Chapter 23 Chapter 23
Upon hearing Grace's name, the man froze for a moment before his face turned cold. His eyes darkened as he looked at her, filled with hatred.
Grace realized that this man hated her. Immediately after, she wondered who he could be.
Was he connected to one of the other two thugs?
Yet, he bore a stronger resemblance to Benjamin. If he were merely linked to Benjamin, then Benjamin must be alive. So where did this hatred come from?
She sat there with her eyes slightly lowered, her expression unreadable, ignoring the man beside her.
The man, however, clamped his hand firmly around her jaw and forced her face up. He scrutinized her with a dark, vicious gaze for a moment before turning to Benjamin. With a smirk, he asked, "Just this woman? I thought it was some kind of stunning woman! What kind of clueless man would get arrested by the cops for wanting to sleep with her? And three of them at once? Has they never slept with a woman in their lives?"
Benjamin lifted his eyelids to meet the man's gaze, his face expressionless.
Grace pressed her lips together lightly, neither struggling nor speaking.
The man glanced at Benjamin, then at Grace, and let out a low chuckle.
He released Grace and leaned back into the sofa. His hand rested on her shoulder, and his fingertips lightly traced the exposed curve of her shoulder as he casually asked, "Did you bring this woman here for me to play with today?"
Benjamin replied indifferently, "It's up to you."
Grace slowly closed her eyes. She forced herself to remain seated and motionless, but her skin broke out in goosebumps, betraying the fear gripping her heart.
She clenched her teeth tightly and kept silent, her gaze fixed on Benjamin. She wished she could devour the man whole.
The man behind her chuckled softly and leaned close to her ear. "You hate him, don't you?" he asked, enunciating each syllable deliberately.
"Yes," Grace replied calmly. "Who wouldn't?"
The man chuckled again, glanced at Benjamin, then lowered his voice. "Very well. Today, I offer you two choices. Either you submit to every man in this room, or you submit to him in front of everyone.”
Perverts! One more twisted than the next!
Grace raged inwardly, turning her head slightly to meet the man's gaze. "You hate him, too, don't you?" she asked softly.
The man smiled at her. "Yes."
"He’s your..." she pressed.
The man feigned exaggerated surprise. "I thought you'd ask why I hate him."
"Because explaining it is pointless," she replied calmly.
The man watched her, his exaggerated expression gradually fading. After a moment, he chuckled softly. "Ms. Hill, I never would have guessed you were such a philosopher. I have even more confidence in you now. If you can take him right here in front of everyone tonight, I guarantee you'll walk out of this place safely.”
She couldn't agree. She absolutely couldn't agree. Besides, it was impossible. Benjamin had a gun—he'd kill her! Grace lifted the corner of her mouth slightly and glanced at the man behind her. "Truthfully, if I had to choose someone, I'd pick you. Benjamin makes me sick. Asking me to sleep with him? You might as well ask me to sleep with a dog."
"You called him a dog?" The man raised his eyebrows in surprise, but not anger. Glancing at Benjamin, who was drinking across the room, he leaned close to Grace's ear and murmured, "But I won't touch a woman he's touched. I find it filthy."
She snorted softly, mimicking his posture as she pressed her lips close. "You all crawl out of the same cesspool—who's really any better than the other?”
The young man shifted back slightly and studied her for a moment before asking, "So, Ms. Hill, are you planning to have some fun with us?"
The private room held over a dozen men. Aside from the young man and Benjamin on the U-shaped sofa, the others sat farther along the perimeter, seemingly making space for their conversation. Each man was wrapped up with one or two women, chatting, not even glancing their way.
Grace had already made up her mind. She curved her lips into a faint smirk, stood up, and walked over to the woman accompanying Benjamin. Extending her hand, she asked, "Excuse me, could I borrow a few condoms?"
The woman froze, first glancing at Benjamin. Seeing no objection from him, she fished two condoms out of her leather purse and handed them to Grace.
Grace's hand remained outstretched, growing impatient. "Give me all of them."
The woman glanced at Benjamin again. Seeing no reaction, she took out two more. When Grace still didn't withdraw her hand, she explained, "That's all I have."
Grace turned to walk away, seemingly intent on asking another young woman.
“Stop.” Benjamin said abruptly.
Grace stiffened, halting and turning back to him.
However, Benjamin was looking at the young man nearby and said indifferently, "These few are enough. Be careful not to harm yourself."
The young man shrugged with a smile. He spread his hands and laughed. "This has nothing to do with me. It's not like I'm the one using them."
Benjamin's brow furrowed slightly as he lifted his gaze back to Grace.
Grace bit her lip hard, her eyes brimming with tears, but her face set in stubborn defiance. She sneered, "No, Mr. Norman. You've got so many friends here. If each one shoots twice, that's at least thirty, right?"
Benjamin paused, his expression darkening as he turned to the young man. "Vito, don't push it."
“Push it?” Vito laughed. "You said I could do whatever I wanted. You used to be the most trustworthy guy around. You never went back on your word.”
She just didn't know what had gone wrong between them or why they were taking their anger out on her now.
At this point, resistance was her only option. She looked at Vito, her voice filled with fury. "Do whatever you want" means giving me two choices: either be taken by all these men or—"
Her words trailed off abruptly. She stopped, lifted her chin slightly, stood stubbornly, and fought back tears.
The second choice must be worse than the first. Benjamin had a rough idea. He pursed his lips, waved to the young lady beside him to leave, and said to Grace in a flat tone, "Come sit beside me."