Chapter 31 Chapter 31: Loosened Tongue After a Drink
Another full glass was poured, and Selena promptly drank it down. Her face flushed as red as a tomato, but now she wasn’t afraid anymore. What could be more terrifying than being thrown into the cold ocean, gasping for breath as the water slowly pulled her under?
At this point, there was no turning back. Even if he asked her to sleep with these men, she would comply. What did she have left to lose?
Betrayed, murdered, her child stolen away—being humiliated now was just a small matter.
She had to endure this physical torment to avenge her father and herself. The wicked must pay for their sins. She couldn’t afford to lose.
Seeing that Balthazar had no intention of stopping them from tormenting Selena, the men pushed further. One pulled her closer into the crowd, the bitter smell of alcohol mixing with their foul body odor, making her want to throw up.
One man, emboldened, placed his hand on Selena’s thigh, groping her with undisguised lust. He had recognized her from the bar when she had been with Balthazar, but back then, he hadn’t had a chance to touch her. Now, he finally did.
“You smell so good."
He pressed his face against her neck, inhaling deeply. Selena, no longer fully conscious, didn’t resist his advances. From where he sat, Balthazar’s face darkened.
A young man with a glass of wine sat down next to Balthazar and remarked:
“If it bothers you, stop them. If they have their way with her, she’ll be nothing but trash. You want to take back their leftovers?"
This was John White, the CEO of a major fashion company and a close acquaintance of Balthazar. One look at Balthazar’s expression, and John knew Selena wasn’t just another sugar baby.
He continued:
“If you don’t save her, I will. But if I save her, she’ll be mine, and you won’t get her back."
With that, John stood up, walked over to the group, and pulled the drunken Selena into his arms.
“Tonight, she’s mine..."
“She’s mine."
Balthazar cut him off before he could finish. He snatched Selena from John’s arms and carried her out of the VIP room.
Watching his retreating figure, one of the playboys grumbled:
“Does Mr. Winchester like to play with us like this? Bringing a woman here only to take her away? That’s too much."
John shot him a sharp look, silencing the complaint. A faint smile played on John’s lips.
“Looks like things are going to get interesting after tonight."
Meanwhile, Balthazar carried Selena to his car. He had planned to let her sit in the back, but seeing her drunk and out of control, he placed her in the passenger seat and drove away from the nightclub.
“Hu hu... You’re all so cruel. Why do you treat me like this?"
On the way home, Selena began to cry. At first, it was quiet sobbing, but it soon turned into loud wailing, which greatly irritated Balthazar.
“Shut up! Who did anything to you? Isn’t this the job you used to do?"
Selena shook her head repeatedly, her tear-streaked face becoming a mess.
“No, I didn’t do this kind of work. I’ve only ever served one man, serving him for ten years. I even had his child, but in the end, he threw me away without a second thought. Why did he abandon me? What did I do wrong?"
Screech!
Hearing Selena’s drunken confession, Balthazar slammed on the brakes. Thankfully, it was late at night and the streets were empty, or he might’ve caused an accident.
He turned to look at her, now sobbing miserably, and felt a deep unease.
According to his investigation, she was only twenty-three years old. Did that mean she had started serving that man at the age of thirteen?
This explained why he hadn’t been able to track her whereabouts after the orphanage dissolved. She had been taken by a pedophile, and after bearing his child, once she was of no use, he had cast her aside. Perhaps unable to find work, she had ended up in the bar where they met.
If all of this was true, then she had indeed lived a tragic life. Yet, he had mocked and humiliated her from the very beginning. No wonder she endured everything in silence, probably afraid he’d abandon her too.
A wave of guilt washed over Balthazar. As a businessman, he didn’t have much compassion to spare. There were many more tragic cases than hers in this world. If it were anyone else, he wouldn’t have felt so affected. He reached out to wipe away her tears, and in that moment, she suddenly spoke:
“No… now I serve another man too. He’s awful. I can’t bear his child... I don’t want to lose another child..."
The more Balthazar listened to Selena’s drunken ramblings, the more uncomfortable he felt. At first, he thought she didn’t want children to maintain her figure or simply because she didn’t want the burden, but he was wrong. She had really thought about the child before making that decision.
Perhaps she really wanted a child of her own?
"My baby... hu hu... my baby... don’t take my baby away..."
Seeing Selena delirious again, repeatedly pulling the seatbelt off herself, Balthazar took a deep breath and started the car, driving home.
Once home, he carried her upstairs. By then, she had cried herself into unconsciousness.
Looking at Selena’s tear-streaked face, Balthazar felt a stirring in his heart. Who said feelings couldn’t come from pity? Right now, he was falling for her.
He knew he was despicable. He both craved the care of the girl in front of him and couldn’t let go of his ex-girlfriend, but he simply couldn’t stop himself from liking her.
Balthazar pressed his hand to Selena’s cheek and whispered:
"Stay by my side. Although I can’t give you a title, I will treat you well. If you want, we can even have a child together. You’re so beautiful, our child will surely be gorgeous."
Balthazar began to imagine the children she might bear for him. If it were a daughter, she would undoubtedly be as stunning as her. If it were a son... well, he would probably resemble him a lot.
Unconsciously, a smile tugged at his lips, and he shook his head. How old was he to still be daydreaming like this?