章節 2: No, We MUST
For almost the entirety of her life, Mina Everhart had never known a single day where she had to think about money. As a daughter of a massive salt factory and tea tycoon, money had always flown like seawater from the ocean. Anything she could ever want came easily, and everything she ever dreamed of could easily be created just for her.
Long ago, Mina had taken all of that for granted.
In her youth as a dreamer, Mina had fallen deeply in love with Jordan Everhart. She believed that no one else could love her the way Jordan did, and if she ever let him go, she would never feel the same kind of love again.
So, like the idiot that she was, Mina went against her father and married Jordan, leaving everything that was rightfully hers to stand beside the man who had betrayed her in the end.
It was like a cold slap against her soul. When Mina heard Jordan's confession for the first time, bringing a newborn baby into their home, she felt herself die inside. Whoever she was before that moment was buried with her love. To add to that injury, the sound of her father's voice whispered in her ears, "Mark my words… this won't last."
Indeed it didn't. Mina had always thought if there was no love in their marriage, at least she could live comfortably.
But no.
It had only been twenty-two years since then, and now they were at the mercy of a dangerous man: Erickson Brightwell, the nicknamed King of Shadows.
He was the father of every casino branch, controlling every gambling den known in the country, watching over every red-light district, every harbor on the East Coast, and every loan agency outside the bank. There was no saying how many men worked under Erickson Brightwell or how tight the government's grip was on that man. But whoever had the bad luck of brushing against him knew that he was so powerful that the top officials relied on his family to keep the shadows in check.
But that was the limit: the shadows. The gambling dens, the prostitutes, the drugs, the firearms—and some say even the dirty work. The government can't stop them from doing business as long as they hide well, but they can draw a line as to where that power stops. Jordan and she knew that very well.
So what Jordan could offer as payment for borrowing money was out of the realm of her imagination. But Mina knew well that if she had to, she would betray Jordan and Celeste in a heartbeat. Like Micklem, she could easily take that money and her daughter before disappearing forever.
Then, she thought, maybe then she could finally heal her broken heart.
"Sweetheart?" Jordan said as he entered the living room.
Mina turned from the window, surprised to see worry on her husband's face. So it's true, I'll have to do what I have to do.
"And? Speak up, Jordan!" she demanded.
Jordan threw himself on the sofa, wiping his sweating face with his sleeves.
"Careful! We might have to sell that later!" Mina said angrily.
"Sorry. I asked if he was willing to buy us out of debt… but Erick… he made an interesting proposal," Jordan said, leaning against the armrest heavily. He looked as if he had run a marathon with a sprained ankle.
"Alright? And? Does he want to use our warehouse as a hiding space?"
"No."
"Use one of our homes as a butterfly's nest?"
"I wish. He wants one of our daughters to marry his son," Jordan said, as if Erick had asked him to donate a kidney. Mina, on the other hand, felt as if the world had been lifted off her shoulders.
"That's it? Oh!" She threw her arms up.
Now she could start her day again. What was it? Oh yes, beauty salon. Sure beats backstabbing her two-timing good-for-nothing husband. Revenge can't be good for her skin.
"Mina!" Jordan exclaimed after his shock.
"What?" Mina turned around with a sharp tone, her face hardening with the realization that, unlike her, Jordan cared more for that dead homewrecker's child than saving them all from poverty.
Mina could see it in his face; he knew well which daughter she was willing to sacrifice and was against it. An ugly bubbling feeling in her chest ran a thousand scenarios where she tears this man to nothing.
The tension in the living room started to rise as Jordan too realized he was hurting his wife again. He leaned back, his face facing down.
"I know that child will always be a reminder of my failure as a man, Mina. But do you realize what we are about to do to her? She is shy. She cannot even speak… her life at the mercy of… that… monster. It is unknown what kind of suffering we are sending her to." Jordan's voice was calm but steady.
"Alright," Mina said, setting her purse on the sofa, her eyes wide but empty.
"You're right, Jordan. What was I thinking?" Her voice was soft as she continued, "I thought… perhaps, although my heart is broken, I get to at least live a good, comfortable life. Guarantee a good life for the child I birthed, sacrificed my life for… for you. After raising and doing everything I can to help the fruit of your betrayal. Rubbing salt into my wound every single day for the last twenty-two years… But no. You're right. I am a horrible human being, aren't I?"
"Mina…" Jordan started.
But Mina went on, "After everything I've given up for you, loved you through your… nothingness…" Mina nearly spat that word, "Now I can finally face my father and tell him… you're right." She said, taking off her jewelry one by one and throwing them on the table.
Soon, she was taking off her shoes, rubbing off her lipstick, and then finally her expensive shirt.
"Let's just live in poverty. Let's let Orion, our daughter, live the rest of her life paying a debt her father could never pay, alongside her thorn of a sister." She stood, seeing the face of a man twisted by guilt and pain. But Mina wasn't done. She turned away from her traitor husband and marched towards the door.
"Where are you going!?" Jordan half-yelled, his footsteps heavy behind her.
"I'm going to tell Orion the bad news," she said coldly.
"Wait! Wait!" Jordan begged her. Mina felt his large hand on her arm, forcing her to turn around. "You're right! I'm sorry, Mina. I'm sorry I made you go through all of that, all of this. I'm sure… the Brightwells aren't that bad. Celeste would be in good hands," he said.
There was silence between them as Jordan waited for Mina to look up. After a few moments, she did, tears swelling in her eyes. He wiped them before they stained her cheeks any further. "I hope… I hope with this you can finally forgive me."
Mina didn't answer. Instead, she buried her face in his chest, holding him close to her. She knew what this meant for Celeste. That once she was married to one of those boys who were capable of… the devil knows what, there was nothing they could do to help her.
She was a sacrifice Mina was happy to make—one that Jordan made to earn her forgiveness. But what Mina would never tell Jordan is that it didn't matter what he did; she could never forgive him. Even if he put a dagger in Celeste's heart.
Now what was left to do was enjoy the fear in Celeste's eyes when she broke the news. Mina thought happily in her husband's arms.
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