaps? Hahahaha.

Daisy lifted her head to meet her mother's gaze, who gestured with her chin. Understanding immediately, Daisy followed her gaze and realized what her mother was implying.

She glanced at the frosty expressions of Anthony and Butler Jones. Taking a deep breath, she sat up properly and smiled sweetly. "I am very sorry, Mr. Anthony and Mr. Jones. My older sister just said something funny, and I couldn't help but laugh. I didn't mean to be disrespectful."

Butler Jones lifted his chin, eyeing her in such a way that made Daisy's smile disappeared and she suddenly feel cold and stiff all over. Before she could say anything else, he had already shifted his gaze back to Vaughn. His voice was calm yet powerful, befitting someone of his status. "I heard Mr. Swift's business has been booming recently. I wonder why you don't spare some of that money to properly educate your daughter."

The atmosphere in the room turned icy the moment his words landed, and Daisy's face paled. Vaughn and Jolie's expressions weren't much better. The only exception was Aysel, whose impassive expression made it seem like she didn't even realize the butler had just subtly taken her side.

"I apologize on her behalf, Sir," Vaughn muttered, bowing his head. Butler Jones only glanced at Aysel, his expression shifting to an amiable one that caught everyone by surprise. "Please continue, Miss Aysel."

Aysel nodded, glancing at her father. "Well, Daddy, I refuse to sign until I go through the contract."

Vaughn took a deep breath to calm his anger, but his eyes which were blazing with fury betrayed the calm facade he was trying to maintain. Only God knew how annoyed he was right now. He just couldn't understand why his yes-sir daughter had suddenly become stubborn and defiant.

Most importantly, he knew what was in the contract would only benefit the family, not her, nothing written there would do her any good. Vaughn feared she would back out once she realized she wasn't getting anything out of it. "Aysel, Daddy has already gone through it for you, okay? You just need to sign. You know I wouldn't harm you—you're my biological daughter, after all."

Aysel raised an eyebrow at his last words, thinking that it was no wonder Daisy was such a good actress. With a father who could pass as one without any training, how could she not be the best?

But she wasn't the original Aysel, and she refused to be manipulated by this people.

With that, she flipped open the contract, ignoring the glowering of her father. And slowly, the faint smile on her lips slowly disappeared as she registered its contents.

The more she read, the more her annoyance grew. Her hand clenched the edge of the the papers, and after reading the last line, she tossed the contract onto the coffee table, her expression filled with a sneer.

"Are you sure you read this, Daddy?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm as her eyes bore into her father.

Vaughn clenched his fists, the vein on his neck taut with humiliation and anger.

Seeing the situation, Jolie immediately stepped in to ease it. "Aysel, you know your Daddy is smart, don't you? He wouldn't do anything to harm you. Just sign it, dear."

"He wouldn't harm me?" Aysel scoffed, crossing her legs and pointing at the contract. "I must stay in my room 24/7, the maids will serve me food in my room, and unless needed, I'm not allowed to leave—not even to the living room. I can't talk to anyone, not even the maids, which means my phone will be confiscated. I can't go anywhere unless given permission by Nathaniel. And you're telling me this isn't harmful? Is this a blessing, then? If so, please, throw this 'blessing' into the toilet and flush it away, because I'm not accepting it."

The room fell silent the moment Aysel's cold words landed in the air.

Vaughn flushed red with embarrassment for being subtly called out by his daughter, and Jolie blinked, as she was also stunned. She hadn't read the terms of Aysel's contract either and had assumed it wouldn't be anything terrible. But Aysel's words shook her. She grabbed the contract and skim through it, only to realize it was just as outrageous as Aysel had said!