Chapter 9
Night was falling.
Matthew walked into the police station and saw Sophie sitting on a chair, her hair pinned up high. Though clearly exhausted, she sat up straight.
She sat there alone, like an abandoned stray cat with nowhere to go.
When Sophie saw someone coming, her dim eyes brightened for a moment. When she saw who it was, she looked a bit surprised.
She had called Joshua, asking him to come to the station.
If Emily hadn't been away on business, she wouldn't have bothered Joshua.
She just didn't expect that it wasn't Joshua who came, but Matthew.
Seeing Matthew made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
They'd only known each other a short while, yet he'd already witnessed quite a few of her embarrassing moments. It was awkward.
Matthew went into the office, handled the paperwork, then came out and glanced at Sophie. "Let's go."
His voice was cold and emotionless, just like their relationship.
Sophie got up and followed behind Matthew, holding his jacket.
When she'd hit someone, her bag had broken.
As they walked out of the police station and were about to get in the car, Harold ran out.
"Hey, you Sophie's man?"
Sophie frowned. She really felt humiliated.
Matthew turned around, his gaze cold as he stared at Harold who had caught up.
Sophie's head ached.
Harold was like he had some serious problem, relentless like a mad dog.
"What do you want?" Matthew was very calm.
Harold didn't know Matthew, but from his bearing and clothes, he could tell he wasn't ordinary.
"Ha, Sophie, is this your taste? Of all the men out there, you pick a pretty boy who looks like a girl." Harold mocked Matthew.
Matthew was good-looking and fair-skinned, you could even say beautiful.
"Do you want another beating?" Sophie really hated Harold.
Harold sneered, glancing at Matthew, looking him up and down with complete disrespect. "Marrying this kind of guy, what were you thinking? Does he have any strength?"
The words were disgusting to hear.
Sophie raised her hand to hit him.
Matthew grabbed her hand, his eyes completely calm. "Let's go home."
Sophie couldn't believe Matthew wasn't angry at all.
She couldn't swallow this insult.
"Sophie, look at what a coward you found!"
Seeing Matthew had no temper, Harold became even more arrogant, speaking recklessly. "What's the use of good looks? What's the point of marrying this kind of man? So he looks good in photos?"
Sophie wanted to curse back, but Matthew pushed Sophie into the passenger seat, his gaze cold. "Verbal arguments are the most useless."
Sophie bit her lip, and under Matthew's gaze, she finally swallowed the words she wanted to say.
Matthew closed the car door. Getting no response, Harold got even angrier.
"Coward, not even as much temper as a woman."
Matthew walked to the driver's side and opened the door. Across the car roof, he looked indifferently at Harold's aggressive face, his gaze dark.
He said lightly, "You talk more than a woman."
By the time Harold reacted, Matthew had already driven away. Sophie looked in the rearview mirror and saw Harold standing there, so angry he was kicking a nearby tree.
Night had fully fallen. Outside, lights were bright and the city was lively, but inside the car it was so quiet it felt oppressive.
Sophie wanted to say something, but catching a glimpse of Matthew's expressionless face, she couldn't open her mouth.
He wasn't talking, so she didn't feel comfortable speaking up either, afraid of annoying him.
After all, she was the one who had caused him trouble.
While waiting at a light, Matthew made a phone call.
"Handle it."
Sophie only heard those four words, assuming he was talking about work.
The car stopped outside her apartment complex. Sophie unbuckled her seatbelt and looked at the clothes in her hands. "I'll give you the jacket back later."
After holding this jacket all afternoon, it needed washing.
Matthew finally turned to look at her. "Your taste is pretty bad."
Sophie couldn't argue. It was the truth.
"I'm sorry for causing you trouble." Sophie apologized.
Matthew glanced at her. Now she seemed like her real self, without any pretense.
"Good that you know." Matthew didn't look at her again.
Sophie took the hint and got out of the car.
The moment the car door closed, the car shot forward.
Sophie held the jacket, completely deflated.
In the middle of the night, Sophie was woken by a phone call.
As soon as she answered, Emily was very excited. "Quick, check the group chat, hurry!"
Sophie forced her eyes open and clicked into the Facebook group. So many messages.
She clicked in and saw everyone asking "Who did this, so brutal."
She scrolled up for a long time before seeing a video.
In the video, Harold was being held down in an abandoned warehouse and beaten, completely unable to fight back, only able to wail.
Seeing Harold beaten black and blue, Sophie frowned.
The group chat had exploded.
[From this angle, the video was obviously shot by the people doing the beating.]
[Who did he offend? To get beaten like this.]
[Who knows? Has he offended few people? This day was bound to come sooner or later.]
Everyone was discussing it, not at all afraid that Harold might see it later.
Emily called again, asking Sophie, "Do you know who did it?"
Sophie's mind went blank for a moment. "No idea."
"I checked the person who posted the video. They've already left the group. It's not a real name, can't trace who it was. But still, well done, very satisfying. He deserved it."
Sophie thought of what Matthew had said.
Perhaps when he said "handle it," he wasn't talking about handling work.
She watched the video again. Harold, usually so arrogant, was beaten to the point of only being able to howl. The attacker was ruthless, avoiding vital points, completely one-sided, just torturing him, humiliating him.
Sophie couldn't sleep the rest of the night.
Her mind was full of images of Harold being beaten. She inexplicably imagined Matthew as the person filming the video.
She stayed up until dawn, then called Matthew.
The call connected, and Matthew's voice was as cool as always. "What is it?"
Sophie swallowed. "Did you have someone beat up Harold?"
After asking, she held her breath, heart in her throat.
"Yes."
Sophie's eyes widened involuntarily. She thought even if it was him, he wouldn't admit it so quickly.
"Can't bear to part with him?" Matthew asked.
Sophie immediately denied it. "No, I was just asking."
"And then?"
Sophie bit her lip. She hadn't thought about "and then."
She just wanted to confirm.
"Did you... cover your tracks? The video got out. Will anyone find out?" Sophie was still worried.
This happened because of her, and she didn't want to cause him trouble.
"It's none of your business." Matthew said lightly, "I didn't beat him up because of you."
Sophie was speechless.
Matthew hung up. She looked at the darkened screen, not sure what she was feeling.
At noon, Evelyn called, asking her to lunch.
Evelyn seemed gentle, but each time carried an undeniable forcefulness.
As soon as Mrs. Moore saw Sophie, she smiled, looking very pleased.
She told her to order dishes she liked and asked if her cold was better.
It had been days and she was only now asking, just being polite.
Sophie was as obedient in front of her as before, answering whatever she asked.
"Sophie, why don't you move in with Matthew?"